Pat’s Product Review: Cold Steel Hold Out I

Make no mistake, given my druthers, I’d rather pick a large knife over a smaller knife. Now, you can get by with a smaller knife, but a larger knife can do more chores than most smaller knives can. When it comes to survival, on the streets, in the wilderness or in a SHTF scenario, my choice would be a larger knife for my needs, especially on the mean streets in our country.

My long-time friend, Lynn Thompson, who owns Cold Steel is a firm believer in big knives – either folders or fixed blade – and I can’t really find a lot of fault in his logic. Some months back, I did a review on the Cold Steel “Hold Out II” folding knife, and found it to be super-strong, and priced right, too. Now I’m commenting on the “Hold Out I” plain edge. Let’s get some of the specifications out of the way first: The blade length is 6″ – yes, you read that right SIX inches! It is made out of one of my favorite steels AUS 8A stainless – which I have found, over the years, to be a great compromise when it comes to price, as well as it holds a good edge a long time, and is fairly easy to re-sharpen. Overall length of the Hold Out I is 13 3/16″ – yeah, this hummer is big – even if it were a fixed blade knife. Blade thickness is 3.8mm – plenty of strength there! Weight is only 7.7-oz, so for such a massive knife, it is fairly light-weight. The handle material is G-10, some almost bullet-proof stuff that used to be used exclusively by custom knife makers. There is also a stainless steel clothing/pocket clip on the handle for ease of carry.

A quick review of this design goes back many years, as Lynn Thompson has always been fascinated with the “Black Knife” of Skean Dhu (Gaelic) of the ancient Scottish warriors. It was used as a utility or back-up knife, worn under the sleeve, tucked inside a jacket or slipped into the top of a stocking as it was thin, flat and pointy, and light as a feather. The Hold Out I features the record-breaking Tri-Ad lock, which is simply put, incredibly strong – you really need to check out the tests Cold Steel has performed on the Tri-Ad lock – you’ll find it on their web site – and you will be amazed at how strong this locking system is. Lynn Thompson isn’t afraid to put his knives to the test, and he proves it on his web site – I don’t know of any other knife company that provides this kind of proof on their web sites.

Okay, I know some of you, maybe most of you, are asking “really, a six inch bladed folding knife?” Yeah, and believe it or not, this thing isn’t as “clumsy” or hard to pack in pants pockets as you might think. Lynn Thompson usually carries two of the Hold Out I folders in his pants pockets – one on each side. At first, I also thought that this big of a folder would be a bit too much to carry in my cargo pants pocket. However, I hate to admit it, but I was wrong! I slipped the Hold Out I into my right front pants pocket and never gave it another thought – it just didn’t feel big or bulky in the least, not even when sitting at my PC for hours on end. Surprised? You bet I was!

The Hold Out I features a thin, acutely pointed tip that’s sharp as a needle – it can easily pierce some body armor as is glides effortlessly through many puncture resistant materials. Each blade is expertly hollow ground before being honed to a razor’s edge. And, I have said for many years, that Cold Steel set the gold standard for “sharp” when it comes to knives. Once word got out as to how sharp Cold Steel knives were, right out of the box, everyone else had to either jump on the band wagon or get left in the dust. Lynn Thompson is the “King Of Sharp”, if you ask me.

The G-10 handle scales are worth a mention, they offer a palm-hugging profile and a thin, flat lightly checkered cross section that resists rolling or twisting in the hand, while remaining comfortable and versatile enough to accommodate a wide variety of gripping styles – I know, I tried! The G-10 handle scales have several holes drilled through them, to lighten the overall weight of the knife, and aid in the balance. There are also friction grooves on the top back of the blade, for proper thumb placement in the fencing grip. Dual thumb studs on the blade aid in quick opening of the blade as well.

I can see the Hold Out I working as a wilderness survival knife, as well as an urban defender. I showed this sample to a lot of folks, and they simply couldn’t believe I was carrying a knife “that big” in my pants pocket. When the knife is opened, it will surely get anyone’s attention in short order. It reminds me of Mick Dundee saying: “That’s a knife…”  That’s the same comment you’ll be giving a bad guy if you are forced to pull the Hold Out I for self-defense. Believe me, the mere sight of this massive folder will probably be more than enough to make someone wish they had picked an easier target. As a wilderness survival knife – I found I could actually do some serious chopping with it – and the Tri-Ad lock never gave a hint of letting loose – the blade stayed open and firmly locked! The Hold Out I can easily replace packing a fixed blade knife on a camping trip or in a bug-out scenario – I kid you not. I’m a firm believe of less is more – and if I can get by with less, I’m a happy camper…and I believe you can get by just fine with the Hold Out I instead of a fixed blade knife in a SHTF scenario. This is one knife that you need to have in your bug-out bag – seriously!

I liked how fast the Hold Out I was in my hand – it was really faster than many smaller folding knives in different fighting grips. You can also choke-up on the handle for more precise cutting, or move your hand all the way down to the bottom of the handle, extending your reach by several inches in a self-defense situation, or for chopping purposes – we’re talking VERY versatile.

I have to admit, when I first opened-up the box the Hold Out I came in, the first thing to cross my mind was “Really, this is too big for a folder.” Yes, I was wrong. The Hold Out I will grow on you very fast, and will become a favorite for EDC (Every Day Carry) if you give it a chance. You’ll forget you’re carrying such a big folding knife, until you pull it out to use it. If someone pulled this knife out on me, I’d be heading to the hills – I wouldn’t want to fight against this knife unarmed! My Glock 23 or 27 would be clearing leather – I’m not about to face this knife without being well-armed! Even an untrained person could cause you serious harm with the Hold Out I simply by slashing out at you – keep your distance, simple as that.

As with all Cold Steel products, I believe you get more for your money – you can spend a lot more, but will you really be getting more? The Hold Out I has a full-retail of $159.99 and if you paid full-retail, you’d be getting a heck of a knife. However, you can shop around and find the Hold Out I for less money if you spend a little time on the ‘net. Even if you don’t, you’ll be getting one heck of a folder if you paid full-retail. You will impress your friends and family when you pull the Hold Out I out of your pocket and start doing some cutting chores – you’ll even impress yourself, as to what you can do with this folder. You can also get the Hold Out I with a partially serrated blade, too. So, you have a couple choices there. If you’re looking for one knife, to do many chores, then the Hold Out I might just be what you’re looking for – it can easily replace a fixed blade knife, and it can do most chores that are called upon by smaller folders. – SurvivalBlog Field Gear Editor Pat Cascio

Letter Re: Gas Can Pack Boards and Cargo Shelves

Jim:
All the recent news stories showing people in New Jersey on foot queuing up at gas stations with red gas cans in hand, reminded me: gas cans are heavy! Did anyone think to put a old fashioned Pack Board in with the rest of the supplies? You know the kind, the one with the lip at the bottom? It would hold a two full gas cans with much less strain than carrying them in your hands. Or, how about taking a small load of fire wood to your relatives’ house? Just a thought. – Dale K.

JWR Replies: That is a valuable reminder. In addition to the older-generation military pack boards, keep in mind that ALICE Series (LC-1 and LC-2) backpack frames can have a cargo shelf clipped on, for the same effect. There are also commercially made (civilian) equivalent packs, like those made by Stansport and formerly by Kelty. These are often used by people who own remote “pack-in” or “ski-in” cabins, and for those who work at fire lookout towers that are only accessible by foot.

Letter Re: Laptop Becomes Oscilloscope and Waveform Generator

Jim:
I’d like to tell the readers about an amazingly affordable electronics workbench tool that turns you laptop into an oscilloscope, and a lot more: Analog Discovery. This one card can
replace $10,000 worth of other gear. The student version is just $99. See a quick summary of the specifications.

I think that this is the Pico scope taken to the next level. This puts AM radio, FM radio, radar, sonar, ultrasound, spread-spectrum radio for secure communications, encryption tools for running secure comms over otherwise insecure channels, high-bandwidth servocontrol of machinery and countless other modern technologies in hands of the garage inventors, small businesses and university research groups. At my company we’ve been using much more expensive versions of this technology for a while.

The Digilent Analog Discovery design kit, developed in conjunction with Analog Devices Inc., is the first in a new line of all-in-one analog design kits that will enable engineering students to quickly and easily experiment with advanced technologies and build and test real-world, functional analog design circuits anytime, anywhere – right on their PCs. For the price of a textbook, students can purchase a low-cost analog hardware development platform and components, with access to downloadable teaching materials, reference designs and lab projects to design and implement analog circuits as a supplement to their core engineering curriculum.

The specs:

Dual 14-bit 105 MSPS ADC
Dual 14-bit 125 MSPS DAC
16 digital I/Os at 100 MSPS
Programmable power supply

It is designed to be an oscilloscope/AWG/logic analyser/digital pattern generator, so the usual caveats (5 MHz analogue input bandwidth) apply for such a device, but the screenshots
of the software look quite nice and Mac OS X and Linux versions are promised.

Like many here, I’m not too interested in this class of oscilloscope, but assuming it’s hackable it could be the basis for a cheap software defined radio transceiver. It doesn’t look like a schematic diagram is available, but Digilent often provides them. We’ll have to wait and see after it’s released.

Here is a write-up in EE Times: Disruption in the engineering classroom

And, one in EDN: The joys of tinkering, by Robert J. Bowman, Professor of Electrical Engineering, Rochester Institute of Technology.

Regards, – Chris M.

Three Letters Re: Hurricane Sandy After Action Reports

James:
Let me first say we are doing well compared to the rest of the folks here on Long Island , NY . I am no hard core prepper but believe strongly that the need is there. We are in Nassau County and are served by LIPA, the Long Island Power Authority. As I write there are about 300,000 people here without power. Some of the things I have witnessed are very sad indeed and we were blessed to have our power back within two days.
 
South of where we live along the water the houses have had their basements flooded out. Even with prior storms my in-laws who live near the water had their basement flooded to the ledger board on their foundation. The water has never gotten that high since they have lived there for over fifty years. Everything in their basement was ruined. They had built up a sand berm but the water kept coming and then rushed into the basement, carrying the sand with it. Note to self, use sand bags. Upon entering their neighborhood the people were all on the streets taking their ruined belongings and bringing them to the curb. Everyone of them as I drove by had the “Thousand Yard Stare” made famous in pictures and photographs from World War II. We were able to give my in-laws our generator after they returned to their house. They bugged out to a hotel in a dry area of Long Island . Their Hotel lost power for a day.
 
Things that got us through the storm.
 
Trees
Over the past few years we have removed large trees that, had they fallen the right way, would have cut out house in two. We have three pre-teens and could not have dealt with their loss. After both my wife and I grew up near open water and the associated wind that can come off the water we learned not to have overhanging trees. While the shade generated from them cut out cooling bills, it’s just not worth it if you, or god forbid, your loved ones lose their life.
 
You need a generator (period)
Get a generator strong enough to power your refrigerator, a radio and a few lights. This saved us from having to throw out our newly purchased foods. We are fortunate to have both an old refrigerator (which seems to last much longer than the new ones with planned obsolescence built in, we are never getting rid of it) and a new one. The new one has better insulation. So what we did was take the ice from the ice maker and kept it in the freezer in zip-lock bags. This helped us build us the cooling thermal mass. We kept on letting the ice maker make more ice and put it in bags rather than letting the trip bar stop the ice making. If you think you don’t need a generator then get one anyway when there is a sale because someone you know will need it and being charitable may save someone’s life. After the storm here it got down into the 30’s and people froze in their houses.
 
Stock up on gasoline and stabilize it before the storm.
The Coast Guard shut the ports in NY which supply gasoline here and there are now huge lines for gas. We had about fifteen gallons in the garage and used about half of it before our power came back and we gave the rest to the in-laws to power their pumps to pump out their basement. We could have used a lot more gasoline. (check your local ordinances for storage limits) Again, learning from this instance, if you live in a low-lying area, rethink what you have in your basement. It was never this bad before and they lost everything in their basement.
 
Digitize every picture of sentimental value.
 
On the local news channel most people returned to their home to see if they could salvage any pictures. I can not tell you how sad I found this. If you are like some of my relatives and have, over the years amassed footlockers full of pictures maybe outsourcing is a good solution. Since we take digital pictures now, we save them on our hard drive and back them up to an external one terabyte USB hard drive. If we ever had to bug out we’d just take the USB drive and boogey.
 
Emergency food
Emergency food has helped us out. We went the canned route and slowly purchased canned meals like Ravioli with Meatballs and had them in-hand for use. We need to work on this as we were running out of milk and a few other items for the kids (lessons learned).
 
Water
 
While camping this Summer in New England we went pretty deep into the Maine woods to Baxter State Park . There was no running water and we had to carry it in with the pickup. We used hanging bag showers to clean ourselves and we carried in about 10 gallons of water for a couple of days. Get yourself a good storage container for clean water. We used two five gallon Coleman water containers but a few milk containers with screw-on lids (Sterilized) would have helped.
 
Security
 
While it could have gotten to an apocalyptic TEOTWAWKI situation here the big drama on “The Island” was as the gas pumps with fights breaking out as people tried to cut each other in line. One man was arrested for taking out a pistol. There is and was looting in other areas where homes are damaged and abandoned. Thankfully I did not have to rely on all the NRA patches I earned when I was a kid (I got to Barr III )
 
Batteries
 
Batteries and power for “Crackberries” were a pretty big story here. In New York City people who had power ran power lines to the street to let others charge their cell phones. I use a battery back up pack for my phone and fill it with four double-a rechargeable batteries and keep them charged at all times. Link .This doubles my battery life but when the area lost power…so did the cell towers. So I’ll be studying for the Ham technician license. We have four hand held FRS walkie talkies that my son won in a Boy Scout Raffle a few years ago and it did not get to the point where we needed them. But they are great fun to use in the shopping mall to find your lost kids at no cost.
 
Transportation
Walkability is how friendly your area is to walking. If you have to travel everywhere by car…in our current situation with gas shortages you’d be walking everywhere to get your food and supplies. While this has great health benefits you may end up burning more calories than you can take in. Get a bike and a hand operated bike pump with either a rack or basket to carry items. I need to get a hand operated air pump as I’ve been relying on the air compressor and it never occurred to me.
 
Psychological lessoned learned
 
Having survived the horrific scenes of 9/11 and losing many former colleagues (another  story for another day) and of the 2004 blackout here in NY, I learned that yes, you have to get your news from the media but if you watch the TV 24/7 you will lose your mind and get really really depressed. Get up from the “Idiot Box” as my parents used to call it and “Move a muscle and change a thought”. Getting up and around rather than hunkering down in your foxhole makes you feel “Big and Strong”.
 
Flaws and future plans
 
What I have learned is that a lot of people here needed our help. My in-laws come for dinner every night. They needed my generator when I was done with it. Our friends needed our extra heaters as they got their power back but their boiler (in the basement) was trashed and could not heat their house. Plan on being generous. Maybe someday it will come back to you as you have paid it forward.
 
I need to reconsider where we live. Right now I am unemployed from the financial community here in NY and have worked in Project Management and I am PMP certified. Hopefully the wife and kids will buy-in to the idea. Being a conservative in NY has not suited me well. My father had his life saved by a Naval Scholarship as his dad died at an early age from sclerosis of the liver (as my friend Bill says, he never took the first step).
I tried to join the Military but was unable to pass the physical due to a slight limp, I still got my pilots license though. I have not flown since 1995.
 
Hopefully my Project Management Experience will be able to help me pick up a job in another field somewhere safe. I have worked in banking and software development as a project manager and business analysis. I have traded for the worlds largest commodities firm (at the time) and know a bit about financial derivatives. Enough to know that it’s not the product but the greed behind it that ruins everything. So long as a trading desk is very profitable everybody in management leaves them alone. I’ve seen some pretty smart people (on paper) “Blow-up” and lose everything and then I’ve seen some pretty “street smart” kids make a killing.
 
In summation, while I’m no hard core prepper, I got by with the help from God and family. The 5 P’s are burned into my memory like a scar. Proper Preparation Produces Perfect Performance. Yes, I know there are derivatives of this saying. I was very happy to help other people. Because as soon as I got out of feeling sorry for myself I was able to feel great in helping others. This by the way has saved my life in another aspect. I’m an alcoholic and if I had not learned the lessons I had over half a decade ago things would have only gotten worse in this tragedy and I would not have my wits about me nor my family as they would have left many years ago.
 
I hope this has helped you. Best, – One Lucky Guy (and family).
 

Dear Rawles Family,
I have been an avid reader of your blog for about seven years. You actually recently featured a link on your blog to my radio show on blog talk radio called The Homeschool Homemaker where I discussed what Homeschoolers and Homemakers can learn from Preppers. I followed that with a radio show on how to prep for Sandy. I will be doing a follow up show shortly as the power was just now restored after being out for six days.
 
Your blog has changed my life.
 
The Good Lord Almighty and you are responsible for two proud moments in my life this last week. One, when I walked into Sam’s Club last Saturday morning among HUNDREDS of people in full fledged panic and a smart alec greeter at the door said snidely “If you are here for supplies we are out of generators, water, batteries and lots of other stuff.” I was able to just as smugly say back to him, “Then I guess it is a good thing that I already have those things on hand at home.” He looked genuinely shocked. I spent the next two hours avoiding panic stricken mobs, taking my children through the store and teaching them what they should have on hand at all times and forcing them to watch other people’s behavior. I told them what they could use as substitutes. I was able to get together a large list of wants (these were not needs as if I had to I could have survived at home, just not in luxury) and provisions for expected/unexpected guests. I shudder to think of what was going through the minds of those who needed those supplies and couldn’t find them anywhere. Those poor people.
 
The second was when we were able to provide shelter to some friends who badly needed it. They said it was like coming to a luxury hotel, and were able to take warm showers, have a large hot meal and tuck themselves and their children into warm beds. It was a joy. They remarked upon seeing how we were weathering things, “You are the most prepared people I have ever met!”. It was an honor to show hospitality in the name of the Lord in a time of trouble.
 
Here are some things I can share that may help my fellow readers.
 
1. Preparedness needs to be consistent, constant and progressive.
Had I waited till just the threat of Sandy was here I would not have been prepared to the level of comfort, maybe only to the level of survival.
For the last seven years we have moved, purchased and trained guard dogs, increased security, tucked ourselves into a small and preparedness minded community (hard to find for NJ) and slowly accumulated high quality items with long term preparedness goals in mind. This cannot be done in a week, not even in a month. It makes a HUGE difference.
 
2. Everything you say is true regarding the progression of things. It truly progressed in that fashion. People ignored the warnings, then were terrified when the storm hit, then panicked when they saw the aftermath. It is heartbreaking to see and I am not even in that immediate area. In my immediate area it is more that the cold and frustration was taking over, but the few neighbors who were not prepared quickly got out of town or found a way to manage. This is not what is happening in other areas.
 There is widespread looting. There is genuine hunger, thirst and terror. Others are moving from place to place as they don’t want to be a burden. Prices are skyrocketing and people seem to have lost the good sense God gave them. This is not where the storm damage is, it is just where the power is out!
 
3.We had an attempted break in on my street last night that happened within five minutes of the Husband leaving. Dogs stopped it. Someone tried my doors the night before. My dogs stopped it. The day after the storm my neighborhood was inundated with people looking for work or just looking. My guard dogs took care of that, but scams and criminals abound in even the areas not hard hit. If you have a choice between a security system and dogs, go with the dogs every time.
 
I will just say that many times when I have read here I have had a hard time accepting all of your advice. Thinking things would never progress that quickly or that bad. I was wrong. Just days in, you had to be very careful who knew you had hot water. People were starting to remark on who seemed to be living the high life and who wasn’t. You can see where this can quickly go.
 
Thanks to you, I was frying up chicken with mashed potatoes and drinking hot chocolate with whipped cream the day after the hurricane hit. I assumed we would not be able to leave the house as we would have to guard the generator and we were able to hold tight nearly a week now.
 
Of course now the shelves are all bare and the pumps are being rationed AND we have a huge snow storm coming. I am sorry for those who will lose even more.
 
This has helped me practice many preps, test them out and clarified places for improvement. People who mocked are now listening. People who thought that security wasn’t an issue if you “didn’t live in that type of area” have come to the horrifying realization that people who want to break in don’t have to live next to you to be a danger.
 
I am afraid we are in for much more because of the snow storm coming, but we shall see.
 
Thank you for all you do! – The Homeschool Homemaker

 

Jim:
I’m grateful to you for sharing my post-Sandy updates. There is a “comfort” in reaching people. Here is Storm Update # 5:
 
Sunday morning. Relationships. They matter more than ever in an emergency. Yesterday, we burned through the decent firewood. We are now down to the rot. Before Sandy, I had contacted a landscaper to remove this stuff to make space for a new load. However, it fell to the wayside, in part because I had other priorities, and also because I was using this junk wood in our backyard fire pit. I logged in a call to the contractor who had provided us with firewood for the last seven years – his Fall advertisement was still on my desk. He remembered us, and though he was delivering in upstate Pennsylvania with orders backed-up, he understood the circumstances here and promised to deliver a heaping cord tomorrow. I thanked him, and headed out to clean-up our wood stack. This took several hours. The rot went into the mulch piles, which left two empty six by six inch railroad ties clear for the new wood. I also repositioned our eight-foot metal fireplace holder. Good to go.
 
Next, I turned to refilling the genny. I was mixing the stabilized emergency gasoline that had been under the tarp since last Spring, with the new gasoline I had obtained Friday. Normally, I would do first in, first out, but I didn’t want to risk the genny with bad fuel. While pouring the gas, our neighbor from behind the house (Mike) surprised me with a visit. He lives on a different street, and our last encounter had been testy as he had attempted to dig a drainage line over our property without permission. Don’t get me wrong, we resolved that episode. He had apologized, laying the blame on his contractor. Without rehashing the details, suffice to say that this was a knowing incursion onto our property. Still, I was of a mind to let there be peace.
 
Mike and I chatted for a while. He was cooking the last of his freezer meat on the barbecue – thus he had seen me – and was also a bit freaked. Though our prior encounter had not been the warmest, he was looking for camaraderie. Most of the neighbors on his side were also gone, and he never imagined that power-down could happen for a week in NJ! His genny, like ours, was also wired into critical systems. He had gasoline issues, food supplies in his basement and a baseball bat by the bed. He and his wife were “creeped out” at night. They had signed up for firearm instruction, but that was next month. Short story – I extended the olive branch, and told him I’d watch his back and to let me know if he needs anything. He agreed to do the same for us. I didn’t give him every detail on our situation, but enough. Relationships – they do matter. Perhaps one can be an island as a “prepper” in a hardened bunker in the Redoubt, but in my experience the folks that truly understand survival always acknowledge that it takes cooperation by a team of like-minded adults and children.
 
While I was busy at the house, my wife (Steph) was making a run to Whole Foods to see about fresh food. We got word through our friends on Twitter that the store was open, had generator power and had received a delivery. I reminded her that as the pet store was in the same shopping center, try to buy whatever bags they had available of Aslan’s dry dog food. I had bought two 20-pound bags pre-Sandy, but he’s a 70 pound shepherd and he rips through the chow.
 
Steph returned a few hours later with groceries. The entire shopping center was dark except Whole Foods. Fortunately, the pet store owners had set up a table outside and were walking customers in one at a time with a flashlight – cash only of course. She bought their last 20-pound bag and a few chewy treats.
 
Goods were unloaded, dishes hand washed, fireplace stoked, lanterns checked (fresh batteries for the non-rechargeables), dog walked and dinner cooked. Steph had purchased a mashed cauliflower side from Whole Foods, but upon sampling it in the pan with the onions, she tossed it. Spoiled. Lesson learned… she would ask for a taste at the store before buying any prepared items. After dinner – it’s dark, cold and windy – I did the genny refueling for the night, and observed that it was running a hair rougher to my ear. Note to self: could be the fuel mix, but six days of 24-hour running means that tomorrow I need to check the oil, carburetor, fuel line, etc.
 
Turning to the Shore, and a bit of positive news: I confirmed that mom had checked into the hotel. Eventually, we spoke via the mobile. Her phone battery charger had died the other day and she was otherwise busy with contractors, insurance adjusters, FEMA reps, etc. She had brought enough food with her from Pennsylvania, and in South Jersey, gasoline was not as much of a problem. As for our family home on the beach block, pretty much as expected. The garage had four feet of sand, the doors were destroyed from the waves and everything inside was history. The basement of the home (which is more like a first floor due to the home’s elevation) was trashed, a total loss of all systems (HVAC, pumps, washer, dryer, electrical, freezer, etc.). There was a foot of sand to dig out and everything will have to be removed to the foundation before the mold gets a grip. Thankfully, the first floor and above – having been built high in 1938 and all windows boarded-up for Sandy – suffered minimal damage. Mom told me that the local supermarket will not open for several days, but that other stores are beginning to show signs of life. The overall damage to the City is huge, and there is a foul “smell” in the air. She will do the back-and-forth from the house to the hotel until things are repaired. The only dependable contractor that has been helping her is the carpenter that our family has known for decades. Again, it’s all about relationships.
 
This isn’t the most riveting update, but life is all about the little things. Sometimes they take more energy than we imagine, and it wears you down. Our family realizes that our situation is so much better than that of others in NJ and NY, as well as other regions of the country. In part, that’s through our decisions and actions, but luck also plays a role. I’m told that power should be restored today, and that although our daughters’ school has one building without power or fire alarms, the main building will be open for classes tomorrow – Monday.
 
Best wishes to all. This might be the last update – in a good way. – Bill H.

Three Letters Re: Forget Codes: Using Constructed Languages for Secure Communication

Jim:
The article on constructed languages [by Snow Wolf] was fascinating. Just two concerns: An outsider might be able to crack your code based on repeated grammar. As was mentioned in the letter, “sentences follow the common subject-verb-object pattern”. This pattern is predictable and could help a very intelligent decoder. Also your activity can be observed after communication, helping one define terms.

Both of these concerns can be mitigated with re-aligning, as mentioned in the letter. So take care not to overlook that step.

Finally, if every tip in this article (such as re-aligning and custom grammar) were practiced, and on top of this was layered a nice encryption method, such as was described in the 9/11/12 letter, you’d seriously give an enemy a run for their money!

I know this is true, for during WWII, Navajo-speakers were employed for code talking; that is, the messages were first translated into Navajo and then encrypted. Navajo almost fully qualifies as a constructed language. The following is from Wikipedia:

“Navajo was an attractive choice for code use because few people outside the Navajo themselves had ever learned to speak the language. Virtually no books in Navajo had ever been published. Outside of the language itself, the Navajo spoken code was not very complex by cryptographic standards and would likely have been broken if a native speaker and trained cryptographers worked together effectively. The Japanese had an opportunity to attempt this when they captured Joe Kieyoomia in the Philippines in 1942 during the Bataan Death March. Kieyoomia, a Navajo Sergeant in the U.S. Army, but not a code talker, was ordered to interpret the radio messages later in the war. However, since Kieyoomia had not participated in the code training, the messages made no sense to him. When he reported that he could not understand the messages, his captors tortured him. Given the simplicity of the alphabet code involved, it is probable that the code could have been broken easily if Kieyoomia’s knowledge of the language had been exploited more effectively by Japanese cryptographers. The Japanese Imperial Army and Navy never cracked the spoken code.”

Jim,
The recent submission, “Forget Codes…” while interesting, seems to neglect one rather important point: what the author is suggesting IS a code, and a fairly simple one at that!

Rather than substituting symbols for letters or letters for each other, this code is substituting words for other words. That the substituted words are made up isn’t of any consequence at all.

What is proposed is thus a substitution cipher and like all such ciphers, can and will be cracked by a determined individual or group. It is more complex than the simple Caesar Ciphers we used as children to keep our “secret clubs” secret, but it’s not a secure cipher by any means.

All that is needed to crack it is a sufficient collection of enciphered phrases and some indication of their meaning. These meanings could be gotten by intercepting the enciphered communication and observation of events before or after the communication. The group using the code could even be baited by an enemy into using words – for example, if I walk down the road near their BOL and drop a handful of ammunition on the ground, I can bet the encoded word “ammunition” will be used by their patrol when they report back in. Knowing their word for ammunition could be valuable, no? If the situation is such that I could safely allow myself to be observed while walking down the road, I might also get the words “man”, “stranger” or “dropped”. From there the process of deciphering unknown words snowballs.

Using the examples provided by the author:

puq tf urr (There’s a man in the house.)

cg wzn (A stranger is coming.)

igy cg tf urr (Shoot the stranger in the house.)

aok cg tf f (Watch out for a stranger in a vehicle.)

puq fh bx tf urr (A man with a gun is in the house.)

…and with NO reference to the key, which is now out of sight, I can see that the word “house” is used in sentences 1, 3 and 5. The only code words used in all three sentences are tf and urr. One of those means house. Those sentences also have something else in common, as there is another word repeated – that is the state of “in-ness” – being in the house. A look at sentence 4 disambiguates: it is lacking a reference to “house” and is also missing the word “urr”. Urr thus means “house” leaving “tf” to refer to in-ness. As further confirmation it refers to someone who is “in” a vehicle and contains the word “tf”. Tf thus definitely means “in”. A little more thought along the same lines reveals that the “man” in sentences 1 and 5 is represented by the word “puq” and that the remaining words in sentence 5, “fh bx”, mean “with a gun”. A larger sample would be needed to tease those two words apart. It would probably only take another sentence or two before the word “with” appeared without “gun”, answering that question.

The plaintext is the key! Given enough samples, the key can be extracted from the text.

This cipher could be very useful if dealing with a short-term situation with a transient enemy but would become useless against a long-term neighboring enemy very quickly and suggesting that it could resist the efforts of a government is craziness.

The only way a cipher like this can remain secure is if all of the facts conveyed using it also remain unknown to the observer. This is a common weakness among substitution ciphers. Whether it is letter, digram or trigram frequency analysis for letter substitution ciphers – or analysis of the use and reuse of code words for word substitution ciphers – the weakness is the same. With a more secure cipher knowing some of the plaintext (or in this case, the information conveyed) doesn’t get you even one step closer to deciphering the /next/ bit of text.

Those interested in the subject of encryption would do well to check out “Cryptanalysis – A Study of Ciphers and Their Solution” by Helen Fouche Gaines. It is a well regarded “beginning to intermediate” text on many cipher schemes, some quite difficult to crack. Applied Cryptography by Bruce Schneier contains great coverage and explanations of security and encryption, especially with regard to electronic communication.

Finally, as far as I know there is only one cipher that is known to be unbreakable if properly implemented, and that is the “one time pad”. When I say unbreakable I mean unbreakable even by the wealthiest and most powerful governments. It is extremely simple but suffers from a few difficulties and limitations, the primary one being that the keys must be exchanged before any encoding can take place. Two others are that it requires the generation of a very random collection of data used as the encryption key (the pad) and pads can *never* be reused (or you’ll introduce the very same weakness I illustrated above). It is well worth looking into and if you decide to use it, generate and exchange pads *now*. If you can’t build a device to collect cosmic noise for random data then decent pad data can be (or used to be) gotten from www.random.org. In the event someone intercepts your pad data, it is unlikely they will also be the person out to raid your BOL!

Best, – Matt R.

James:
I was surprised to see you publish the article on “Forget Codes: Using Constructed Languages,” it has to be one of the single most dangerously flawed pieces of writing I have seen on your web site. It seems based on an understanding of cryptography and mathematics set shortly after the Victorian era of heiroglyphics decryption. We have come a LONG way since then. The author is WRONG, and following his advice leaves ones communications completely vulnerable. I do not leave my argument up to a difference of style or opinion. I do not base my argument on petty infighting of Glock vs Everything else, or other arcane arguments that appear on Internet fora. My argument is based on undergraduate level mathematics and statistics. 

Yes, constructed language will serve to keep conversation “secure” in the setting of overheard conversations in the local watering hole. For that matter, I can’t follow the conversation of the waiters at my local Cantonese restaurant. Constructed language might even serve a small groups security purposes in the local AO. However, make no mistake, the concept is tragically flawed when discussed in terms of security and cryptography.

By its very nature, what is being discussed is a substitution cipher. Yes, the author suggested playing some games in the construct and lingui/grammatical foundations. There is also an attempt to change “hash” on a pseudo-random basis. Or to even change keys on some time period (t.) Ultimately, should we follow the authors advice and not even substitute for each word in the dictionary, but instead a common subset of oft used nouns and actions, we are talking about a frequency breakage of a mere (in the authors suggestion) 300 factors. Lets be generous and quadruple this to 1200 words. Or change the hash 3 times, and come up with a factor of 3600. We would not even require computer horsepower to break this “code” using modern mathematics. It can be done by anyone with a basic background in statistics, a few pages of notepaper, and 5-10 pages of message intercepts or transcripts to analyze.

I heartily agree with the philosophy of grounding ourselves in secure communications. But please dear reader, do NOT create a security system that is based on radically flawed assumptions. Heck, do not even trust me on this topic. If you are serious about security, do your own research. You will likely find, that the constructed language concept was debunked shortly after Turing moved beyond water filled tubes and the first computers began number crunching. I should also note that there are now linguistic breakages, as opposed to purely statistical (I hate his politics, but Chomsky is brilliant on language commonalities.) Turing machines used brute force, now we have algorithms to assist, along with the Moore’s Law logarithmic increase in brute force of computing power.

If you are truly interested in secure communication, there are many excellent and free resources.
-The book Cryptonomicon by Stephenson is an excellent novel, and contains an appendix on creating a Solitaire code based on decks of cards.
–Bruce Schneir, one of the worlds experts on cryptography has an excellent blog, and free monthly newsletter. In it, he discusses politics, security theater, snake oil ideas in security, cryptography, software, etc. Free, excellent, and from one of the modern day godfathers in the field.
–Human Rights Watch (say what you will about their politics) has an excellent resource for folks working in hostile environments, who require secure comms from the field.
–PGP and Open PGP (likely breakable by large resources such as the NSA) are free, and there are numerous reputable resources discussing its implementation.
-Read up on Onion routing (not entirely secure, but a good step amongst many needed,) one time pads (very secure, but laborious, and should be implemented with a second authentication factor,) key lengths, and hash functions.
–Open source philosophy of security i.e. public testing of all mathematical and programming functions. Also see: ISECom.

In closing, I could completely pull apart the suggestion of security via constructed language using mathematical arguments, and logical analysis. Lets just leave it at this – PLEASE do some research before you accept that suggestion as gospel to be deployed in securing your loved ones. My entire purpose is to save lives, and letting that article stand is like me not shouting FIRE in a burning building. It is a flawed course of action, potentially fatally.

Wishing gods blessings, of peace and health to all. – CypherPunkPrepper

JWR Replies: I agree completely that substitution ciphers and constructed languages only provide a very weak form of encryption. They might suffice if your opponent is just a criminal looter gang, but they absolutely will not hold up to the scrutiny of any government agency.

Recipe of the Week:

Enola Gay‘s Survival Bars (aka Filled Oatmeal Cookies)

My Survival Bars are “Filled Oatmeal Cookies”. They are wonderful “stored foods” cookies, full of fiber and packed with nutrients. They are our cookie of choice for a quick breakfast. They are great if you are out hunting or hiking. They require no fresh ingredients!

They are also good! Our neighbor girl says they are the best cookies that I have ever made (and I make a lot of cookies!) I got the recipe from my dear friend “Lady Day”. Here is the recipe.

1 1/2 C. Shortening (or lard or butter)
1 1/2 C. Brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp. Vanilla
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda mixed with 6 T. hot Water
3 C. Oatmeal (I use thick cut)
3 C. Flour (may use white or whole wheat)
1/4 tsp. Nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp. Salt

Combine shortening, sugar, and vanilla. Mix well. Add soda in water, nutmeg, salt, flour. Stir in oatmeal. Add more water or flour to make a nice, workable dough. Roll out thin. Cut out with round cookie or biscuit cutter (or whatever shape floats your boat). Lay cookies on cookie sheet, place desired filling on them (1 tsp. or so) and top with another cookie. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. There is no need to seal the edges. My preference for filling is raspberry or blackberry jam. However, any kind of jam would be wonderful or you could use a raisin filling (good stored foods item).

Raisin filling:
Grind or chop fine 1 1/2 to 2 C. raisins, dates or prunes. Add 1 C. sugar and 1 C. water. Bring to a boil. Mix 2 tsp. cornstarch with a little water for thickening.

Chef’s Notes:

I often make these cookies with a drizzle of frosting on them. This certainly isn’t necessary, but sometimes I want them to be a little fancy.

JWR Adds: For the original recipe post (with some photos), see Enola Gay’s great Paratus Familia blog site. (One of our favorite blogs.)

Useful Recipe and Cooking Links:

Over at Sustainable Preparedness: Recipe for Canning Beans

Patrice Lewis recently posted a great curried chicken recipe.

Currently Available as Free Kindle e-Books:

The Art of Perfect Bread Baking

Desserts for Winter

How to Cook Steak: The 5 Step Formula for the Perfect Steak

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

Economics and Investing:

The Scariest Jobs Chart Ever. (Thanks to R.D.F. for the link.)

Over at The Motley Fool: Three Facts About the Economy That Should Freak You Out

Hyperinflation Alert: QE Infinity Is The Only Thing Delaying A Complete Systemic Collapse But Now The Fed Is Out Of Short Dated Bonds

Items from The Economatrix:

Labor Department “Working Hard” To Ensure Jobs Report Released On Time

Firings Highest Since 2010 As Ford To Dow Face Slump

Russian Ship Missing With 700 Tons Of Gold Ore

Real Fiscal Cliff–Currency And Bond Collapse

Food Stamp Creation 75X Greater Than Job Creation

Economists Say Jobs Data To Have Little Impact On US Elections:  Reuters Poll

Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader Dana H. suggested this in The Wall Street Journal: Lessons from the Ultimate Safe Houses

   o o o

In New York’s Public Housing, Fear Creeps In With the Dark. J.W.R.’s Comment: Now extrapolate this to a situation where there is no natural gas pressure, and no water pressure for the fire hydrants. Oh, and what if there was no prospect of grid power being restored for weeks… Somehow, I think I’ll be much safer here in TUWS.

   o o o

A Utah Perspective on Sandy (No, not Sandy, Utah, but rather Hurricane Sandy): Caught in the dark: What Sandy can teach you about preparedness

   o o o

Some of Mayor Bloomberg’s “Free Gasoline” is being transported in containers that would give a Fire Marshall apoplexy.)

   o o o

FEMA’s vaunted “lean forward” strategy that called for advanced staging of supplies for emergency distribution failed to live up to its billing in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"The idea that living within your means is a form of austerity, and not (other than in exceptional circumstances) the elementary moral duty of people of honor, shows that, underlying the economic crisis is a profound moral crisis in western society." – Theodore Dalrymple (A retired prison doctor and psychiatrist, contributing editor of the City Journal and Dietrich Weissman Fellow of the Manhattan Institute.)

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.

Letter Re: Possible Survival Uses of Theatrical Blood

As the Halloween season came and went, I had to accompany my  boys to the seasonal Halloween store that opens up for about 2 months in some obscure, rented building. My trip with them looked at masks, costumes and an aisle or two dedicated to make-up supplies as well. I passed by the face paint, the hair coloring and the fangs, but then my eyes spied a series of tubes containing “blood”, and then small bottles of it and even a couple of very large containers all containing the bright red, sticky, usually non-toxic theatrical blood. Being a prepper at heart, my mind usually runs items I see through a mental rubric for deciding if something has any “prepper value” for my survival or my ability to barter. Through this mental maze, there exists a matrix of questions that falls under personal defense and tactics. Could theatrical blood have any tactical value to my survival situation? Yes, I think it could. Knowing that the day after Halloween the products would be 50% off helped make it all the more affordable.

My first idea was for first aid training. My sons have practiced bandaging a large wound, pressure points and even splinting a compound fracture of the humerus or femur. All of these events were practiced clean in a very unrealistic setting where they were told to “imagine” the wound that they were working on. The addition of the fake blood would add a note of realism to the scene. The nice clean area they were bandaging gets transformed into a gooey, sticky red mess with sand, leaves and other debris from the ground worked in. As preppers, first aid could include puncture wounds, gunshots or even an accident caused by broken glass or twisted metal after a natural disaster are not farfetched at all and should be considered. Some theatrical blood, suitably applied could up the realism of the simulation by a notch or two. Emergency first aid may not give someone the time to go put on latex gloves and they may have to get the blood of a family member on them. Would they be squeamish about this?  Now is a good time to work through that. Other damages can be simulated as well. Step on an old nail and it goes right into the bottom of your foot? Cut into a finger while using a knife or hatchet? The addition of the fake blood just adds one more level of realism to the training procedures.  Beware though! Some brands of this kind of fake blood mixture warn that they can permanently stain clothing and fabric so keep that in mind when you decide what clothing you want to practice in or you may have an unexplainable red stain on your new set of Multicams  (or whatever type of clothing you practice in). It’s a good idea to do this outside to avoid any kind of stain on the carpet inside of your home that cannot easily be removed.

Secondly, I believe that theatrical blood could be used tactically. I am well aware that as preppers we might face all kinds of opposition from those who lack the foresight to set aside money and time to stock up on needed items and prepare for the worst beforehand. Basically, we want to get out to a spot, set-up a base or a retreat and just be left alone by everybody else. The truth is, the hills will eventually be swarming with all the unprepared who have some kind of notion that to survive they must flee the city and miraculously find everything they need out in the woods. These folks may have only one tactic available to them and that would be to try to take what I have worked so hard for away from me and my family. They may come at me with guns (perhaps the only plan that they have for survival) or they may have numbers on their side. They may have the advantage of better or more firepower than I can muster or a much bigger defense force than what I have available, so any advantage I have could be a lifesaver. I can imagine scenarios where I could use the theatrical blood to appear severely wounded, diseased or even dead. Situations similar to ones I have seen in Enemy at the Gates and The Road depict a desperate scenario where these ways may be the only way to be spared being shot at or harmed by marauders. If temporarily being taken prisoner or being put under guard by someone as the rest of the horde searches through your meager supplies (the rest are cached, right?), how much threat would you pose to them if you already had a horrible gut injury or a bleeding head wound? Would they pay you as much attention as they would if you were perfectly fine and uninjured? They may not even worry about you running off or suddenly rising up against your guard and overpowering him to make a getaway. Coughing up “blood” could convince a group that you are ravaged by some kind of biological malady that they don’t want any part of. A false “blood” trail could lead a tracking team expecting wounded or dying prey directly into a well-planned ambush.

These are the tactics of deception that can be employed by the disadvantaged defender. Some might take offense at these ideas and say that these kind of tactics are not very warrior-like but I would reply that when the chips are down, it’s life or death and fate has left you little choice between living another day or getting yourself killed by some half-wit who wants your can of Spam, a little deception could easily save your life, your family’s and maybe even your supplies too. – Art X.

JWR Replies: Theatrical blood is indeed useful for training moulage, but I would be reluctant to try most of your mentioned “tactical” uses, other than as a last resort. As much as possible, I advise that you keep your encounters with strangers at far shouting distance, rather than “improv theater” distance. There is always the risk that someone who is otherwise moral and upright might choose to “put them out of their misery” with a shot to the chest or head. But your mileage may vary.

Also, keep in mind that most people know that real blood dries to a brown color (because the iron in blood oxidizes), while fake blood dries to a fairly bright red.

Four Letters Re: Hurricane Sandy After Action Reports

Dear Editor:
I live in southeastern Connecticut. I am far from wealthy and I live in a section of town while certainly is not what one may consider a ghetto, neither is it in any way “nice”. I would not label myself as a prepper nor a survivalist, instead I have common sense. I have a good stock of food and water, preparations and gear in case I have to leave, not for some cataclysmic disaster but because I live in a world that has hurricanes and natural disasters.

Our Governor here in Connecticut recommended that my area evacuate. I did not. Though I am on the coast, my apartment is at a higher elevation and sure enough I did not suffer any of the flooding many others are dealing with. I watched closely every weather channel report, internet weather and government report and I was fairly certain that I would be okay where I am and sure enough I was. I did lose power however, though only for a day.

The reason for writing this and passing it on is an observation of what preparing really is. I have a basement apartment. Because of it’s construction I can hear most anything going on outside. The winds died down around 3 in the morning. At 4 a.m. I could hear multiple voices and footsteps in the leaves. the voices were hushed and the steps…hard to explain, gave me the impression of sneakiness. Before I continue I wish to point out I am Christian. While I believe in defending myself, my friends and family, I also believe in following Christ’s footsteps in word and deed. Having said that, I went and got my shotgun and placed it out of sight but next to the door and my hand right beside it and calmly opened my door in time to see a twenty something male and four others round the corner and stop in surprise at my smiling face. We all looked at each other for a few seconds and very calmly and in a measured voice I asked them what they were up to. Their claim was that they were just checking out the damage. “While in the dark at four in the morning?” They didn’t say anything. 

“Well you know, it would probably be best if you moved on, you’re on private property here and I don’t think it’s safe for anyone.” All with a tight smile and friendly voice. And my hand out of sight on my shotgun. 

“We don’t want any trouble.” 

I responded: “Neither do I.”

At this point I let them see the shotgun. I didn’t raise it, point it anyone, just swung it over to rest next to my leg. “Look, your in someone else’s yard, in the dark after a major storm. Somebody might think you’re looting and who wants that sort of nonsense, just go home before we are all in trouble.”
“Sorry mister” and they were on their way. I watched them round the corner and as far as I could tell meandered down the road. I sat out on the porch until  sunrise with that gun across my lap.
I saw a policeman yesterday, an acquaintance. Around 6 a.m. on that same morning  of my little run in, a few streets over at the cop had a call. A man confronted a group of young men in his front yard. He came out of his house with a bat and took a swing. He got beaten pretty bad and sent to the hospital. I wonder if he just came flying out of his house set upon violence and such. 
Part of my common sense is that I go for walks in my neighborhood.  Have been since I had to move here. I make sure everyone see’s my face, I often greet people with a smile and a hello. It is a rough neighborhood. A couple of streets over there are drug houses. I walk there too. I am easy to recognize. I am over a very large man both in strength and overweight (thus the walking). I figure people are less likely to mess with a friendly person they recognize. Plus I get to see who’s around. 
I am pretty sure I recognized on e of those guys. the cop questioned me closely about it. I think I recognized him from walking the neighborhood. Probably said hi or waved at some point. 
“A soft answer turns away wrath” and I firmly believe that, I cant see Christ accosting someone in His yard with threat of violence. I cant see Him judging, in fact He made it clear for me that I should not judge. Yet He also gave me a brain. He gave me a temple of the Holy Spirit, my body, which I need to protect. He was once accosted by a mob, before it was his appointed time and the Bible says He walked through them and they could not touch Him. I do believe the Bible raises a clear admonition to defend oneself  So If my pretty smile and soft words did not diffuse the situation that shotgun had a buckshot in the chamber and the safety was off. I was fully prepared to pull that trigger. Yet I did not charge out on a warpath. Like I said common sense. But the soft answer did turn away wrath. Thank God.
We do in emergency what we do in practice. I have had the good fortune to have excellent teachers of self defense with my fists as well as with firearms. I also have rooted myself in His word and teachings. It pulled me through. I made sure that when the time came my skills were sufficient and I could rely on them. My faith was also strong enough that I could rely on Him. Some call that prepping, surviving. I say it’s just common sense. 

I went to work the Monday of the hurricane as it wasn’t going to hit us until late afternoon. My boss sent us home at noon time. Gas stations were packed, grocery stores were packed, there were even long lines at drive up fast food joints! Can you imagine? Training of our skills, and more importantly of our spirituality, can not be a last minute rush job. It needs to be done everyday day upon waking up and upon going to bed. It needs to be done with supplication and prayer. What we do in practice is what we do in danger. I’ve read that so many times. My teachers have drilled that into my head and now I truly know it. I wonder about the guy that got beat. Was he just scared that something bad was going to happen to him and his family? Was this just a result of fear? I do not know. I know I was not too worried about the hurricane. I had done my homework, had food, water, candles, books, ammo. I did not fear for my family or friends, I trusted that they were in Christ’s loving hands. And while my adrenaline was pumping for sure during the moment I can’t say I felt fear in the confrontation, though I admit afterwards my mind kept mulling over what could have happened, how badly it could have gotten. I would say I felt fear after. Okay, I admit, I had a shaky feeling all over for about an hour. But not in the moment. Was it God’s strength? My preparedness? I think it was both and it makes me sad for all the people I see that get into these situations that lash out in anger brought on by fear.

I maintain I just use common sense. But common sense says to prepare, to train your body, your mind, and most importantly your spirit. So I guess I am a prepper. I prepare myself for life.
Christ be with you, – S.H.

James:
A quick note to put my 2 cents in, if I may: I was a regular guy who thought a bit about prepping for years, but didn’t really do much of it. After the current resident of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue took office, I began to develop a collection of firearms and ammo, with the belief that guys like him will actively seek to make such things harder to get. Then, I happened on the show “Doomsday Preppers” on television. I know the show seems a bit “Made-for-TV”, if you will, but it did spur me to some action, including reading SurvivalBlog, daily. I can’t get my wife and kids to drop everything and move to Idaho (yet), but I was able to sell them a bit on the notion that we could do some preparatory things and be smart, even if they weren’t ready to start canning and burying supplies in the woods. In the last couple years, I’ve got them all shooting a bit, and we’ve made sure there’s some food in the house for events like this. Then along comes Sandy…..

We live in Southern Ocean County, about a mile from the water, on a pretty good hill in a residential subdivision. I work as a public utility superintendent in a town in Western Monmouth County, central New Jersey, 45 miles north of home. I hate the notion that I could be at work in this type of event for several days, that far away from them. But it is what I have to do, for now. I have a small 12-volt battery setup with a solar charging system, useful, bought it because of what I’ve read and learned on SurvivalBlog. Also the tricks I’ve read about here- buying solar landscape pathways lights, stockpile flashlights and batteries, I bought a generator and some gas and made sure I taught my 13 year old son how to do everything in my absence. Gave Momma the keys to the gun safe, discussed safety and security with everyone, and went to work Sunday evening. Did not get home until Wednesday night.

Our house was without power for only 48 hours, and flooding was not an issue for our property. But it was enough to get them all on board, moving closer to accepting what Dad’s been saying. Power is still out in large areas of New Jersey, and things are getting ugly- Looting and robbery in millionaire’s neighborhoods as we speak (it’s now Nov. 2nd, Friday night.) No phone, no power, no way to call the police….Sorry!!

Lessons Learned/Reinforced:
   1. Have food and water for as many as live in your house, plus the in-laws, plus your kid’s friend who stayed for the entire event. What is happening now is everything is clear, stores are re-opening, but have no stock, shelves are still bare. And people are nuts- Fully stocked stores are only 50 miles away, and unprepared folks are panicking as if they’re going to die in line at the grocery store, pulling guns on line at gas pumps, etc. So if you want to be prepared for a week-long emergency, you need 2 weeks’ worth of food. And gasoline for the generator, firewood, etc.
   2. Have bottled water- I work in the water utility business, and I’m telling you these systems are more fragile than you think, and are susceptible to all kinds of malfunctions even in normal times. Have at least a case for each person in the house at all times, so you can survive a week, brush teeth, make a pot of coffee, etc. I’m talking about minor stuff, not even nearly for TEOTWAWKI, for $25 you can get 5 cases of [bottled] water. Everyone needs to do this. No excuses.
   3. Maintain a secondary system of power, heat, etc….Generator, fireplace, whatever, have multiple options if possible. Right now in New Jersey, there are two kinds of people: prepared people, and miserable people.
   4. Security- You cannot call the cops, and they’re not getting there anyway- You’d better be able to shoo away the vultures, so to speak. As I mentioned, there are gangs going door-to-door in very affluent neighborhoods, some of the wealthiest in America, simply kicking in doors and taking stuff- if you can’t stop them, they’re doing it. These are neighborhoods where people like Bruce Springsteen and Bon Jovi live, where they never fear for anything, because “They don’t have those sorts of people there”. Roads and bridges washed out means no access to services- Hundred of homes have burned down while fire crews watched helplessly from across the washed out roads, and Coast Guard and NJ State Police are patrolling Long Beach Island as looters try to get there by boat under cover of darkness. Thieves are ingenious and crafty, and we must be as well.
   5. The big lesson of all 4 of those points is this- The government is a mess, and cannot help you. You must be prepared to sustain yourself and your loved ones. Even if, like me, all you have so far is a means of keeping everyone alive and relatively well for a week long power outage, it’s a start. We will learn and continue to build upon this small start, but my family was extremely happy that when the lights went out and Dad was gone, they had food, water, a generator, security, etc. Dad felt a lot better knowing when I could not call them, and could not get to them, they had supplies and were going to be ok.
In the big picture sense, the New Jersey and New York are NOT prepared for these events like the Carolinas and Florida. This will be a wake-up call for many, and it will ruin many others. I hope the riots aren’t too bad, but I do believe they’re coming. Thanks for SurvivalBlog, it is a tremendous help to many of us in lots of ways! – M.B.

Jim:
Good morning. Here’s Storm Update #4 from Princeton and Atlantic City, New Jersey areas.
 
Saturday Morning. No power at our home in the Princeton area. Lost another neighbor yesterday. The one with the rental genny, family of five, they left for their mother’s home in Pennsylvania. Last night was cold, and I imagine dealing with one space heater in a bedroom was not comfortable, coupled with the shower situation. We are all on well water here. So, if the genny isn’t hard-wired into the system, no power for water. If I had to figure the circuit connection on the fly, I’m guessing I could MacGyver it – though it would obviously not pass inspection and there would be a risk factor – but they had other options and this is not Mad Max world. Again, my wife and I offered our home, but they politely declined. Another neighbor to text when our utilities are restored.
 
Yesterday, we gave both of our daughters a break. My wife initially planned to drive them to a horse stable about 10 miles way – this is where my youngest helps around the barn, mucks, cleans gear, and brushes/feeds/grooms the horses. In exchange, she gets to ride – though we do contribute small payments to the owner (a middle-aged woman who has managed horses her entire life), who more often than not refuses to take our money. After the stable, there would be a play date with another family – they were on the way back to our home. I had the discussion with my wife about gasoline for the SUV. I’ll take the hits here for having a guzzler, but when it comes to driving my most precious possessions in the Universe, I got my wife the biggest four wheel drive vehicle I could with height clearance, a massive engine and room to spare for all of us and the dog. To my surprise, my wife acknowledged the gas concern (over the years, she has an amused, but accepting tolerance for my prepping), but she felt the benefits outweighed the costs. I agreed, and noted that our use had already lowered the gas level so we would have to find a refill.
 
Back to the stable, with 20+ horses needing daily care, the owner had a back-up generator for water, but this was unnecessary as power was restored two days ago. Well, upon arrival, the owner informed us that the utility company had cut the power to restore other areas of priority. Her genny at the main farm building (a good distance away) was pulling water slowly, and the she was busy ferrying water in her pick-up truck and caring for the horses. The kids helped for a while, but no riding. When they arrived at our friend’s home, they were greeted by the sight of 34 trees on the front of the property (more than 15 wooded acres) blown over by Sandy. My theory is that a mini-twister must have touched down, but perhaps it just took hours of sustained high winds. Power was out there too, but they had a great time exploring the grounds. I should mention that the mom is a scientist who regularly spends months in the Amazon jungle. I trust her with my family.
 
While my wife was out, I rigged up power to our water softener system, and ran it through a regeneration cycle. Our well water is super hard – lots of minerals, but fine for drinking. The water softener has other effects for soap, laundry, the pipes, etc.  Next, I hopped into the garden, grabbed two leeks and an onion, dinner was going to be a stir fry. The genny also needed refueling. One issue, no matter how careful I am when pouring the gas/funnels, I cannot seem to shake the odor of gasoline. Yeah it would be nice to have a pump, and perhaps I will rig one up when I have spare time. For now, the family tolerates it, and after scrubbing, the aroma eventually fades. Aslan, our pooch, also got in a great run in our backyard with a neighbor’s dog. They were visiting their home across the street to check status, and then returning to their parents in a section of Princeton that has power.
 
My wife and kids returned, and I later reviewed pictures of the fallen trees. After raising the garage door for my wife (no power and it’s heavy even with the spring tension), I noted that the SUV’s gas gauge showed just over half full. I was also thinking about the empty gas cans from the genny usage. The report was that gas lines were still absurd. Our town was e-mailing updates and our friends in the area had formed a close network that was using Twitter to communicate open gas locations. The Airport was offering [AVGAS] gasoline for genny use only with (lead and other additives in the fuel) for $6.00 a gallon! Knowing that I might have to fill the SUV, I opted to stay with regular gas stations – for now.
 
My wife and I agreed that late tonight (Friday still) might provide a decent window for short lines, so long as the stations stayed open. Short story – I left the house at 10:00 pm and found one of our local stations, waited in line for an hour and twenty minutes. It was unreal, and so was the “look” of the people filling up. As I got closer, I could see folks pulling all manner of gas containers from their trunks – from one gallon grime-encased plastic to ten gallon suitcase sized plastic that was difficult to lift. I half expected to see milk jugs. When I finally got to the pump, I was told either the car or the gas cans, but not both. They were running low. I told the attendant to fill the SUV. In the interim, I removed four five gallon safety cans and one five gallon plastic container from the trunk, and got ready to fill them. He came back and looked on dubiously. I followed my gut. I said, “I’m a local, come here all the time. You must be part of Horhay’s extended family or a friend.” He nodded affirmatively and said, “Family.”  I continued, “Here’s money for the gas, we’ll round it up, you keep the rest. These cans are powering the genny for our home.” With that, I started filling, and he left for another customer – they had six pumps going. By the way, I paid $5.00 per gallon of regular. Free market economics at work: supply and demand. I peeled off $200.00 in twenties – these are the largest denomination that I keep on hand – this was for 25 gallons in the cans and 12 gallons in the SUV.
 
On the way home, I got a text from our neighbor friend April – she was looking for gas for her car but had bypassed the crazy long line at the same station I had just left. I advised her immediately – she’s young – I told her to get back in that line ASAP and wait it out. Back home, as I skimmed online news after midnight, I saw that the Governor has enacted gas rationing, aka Jimmy Carter style. Beginning today, there is now an odd/even license plate system for filling up. The last number in the plate has to match the odd or even of that day of the month in order to be serviced. That’s going to go over well. Forget commuting to work, and traveling up and down the state for family, unless you have enough gas to get back or can wait a few days for a reliable station.
 
Turning to the Jersey Shore, mom has gone dark. She was supposed to make her way from Pennsylvania to the hotel near our home in Margate, NJ. We have called her mobile phone and the house line several times with no response. I’m not worried yet, but this morning I will track down the hotel and see if she checked in. One of our local crew who lives in Ventnor City (shut down for infrastructure, but residents allowed back), the town next to Margate, described the area in a text message this way, “It’s the Twilight Zone down here.” He sent a picture of our garage – the waves had knocked the doors out and sand/seaweed/muck was piled high. No one was at the house, and he couldn’t get in to see the first floor or basement. He is going to visit our house again today and see if mom is around. On a separate note, I saw a post on Facebook from another Shore friend, stating that she reported potential looting. There was a private truck driving around her neighborhood and loading up with appliances and similar items at the curb. One Facebook commenter told her to relax, this was acceptable. She replied, “Yeah, but not at 11:00pm, and they were driving way too slow and using a flash light to shine in peoples’ yards.” She notified the police. I have not received an update on this yet.
 
One final comment for the preppers of the world: The Oyster Creek nuclear power plant confirmed near-total cooling pump failure, and power failure. The back-up diesels saved the day on the spent fuel pool. Salem I, which had the emergency steam release, has been quiet. No further news that I can find. In a real long-term grid down scenario… there are more than a hundred nuclear power plants/reactors in the US alone. And so I ask, with all seriousness, are we doomed under such circumstances regardless of our plans?
 
I understand that other parts of NJ and NY are in far worse shape than here, and that a Nor’easter might be approaching early next week. However, I keep thinking that things will change in the Princeton area with the flip of a switch, i.e., power restored. But until then, we are in crisis mode, and there are strange concerns occupying my mind while this lasts.
 
This is neither exciting, nor fun. But I will remain upbeat for my family. – Bill H.

Letter Re: Self-Reliance Versus Governmental Reliance Mindsets

JWR:
Stories like these only help to illustrate the wide range of problems that come to the surface when the thin veneer of society is striped off due to an event like Superstorm Sandy.  The compression of people in high density population centers like metropolitan New York etc, is just asking for chaos and confusion when their normally well organized and managed structure of life is quickly changed for the worse. Our world is now comprised of what is known as the inverted technology pyramid.  When one side is  weakened in can quickly topple over and leave the entire structure out of commission.   This weather event is a wake up call for those nodding in and out between slumber and full consciousness.  If you have not figured it out by now, now is the time to wake up and realize the full potential for the absolute horror that can present itself from a major calamity or event unknown.  Luckily, this is an isolated event in one part of the nation.  What if it were an event that somehow involved our entire nation or hemisphere- then what?

Those who snooze lose!  If you are sitting on the fence about the concept of committing to  personal preparedness, now would be an excellent time to make your decision one way or the other.  If you will study human nature you can see that most of it is completely predictable.  One example is the New York woman who appears on a television report. She is  well dressed in a high rent district demanding that the Mayor visit her part of town.  What pray tell is he supposed to do for her I ask.  Pass a law, spread magic pixie dust around, or pat her on the head like some abused puppy? Our society has for the most part become so completely dependent upon “someone else fixing our problems” that people like this stand the best chance of extinction.  Being prepared and being self-reliant are essential to riding out a crisis and having the best chance to make a complete comeback after the dust has settled, the water retreats and the skies shine clear again.   Don’t wait around for someone else, or an agency or a miracle.  Get motivated to think for yourselves before it is too late. – R.B.S.

Economics and Investing:

Obama’s 2008 campaign rhetoric on deficit reduction, versus reality: Conservatism Is Calling

U.S. Winter-Wheat Condition Worst in 27 Years as Drought Lingers . (Thanks to B.B. for the link.)

Biggest NY harbor oil terminal resumes partial operations

Items from The Economatrix:

More Tungsten-Core Gold Bars Are Turning Up

Consumer Spending In US Increases 0.8% As Incomes Climb

State Budgets In Jeopardy As Nation Nears “Fiscal Cliff”

The $100 Billion Storm:  17 Things You Need To Know About Hurricane Sandy

Odds ‘n Sods:

UPDATE: Wiser heads (than Doomberg) have prevailed and the marathon race has been cancelled. His Honor The Mayor’s True Colors: Bloomberg Diverts Needed Food and Generators Away From Desperate Staten Island to NYC Marathon. (Thanks to reader J.B.G. for the link.) They are running a marathon through this? ‘It’s like the Wild West’: Lawlessness and fear take over the outer boroughs as millions in misery endure a sixth day without power

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Reader “Nexus” mentioned another piece of evidence of a insidious, lamentable and systemic decline in our Constitutional rights, reported by Declan McCullagh: Court OKs warrantless use of hidden surveillance cameras

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President of Troy, Missouri, bank pulls gun, nabs robber.

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New comet might blaze brighter than the full Moon

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Ed Yardeni: Hurricane Sandy Exposed An Obvious Flaw In US Infrastructure