Letter Re: Investing in Nickels, in Quantity

James,  
I read on your blog where you said that you can fit $178 worth or nickels into a standard U.S. .30 cal ammunition can.   Well, I’ve been able to stuff $190 worth into every can so far. I don’t know why others can only get 89 rolls while I can get 95 rolls into the same space. Might I suggest stacking them directly on top of each other instead of letting the next row rest in the previous rows’ valley. Visualize stacking them not like a rack of pool balls or bowling pins, but rather like a brick of AA batteries. Whether it is paper or plastic roll of coins,you will get the same results. Also, these ammo cans full of nickels might offer some degree of ballistic and gamma ray protection so that’s something to think about as well if you’re doing any critical ‘remodeling’ at home with regards to clandestine storage issues.

An OPSEC issue to be concerned with is the disposal of the empty cardboard nickel boxes. Around here, I burn them to get rid of them. Slipping them one at a time into the trash can at the gas station is another discreet way to get rid of them. Don’t just throw then into your trash only to be discovered by a snooping neighbor or worse, a criminal type.  

Also, I am able to secure $1,000 worth every week from now until I say uncle from two different banks that I utilize. For free. A piece of cake. What most people don’t realize is that the change warehouse where the retail bank orders its change from, (typically Loomis or Brinks,) charges the bank per box delivered. This is why you have to be careful and feel out your bankers and your tellers before asking for anything in quantity. Once you build up a good rapport with them, they are more likely to acquiesce to your request. A box of doughnuts on a cold Friday morning or a $10 cake could save you many times that in cost per box of accumulation. Be smart and use your tact and diplomacy and it will go a long way here.

My advice to anyone starting out to accumulate is to start out small. Use multiple branches. Ask the teller for $20 worth of nickels at first. Do that for a few weeks and when you feel comfortable enough, just say that you want to get more if possible. This is the key moment because if they say yes and then arrange to get them for you, then you’re home free. If they mention a fee per roll or box to continue supplying you with nickels, just say that you were curious and that’s okay, you didn’t know about the fees and just continue to get your 10 rolls a week from that branch while continuing to work on softening them up for free boxes someday. Eventually they’ll probably start ordering some boxes for you for free. Remember, it’s totally up to the employees at the bank whether to charge you fees or not so like I said earlier, have patience and use your tact and diplomacy to get them on your ‘side’ and you should have no problems getting as many nickels as you want.  

Curiously, at both banks, they were more concerned that I was going to return them en-mass someday as they obviously don’t want to be ‘stuck’ with a boatload of returned nickels. I just smile as I think to myself, “Like that will ever happen!”  I reassure them by telling them that I am saving the nickels to take to Vegas someday in my RV. It draws a curious smile and nary a second thought from them as they know us gambler types have some strange proclivities!  

Folks, I agree with James Rawles. Trading worthless fiat paper currency for hard metal currency with real metal value is obvious. I have told five friends about this and they are now all accumulating nickels. Lucky for me, they live in other states so I don’t have to compete with them for boxes at the banks. One of my friends just sold one of his spare cars and put the proceeds in nickels. And he’s very tough to convince about anything!  

My advice is to have strong resolve, patience, and be courteous to the tellers. Never lose sight of the fact that they are doing you a favor that they do not have to do, and you should be well on your way to massive nickel accumulation! – Rick in Kentucky

Economics and Investing:

Pierre M. mentioned: The Worst Hyperinflation Situations of All Time. JWR Adds: I often slip a Zimbabwean $100 Trillion bill inside the front cover of autographed copies of my novel when I send them as gifts. That serves as a reminder that mass inflation isn’t just in the realm of fiction.

Thanks to Kelly D. for spotting this: World Bank: Food prices at “dangerous levels” World Bank report says food prices are at “dangerous levels” after rising 29 percent in a year

Evan D. suggested this piece: Collective financial insanity – FDIC backing $5.4 trillion in total deposits on pure faith – US banking operating with negative deposit insurance fund and massive debt leverage. The greatest Ponzi scheme known in the financial world.

David B. sent us a link to news article about a bank run: Ivory Coast rush to withdraw bank cash. JWR Adds: My personal theory is that the recent banking instability was caused by the Côte d’Ivoire cancer cluster! Here is what happened: thousands of female millionaires, all with esophageal cancer, and all of whom simultaneously withdrew beau coup bucks to send charitably to American recipients that they found through the Internet. 🙂

Items from The Economatrix:

US Plans to Wind Down Fannie and Freddie  

Regulators Shut Down Banks in Florida, Michigan, Wisconsin and California.

Engineered Economic Collapse Approaching; Budget Cuts Will Only Accelerate the Inevitable  

Losing Faith in Paper Money (The Mogambo Guru)  

Long-Term Gold Target $2,000 or Higher  

Odds ‘n Sods:

A portent of the future? Hunting down the hoarders to rein in prices, the Chinese government turns to unconventional measures. Our thanks to Don V. for the link.

   o o o

Man, 84, Survives Five Days Lost in Desert. (Thanks to readers Steve H. and John T. who both sent that link.)

   o o o

Reese sent this: Climate Change May Cause ‘Massive’ Food Disruptions

   o o o

Lee in Tulsa mentioned that announced chapter 11 bankruptcy of Borders Books means that they are closing 200 stores. Lee recommends: “Check to the store closure list to see which stores in your area are closing and find some bargains for your survival library.”

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"With hurricanes, tornados, fires out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu and terrorist attacks, are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegiance?" – Jay Leno

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 33 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 $392 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A 250 round case of 12 Gauge Hornady TAP FPD 2-3/4″ OO buckshot ammo, courtesy of Sunflower Ammo (a $240 value), 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.) , and B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value.

Round 33 ends on March 31st, 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.

Do Not Underestimate Airsoft as a Training Aid for Youths, by Scott D.

My son who is 15 years old recently got into Airsoft and started to amass a collection of replica looking, fully functioning and firing Airsoft rifles and pistols.

I had planned on enrolling him in a Hunter’s Safety course soon as he is of age but the more I watched him and his buddies play Airsoft in the bush like a rag-tag wild bunch I decided to take action.  This was a good way to train them to be soldiers.  Mostly because it was out of fear of some of the younger children getting seriously injured, since those plastic pellets hurt [and a great risk of eye injury]s.  I told them that I would treat them like soldiers and adults as long as they acted the part.  That little bit of respect given them was enough to make them attentive and more mature acting then some of the recruits that I’ve had to deal with in the past.

a) The first thing I did was break them down into two teams that were roughly equal in both ages and sizes.
b) Then, just like instructing recruits it was weapon basics and Immediate Action (IAs) on the rifle. (Almost all of them had Airsoft M4 look-alikes.)  I covered the Load, unload, and make safe, clear weapons for inspection.  Then more advanced drills like IAs for obstructions and so forth.
c) After I was confident that the 11 year olds could remedy stoppages as well as the 15 year olds then it was small section tactics.  Section sized advance to contact, moving and covering and the final assault of a position.  After the advance, I taught them defensive positions and ambushes.
d) In our neighborhood most kids are military brats so they all had Dad’s or Mom’s old field uniforms, I made sure they had ballistic eyewear, Being in Supply it was my gift to them.  Then we went into camouflage and concealment.

Now when they wage war on each other there is no such thing as one-sided matches.  Some would say that I should not be teaching kids that sort of thing, but I played war as a kid and I believe it prepared me for a life in the military; it has been that way since the dawn of time.  Mostly I trained them how to safely handle a weapon and how to perform escape and evasion, valuable lessons if and when the Schumer hits the fan. 

In the beginning of summer I took my son on canoe trip, I packed my bug out gear and made sure that he did the same, everything that he would need.  All of the equipment was divided equally and even though he is only 15 and not fully-grown, he did a commendable job of keeping up with the old man on portages. 

Once we were deep in Algonquin Park I started to teach him actual bushcraft such as fire starting. We did not use a match the entire weekend.  It was fire steels; he needed to know that over a long period that matches and lighters would be in short supply.  I taught him tracking, or should I say the basics of tracking.  It takes a lifetime of experience that makes you good at tracking.  What woods to use as kindling, what wood to use for as smokeless as a fire as possible, how to knock off pine knots to burn.  We brought our wrist rocket slingshots and he was able to bag both a squirrel and a grouse so I taught him how to skin and clean each plus how to clean a fish.  That turned out to be a welcome change from the MREs that we had brought with us.

When we were prepping for our canoe trip, I bought a couple topographical maps and taught him how to read the lay of the land from a map.  I got him to research the available crown land surrounding the park to see if there were any viable options for camping on public land.  A mini orienteering course was put on for his benefit.  I taught him the basics, like how to take a bearing, follow a bearing.  Using back bearings to get home.  The more advanced stuff will come, like calculating magnetic declination and triangulation on a map to find your location.

I have been a sheet metal worker, plumber, electrician, oil burner mechanic, combat engineer.  I worked in a cabinet shop, framed houses and on rejoining the military a Supply technician.  Little by little, I have been trying to teach my son that it is best to be a jack-of-all-trades and like many kids whose parents remember the Great Depression and rationing of World War II, I know the value of making a little go a long way.  So we work on our bicycles together, I would rather show him once how to do something so he will know how to do it himself.  In addition, it is a lot cheaper then paying someone else to do something.  Now that he’s in high school his interests have been the shop classes, I totally encourage him to take wood shop, welding and small engine repair seriously and made him aware that home economics is a must.  I might have told him that girls dig a guy who can cook.

When my son seen the items coming into the house bought through eBay and his interest peaked when it came to prepping.  I made a master list of items we need for long-term survival and when I am not on the laptop he will surf the internet looking for great deals.  His best find was a case of food grade 6.5-gallon pails without lids.  We promptly went to Mountain Equipment Co-op and bought enough Gamma Seal lids to cover them.

Right now, our goal is to start accumulating ammunition and teaching him how to strip and assemble the weapons, we have at home.  Presently, case lots of  7.62x39mm ammo are relatively inexpensive so I’ll be able to get him sighted in on his own SKS and get him to practice using the stripper clips to reload.

The basement is starting to look more like a supply depot but that is all right.  It is all about keeping it organized and to know what you have, where it is and how to use it.  Right now for his punishment when he does the normal teen angst I make him do the laundry in the new “Wonder Wash”.  Some serious hand cranking on a Saturday morning without access to Internet, PS3 or hanging out with his friends is almost in line with child abuse in his mind but it teaches him a couple valuable lessons.  1) Don’t screw up, and 2) Know how to do laundry by hand.

One part of the basement is our home gym.  Lots of free weights, being military physical fitness of mandatory and it is great father son time together working out.  Because we are living in married quarters on base, going on a rucksack march is nothing out of the ordinary, so out of the 20 to 30 guys doing that at night for PT, my son gets a chance to don his ruck and practice carrying all his gear.

When I began prepping, I kept it a secret but now that he is all in, I feel a lot better about it.  It is still our little secret but it is good to know that we are doing everything we can increase our odds when TEOTWAWKI comes.  Family is first in my book, but now I know of six kids who are fully weapons trained and have the basics of field craft down. 

This winter I have him going with one of my friends who has a trap line to learn more about wilderness survival then I have time to teach him.  I should also mention that I have two daughters that are grown up.  I did my best by them as well. They know what to do if they get in trouble: run like mad, split up from friends and gather in a pre-arranged Rendezvous Point at a specific time.  My oldest daughter is an awesome angler and always shows up her old man when out on the river.  When they were little I always had them going out with us deer hunting and they have watched us field dress and skin many deer without the slightest hint of squeamishness.  They are “girly girl” now but I know they have a solid foundation to build on.

So all of you parents out there, it is never too early to start your children off on the right foot.  Even if it is just exposure to new things.  Get them to help in the garden, or to go on an evening walk…do fun things like identify trees and plants and tell them what they are used for or feed them venison, or muskrat or beaver once to make them aware that not all food has to come from the super market.

JWR Adds: As I’ve mentioned before in SurvivalBlog, Airsoft and paintball are fine for learning some aspects of camouflage and small team tactics. The fatal flaws of both, however, are that:

1.) Since paint balls and Airsoft pellets have hardly any penetration beyond five yards, players start to subconsciously equate concealment with cover.

2.) Because Airsoft pellets and paint balls only have limited range, people start to subconsciously think of anything beyond that range as “safely out of range” (for maneuver in the open.)

If you can regularly remind yourself about those shortcomings and adjust your training regimen accordingly, then you’ll find that they provide somewhat worthwhile training. But it is essential that you integrate high velocity ballistic realism. This means declaring anyone that blatantly stands up in the open at 50+ yards “dead meat.” Ditto for anyone that mistakenly takes “cover” behind bushes or small trees. Always remember: concealment is not cover!

Letter Re: Do-It-Yourself Campfire Starters

Dear Mr. Rawles,  
I also have a suggestion for DIY fire starters.  I have been making these for several years and they work great for fire pits etc. I would caution about using them to start a cooking fire though, due to fragrances and color dyes.

We use a lot of 4” and 6” pillar candles in our house. We don’t have small children, so an accidental fire is not a very big concern.  I used to throw out the candle butts and decided I’d like to somehow recycle them. So now every couple of months I make fire starters.  I keep an paper shredder right by the kitchen table so I can deal with junk immediately. I also shred anything that has our address on the envelope or the addressed back covers of catalogs.  I save all of the cardboard tubes from our toilet paper rolls and from paper towels. The toilet paper rolls are the perfect size. I cut the paper towels rolls in half. If you want a smaller size just cut toilet paper roll in half and the paper towel rolls in quarters.  

To assemble the fire starters, I melt the candles in a double boiler. You conceivably could also melt it in pot right on the burner, however, you absolutely cannot walk away from the stove if you use this method. The wax can burn and catch fire quickly.  When the wax is melted I pour it into a large mixing bowl that has some shred paper in it. Mix the wax and shred with a spoon or if you let it cool sufficiently you can use your hand. When the wax and shred gets cool and thick, fill the tubes with the mixture. Let cool for several hours and store in aluminum foil and plastic storage bags. They will keep indefinitely. And the only “extra” cost to me is the foil and storage bags.   Thank you for this excellent site that jam packed with information.   – Okie Ranch Wife

Two Letters Re: Investing in Nickels, in Quantity

Mr. Rawles,  
With the low profile purchase of nickels now a desire of many folks, I have had fun in purchasing them in "bricks" [boxes of rolled nickels.]   

I go up to the bank teller window and ask if they have a brick or two available for purchase. Many times I receive a positive response. (I have a Military Intelligence background and know how to keep a secret while avoiding a direct answer.)   After the purchase many times the teller inquisitively asks why I need so many nickels. I look at her with a twinkle in my eye and lean over whispering and ask her a question. “Can you keep a secret?” And she usually gets very serious and leans toward me and whispers, “Yes I can.”  Then I stand upright, look her in the eye, wink, smile, and say “So can I”, and turn around and walk away.  Have fun out there. – CH 

Mr. Rawles:  
Your reader on the east coast is fortunate; I have been banking at the same local bank for 16 years and have a substantial amount deposited in the institution. For the last four years I have been buying $20.00 worth of nickels every other week when I cashed my check. This Saturday when I went to pick up my nickels I was told that I could only have three rolls and there would be a .10 charge per roll. I suspect that word is starting to get around about nickels. SurvivalBlog readers should get their nickels before it is too late! –   Jim from Illinois

Letter Re: Being Prepared: A Tale of Two Hurricanes

Dear Sir,
After reading A Tale of Two Hurricanes by N.D., I thought I would share some lessons that my family and I learned from Hurricane Ike. First off, I became turned onto the prepping mindset about a year and a half ago. I have been trying to get my father thinking in this mindset and he recently read “One Second After” by William R. Forstchen which seems to have truly sparked something inside him. I plan to let him read my copy of your novel “Patriots” as well.

Well we live in the “country” northwest of Houston. Most people remembered all the hoopla about hurricane Rita and how that turned out to be nothing but an inconvenience and a stress headache. All of our neighbors had no thoughts of evacuating and getting stuck in the traffic from Houston, they just stocked up on a few provisions and called it good. My family did the same thing. We got a couple of cases of water but not much else. We have always had a well stocked pantry with what I believe to be a month or two of food at full rations so there wasn’t any worry of starving.

We prepped our property for the high winds by borrowing some sheets of plywood from a neighbor to cover our windows to protect them from flying debris. Dad used the storm as an excuse to cut down some trees that he had wanted to get rid of. We took out a very large one that could have removed half of our house including my bedroom if it were to come down during the storm. Then we cleaned everything out from under the stairs so we could cram in there in case there was a significant threat of a tornado hitting us. (Stairs are usually the most framed part of a house and thus the most structurally sound place to be in case of a tornado, in less you have a basement.) We were “all set” for what was sure to be a disappointing storm.

Hurricane Ike made landfall on Galveston Island at a little past 2 a.m. on September 13th, 2008 as a strong category 2. In most cases a category 2 hurricane would not be considered too bad for someone who has gone thru some of the weaker storms like Rita. However Ike was different. Looking at the radar, it seemed to take up most of the Gulf and had a strong eye. The storm didn’t really hit us until the early morning hours but the eye came within 9 miles of our house. I woke many times to lightning and the roof creaking. That morning the sky had a greenish color and the wind was still blowing the rain almost sideways. A quick look outside revealed about a dozen trees had blown over or lost large limbs. Our entire neighborhood was without power.

 After the storm calmed down, we went out for a drive to survey the damage in our community. Every one of our neighbors had trees down and almost half of them had some sort of roof damage. There were trees that had taken out the power lines and fallen unto the roads making them impassable. Luckily there were some good samaritans out with their chainsaws clearing the roads enough so cars could pass one at a time. The entire town was without power and the gas station up the road had the covers blown off of the pumps and had sustained damage.
Living without power was not too bad for us. We just pulled out the Coleman stove and lantern from my Boy Scout days and got to work clearing the damage. My Mom however was not very happy. Even though it was much cooler than it usually was at that time of year, the 80 degrees, humidity, and the lack of power and communication with the outside world was more than she wanted to stand. After the first night she took off to my older sister’s house about an hour inland to stay with her. She came back the following day to bring us a little 1,500 watt Honda generator and about 5 gallons of gas. The generator had just enough power and fuel to keep the contents of our refrigerator cool.

My dad sent me out with four 5-gallon gas cans and told me to find someplace to fill them up. I drove my truck to the next town and found that the grocery store’s gas station had gas but even more importantly they had power. Most gas stations had thousands of gallons but no way to get it out of the underground tanks. There was a line on every pump about 50 cars long when I arrived. It took three hours for me to make it up to the pump where there was police officers posted to obviously keep everything in order.  Lucky there was not a ration in place so I was able to fill up all the cans and my truck. As I left the lines were around 200 cars long and things were beginning to get tense as pumps shut down [due to depleted tanks] from such rapid use. I passed several other gas stations on my way home and they were rationing gas to 5 or 10 gallons with just as many cars lined up. When I finally made it back home Dad wanted me to take his truck and get it filled up too, but I told him it was too dangerous and we would have to just make do with what we had, which was about 60 gallons combining what was in the cars and cans. The following day, Mom came back from my sisters with more fuel, a new generator, and a window A/C unit which she bought. The generator is a 5000 watt 7,500 peak brand name with a pull start. It has a 220 volt plug and two 110 volt plugs. Dad and I cut the main breaker so we wouldn’t back feed into the power grid and then took some wires from a 220 volt extension cord and crudely shoved them into the electric dryer socket. We couldn’t run the central air conditioning but we could run the window unit mom had bought (which of course went in her room), the refrigerator, and the lights as normal. We just had to be mindful of how many things we could turn on at once. The generator was locked to the house with a heavy chain and padlock and we always turned it off before night. When there is no power for miles around, a running generator at night is like a “come steal me!” sign.

Another problem that was arising about this time in the neighborhood was human waste. Our neighborhood is remote and everybody has about 5 acres. Because of this we do not have city sewer but instead an aerated sprinkler system. Without power the pump can’t spray the treated liquid waste and the tanks become full in 2-3 days. Toilets begin to back up and smell occurs. For us, everything was fine once the generator was going. We did have to go to some neighbors houses to do some emergency electrical re-wiring so they could get their septic systems working.

Our street was without power for more than 12 days. Part of the problem was a power line went down in the woods behind us and since that line only serviced five houses it was not at the top of the priority list. Luckily we never lost water although we were extra cautious and made sure to boil it before consuming.

Lessons learned from all this:

  1. If it is going to be a big hurricane, then evacuate early. It isn’t worth all the trouble if you can leave in time and trust your neighbors to watch your property, but take your papers and valuables with you.
  2. Have a working generator. We now have ours and had a proper hookup installed by an electrician after it was all over. Make sure to run your generator bi-annually and store it for long-term storage following your user’s guide. For us, that is running it dry with stabilized gas in it.
  3. Have plenty of fuel beforehand. We keep our cans filled with Sta-bil gas and rotate them regularly.
  4. Of course be prepared with all of your usual preps. Food, water, first-aid, etc.
  5. With a hurricane, it is very important to protect your house from damage as much as possible. Cover windows, brace large doors like the garage doors, remove trees close to the house, and remove anything in your yard that could become a flying object.
  6. Have a pump system designed to get gas out of underground tanks. There was just a recent post about how to make your own in the blog. You might be able to let your local gas station owner use it in exchange for some fuel. It’s a win-win. He can still sell fuel and you can get what you need.

I think the most important thing to remember during a disaster like this one is to be courteous and helpful to your neighbors. Get to know your neighbors beforehand and pull together after to clean-up and make repairs. Ike brought all of us on our street closer together. This country is threatened by many different types of natural and manmade disasters, but with a hurricane you know it is coming. Get prepared.

Economics and Investing:

Five Reasons Investors are Going Crazy for Farmland. (Thanks to Don W. for the link.)

Frequent content contributors Sue C. and C.D.V. both sent this: Housing Crash is Hitting Cities Once Thought to Be Stable. “Few believed the housing market here would ever collapse. Now they wonder if it will ever stop slumping.”

J.M.A. mentioned this essay over at American Thinker: A Tipping Point Is Nearing

Pierre M. pointed us to this: Roubini’s Next Crisis Is Scary Food for Thought: William Pesek

Geithner Quietly Tells Obama Debt-to-GDP Cost Poised to Increase to Record. Here is a quote: “It’s a slow train wreck coming and we all know it’s going to happen. It’s just a question of whether we want to deal with it. There are huge structural changes that have to go on with this economy.” (A hat tip to C.D.V. for the link.)

21 Signs That The Once Great U.S. Economy Is Being Gutted, Neutered, Defanged, Declawed And Deindustrialized

Robert Gottlieb (my agent) flagged this news article: Borders Books eyes store closings and liquidations

Items from The Economatrix:

“Get Ready For Margin Collapse” Goes Mainstream   

Oil Falls as US Supplies Outweigh Mideast Tensions  

Gas Pump Prices Highest Ever for This Time of Year

Major Food Distributor Sysco: “Immediate Volatile Prices, Expected Limited Availability, and Mediocre Quality at Best” “Now might be a good time to hit the frozen foods (or fresh produce if you’ve got a vacuum sealer) aisle at your local grocery store and stock up on your favorite fruits and veggies, as there may be a severe supply crunch coming in the next couple weeks lasting perhaps several months. Why pay premium prices later when you can prepare yourself today, before the rest of the country gets wind of it.”  

Odds ‘n Sods:

La fine del mondo come lo conosciamomeowner? Italy overwhelmed by Tunisian boat people. And a related news story: Tunisians vote with their feet, flee the country

   o o o

J.B.G. suggested this: Home Invasions: Side Effects of the Drug War Mexico’s war against the cartels is spilling over the border in the form of home invasions, kidnapping, and murder.

   o o o

I’ve previously mentioned the Gerber Omnivore flashlight. It is a white LED flashlight that is designed to be able to use size AA, AAA or CR123 batteries. The new 50 lumen version of the Omnivore looks promising. I’ll buy one or two for some tests here at the ranch and post a review.

   o o o

From Sue C.: Egypt echoes across region: Iran, Bahrain, Yemen

   o o o

Preparing for the Worst in Wisconsin: Walker Says National Guard could Respond to Unrest, as State Employees Learn of his Budget Proposal

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 33 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 $392 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A 250 round case of 12 Gauge Hornady TAP FPD 2-3/4″ OO buckshot ammo, courtesy of Sunflower Ammo (a $240 value), 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.) , and B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value.

Round 33 ends on March 31st, 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.

How to Inexpensively Build Your Library of Information, by Sky Watcher

We all understand from reading SurvivalBlog that having information and learning how to survive and thrive are going to be the keys to survival post-TEOTWAWKI.  You need to start gathering that library now. There is an extensive list of suggested books and materials to obtain posted on the blog.  Purchasing those at even discount prices from Amazon.com or other discount book sellers can still run into quite a bit of money. 

Our local public library support group, Friends of the Library, have a twice a year discount book sale that my husband and I attend.  It fills the entire basement of our main public library, which covers an entire city block. Not only are books sold at this sale but also magazines, books on tape, DVDs, puzzles, music, etc.  Prices for hardback books are $1 and 50 cents for paperbacks.  Prices for DVDs and other items vary depending on condition.  One half of the basement contains “better” quality books that may be marked a bit higher, anywhere from $2 to $5.  But even these were listed for half off yesterday when we attended.  As an added bonus, if you become a Friend of the Library for just $10 a year, you get first pick on the evening before the public sale begins. 

The books are organized into subject categories and within the category organized by author’s last name.  For instance there are sections on religion, politics, mystery, science fiction, poetry, gardening, cooking, etc.  Within a span of less than three hours we walked out of there with four large canvas grocery bags stuffed to the brim for about $40.  My husband and I each went armed with the list off the blog and split up upon arrival to accomplish our task.  I was happy to say that we were able to claim at least a dozen books off the list and many more. 

In preparing for TEOTWAWKI don’t limit yourself to the so named books on the suggested list.  Look for other books that fit whatever your plan for survival post-TEOTWAWKI may be.  A few years ago we purchased an 85 acre farm with the idea of wanting to lead a more self sufficient lifestyle.  This was prior to formally “prepping” for WTSHTF.  We had already been attending these sales and acquiring books for that purpose.  We were pleased to find that in doing that we already had quite a few of the suggested books and DVDs.  We felt we were on the right track.

While much of prepping is learning how to be self sufficient in growing and preserving your own food, etc. it certainly is not all.  We realized there were other areas we also needed to focus on.  For instance, we recently bought a military grade diesel generator and already own a diesel tractor so a few books my husband picked up yesterday were on diesel equipment service and repair.  I found a medical dictionary, anatomy coloring book and Red Cross First Aid book as well as books on Lamaze childbirth, communicable diseases and nursing care of the surgical patient. I found several books on the end of peak oil and economics to educate myself about the issues and understand what signs to look for WTSHTF.  Because we have pets as well as livestock I looked for books on how to care for them myself as well as grow forage for the livestock.  We even found a couple of the Foxfire series books that were recommended by Jim Rawles.  There is no telling what all you may find.

But it is important to think long term for the future and what may come up.  My choices included pine needle basketry and the practice of dairying (although at this time we do not have any dairy animals) as well as more books on basic homesteading skills.  My husband selected books on making your own knives, arc welding, automobile engine rebuilding and maintenance and lead work for plumbing.  You may think that some of the information in these 50 year old books is outdated.  But remember that WTSHTF it will be those skills that we will have to relearn and use again. 

If you are not currently home schooling your children then look for textbooks, history books, math books, science books that you can use for that purpose for all age ranges.   Do not neglect entertainment for the family.  Puzzles, games, DVDs, music CDs , etc will help pass down time.  Buy inspirational and spiritual books for whatever your belief system is to help get you through rough times.  All this can be gained for just a few well spent dollars, dollars that can go to your other preparations. 

But there is another consideration in building your library.  In today’s world of iPads, Nooks, Kindles, etc. the day of old school “paper” books may be coming.  When the grid goes down people are not going to be able to access those devices.  My 15 year old daughter has her SAS Survival Handbook downloaded as a PDF on her iPhone, but when the grid goes down and she can’t charge it how will she access it?  Therefore we will be obtaining a paper copy of it in the future.  Two is one and one is none!  Even obtaining multiple copies of very useful books can be used as barter or charity in the future.  Put duplicate copies of books in your underground shelter or BOBs. 

I’ve always been an avid reader and thirsted for knowledge and envisioned having a vast library in my home.  Prepping has certainly cemented that want and need even more.  Who knows what a post-TEOTWAWKI society will do with its great literature?  We’ve seen recently the Egyptian people going so far as to ransack the Cairo Museum and attempt to destroy meaningful historic pieces of their culture.  The volumes of classical literature you store may be only a few that survive for future generations.

Letter Re: Investing in Nickels, in Quantity

Mr. Rawles,  
I took your advice and, this week, bought a large quantity of [U.S. Five cent piece] nickels for investment. I thought your readers might want to know how surprisingly easy it was. I only had to contact two branches (in a major East coast city) of a large US bank. I have had an account with that bank for a long time, but I had no personal relationships there. The nice lady at the first branch said that she was happy to help but, because the branch had a small vault, she could only get me three boxes ($300) at a time. So I called a second branch, where another nice lady placed a special order for me for 70 boxes ($7,000 and about 1,500 pounds). They arrived in a couple days and bank employees helped me load my vehicle. There were no charges [above face value] and they would not even accept a tip.   

By the way, several [bank] employees were curious about my large order. (One of them asked if I was a poker player.) Although I have read advice about keeping explanations vague (or even providing misleading explanations), I saw no reason not to tell the truth. I thought the information might even motivate some of them to do the same thing. So I simply explained that there is more than 7 cents worth of nickel and copper in each coin, that I thought that the government would change the content for new coins, and that the old ones would increase in value.   

I enjoy your blog. God bless and please keep up the good work. – M. on the East Coast

JWR Replies: Congratulations on being a proactive investor! U.S. Nickels already have about 7.3 cents in base metal (“melt”) value. That represents a substantial gain over the face value, without even waiting for an upswing in the base metals prices. In a few years you will probably be very glad that you hedged against inflation by buying Nickels. It has long been said that “silver is the working man’s gold.” By extension, Nickels are the poor man’s silver.

But your nickels now, folks, before you have to sort them. (Once a new, debased Nickel is introduced and begins circulating side-by-side with the Nickels of the current composition, then the drudgery of coin sorting will begin.)