Odds ‘n Sods:

For those who look for scriptural foreshadowing of modern events, Matt B. sent a link to a PDF over at Steve Quayle’s site: The Watchmen, 911 and the Harbingers

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Authorities Confirm Gun Found in Arizona Is Third at U.S. Crime Scene Tied to ATF’s ‘Fast and Furious‘. And in related news: Gunwalker Explodes into the Heartland. (A hat tip to K.A.F. for the links.)

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Spare me the Political Correctness, just give me the facts: Pearl Harbor’s New ‘Vision’.

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CenterfireAntenna.com (that also does business as USDipole.com) is giving a $15 discount towards any antenna order to all newly-licensed ham radio operators that earn their call sign between July 1st and the end of 2011. This offer ends on January 31st, 2012.

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And just for giggles: Boxercising Earthquake. (Thanks to Keeley for the link.)

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 36 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) 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 B.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $300 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo, and E.) An M17 medical kit from JRH Enterprises (a $179.95 value).

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value courtesy of Next Level Training. B.) 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, C.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and D.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, and C.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 36 ends on September 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

My Road to Preparing, by New-To-Me in Nevada

We don’t have a lot of money, however with everything that is happening in the world today and all of the signs yelling in my face that I better get ready or face not being able to feed my family of 6, I started prepping.  I have taken a class at our local community college on the subject and learned a lot of very useful information.  However I didn’t stop there.  I sought out and purchased numerous books that are on the book list here at Survival Blog and did some extensive research on the subject.  Just recently I decided to write my story to share with others because I noticed that most people are purchasing their food storage items from different food storage companies and while we don’t have the money to be able to do that, I have still been able to help get my family better prepared for WTSHTF.

The first thing that I did was invest in two pigs, one of which we’ve already butchered, which was quite a learning experience.  I purchased what I was told was eight hens, and ended up with six hens and two roosters.  Which is fine because without roosters you can’t get more chickens unless you purchase them and WTSHTF we will not have that as an option.  I also purchased 8 goats of different breeds, six of which have died for undetermined reasons. This left me with just one male and one female.  While the death of most of my goats was a great inconvenience, I would much rather it happens now while I am able to easily replace them.  The pig that I still have is currently pregnant and is due to give birth the 1st week of October, and I have made the arrangements with a local farmer to trade one of her babies straight across for one of his males that have not been altered for breeding purposes.  With us taking these steps now, we have been able to practice butchering the animals and will have a consistent supply of fresh meat therefore taking that out of the list of things that we will need.  One thing to keep in mind when it comes to any type of livestock is that you do not need to stock up on commercial wormers and things of that nature.  Do your research and you will find out what you can use as a natural means to take care of these issues.  An example is that cantaloupe is a natural wormer for goats and pigs.  I just cut one up and feed it to them and they love it.  Also after you are done with your garden at the end of the year, don’t just leave what is left to rot or till into the ground.  You can chop up most of the stocks and use it as food for your animals.  The corn stocks are good for chickens and pig, and the list goes on and on.  Once you are done with that, just let the goats lose in your garden and they will do the rest of the cleanup for you while also fertilize the ground for next year.

Most of what we have in our food storage is done at home by me.  I can, dehydrate, and preserve almost all of the food in our storage.  There are numerous things that you can do yourself that will save you money instead of purchasing it from a food storage company, not only that you will know what is in it and can alter the ingredients to suit your family.  Today for example, I have way too many eggs in my fridge and instead of letting them go bad, I am making egg powder with the extra’s and adding it to my food storage.  To make homemade egg powder, you put the eggs in a mixing bowl, do not add milk or grease to your frying pan, and then fry them up in your frying pan, just like making scrambled eggs, but without the grease.  Once this step is complete, you put the eggs on a cookie sheet in a single layer and then put them in the oven at 135 degrees for about 10 hours.  I prefer to use the food dehydrator to do this since it takes less electricity and does not heat my house while it is getting done.  Once your eggs are completely dry and brittle, place them in a blender and blend them into a fine powder.  To store them, I use an old jelly jar that I cleaned when it was empty and then pour the egg powder into that and then place an oxygen absorber on top, seal the lid and then label it with the date and what it is and the reconstituting information.  To reconstitute powder eggs is simple, 2 T. is the same as 1 egg, mix the 2 T. with 4 T. of water and then use as you would a fresh egg. 

|The wheat that we buy for our food storage is purchased from the feed store that we currently get our animal food from.  I took the label off of a bag of wheat and called the company and asked them what the difference was between what they sell and what I can get at the store.  The guy that I spoke to explained to me that farmer’s do not decided what field they plant is going to be for human’s and what is going to be for animal’s and the only difference is that what is bought at the store goes through another [screening] cleaning step that can be done at home.  What I do is, I have an old window screen, take the wheat out of the bag and then shake it around on the screen on a breezy day. I would not suggest doing this on a windy day as it will blow away a big portion of the wheat, but on a breezy day, it is just enough to help blow away the extra dirt or left over shells that were not completely removed.  Once I am done with this, I store it in a food grade bucket that I get for free from a local fast food owner. 

The point that I am trying to get across is that you do not have to buy everything that you will need for food storage from a company, there are many things that you can do at home and then you will also be able to do it without everyone and their brother knowing what you are doing.  I can’t express enough to do your research before you begin and do not listen to everything that you hear.  I was once told that there is no way of preserving cantaloupe and I didn’t listen, did my research and found a great recipe for cantaloupe preserves that my family loves.

When it comes to water storage, we buy all of our soda and juices in the plastic containers and then when they are empty, I wash them out, sanitize them, and then refill the containers with water.  Do not do this with milk type containers as the jugs are now made to naturally decompose and when you need to use the water that you stored, you do not want to find out a minute to late that the containers have started decomposing and all of your water is now on the ground.  I go out every six months and dump the water in the garden area and refill the containers with fresh water so that I know that it has not gone bad.  When you store your water you want to keep it in a dark area, what I did for this was, I got an upright freezer that no longer works and store my water in that, it stays dark all the time except when I am adding more jugs or changing the water in the jugs.  People will give you these old none working freezers and fridges for free, you just have to look for them.  I also like using this method because I don’t have to worry about stray animals getting into them and doing their business on my containers.  Also WTSHTF and they start to get empty from using the water these containers will be used as containers for gardening, this will allow me to plant more crops without the worry of small animals getting them before we have a chance to eat what is grown.  It also is a way to grow more without others not in our group knowing what is in there, from afar it will just look like an old appliance.

With the money that we save on our food storage, I go to the local thrift stores and seek out other items that we will need.  I have purchased wheat grinders, meat grinders, and none electric items that would be useful and some that will be just nice to have.  One of the items that I purchased was a hand crack ice-cream maker.  Now if there is no electricity then you are wondering how I have going to use it, well when we hit freezing temperatures outside I can make ice that way and it will be a nice treat to the kids.  The one thing with kids is that they don’t care how cold it is outside, they just know that they like ice-cream.  I have saved so much money by going to the thrift stores and buying the items that people don’t want because they can get the new and improved version that takes less work.  These are the items that I want and use.  I have gotten 2 dehydrators from the thrift store and am able to dry twice as much in one shot.  Always remember that someone else’s trash can be your new treasure and can make life so much easier WTSHTF.

You also do not need to purchase heirloom seeds from a manufacturing company, I get mine from an organic farmer that has a roadside stand that only grows and sells heirloom varieties.  I purchase my produce from them and then preserve what I buy and then save the seeds for storage.  It is cheaper this way because I am cutting out the third party.  Just make sure that the farmer that you are getting these from is a reputable farmer and is not just saying that they are heirloom when they are not.  Again, do your research. 

Soap is one of my favorites.  I e-mail the company that sells Fels-Naptha and Borax and they will send you coupons in the mail, I then take these coupons to Wal-Mart and purchase these items as well as Arm and Hammer super washing soda.  Do not get the regular baking soda as it does not work the same, you need super washing soda.  I make our laundry soap and this soap is also good for washing dishes.  I have stocked up on enough ingredients to make two years worth of soap for laundry and dishes for under $10.  To make the soap you need, 1 bar of fels-naptha, 1 cup Arm and Hammer super washing soda, and ½ cup borax.  In a large pot boil 4 cups of water and grate the fels-naptha soap into it.  Mix it until the fels-naptha is completely dissolved.  Then place this mixture into a 5 gallon bucket and add the remaining ingredients.  Stir until everything is mixed together and then fill the bucket the rest of the way with hot tap water.  Let sit overnight and the soap will gel.  When you need to use it, stir the soap in the bucket and dilute half soap and half tap water in an old laundry container.  Shake to mix prior to every use.

I also save money when it comes to personal hygiene items.  Do not overlook the fact that you will need soap, shampoo, toothpaste and brushes, and so on.  I get most of these items for free or for fewer than 50 cents apiece.  I am able to do this because I jumped on the coupon bandwagon and do my research prior to going to the store.  There are many web sites that have already done the research for you if you do not have the time to do it yourself.  An example of one that I use is TheKrazyCouponLady.com.  When I purchase toilet paper for the house I get the bigger package and then take a few rolls out and repackage them in old plastic bags from the store and then put them up.  It is cheaper to get the bigger package and put some away for storage then it is to get the package for your house and then another for storage.  The plastic grocery bags will be used in other areas such as trash bags WTSHTF.  Always look at prices of things and try to think outside of the box when it comes to storage.  Everything has a use, don’t overlook this and think that you need to throw away things because there is nothing that they are good for.  Look around and you can probably think of something.  WTSHTF, we will need trash bags, but I am not going to stock up on them when I save the grocery bags that I get at the store for free package other items in them now and then have them with I need them.

We have four children and WTSHTF, I feel that they will be affected more than us adults will be.  What I am doing to help them during this time, is, I buy small cheap toys, coloring books, and reading books for them that are a part of our storage.  The toys that I buy are ones that do not take batteries that have been clearance out during the year and at the big clearance sales after Christmas.  I plan on using these items as birthday and Christmas presents for my kids.  This will better enable them to adapt to the new way of life as we will know it without then having to give up on everything as they know it.  They will still have these special times of the year to look forward to and will also give them a sense of normalcy in a time that will not be normal to our current way of life.

As a final thought, I would like to say, that while there are easier ways of preparing, don’t let not having the money stop you from getting ready for a time that I believe is fast approaching and is inevitable.  Think outside the box and make use of the Internet for some of your research.  Just remember that if you research things on the internet, you write down the steps of how to do whatever it is that you are looking at.  Don’t rely on your memory since WTSHTF, we will all be living life much different than we do now and it is better to have a written copy of something then try to remember something when life is already going to stressful enough.  Good Luck to everyone.

Anthrax Review for TEOTW, by Dr. Bob

Anthrax is a good, scary topic that deserves a brief review.  There are three ways you can get anthrax:  cutaneous, inhalation, and alimentary.  Cutaneous anthrax is by far the most common type, often associated with farming and ranching.  The spores get into the skin through cuts or scrapes and then multiply locally.  The disease begins with a very small pimple that quickly enlarges and often blisters.  It the erodes and leaves and painless necrotic ulcer with a black covering.  The surrounding tissue swells up due to the toxin released by the bacteria and lymph node swelling and pain can occur.  Symptoms of fever, malaise, and headache can occur.  Fatality from cutaneous anthrax is very rare with antibiotic treatment and is quoted at less than 1 percent.  Without treatment though, mortality can be as high as 1/5 infections.  Treatment will be described below after reviewing the other types of anthrax infection.

Inhalation of anthrax can cause a much more serious infection, which is obvious.  Animal products contaminated with anthrax can aerosolize and then be inhaled.  Also, terrorist or government attacks with anthrax will do the same thing on a much grander scale.  The first symptoms of inhalation anthrax mimic influenza, and can be tough to diagnose without a clue as to the possible source.  After the initial symptoms, rapid multiplication of bacteria and the subsequent release of toxin occurs.  This can cause necrotic pneumonia and death.  The key is treating anthrax early in the initial stage, rather than later when it is likely to do no good.  Most inhalation anthrax is fatal, without a known exposure and high suspicion to treat, the rate is over 90%.

Lastly, you can actually ingest anthrax from undercooked, infected meat.  Why you would eat uncooked, infected meat is beyond comprehension.  It happens though.  The spores can then infect any of the tissues from “tip to tail” as commonly said.  GI infection is more common than mouth and throat infection, and the symptoms range from gastroenteritis-like illness to full blown liver failure and low blood pressures.  Mortality is higher with oral infection, even with treatment it can be up to 60 percent.  GI infection mortality is as low as 4% with treatment.  Higher without, obviously.  All forms can end up causing anthrax meningitis and the survival from brain involvement is about 6 percent.

Diagnosis of anthrax now is hard…WTSHTF it will be impossible.  There will be no cultures and lab confirmations.  Suspicion will be the best you can go on.  Obviously, when working around animals it is best to wear a dust mask or bandana to prevent inhalation.  Cook your meat and of course don’t eat diseased animals.  Cutaneous anthrax is the most likely cause now and will be even  more so when there are more people going “back to the land”, especially those unfamiliar with animals and farming.  Classic anthrax skin lesions are found here and here for your oogling.  On suspicion of an anthrax infection, treatment needs to be aggressive and early.

Treatment for anthrax infection is pretty simple:  antibiotics that will likely kill it.  These include ciprofloxacin, Doxycycline, tetracycline, clindamycin, clarithromycin, rifampin, vancomycin, imipenem, and chloramphenicol.  Most of the recommendations include testing for sensitivity, again, not available at TEOTWAWKI.  Best recommendations are ciprofloxacin 500 mg twice daily or Doxycycline 100 mg twice daily; both for at least 7 days if not 10 days.  Luckily, Doxycycline and ciprofloxacin are currently readily available and very affordable with a prescription.

So, that is my brief anthrax review for you.  Questions and suggestions are always welcome. We regularly edit our posts with smart reader information and are grateful to have it.  Always feel free to e-mail us at survivinghealthy@hotmail.com with suggestions for future topics, as well.  Stay strong.

JWR Adds: Dr. Bob is is one of the few consulting physicians in the U.S. who dispenses antibiotics for disaster preparedness as part of his normal scope of practice. His web site is: SurvivingHealthy.com.

Three Letters Re: Lessons Learned From a Recent California Power Outage

Dear Jim

Yesterday at about 4:00 p.m. there was a massive power outage in the southwest. All of San Diego County And other parts of Southern California were without power for almost 12 hours some still are.

I learned a few very good lessons from this experience. I do consider myself a prepper but am limited to how much I can store because I live in an apartment. I had concentrated on food, water, and defense measures for the long run, but had completely ignored some more immediate short term supplies.

First and foremost, I overlooked cash. I have been buying silver but bartering wasn’t necessary yet because this crisis didn’t last that long. I know some people think ATM’s have a “magic” power source but they don’t. Every single one I went to was not working, and convenience stores were cash only. They did have great deals on ice cream 2 for 1.

I forgot to mention this power outage was in the middle of a heat wave. Southern California as you know is a desert with all of its water coming from other places. This outage happened because of one worker who removed a safety device in Arizona. That is what the news is saying, anyway. Another key element I missed was lighting and batteries. We had some candles but I don’t like using them because I have a four year old who thinks that they would be fun to play with. I couldn’t buy batteries because I had no cash. A friend gave us some batteries and we were able to listen to the news. We have some several media devices in our home that became very expensive paperweights last night. We did still have water but they had issued “boil water” orders for several cities. Remember that this whole deal lasted only several hours. Imagine if this outage had lasted for several more days.

One piece of technology we did have was a Verizon mi/fi wireless card, which was great until it ran out of power. We were able to surf the net and find out news, and go on Amazon to complete our emergency kit. A lot of people who like to run their cars all the way to empty found themselves sleeping at a gas station and some almost spent the night on the freeway. Keep your tanks full or at least enough to sit in traffic for a few hours. Headlamps were another thing we ordered they make life a lot easier than having to tote around a big flash light. We ordered a new radio that can be solar charged.

I don’t believe there was any sort massive criminal activity just some people stealing liquor. San Diego is a very conservative city and with one of the cities with the largest veteran populations per capita. Civil unrest would be a bad idea. Our local nuclear power plant went offline because of what happened in Arizona. Our grid is very fragile and one person in another state was responsible for millions losing power, and it was an accident. Imagine what could happen if there was an intentional attack.

I learned that your frozen foods will be alright in the freezer if it is full [and kept closed]. Luckily we had just gone shopping and didn’t have to throw anything away. Yesterday most of us in San Diego County were taken back to [the technological level of] the 1930s with the exception of a few Blackberries and other media devices. Had this lasted any longer those devices would have died.

In conclusion don’t forget that not all scenarios are TEOTWAWKI situations and don’t overlook the small stuff you keep putting off buying. It was the cheapest and easiest to get comforts that would have all the difference in the world. – C.R.

 

Jim:
You called it. I can’t find the post at the moment, but I believe that you raised this issue recently. I was on the University of California San Diego (UCSD) campus when we lost power yesterday along with the rest of San Diego County. The electric eye-activated toilets and urinals in the new buildings were all nonfunctional, whereas the older models (with actual handles) in place in the older buildings worked fine. Exclusively installing toilets that don’t function without electricity in new buildings just seems like a bad idea. Thanks, – Robert B.

 

James Wesley:
Well, I finished my preps at the mountain retreat about a month ago (I fine-tune little things, but the bulk is done.)  And with the roller-coaster ride of the stock market, the Fed debasing our currency, one natural disaster after another, and everything else, I find myself resigned to the fact that something big is coming.  So I am growing slightly impatient.  I mean, this slow grind down is killing me.  I wish things would either get dramatically better, or just collapse already. 

Then something interesting happened at 3:38 PM on September 8, 2011.  My wife, our tenant and I were about to walk out the door to get a late-lunch / early dinner.  All the sudden all the lights went out (We live in Southern California.).  I immediately looked down at my cell phone.  It was still on.  I looked out the window and cars were still going by.  Okay, no EMP.  I assumed it was just a neighborhood blackout.  The little lady walked to the next property over to check on the preschool we run.  As she was making sure they were okay (they were), I hoped in my truck to run an errand or two.  The radio began to announce all the areas that were experiencing power outages.  In less than 5 minutes I was able to determine this outage was huge. 

I walked next door to the preschool.  All was well there.  The wife had set up a radio, and had had the same realization as I.  Since the facility closes at 6 PM, and it was now 4 PM, we only had about 10-to-12 kids left to go home. 

One note of interest was the fact that we had radio information, as did the entire county.  This made a big difference in how we (and the county as a whole) handled this situation.

I said to my wife that I wanted to go ahead and travel to the retreat after all of the children and staff were off property.  My lovely bride said, “I don’t want to leave the school.  It’s all I have.  You can go to the cabin if you want.” (She has owned and operated our main facility for 33 years.)  I explained to her that I meant after the children and staff had safely departed. 

Her statement put me in an awkward position.  Do I stay behind and pass on a great opportunity to do a dry run?  I really would like to see how well the battery-backed solar at the cabin worked with the grid down.  Not to mention the fact that while things seem reasonably calm at the moment, what if things spiraled and got worse? 

Or do I go ahead and go alone and be a jerk that leaves his wife behind? 

I went out back to freshen the chicken’s water, while thinking about what to do.  Fortunately when I returned, she had reconsidered. 

So once the children were gone, the last staff member informed me that she was a little worried.  She had enough gas to get home under normal circumstances.  But if she got caught in traffic, she was afraid she might run out on the road (most gas stations were down because no power equals no pumps).  Because my wife and I both had 75% full tanks in each of our vehicles (we fill up at 50%), I was able to give her two gallons of the ten gallons spare I had on the property.      

My tribe engineer had been in touch during this.  He decided to head up to the retreat as a dry run, as well. 

As I was casually packing the wife’s suburban for travel, my neighbor and favorite employee called me.  She informed me that the grocery store that was still open was getting cleared out (they had a back-up generator).  She was a little spooked, and said if I was going “up the hill”, I might want to do that sooner rather than later. 

So we hustled and got the dogs and the G.O.O.D bags in the car. 

I called my engineer (My back-up electrician was on assignment in Houston.  So had this been a real event…?) and said we were leaving.  He asked if any gas stations were open.  He was on empty.  Arrrrrrrr.  So I headed 6 miles in the opposite direction and took him a five gallon can of gas.  Traffic was light.  Many people were noted just walking around, walking dogs, that sort of thing.  I think the fact that information was readily available helped keep everyone calm.   

About ten miles into the journey, I realized I didn’t have one of the pistols I keep in the safe for just such an occasion with me.  Dang, I never in a million years would have guessed I’d forget something so basic.  I have a printed list of things to grab, but didn’t look at it.  Lesson learned on that one. 

I also realized later that I didn’t even think to grab the thousand dollars in cash I had.  That might have been actually useful.  Fortunately I didn’t need it.  But if I had, boy would I have felt dumb. 

Our 40 mile journey goes through a smallish rural town about 10 miles into it.  Traffic was very light.  Signals were out and we did brief stops at every intersection.  My engineer reported difficulty getting through that town two hours later.  A head-on collision had snarled things up.

The rest of the journey is a two-lane mountain road.  I was very relieved to see that almost no traffic was on the road.  This kind of makes sense, as nobody really lives out there.  But I wasn’t sure how that would pan out. 

Once at my cabin, I reached to my belt-loop for the retreat keys.  No Keys!  I forgot the keys to my retreat!  This really brings home the point that when the pressure is on, the mind can really go south on you.  Fortunately, thanks to the JWR philosophy of redundancy, I had a spare front door key hidden on property.  Once inside, I had a spare set of the rest of the keys. 

Our solar system was working like a charm.  Dinner was cooked, fans were running.  A neighbor below and one far above he generators going and their houses were ablaze with light.  The rest of the valley was dark, other than a candle or lantern here or there.  I kept our light signature low, just for practice.  I wanted to give my wife enough light to cook by, but not much more.  The five solar lanterns I picked up from Harbor Freight work very, very well.  I have let their batteries run down in the past, just because it is good to do once in a while.  They will run non-stop on a full charge all night, every time.  They did the same on this night. 

The tribe engineer arrived a few hours later.  It ended up being a late night, but we were all very pleased.

Power was restored during the night, and we returned home a little before dawn to resume our normal duties. 

After-action reports showed crime to have been almost non-existent during this blackout.  I attribute a lot of that to readily available communication.  Also, for the most part, San Diego County is still a fairly peaceful place.  I monitored all my Facebook friends’ comments about the event.  They all reported that neighbors got together, barbequed, drank a little wine around improvised camp fires, that sort of thing. 

All-in-all, aside from losing a little sleep, it was a great experience. 

I would highly recommend other tribes do a dry run just to see where your weaknesses are.  You’d be surprised. – L.B.

Letter Re: Letter Re: An Early Baby Boomer’s Bug Out Bags

Jim:

The type of flexible bandages [that were recently mentioned in a follow-up letter to “An Early Baby Boomer’s Bug Out Bag”] can be ordered through Schneider’s Tack Company for about $.99 apiece, in boxes of 18.  I use these all the time and they are great for all sorts of emergency fixes as well as wound care.  The rolls available at the drug stores can run $3.00 or more. Just order Vet Flex bandages, item # 30955, for a case. 

SurvivalBlog is the best web site ever. – Kate in Colorado

Economics and Investing:

Cue the the Gianini Requiem: Reports: Bank of America to shutter 600 branches

Another Sob Story: Saab to appeal creditor protection rejection. Who would have ever thought that Saab would be bailed out by China?

John R. suggested this over at Zero Hedge: ECBCTRL+P: The Next Steps In The European Implosion. The piece begins: “Wondering what is next for Europe? Don’t be. With Jurgen Stark, aka the last real hawk at the ECB, gone, here comes ‘the printing.'”

Items from The Economatrix:

Fed Says 12 Regions Grew Modestly this Summer

The Worst is Yet to Come

Only Precious Metals Can Prepare You for the Banking Crisis

European Banks Face Collapse Under Debts

Odds ‘n Sods:

Michael Z. Williamson (SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large) sent word of some science fiction becoming science fact: Where Kevlar Fails, a Liquid Succeeds

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K.A.F. also sent this: Military, CIA shun 9/11 panel on covert operations. [JWR’s Comment: Yes, but look who has been tapped to be the new DCI. They times, they are a-changin’, at Langley.]

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A useful piece, over at Daily Finance: How Much Cash Would You Need After a Terrorist Attack?

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While the rest of the States continue to make progress, the California legislature tries a step backward: California Senate votes on open carry handguns [ban] bill. Note that they’re trying to ban the carry of unloaded guns! And meanwhile in Nanny State New York: No Cause, No Gun, Judge Tells Gun Lovers. (A hat tip to Mike F. for the latter link.)

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A new post from Tess Pennington: 30 Most Popular Herbs for Natural Medicine. (Thanks to Jeff H. for the link.)

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer.
From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock [that] is higher than I.
For thou hast been a shelter for me, [and] a strong tower from the enemy.
I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever: I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah.
For thou, O God, hast heard my vows: thou hast given [me] the heritage of those that fear thy name.
Thou wilt prolong the king’s life: [and] his years as many generations.
He shall abide before God for ever: O prepare mercy and truth, [which] may preserve him.
So will I sing praise unto thy name for ever, that I may daily perform my vows.” – Psalm 61 (KJV)

Notes from JWR:

A fan of my novel “Patriots” just produced an amazing five-minute ultralight flying video that is available free, via YouTube. Kudos! This gent shot some great footage that really captures the look and feel of some of the key locales in my novel. And in it you can see how pretty the Palouse Hills region is at harvest time. It is a High Definition (HD) video, so be sure to watch it at “full screen” size.

I suppose that with the publicity of my blog, my books, this video and Radio Free Redoubt, the web traffic to SurvivalRealty.com will increase. Subsequently, the population figures shown in the ultralight flying video might soon bump up a bit. I’m hopeful that some good folks will be encouraged to move to the American Redoubt. (Which, of course, includes the Palouse.)

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Today we present another entry for Round 36 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) 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 B.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $300 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo, and E.) An M17 medical kit from JRH Enterprises (a $179.95 value).

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value courtesy of Next Level Training. B.) 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, C.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and D.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, and C.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 36 ends on September 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Prepping: It’s Not Just for TEOTWAWKI, by Choctaw Prepper

In this day and age of being able to go to a store and get practically anything you would ever need or want, the concept of preparing for a disaster escapes some individuals.  The time of “Victory Gardens” and canning your surplus vegetables and fruits have fallen by the way side in our current culture.  Our society sees people storing vast amounts of food and supplies as paranoid because they are simply not accustomed with the practice, nor do they see the need.  Most people cannot conceive the idea that they can be left without food or water, or that they may need to leave their homes in an emergency for a prolonged time.  The need for preparations extends to living day to day so you will be prepared for any situation that may arise.  Below I will share two separate instances during my childhood where my family being prepared either saved our lives or made life a lot easier to live.

When I was a teenager, myself, my parents, and two of my three brothers lived in rural Oklahoma.  One summer we had a massive barn fire which not only destroyed the majority of our cherished belongings but also burned our well pump house to the ground.  With the well pump buried under charred wood and sheet metal we were effectively cut off from our fresh water supply.  Luckily we are an avid outdoors family and had several water containers for fresh water, and a camp toilet.  We were able to simply go to the nearest State Park to get free drinking water for whatever we needed it for.  Seeing that we were stuck waiting for the insurance company to provide a settlement to replace the well pump for several weeks, we saved quite a bit of money not having to buy water to survive.  Since the barn was so far away from our house this was not a life or death situation but being prepared definitely made life a lot easier for the time being.   

Several years later we had a massive ice storm.  Several inches of ice covered completely everything, effectively causing the power lines to break under the weight of the ice knocking out power to a large portion of the state.  The roads were so iced over that when they sent out a repair truck it promptly got stuck in our hilly region.  For approximately one week our region was out of power.  Seeing that we only had two wheel drive vehicles and no snow chains we were effectively stranded from the outside world.

Luckily my parents loved to buy things that in my adolescence I thought were simply not needed, such as a wood burning stove.  Not only did it lower our heating cost but it had a substantial cooking surface.  We also spent several summers at our grandparents’ ranch clearing trees and picking pecans to sell for extra money (being a kid I thought that those pecan trees were like a gold mine).  We either hauled the trees to saw mills so we could use the wood to build our own furniture or we chopped them up for firewood (our wood pile would have made Paul Bunyan proud).

Furthermore since I was a child we always kept some form of livestock (mainly pigs or cattle) which we raised and butchered.  I learned how to care for the livestock and was responsible for their feeding and upkeep (as well as their far too often escapes from their pastures or pens).  We also always kept a large garden.  Being a teenager you can imagine how much a teenager loved to spend his afternoon picking vegetables, followed by a green bean snapping session.  The majority of teenage summertime bliss was spent pulling weeds, tilling, watering, and fertilizing the garden.  More than half of these vegetables were then canned and put away for whenever we needed them.  Over the years we accumulated quite a bit of surplus canned items and frozen beef and pork.  I also learned the extremely valuable art of canning.

During that ice storm we were able to put that woodstove to work and not only survived on our stored food, but we thrived.  Due to not having electricity we turned our wood box into our new freezer, keeping all of our frozen food frozen.  Turns out that all of those summers chopping wood and keeping up the garden paid off and being prepared saved us.  Also we saw the writing on the walls for the electricity going out and used our water containers to store more than enough water before the power went out.  The living room where the woodstove was located became everyone’s bedroom.  Since we were prepared, even though at the time we didn’t really see ourselves as “preppers”, it wasn’t a horrible experience.  Cooking on the woodstove and spending a lot of time reading and listening to my parents stories of their life experiences and the experiences of my grandparents living through the dust bowl, it was actually kind of fun, living like our ancestors without electricity for a week. 
In those real life experiences I learned very valuable lessons, which are always be prepared for whatever may come your way and learn everything you can to prepare yourself.  Luckily I always listened and learned from my parents. 

No one knows what will happen or when, take for example of the current wildfires in Texas (Summer of 2011) or the all too often hurricanes or tornados that devastate towns or entire states.  You never know when a natural or manmade disaster might displace you from your home, take out your utilities until god knows when, or strand you from the rest of the world.  Also it is possible that you might need to utilize your preparations for smaller emergencies.  In a time in which our nation’s unemployment rate seems to grow by the minute having the knowledge to grow your own food and having your previously stored home grown food can get you out of a hopefully temporary loss of wages. 

Nothing says that you have to go out and spend a small fortune on freeze dried foods or MREs.  I am sure that there are some people that say that they don’t want to prepare because of the price of the food, but canning is a good alternative.  You also don’t need a garden to can food.  Some grocery stores and a lot of farmers markets sell un-snapped green beans for a reasonable price, which cuts out the growing and picking aspect.  Although your canned food will not last as long as freeze dried food you will just have to rotate it more often meaning you will need to eat it and nothing tastes better than food you produced with your own two hands.  Keeping a garden not only reduces your grocery bill but if a disaster occurs in which the food supply is disrupted or non-existent you will already have the knowledge on growing your own food and the experience of knowing what grows best in your region.  Also using heirloom seeds you can learn to harvest seeds from your current crop to use the next year.  Another option is the use of five or six gallon buckets in conjunction with heat-sealed mylar bags and oxygen absorbers can enable you to store grains and beans for an extended amount of time (over 20 years for white rice, dried beans, and wheat).  Pinto beans may not sound great to some to eat for an extended amount of time but they are high in protein and will keep you alive in an extended time line emergency.  Keeping long term storage food in buckets also gives you the ability to be mobile if the need arises.  There may come a time in which your home may become compromised and you have to leave, or bug out to a safer location.  If you have your items in buckets they will be easier to transport to your secondary location.

Keeping drinking water grade containers around the house also helps a lot.  Most people that don’t prepare just flock to the store when a massive storm is heading their way and clean out the shelves of bottled water and canned goods.  Due to the current stocking practices at major retailers (what is on the shelves is what they have, they only order more when that particular item is bought), if you wait little or no supplies will be left.  But if you have containers handy you only have to go as far as your kitchen sink to fill your containers.

The preparations I have talked about should only be your first stepping stones to a well rounded plan.  The need for medical supplies, self-defense equipment, communications equipment, etc. and the know how to use all the items is still needed. 

I make frequent trips to our local Atwood’s Farm and Home Store, where they carry everything you will need for canning at great prices.  The last time I went I was able to obtain a case of quart jars with lids and rings for approximately $8. (One of their frequent sales).  Canning requires a canning pot, a jar rack, a jar funnel, and a jar lifter all of which Lehman’s carries for a decent price and they even have a starter kit including a canning book. There are multiple books available to learn how to garden and can food but unless you get out and do it and use trial and error when there is not an emergency you will not know what works the way you want it to and what just simply doesn’t work at all. 

Letter Re: CONEX Shipping Containers as Faraday Enclosures?

Hi Jim, and Readers,
I read the piece about using a CONEX as a Faraday cage,  I made some RF measurements using a 2-meter handheld, and a small portable Sangean ATS-909 receiver quite a while back with that very subject in mind.

I have an S-250 RATT Rig shelter also.  I don’t think you can really beat the S-250 shelter, with any other readily available equipment.  But in a pinch even the CONEX will work relatively well for EMI, EMP, and TEMPEST. The reduction of signals even with the wooden floor is  enough to help even with no EMI gasketing on the doors,. It is much better than a metal building like a shop or garage. Now, there are available metal equipment shipping containers available at most military surplus houses around the country many with EMI gasketing installed.  They are also often available at a lot of Ham swaps for reasonable prices. The main thing is to check the gasketing, If they just have rubber gaskets, they can be replace with conductive gaskets, Just searching “EMI Gaskets” on line will bring up lots of resources.

I have elected to make absolutely sure that when I have even the slightest doubt to use large ammo cans, or electronics equipment shipping containers to place my specialized electronics into. Then I place them in my CONEX or my G.O.O.D. trailer. In my shop, I keep handhelds, including light test equipment in shipping containers.

Even in the S-250 shelter, It is important to secure the connector caps for the RF entrance and power entrance connectors, being sure to also ground the unit with the usually-supplied grounding strap and ground rod.
If you want EMP and CME insurance then take all of the precautions possible to protect what important electronics you have.

I have elected to not only protect quite a bit of my ham  gear including several QRP (low power home built radios), but also GMRS, CBs, and test equipment.
I have also placed the business ends of some sound projection equipment in containers too. The reason for this is that I remember in the novel One Second After,  they wished they had some way to make public addresses easier.

It is important too that generators, and solar equipment be protected. I know most solar cells are diode protected, but what I don’t know is what the peak inverse voltage is  or the clamping voltage is on those diodes. Meaning how much protection will that actually provide, not knowing the actual estimated energy of a threat, my personal choice is to keep my expensive panels secured until well after an event so I don’t have to be concerned weather they will take the punch-thru or not of some unknown current  hitting them.

I mentioned CBs  I got a good deal several years ago with the manager of the Radio Shack, he let me have for five dollars each all of the returned CB sets, I got about 25 units, out of which I was able to repair more than half. I set them all up with Anderson Power Poles and have power cables made up.  Finding cheap antennas around at yard sales for mobiles, and making some basic dipole antennas will provide a neighborhood with fair communications in a pinch. Car batteries will provide plenty of talk and monitor time.

I am not yet fully prepared, and I don’t think anyone can think of everything. I do have some old computers that are on my list of needing to be checked out and loaded with some ham radio communications programs, then secured in equipment containers too. that includes the whole computer, keyboards, mouse’ mice’s little rats, what ever you know where I’m headed, the whole thing.

I might mention the Earth has been hit just in the past two weeks with two moderate CMEs,  And I get a lot of lightning storms around here this time of year,  Now if I leave home for any length of time, I have made it a habit of shutting down and unplugging any equipment I consider important enough to protect. including disconnecting antenna systems.

Something to keep in mind even if your antenna gets hit by lightning and it is disconnected from your equipment. The coaxial cable can get arcing punch through for quite a length down the coax from the antenna, and again at the terminating end. Therefore prepared replacement coaxial cable should be considered as part of your preparations.  I once had to repair part of a very large antenna system and by the time we were done fixing the system it cost many thousands of dollars before it was made right.

So have some type of test equipment to check out your antenna array before reconnecting it to your critical radio equipment. Then when you bring up your transmitter, bring the power up incrementally ,continuously keeping an eye on the VSWR (SWR)  on your antenna. Blessings – Dave in Oregon

Letter Re: Making Your Range Time Real Time — Train as You’ll Fight!

Dear Sir,
I’ve been a fan ever since I read your novel “Patriots” a couple of years ago.  I’d like to point out that with regard to the “Making Your Range Time Real Time – Train as You’ll Fight!” post, the ability to shoot and move and to shoot while moving should be included in your training.  Furthermore, the use of cover versus concealment should be included.
 
I bring this up because for years in federal law enforcement we qualified every three months, we did use silhouette targets, but all the shooting was done from a static position at varying distances.  I only recently got involved in IDPA shooting and while my target scores are very good, my times stink to high heaven, and it is not all due to age.  The sad fact is that for over 20 years, my shooting was always stationary shooting, adding movement to it throws all sorts of new wrinkles into it which makes me wonder about the practical use of the training I did have.
 
Keep up the good work. – Signcutter

Economics and Investing:

G.G. sent: Many baby boomers don’t plan to leave their children an inheritance

Sunoco to Quit Oil Refining Business. (Thanks to F.G. for the link.)

Stock Market Crash 1929, Mystery Unraveled? (The text is also available in the Dutch edition.)

Items from The Economatrix:

Millions of Americans Living in Long-Stay Motels

Europe Stocks in Big Monday Drop

US Postal Service Near Default

The US Jobs Crisis Worsens

Zoellick Warns of New Danger for Global Economy