Preparedness Notes for Thursday — September 26, 2024

September 26, 1655, at the height of the Great Plague of London, 7,165 people died throughout the previous week.  The familiar cry in the street was “Bring Out Your Dead”, as the death carts circulated through the city.

On September 26, 1396, Ottoman Sultan Bajezid I ordered the beheading hundreds of Crusaders after the Battle of Nicopolis.

And on September 26, 1908 an ad for the Edison Phonograph first appeared in The Saturday Evening Post.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 114 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” variety of 60 servings of premium freeze-dried breakfasts and dinners in individual meal pouches — a whopping 21,970 calories, all made and packaged in the USA — courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  4. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course.
  5. HSM Ammunition in Montana is providing a $250 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  2. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  3. A Laptop EMP Shield and a Smartphone Faraday Bag (a combined value of $200), courtesy of MobileSecSolutions.com.
  4. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC.
  6. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of gun purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters (a $305 value),
  2. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  3. A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

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More than $900,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 114 ends on September 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.

Prepper Group Training: Indigenous Guerrilla Teams – Part 1, by Bulldog

I would like to begin my topic by examining two concepts. I feel both ideas illustrate the hearts and souls of many men and women within today’s prepper and survivalist communities.

The first one is an analogy. Its origins have most been often attributed to Lt. Col. Dave Grossman. Lt. Col. Grossman’s premise was that all people can be placed into one of three groups; “sheep, sheepdogs, or wolves.”Continue reading“Prepper Group Training: Indigenous Guerrilla Teams – Part 1, by Bulldog”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column, we look at some “interesting” U.S. military deployments.

Alaska Troops Deploy to Remote Shemya Island

Alaska troops deploy to remote Shemya Island, less than 300 miles from Russia. JWR’s Comments:  Shemya has been publicly revealed as a Cobra Dane space object and missile tracking RADINT/ELINT/MASINT site. It was once jointly operated as a Field Station (FS) by the Army ASA and the US Air Force.

Pentagon Announces More Troops for Middle East

H.L. sent this: WWIII Watch: Pentagon Announces More Troops for Middle East. A pericope:

“AP reports Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder would provide no details on how many additional forces or what they would be tasked to do. Their precise geographical region of deployment has also not been disclosed.

The U.S. currently has about 40,000 troops in the region. Just last month U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered a guided missile submarine to the Middle East and told the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to sail more quickly to the area.”

The Island Fortress of America’s Mega-Billionaires

Tim J. was the first of several SurvivalBlog readers to mention this interesting article that was also linked over at the Whatfinger.com news aggregation site: Inside the island fortress of America’s mega-billionaires.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day: 

“A government big enough to give you everything you want is a government big enough to take from you everything you have.” – President Gerald R. Ford, in an address to a Joint Session of Congress August 12, 1974

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — September 25, 2024

On September 25, 1890, Sequoia National Park was established by US President Benjamin Harrison. This was California’s first national park and the country’s second.

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On September 25, 1989, archaeologists opened the Titus of Rhine grave in Amsterdam. JWR’s Comment: Apparently it is no longer considered grave desecration if archaeologists do it…

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On September 25th, 1789, the first Congress of the United States approved 12 amendments to the U.S. Constitution and sent them to the states for ratification.

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Today we feature a lengthy response to a comment to a writing contest entry.

We are seeking entries for Round 114 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $900,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 114 ends on September 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.

A Response to a Question on .45 LC in .410, by Tunnel Rabbit

If, in desperate times we need to take risks that would in normal times be unacceptable and possibly extra legal with the extraordinary circumstances.  Examining the limits of the risks that we would consider to be acceptable would be an individual’s judgment call.  Some of the contents of one of my recent articles is predicated on the situation when and where we might be faced with in a future dystopian world where we would be forced to hunt in order to supplement our limited food source to avoid starvation.  Some of the methods involving firearms are not now, or should they be considered to be acceptable, such as the means of hunting as described in the recollection and story of a boy who hunted and successfully taken 77 deer with only a .22 rimfire rifle.  See: Hunting in Desperate Times, Part 1, by Tunnel Rabbit.Continue reading“A Response to a Question on .45 LC in .410, by Tunnel Rabbit”

SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets

This weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters.

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Amid Growing Violence, More Churches Turn to Faith-Based Security Groups.

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SurvivalBlog’s Editor-At-Large Mike Williamson sent us a link to some valid criticism of a prepper ad, over at  X/Twitter. JWR’s Comments: The rust on that saw shows that it isn’t used often, or well cared for.  And seeing him make his cut between the sawbuck supports is downright laughable.  He is moments away from getting his saw pinched.

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Study: Electric Vehicle Batteries Make Cars Too Heavy to Be Stopped by Safety Guardrails.

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U.S. citizens can now renew their passports online. JWR’s Comment:  Keeping passports updated for every family member is important.  You never know when you might need to implement a “Plan C” or even a “Plan D”, for bug-out.

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets”

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — September 24, 2024

On September 24, 1529, Sultan Suleiman and his Ottoman troops arrived in Vienna, beginning a whole series of smaller sieges in the region, culminating with the Turk’s failed Second Siege, in 1683.

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Today’s feature article is a short guest post by former congressman Dr. Ron Paul, selected by JWR. It is reposted with permission.

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We are seeking entries for Round 114 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest.  More than $900,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 114 ends on September 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.

The First Steps Toward a Liberty Platform, by Ron Paul

Last weekend several hundred of us gathered in Washington, DC, at the Ron Paul Institute conference to again proclaim our dedication to the cause of liberty and our opposition to constant US government assaults on that liberty. Our collaborators included old friends like Judge Andrew Napolitano, who explained that the Bill of Rights was not added to the Constitution to grant Americans liberties, but to recognize liberties already existing for all persons – regardless of nationality – by virtue of their humanity.

That is why the US government was purposely or unwittingly in the wrong when it tried to argue that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange did not have the privilege of our First Amendment protections because he is not American. He has these freedoms because he is human.

Our rights and liberties are granted to us by our nature or Creator, so how do we get the government to stop interfering with the intention of our Creator? As I told our crowd at the event, one thing we must do is educate ourselves. We must read, study, and listen to others so that we can better share the message of liberty with others. That is the reason my Institute for Peace and Prosperity puts on its regular conferences: to help people learn about these issues so that they may better pass them on. That is why even with current challenges, our movement keeps growing.

The good news, as I often say, is that it’s really not that complicated. As I told our group last weekend, one of the best ways of restoring liberty is simply to…End the Fed!

In many ways, the Federal Reserve is the greatest threat to our liberties. Politicians talk endlessly about the need to reduce inflation. They all recognize that it has become a serious problem and they each have their own plan to deal with it. But they ignore the true cause of inflation. The Fed is the engine of inflation! Ignoring this while claiming to fight inflation is just tinkering around the sidelines.

The Fed is the reason we have been able to be at war nearly constantly since 1913. Why are we constantly at war? Because the Fed was created to benefit the wealthy elites, and nothing enriches the wealthy elite more than constant war. The Fed prints the money for the wars and then its cronies pocket the money from the wars.

Does anyone really believe that the $200 billion we spent on Ukraine actually went to Ukraine? Of course not. It went to the well-connected, most of whom operate in a close radius to the DC Beltway.

The Fed creates divisions in our society. It pits the rich against the poor. Sure, the poor get food stamps, but the rich get much bigger food stamps through an evil called “corporatism.” And the poor being “helped” all those years with welfare from the Fed are now getting the bill. The bill comes in the form of inflation, which is a tax. If bread goes up 50 percent, the rich hardly notice. But the poor feel that increase very directly.

That is why adopting a “liberty platform” must first require these two important steps: understand the origin of our liberties and end the greatest threat to these liberties: the Federal Reserve!

SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies located in the American Redoubt region that are of interest to preppers and survivalists. Today, we focus on another bear attack in Glacier National Park. (See the Montana section.)

Region-Wide

The AmRRON Amateur Radio Network is Streaming Live on Sunday Nights on the Internet.

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The Pacific Northwest is Among The Best U.S. Metros for Job Growth in 2024.   JWR’s Comment: To a lesser extent, the Inland Northwest is seeing the same boom.

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The end of summer brings some unexpected shake-ups to Inland Northwest restaurants.

Idaho

Results: August 2024 “Iconic Idaho” Photo Contest.

Here is a link to a brief video review of the contest: The Decade-Long Contest Bringing Idaho Photographers Together. (Overtly promotional of the leftist PBS, but still worth watching.)

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Chad Daybell’s home demolished in Fremont County.

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Bannock: Community is Encouraged to Sign Up for Emergency Alert Notifications.

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First U of I murders hearing in Ada County scheduled.

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt”

Preparedness Notes for Monday — September 23, 2024

On September 23, 1779 John Paul Jones aboard the USS Bonhomme Richard defeated the British frigate HMS Serepis and became the first well-known naval hero of the United States.  He answered a call to surrender from his English counterpart with the famous quotation, “I have not yet begun to fight!”

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We are running a 3-week-long sale at Elk Creek Company.  Until October 11th, 2024, all of our Pietta brand blackpowder revolvers and all of our M1891 Argentine Mauser rifles have their prices deeply discounted.  Take a look!

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Today’s feature article is a review written by SurvivalBlog Field Gear Editor Tom Christianson.

Stoeger STR-9F, by Thomas Christianson

If I had to describe the Stoeger STR-9F in as few words as possible, I would say that it reminds me of a Glock 17 with a good trigger.

It is roughly the same general shape as a Glock 17, holds 17 rounds like a Glock 17, weighs about the same as a Glock 17, and field strips in the same way as a Glock 17 into the same component parts as a Glock 17.

I found the trigger to be better than any Glock 17 I have ever fired, and I was able to shoot it more accurately than any Glock 17 that I have ever fired.Continue reading“Stoeger STR-9F, by Thomas Christianson”

Recipe of the Week: Callie’s Baked Ham and Cheese

The following recipe for Callie’s Baked Ham and Cheese is from SurvivalBlog reader Callie B.

Ingredients
  • 1 tablespoon of butter
  • 1 sweet onion, thinly sliced
  • 6 cups of bread cubes
  • 1 cup deli ham, shredded
  • 1 cup cheddar cheese
  • 1½ cups of milk
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon dry mustard powder
  • 1 teaspoon parsley
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
Directions
  1. Preheat your oven to 350°F.
  2. Heat a large skillet over medium heat.
  3. Add in the butter to melt, and then add the onions and coat them in the butter. Reduce heat to low, and continue cooking, stirring occasionally until the onions are golden brown.
  4. Add 1 tablespoon of water, and continue cooking for 10 more minutes. Set aside.
  5. Mix the bread cubes in a bowl with the ham and cheese. Add the onions.
  6. In a small bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, mustard powder, parsley, salt, and pepper until well combined.
  7. Pour over the bread mixture, and stir gently.
  8. Pour mixture into a greased 9” x 9” baking dish, and bake for 45 minutes, or until set and lightly browned.
SERVING

Let this dish sit for 10 minutes before serving.

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Do you have a well-tested recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? In this weekly recipe column, we place emphasis on recipes that use long-term storage foods, recipes for wild game, dutch oven recipes, slow cooker recipes, and any recipes that use home garden produce. If you have any favorite recipes, then please send them via e-mail. Thanks!