A Reminder: JWR Shuns Social Networking

Please refrain from trying to get me to join Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, or any of the other social network sites. I get more than 175 e-mails per day, and that is bad enough, but getting an extra 20 proclaiming that “John Smith is following you on Twitter” and “I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn” is distracting. I consider these networks a security risk, so I simply don’t respond. Knowing that even “deleted ” Facebook posts, profiles, and photos are stored indefinitely, and most recently learning that the IRS is actively mining Facebook posts to find new “suspects” also has me concerned. Count me out! – J.W.R.

Letter Re: Some Observations on the Price of Beans

Mr. Rawles:
In every decent sized town I’ve lived in there has been at least one “discount” grocery store. The stores that sell almost-expired food, dented cans or torn bags, local farmer over-production, that sort of thing. (And FWIW, only one can in a flat has to be dented for “the powers that be” to deem the entire batch unfit.)

My most recent good buy has been repeated three years in a row here. It’s May, and the local store is selling one-pound bags of black-eyed peas at the discount price of 3 for $1. New Year’s Day was 5.7 months ago and the bags are marked 2012. It’s a seasonal product, like Thanksgiving cranberries or Christmas and Easter candy. The peas will be good for 4-10 years, at least, if treated properly. Given that every other grocery store in town still has black-eyes at anywhere from $1.29 to $2.29 a pound, three pounds for a buck is ridiculously cheap. The best price I usually see on any form of dried beans in pound bags is about a dollar. The best price I’ve EVER seen at a normal store is 50 cents a pound for pintos at Sam’s, but that’s gone up recently, and it’s a 25-50 pound bag.

Point being, smart shoppers should know what average prices are, know what the “buy” price is, and (best yet) know when to buy everything the store has, or all they can afford. I now have about 60 more pounds of viable food for a $20 expenditure. The buckets are free at another store’s cake-frosting department, and the mylar bags are a necessary, arguably negligible expense.

For those who don’t know: Red beans, black beans, black-eyed peas, field peas, pintos, etc. can all be put in a crock-pot or solar cooker with good results. One pound of dried beans and four cups of water (more or less, with no pre-soak usually necessary) and you have food. Add an onion, half a pound of smoked sausage and Tony Chachere’s to taste, and you’ve got a Southern classic, best served over fresh cornbread with sweet tea on the side. Just don’t add the sausage or spice mix until the beans are cooked, or the beans will get tough.

And up next (starting in about two weeks) we’ve got blueberry season, organically grown pick-your-own for $9 a gallon. – J.D.C. in Mississippi

Letter Re: Late Corn Planting in the American Midwest Does Not Bode Well

Mr. Rawles,
Greetings from the occupied territory of Coloradostan. 

I am a long time reader and first time responder to the blog. I am an agricultural economist and read Woody’s perspective with interest, as I am sure many did. I just examined USDA’s crop progress report from this afternoon. Much progress was made in the 18 primary corn producing states. We are now 71 percent planted versus the previous five year average(which is skewed by last years data) of 79 percent. Woody’s home state of Ohio, about which he’s was particularly alarmed is now 74 percent planted vs. 58 percent for the five year average. To be clear his quote of 12 percent planted on 12 May 2013 is in error as the latest report shows 28 percent planted last Sunday and 71 percent last evening. We are now further along in corn planting than we were in both 2009 and 2011. 

His disdain for USDA is a little troubling as they do a far better job than the ag department of any other. Are they perfect? Certainly not, but as one of my mentor always said, “but they are official!”.  Common wisdom may hold for common corn varieties but that isn’t what is being planted in the US. Mote than half of this year’s planted acreage will be stacked gene varieties and nearly 90 percent will be some form of biotech variety. Stacked gene varieties accounted for only 1 percent in 2001. Even if we lost the 8 percent we are behind vs the five year average it would still be the fifth largest corn planted acreage in US history. 

Corn price haven’t responded or rallied because the acreage number is record large and even with conservative yield estimates corn ending stocks for the 2013/14 crop are expected to more than double to the largest corn surplus since the late 1980s. The renewable fuel standard will keep corn prices from approaching prices seen for the 1987/88 crop but they are still expected to drop by 25 to 35 percent. Just wanted folks to know before they loaded the boat so to speak. I’d buy some if I didn’t have any but wouldn’t lay in my entire needs of a lifetime. 

Most respectfully, – D.W. in Colorado

News From The American Redoubt:

America’s lands sharks: Wolves kill 31 sheep on south-central Idaho ranch.

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Folks in north Idaho or Eastern Washington with an interest in learning how to do metal casting or looking for casting supplies should visit Lost and Foundry, in Spokane, Washington. Foundry molds (“flasks”) and petrobond casting sand are heavy to ship, so look for sources like Lost and Foundry, where you can pick then up yourself. (A similar company is Budget Casting Supply, in Sonora, California.)

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Some nice vintage fallout shelter models found in Montana. (Thanks to R.B.S. for the link.)

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I noticed that this particular video: Patriots – Surviving the Coming Collapse – Trike Flying, with more than 21,000 views, is still the “most viewed” trike flying video by former U.S. Navy pilot TTabs. It gives a great tour of the locales in my first novel. That video was shot back when he was running just two cameras. He now shoots four views simultaneously, and cuts between them. His visually stunning One October Evening video has had more than 13,000 views. It shows the terrain, fauna, and flora in the northern Palouse, near Spokane, Washington. Be sure to watch his videos in full screen mode, at HD quality. They are spectacular.

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Reader W.A. wrote to mention a Wyoming-headquartered company called LUCID that offers a couple of red dot sight alternatives which have great quality and features for a great price and use an AA battery. The the ‘founder/creator’ is a former optics manager for Brunton. Note that some of their products are made in the U.S., but some are made in China.

Economics and Investing:

Andrew Maguire: Physical Demand Shows Gold In Massive Bull Market. (Thanks to Jim W. for the link.)

US regulators adopt weakened rule on derivatives trading; critics say large banks to benefit

Doug Noland: Financial Euphoria

H.M. sent: Slovenia’s shaky banks bring a downgrade from Fitch

Items from The Economatrix:

Our Current Financial System Is So Toxic, A Collapse Is Imminent

The Fed Is Creating Class Warfare And The Recovery Is Being Distorted

Global Hyperinflation Coming

Odds ‘n Sods:

I recently posted a link to a 1916-vintage book on steel cutting and welding that is available free, via Kindle. Then reader Richard C. followed up to mention that it is also available in a variety of other formats.

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Michael W. sent: Bomb Shelter Boom Sees Underground Pools, Basketball Courts

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Noah, the Super Prepper. (Thanks to David W. for the link.)

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Courtesy of Mark: The Mystery of the Missing Crime Data–Corporate media spins “news” of declining criminal use of firearms to hide the truth.

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F.G. sent: Gun control: Cartridge ID law to take effect.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"The only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community against his will is to prevent harm to others. His own good… …is not a sufficient warrant." – John Stuart Mill

Notes from JWR:

Today is the birthday of Carlos Hathcock (Born 1942, died February 23, 1999.) He was a United States Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant sniper with a service record of 93 confirmed kills.

This is also the birthday of my lifelong friend, Brad C. I miss seeing you, pal.

Pat’s Product Review: Skinner Sights 10/22 Takedown Case and Sights

Some time ago, I did a review on SurvivalBlog about the Ruger 10/22 Takedown (TD) .22 LR rifle. I fell in love with my sample. I liked the idea of a .22 LR rifle, that could easily be taken apart, and put back together in a few seconds. I also liked the case that Ruger ships the rifle in – very nice, and you can carry the 10/22 Takedown rifle, with a brick or two of .22 LR ammo, half a dozen magazines, a scope and some clothes for the weekend. Not a bad combination, and whenever I travel more than 25-miles from home, I toss the 10/22 Takedown in my rig – just in case something happens and I have to hoof it home in an emergency.
 
However, I don’t always need the heavy-duty case that the 10/22 Takedown comes in. And, I looked around, but there really wasn’t anything available, other than a full-sized long gun case – which defeats the purpose of having a rifle that you can take apart, making it into a smaller package. SurvivalBlog reader Wayne W. e-mailed me and told me about the Skinner Sights TD Case that Andy Larsson, the owner of Skinner Sights, is producing for the 10/22 Takedown. And the Skinner gun case is much thinner, trimmer and doesn’t take-up much room at all, yet it still protects the 10/22 Takedown rifle. Wayne W. told me that I’d better not get my sample, before he got the one he ordered – not to worry, Wayne W. got his order before I got mine.
 
The Skinner Sights 10/22 TD case is flat and compact. However, when I got my sample, I saw that it opened from both ends, with a secure clasp. I was more than a bit concerned that, when I took the 10/22 down into two-pieces, that they would rub against one another, causing scratches on my sample. Not to fear, Andy Larsson, very cleverly designed a method wherein, when you place the barrel assembly in one end of the bag, and the receiver in the other end of the bag, they do not touch – they are in separate compartments – although it appeared to me, that they were one in the same compartments. Neat idea, Andy – job well-done!
 
I used to own a standard cab pickup truck and found if I filled-up an overnight bag, and tried to stuff it behind the seat in my pick-up, it wouldn’t fit – too fat. Such is the case with the factory bag that the 10/22 comes in – you can’t fit it behind the seat of your pick-up truck – too fat! With the Skinner Sights 10/22 TD Case, you can easily store your 10/22 Take Down rifle behind the front seat of your pick-up truck – out of sight, so no one sees it. You can also toss a brick or two of .22 LR ammo – assuming you can find any these days, because of this ammo drought – in your glove box, or under the front seat of your pick-up, along with some extra 25-magazines – again, assuming you can find any – Ruger 10/22 25-round magazines are hard to come by these days.
 
Also, in a previous article, I reported on the Skinner Sights front and rear sight combination that Andy Larsson sells, as a replacement to the factory provided sights on a 10/22. While there is nothing “wrong” with the sights that come on a 10/22, there is always room for improvement, and with my aged eyes, I want every advantage I can get, and by replacing the factory sights on my 10/22 Takedown rifle, with the sights that Skinner Sights has, I greatly improved my hit ratio with the 10/22.
 
What Skinner Sights came up with is a shortened version of their standard rear hooded sight, that works nicely on the 10/22 Takedown rifle – it doesn’t hang over the joint where the barrel and receiver join together – like the original Skinner Sight would do. I want to mention, too, that – all Skinner Sights are hand-made, you are not getting a cheap, mass-produced sight set-up. Andy Larsson takes great pride in designing and manufacturing his sights here in the USA.
 
Skinner Sights came out with the barrel mount sight that clears the take down mechanism, and does not contact the stock during assembly. The hooded rear sights is slick and provides an amazing sight picture – one that is much easier for me to see. And, others how shot my 10/22 Takedown rifle agreed with my findings. Additionally, the 10/22 Barrel Mount rear sight, ships with a .125-inch aperture installed – 5 different aperture sizes are available – and given the uniformity of common ammunition and barrel dimension, this aperture works great. A front comes bundled in the package, too.
 
By having both the front and rear sights mounted on the barrel, instead of one on the barrel and one on the receiver, insures repeatability when disassembling and re-assembling the 10/22 Takedown rifle. While I never had any problems with my factory sights staying zeroed on the 10/22 Takedown, things might loosen-up, if you took the rifle apart and put it back together hundreds of times, and you might have to make some sight adjustments. With the Skinner Sights Ruger 10/22 TD Sights, you have no worries about your zero changing, no matter how many times you might take your 10/22 Takedown apart and put it back together – the zero isn’t going to change on you.
 
The Skinner Sights 10/22 sights are $62 in blue, $63 in brass and $65 in stainless steel. Not bad at all, considering these sights are hand-made and not mass-produced. The Skinner Sights 10/22 TD case is only $49 and comes in either black or dark green – your choice of colors. I want to thank SurvivalBlog reader, Wayne W. for alerting me to these products. As if often the case, I get alerted to a lot of new products by SurvivalBlog readers. You are a very intelligent bunch of folks. And, I appreciate all the help you give me in my quest for new products, or products I might have overlooked or not been aware of. I can’t be all over the Internet and through factory catalogs each day, trying to find products to write about – not enough hours in the day.
 
So, if you’re looking for a slimmer carrying case for your Ruger 10/22 Takedown rifle, and you want some better sights to go on that gun, check out the Skinner Sights web site for more information. – SurvivalBlog Field Gear Editor Pat Cascio

Letter Re: Late Corn Planting in the American Midwest Does Not Bode Well

Sir:
As a retired corn farmer, I find it quite interesting that the Fed’s USDA is still keeping to it’s hard-and-fast immutable “projections” of 97.3 million acres of corn being planted this year. Just like building a house, call the Fed’s number the “planned” or projected blueprint idea.

But now let’s look at the “as built” story. Here, where the “rubber meets the road,” or I should say “where the planter tucks in the actual corn seed,’ the “actual” or real situation is quite another story due to very late corn plantings, if at all. The surprise is that the market has not yet reacted much.

Last Monday USDA reported that only 12% of the nation’s corn crop was in as of Sunday night (12 May 2013.) This should have shocked the markets–but didn’t. As of today, US corn planting is up to 28%, but a far cry from the “fast planting” of last year which stood at 85% [on the same date] one year ago.

Western states show significant delayed corn planting because of wet soils.

With long corn crop maturation days here in Ohio’s Corn Belt, common wisdom is that if you don’t have your seed in by May 10th, you may as well forget it (or switch to planting soybean.) Here we are almost the middle of May and very little corn is planted and the media and markets seem to say: “Ho-hum…nothing to see here, move along folks.” This is not good; we are not being told or shown the truth that a nation can rely and act upon.

Maybe this all just doesn’t matter; maybe all the corn will eventually get in, maybe we’ll have excellent weather and no drought or natural disasters, maybe insects and diseases won’t affect the corn, maybe the price at harvest will be just ducky. “Maybe” is the operative word here and that word ain’t even good a notion as “close enough” like when you play horseshoes or toss hand grenades.

My thanks to Marlin Clark, commodity trader at “Market Monitor” on pages A6-A7 in Ohio’s “Farm and Dairy” newspaper, issue of 16 May 2013, for is alert on this same subject..

Thoughtfully submitted, – Woody in Ohio

JWR Replies: Thanks for that early news tip. SurvivalBlog readers should consider themselves forewarned. This would be a good juncture to buy few more super pails of whole corn and cornmeal. Be sure to buy them before prices jump!

Letter Re: The Many Uses of Vacuum-Sealed Bags

Hi Jim, 
The reader who contributed the food saver  storage bag post gave a lot of great ideas.  I would like to add my experience with Food Saver and how I solved some serious problems with the vacuum system itself.  Nine years ago I started a serious food storage program. Life is full of trials and errors, and lots of lessons learned from other’s trials and errors.  I made the move into dehydrating foods,  primarily beef and vegetables for long term storage.

I bought Cabela’s large dehydrator after researching everything out there that I could afford.  It has performed marvelously after I made a couple modifications to it and fixed the problems that others complained about.  I also bought the Game Saver Food Saver,  which of it self is an okay machine.  The glaring flaw is the food saver bag itself. First they are way too thin at around 2 mills and very expensive,  plus they are not mylar, which is needed to prevent oxygen penetration.  Any thing that I stored in them that had sharp points vis-a-vis jerky strips, dehydrated peppers etc. would perforate the bag and lose the seal.  I also had many other items lose the seal—–frozen meat that touched some sharp point in the freezer like another bag’s pointed corner would make a pin hole and fill up with air.
 
Vacuum sealing is a must for preppers,  So this had to be remedied. The answer came from Sorbent Systems in Los Angeles. They sell a large selection  of heavy duty 6 mil mylar bags and a very cheap vacuum machine that uses a snorkel to suck out the air.  You cannot use this vacuum on wet foods without putting a piece of paper towel along the inside of the edge to be sealed to absorb any liquid. They periodically have specials.  They will once in a while discount overrun items that were special ordered by a large customer.  6 years ago a bought a bunch of military green gun-sized bags that must have been run for the government.  They actually called to confirm my order and asked what I was going to do with the green bags.  My pat answer for questions like this is: “You never know.”  
 
Another source for the commercial grade bags and oxygen absorbers is USA Emergency Supply. They have great prices and a flat $4.99 shipping fee no matter how big the order is.  I have bought over 3,000 bags from these two companies.  I don’t use the fill up the bucket method.  I store everything in the vacuumed bags with oxygen absorbers and then put the bags in the buckets.  I store multiple bags per bucket. So you don’t get as much weight per bucket but as you use your food you are opening smaller packs and can also use them to trade or charitably help others without having to pass on a whole bucket.  I hope this helps others skip the mistakes I learned the hard way.  Keep the info flowing.   Regards, – Jim W.

Recipe of the Week:

Chris M.’s Vegetarian Tuscan Kale and White Bean Soup

I think that my Mom originally got this recipe from a Pat Robertson/CBN publication. I ate a lot of it without upsetting my blood sugar.

And there was enough methane to run a small motorbike.

She hit the nail on the head when she said that no matter what you do with these ingredients or similar ones, you won’t go wrong.

—

Vegetarian Tuscan Kale and White Bean Soup

3 tbsp. olive oil
1 cup diced onion
4 large cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
4 cups vegetable broth
4 cup packed chopped kale
1 14 oz can of Italian –style diced tomatoes
1 14 oz. can of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 14 oz. can of sliced carrots, drained

In a large saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and
cook 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook 2 minutes. Add broth, kale and
tomatoes and cover and cook 5 minutes or until kale is tender. Add
beans and carrots and heat thoroughly.

Serve hot. Top with crunchy croutons and grated Pecorino Romano Cheese.

Chef’s Notes:

These are my Mom’s comments on her variations:

I have copied the recipe just as it appeared in the newspaper. Of course I did it my way. I used a large can of tomatoes (28oz. or so) and I don’t think they were the Italian style. I used either peeled or
chunks or whatever was on the shelf. I used chicken broth and probably 2 cups instead of four because I used the large can of tomatoes. Also I used fresh carrots and sautéed them with the onion. You would need to cook a little longer. Whatever you do I don’t think you could go wrong.

In doing the kale don’t forget to cut off the large stems of the kale.

Useful Recipe and Cooking Links:

Kale Recipes

15 Kale Recipes

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

Economics and Investing:

Deepcaster: Biggest Bubble About to Burst

Sending up the test balloon: The Cashless Society Arrives in Africa. The “Multipurpose” Biometric National Identity Smart Card

Doug Casey on Conspiracies, Gold and the Continuing ‘Greater Depression’ of the World’s Economies

Items from The Economatrix:

Fed’s Plosser:  We’ve Dug Ourselves A Very Large Hole

World Bank Insider:  Western Power Structure Collapses

Stanley Druckenmiller: Bernanke Running The Most Inappropriate Monetary Policy In History. The Commodity Situation Is Deadly, And The Aussie Dollar Will Come Down Hard. I See Storm Coming, Bigger Than 2008

Odds ‘n Sods:

There are several captivating new property listings at our SurvivalRealty.com spin-off site There is even an off-grid house in Chile’s Atacama desert. You will note that many of the former listings have been removed in the past month because of recent sales. SurvivalRealty has now had four years of proven success in bringing many retreat buyers and sellers together. The ads cost just $30 per month, and there are no sales commissions charged!

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Ready Made Resources has announced that anyone who buys an AN/PVS-14 night vision scope from them will not only receive the free weapons mount and shuttered eye relief, ($190 value) but we will also include a free box of infrared chemical light sticks.  (A $30 value.)

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F.G. suggested a piece over at the Weapons Man blog: A Formation of Liberators. OBTW, I began drafting the fourth sequel to my novel Patriots and titled it Liberators, about a year ago. I first announced the book’s title in my blog almost a year ago. I’m suspect that the naming of the new 3D printed pistol was purely coincidental. But now that the 21st Century Liberator pistol has been designed and proven, I can’t resist depicting the tactical employment of one or more of them in the storyline of the novel (a la 20th Century Liberator pistols, just ’cause… Vive la Maquisards!

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Freeze Dry Guy has announced a special sale on Mountain House Freeze Dried Eggs with a 25 to 30 year shelf life. This is a densely-packed product that normally retails for $359 a case. The Egg Mix with Butter Flavor–228 1?2 Cup Servings–is priced at $249, with free shipping to CONUS. This sale ends May 31st, so order soon. Phone: (866) 404-3663.

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Consider the ramifications: 54 Colorado County Sheriffs Sue Over State’s New Gun Control Measures and the New York State Sheriffs Association protests many SAFE Act provisions. And at least one sheriff has pledged to not enforce it. (Then came the predictable whining statist response: “You can’t pick and choose what laws you will enforce…” I’m sure that the German Polizeipräsidenten were told the same thing, back around 1938.)

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“I’ve previously pointed out that there is no longer ‘law’ as such, in the United States any more. Everything about the ‘nation’, which is no longer, properly speaking, even a nation anymore, is fraudulent, from its ‘money’ to its system of ‘justice’. Even something as simple and basic as openly fighting a ‘war’ is now beyond its bloated, cancerous make-believe structure.

I wouldn’t call the present system a dictatorship myself. Dictatorships are more open and direct. It is better described as a simulatorship, which is to say, rule by pretense. It is reminiscent of the latter days of the Soviet empire, when the Russian people pretended to work and the Soviet government pretended to pay them. In the latter days of the US empire, the federal government pretends its actions are within the limits set by the U.S. Constitution and the American people pretend to believe them.

If a corporate entity is too big to fail or too big to jail, then logic dictates it must be cut down to a size that permits both. Remember, corporations are not capitalism, they are creations of government and if they can’t reasonably be imprisoned, they can certainly be ‘executed.’ And if real American people can be ‘legally’ executed at the order of the president, then can there really be any doubt that artificial American people are also liable to termination on command as well?” – Vox Day