Letter Re: Suggestions on LED Flashlights

Mr. Rawles,
Just a suggestion about something you and your readers might be interested in. I’m not affiliated with the vendor in any way, just a very satisfied customer.

4Sevens‘ 2-AA Quark light is good for 30 days continuous on low, and a couple of hours at 200 lumens. These are by far the best LED lights on the market at this time. I hang around the flashlight-nerd subculture, and have 4Sevens lights in all my survival packs. Obviously, you can recharge LSD AA lights with solar chargers, and they’ll run off of regular AA and lithium AA batteries too.

This light, on high, is probably brighter than any light a normal family owns, many times brighter than a Mag-Lite, and much smaller. Pocket sized. Personally, I suggest their sporadically available warm white LEDs. You can’t tell when meat is cooked with a blue-white LED, which is the norm at the moment from other vendors. You can tell rare from well done with the warm white LEDs. When I say “blue” LEDs, I refer to what passes for “white” LEDs these days. They are basically blue-white in spectral output, and have poor color rendition. None of the mass-marketed LED lights currently is warm white, but that is what you want, if you want to be able to make out colors at night. (You do.) 4Sevens sells some “warm” lights, as does Fenix.

The second best thing out there is Fenix. Their TK-20 is warm white, uses AAs, and will throw a spot at 100 yards. (No, I’m not exaggerating, I used Fenix lights on safari while night hunting. They work. My professional hunter kept mine as part of my tip, and he’s thrilled with it.) You can also run one over with a truck, and it will still work fine. I know! (Oops!)

Anyway, 4Sevens and Fenix are 2-5 years ahead of Home Depot and Wal-Mart as far as LED lights go, and forever away as far as quality is concerned. Surefire makes great lights, but they are also way behind in efficiency, though they are very well made. My Surefire 6P, heavily modified with parts from Candlepower Forums, is 1,000 lumens, but only for 3 minutes. Still, for current urban uses, it is the bomb. Way better than Surefire’s 120 lumen best effort. Mine is blinding in daylight, and obviously, it owns the night, if briefly.

But I digress. 4Sevens has some incredible lights. They are Surefire-priced ($60-ish), but use AAs and LEDs, have sapphire coated scratch proof lenses, have anti-reflection coated lenses, to get the light out, are waterproof, are small, and use the latest generation LEDs.

I cannot imagine a better solution for illumination, if one can recharge LSD AAs. Anyway, check them out. The 2-AA is the best. The single-AA versions burn up too much power in the voltage converter. The 2-AA is the way to go.

One other note. Tritium vials. Tritium vials are not commonly available here in the “land of the free”, but are still easily obtainable [if you look at secondary market sources such as eBay]. The 1.5x5mm glass vials are easily inset into survival equipment (green is by far the brightest), and they last 30 years or so. Useful to be added to any equipment one must find in the dark, in a hurry. Use clear nail polish to set the vials; epoxy turns translucent in short order. Also [large military surplus ] tritium map reading lights [commonly called “Betalights”] can be found without too much trouble. – Nemo

Letter Re: An “Energy-Independent” Village in Germany

Mr. Rawles:
As an engineer interested in long term sustainability I was most interested in the item from Troy H. mentioning Juhnde, Germany. I took a look at their web site and ran the numbers to look at whether such an installation is commercially viable.

The capital costs listed were EU 5,400,000 or about USD $7,900,000 at present exchange rates; It’s not clear when the overall system was constructed but the hot water pipeline system was built around 2005. Apparently, and I will have to look into this further, all of the capital costs were from public funds. This translates out to about $10,395 per resident in capital expenses, excluding operating and maintenance costs. Amortized out over 20 years, straight line amortization with no interest cost, the principal cost would be ~$520 per resident per year. If you included reasonable capital costs, a 20 year fixed 6.0% mortgage would cost $74.51 per month per resident. It might be possible to play with the financing costs and rates to find a sweet spot, but I thought that was sufficient for a first assessment.

Assuming an average family of four, this would mean about $3600 per year (about $2,080 for principle and $1,500 interest) for heat and electricity capital cost plus the unknown operating costs, which I would estimate by rule of thumb for large installs at 50% of the amortized capital expenses. That is $5,400 per year per family, not for housing but just for heat and electricity.

If we include the return from the electrical power (an estimated annual surplus of 2,500,000 kWh) that is a total annual savings of $150,000 at $0.06 per kWh or $197 per resident per year, for an estimated net cost of around $4,600 per family for heat and electricity. (Obviously, electrical costs vary tremendously and affect the analysis)

My costs for my home’s physical plant, which include a propane furnace with electric heat pump and associated tanks, duct work, woodstove and chimney, etc., were about $13,000 to support a family of four. My annual energy cost, electricity, propane, and the costs of cutting/splitting wood are about $1,400 per year. (Yes, I have good insulation, and I also don’t have a huge house, and I turn off the lights!) Plus an allowance of $500 for repair and replacement. Using the same logic and rates, my mortgage cost for heating is $93.14 per month or ~$1,120 per year capital expenses plus $1,900 in operating expenses including preventative maintenance (PM) and repair allowance. This totals $3,000 per year.

What this analysis tells me is that interesting as Juhnde is, it is not economically sustainable. Sustainable designs have to be sustainable from an economic perspective as well as a technical and biological one. A truly sustainable solution offers economic benefits and a competitive advantage. Now, a highly productive society such as present-day Germany may be able to afford to subsidize a 50% increase in energy costs and a 25% reduction in crop output, at least in a small area over the short term, and this example may be useful as a ‘proof of concept’ test bed, but in my judgment this is not a viable long term solution for the USA. The real push behind this may be found in the proud statement that the village has reduced it’s carbon output by 60%. Regards, – Larry

JWR Replies: Also missing from the grand cost accounting equation are the costs of the fossil fuels used in producing and transporting the crops used in biodigesters. Traditional agriculture in a partially forested region (for firewood) with good topsoil and reliable rains provides a much better shot at true local mutigenerational sustainability. But of course that flies in the face of the uber-greens that are fixated on carbon emissions. Talk about missing the forest for the trees. Our forests are enormous solar energy collectors, renewably providing countless billions of BTUs, there for the taking.

Economics and Investing:

“The 13 Worrier” sent a link to a very interesting YouTube video of Richard Maybury and Jim Powell discussing the possibility of a double dip depression and civil unrest in the United States.

Country homes get an appetite for business

Is the US Economy Being Tanked by Mistake or Intent?

Illinois enters a state of insolvency

Items from The Economatrix:

Martin Weiss: 200 Bank Failures Expected in 2010

European Markets Lifted by Corporate Deal Hopes

IMF Chief: Global Recovery Stronger than Expected

Recession Takes Toll on University President Pay

Oil Stays Near $78 on Demand Doubts, Weaker Dollar

2010-2020 Towards a Knockout Victory by Gold Over the Dollar

Société Générale Ordered to Stop Derivatives Trade tn India

Congress Makes Job Creation Top Priority in 2010

Foreclosures Weigh on Home Appraisals

Euro Rupture as Greek Crisis Escalates

Odds ‘n Sods:

From Reader RSR mentioned that Reliance Aqua-Tainer seven gallon containers are presently on sale for $8 each at Wal-Mart stores. I just saw the same containers for $17 each at an REI store. And speaking of water containers, Walgreens pharmacies now have 25 ounce “Green Canteen” brand stainless steel water bottles on sale for $4 each. They are out of stock at their online stores, but many individual brick and mortar stores still have them on hand. OBTW, beware that they are made in mainland China.

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We were sent two interesting, if impractical items from ImpactLab: a table that converts into a fort, and a house disguised as a woodpile. Thanks to F.R. for the link.

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SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large Michael Z. Williamson sent this link: http://www.lifesaversystems.com/hydrocarry.html

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From reader Robert S.: A simple OPSEC failure in Haiti leads to trouble.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“FARNHAM’S FREEHOLD
TRADING POST & RESTAURANT BAR
American Vodka
Corn Liquor
Applejack
Pure Spring Water
Grade “A” Milk
Corned Beef & Potatoes
Steak & Fried Potatoes
Butter & some days Bread
Smoked Bear Meat
Jerked Quisling (by the neck)
Crepes Suzettes to order.
!!!Any BOOK Accepted as Cash!!!!
DAY NURSERY
!!FREE KITTENS!!
Blacksmithing, Machine Shop,
Sheet Metal Work-You Supply the Metal
FARNHAM SCHOOL OF CONTRACT BRIDGE
Lessons by Arrangement
Social Evening Every Wednesday
WARNING!!!
Ring bell. Wait. Advance with your Hands Up.
Stay on path, avoid mines. We lost three customers last week. We can’t afford to lose YOU.
No sales tax.
Hugh & Barbara Farnham & Family, Freeholders” – Robert A. Heinlein, Farnham’s Freehold

America is More Like Haiti than We’d Like to Think

The recent earthquake in the island nation of Haiti illustrates the fragility of all societies. While Haiti is unusual in its lack of infrastructure and its high dependence on foreign aid–more than half of its annual government budget comes from foreign aid–it is still similar in many ways to other nations: From the 1960s to the turn of the 21st century, as in many other nations, Haiti became an urbanized nation. Before the 1960s a substantial portion of Haitian society still lived on rural semi-self sufficient farmsteads. But as urbanization and specialization went on, fewer and fewer people lived off the land and more and more citizens became dependent on foreign aid and a scant number of industrial jobs. This trend has been repeated around the globe, making nearly all societies increasingly vulnerable to disasters, man-made or natural. The resiliency of traditional agrarian societies has sadly become a thing of the past. Here in America, 2% of the population now feeds the other 98%. This is now something that First, Second, and Third World nations have in common. America is more like Haiti than we’d like to think. Human nature is the same in every culture and nation: fundamentally sinful.

The Thin Veneer

With a few exceptions, most notably in Oceania, traditional Christian values have slipped away in much of the western world. When times get tough the citizenry of most nations loses all compunctions about using violence to expropriate the property of others. As I’ve written before, modern societies have just a thin veneer of civilization that covers something quite odorous beneath. Here in modern western societies, folks like to think of themselves as highly civilized, but when the Schumer hits the fan, there’s no difference between people in the First World and the Third World.

As prepared individuals, we have the opportunity to set ourselves apart with a higher standard of behavior than those who resort to their baser instincts in time of crisis. It’s important that there are some of us that have both the means and the willingness to help restore order and free commerce in the event of societal disruption.

The recent events in Haiti should be a reminder that in times of crisis things can easily fall apart. What happened in Haiti was dramatic, and a naturally occurring event, but because of the vulnerabilities of all modern societies, there could just as well be a reversion to savagery in a situation such as an economic collapse. We need to have our Beans, Bullets, and Band-aids squared away, so we can focus on more important things in a disaster than just finding food and water. Not only do we need to just prepare for surviving the next day, but also to be useful in rebuilding infrastructures and free commerce. This requires preparing with logistics as well as training and practicing to be ready to step into the breach.

The Charity Imperative

First World nations have become focused on large organizations, both governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), dispensing charity. The collective psyche is geared toward watching suffering “someplace far away”, and dialing an 800 number to make a contribution via credit card. While I truly appreciate people’s generosity, it is something quite far removed from preparedness to dispense charity locally.

In the event of a disaster closer to home, credit cards won’t do the job. It takes tangible goods in hand to solve crises in your own backyard. So, it’s important that we stock up, both for ourselves, and to dispense copious charity to relatives, friends, co-workers, and neighbors. In the event of a nation-wide disaster here in America, there will be no relief from abroad. We must reconstitute internally, starting at the local level. Here is where your skills, your tools, your gear, your garden seed, and your grub will be crucial.

When it comes to knowledge you’ll need to be prepared to disseminate crucial, yet simple technologies to your neighbors. These could include how to build a inertial water pump, how to build a simple 12VDC fuel transfer pump, and how to build simple solar projects, such as solar stills, cold frames and green houses, solar ovens, and solar dehydrators. And don’t forget, that in the event of a crisis, your local photocopy center is unlikely to be in operation. So, it is important to prepare multiple hard copies of key pieces of information now, to have on hand to distribute when times get tough. There is a wealth of knowledge available on traditional skill and technologies in the SurvivalBlog archives and elsewhere on the Internet, from organizations such as Steve’s Pages, Volunteers in Technical Assistance (VITA), The Hesperian Institute, The Peace Corps, OISM, Doctors for Disaster Preparedness (DDP), and Backwoods Home Magazine. Take advantage of these resources, and make those photocopies so that you will be able to share that knowledge with others!

Teaching for the Moment

Elementary school teachers here in the United States use the phrase “teach for the moment,” to describe turning current events into teaching opportunities. I recommend that any conversations amongst your neighbors, coworkers, or church brethren be used as opportunities to spread the philosophy of family preparedness. Water cooler chit-chat should not just be “ain’t it awfuling” sessions. You should instead use such conversations to encourage others to actively prepare for similar situations. And if anyone says, “Oh, but it couldn’t happen here,” then just remind them about the aftermath Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Not only has it happened here before, but it is likely to recur often within our lifetimes.

The Haitian earthquake of 2010 is a stark reminder of the fragility of all societies. It shows us that we need to be well-prepared and vigilant. And for those of us that are not Secret Squirrels, we should also be quietly and persistently leading public opinion, locally.

Two Letters Re: The Ishapore 2A1: A Budget Battle Rifle

James,
The Ishapore Enfield in .308 is still being built today in India. It is common to see local police carry them (rather than a pistol) as they also use them for crowd control (butt stroke).

I picked up three of these rifles many years ago when they were first being imported into the US and they are my standard truck gun these days. While I have several M14 variants and a whole host of AR variants, the $89 I paid for each of these rifles makes them cheap enough that if I lose one (if my truck gets broken into) or if I have to distribute them to neighbors, I am not out too much.

The Enfield design is a phenomenal design that was steadily improved on from the late 1800’s (the Enfield was first produced to chamber a black powder round and I have loaded and fired black powder reloads in mine) until the end of WWII. Its hard to beat almost 60 years of product improvement spanning the end of the Imperial age through two world wars. The only other rifle that has gone through such a rigorous series of enhancements is the M16 series. Even the AK-47 series only went through a couple of enhancements (chief being the AKM changes which simply made them easier to manufacture but did not enhance the usability of the rifle) before it was replaced with the AK-74.

This design also shoots almost as fast as a semi-auto which is why the Brits kept it for so long even when other options such as the M1 Garand were available. Even today, in Iraq many of the British SAS/SBS troops carry the Enfield as it is a reliable, fast shooting, and deadly to long range rifle. One show I watched earlier this year (Lock and Load on the History Channel) showed a shoot out between this rifle and the M1 Garand. There was not much of a difference. On average a trained rifleman shooting a full power round like the .308 can achieve 0.1 second between aimed shots with a semi-auto rifle like the M1 or L1A1 and close to 0.15 second between aimed shots with the Enfield. – Dr. Hugh

Mr. Rawles,
I am writing concerning this letter by JIR concerning the Ishapore 2A1 rifle. He mentioned that stripper clips for this rifle are available for $13 per box of 20 on Amazon. Keep Shooting, one of your advertisers, has them for $7.95 per 20 before the 5% discount they give us for mentioning SurvivalBlog. I thought this might be a nice way to tell others about the money savings, and to support one of your sponsors. Things are getting crazy out there. Let’s pray that none of this will be necessary to use. – K.J.

Letter Re: Some Observations on Fortifications Versus Camouflaged Retreats

The topic on retreats mentioned that castles were unable to withstand long sieges. This is only partially true. Once castle design was understood, a well stocked castle could withstand a siege indefinitely. Castle were designed so that the women, children, and old men who were left in a village after the fighting age men marched off to war, could defend the castle. If you examine the history of Europe you will see that castles fell to siege only infrequently; the majority of them either were betrayed from the inside or for whatever reason the stocks inside the castle (usually water) were not maintained. This is the primary reason why Europe was so divided through the middle ages; even kings could not raise a large enough army to overcome the castles of the local barons. (One of the few exceptions was King Richard who, if history is any judge, was either very lucky or had inside help in taking every castle he attacked.) That is until black powder cannons were developed and because of their cost (and the cost of the professionals who manned them) were only affordable to the kings or the larger holdings.

A good example of this would be the savage pounding that Monte Casino took in Italy, and the huge numbers of casualties that the Allies took to reduce it, even with modern weapons.

I would argue that even today, fortified construction has its place. While hidden retreats are preferable (avoid a fight if at all possible), it is still preferable to have some place that can shrug off small arms fire to retreat to. The trick is finding the right ground on which to build it. If you borrow from the great castle designs of history you will see that you need a place on the crest of a hill (so that the walls are enhanced by the height and angle of the slope), that has access to water inside the walls, and is generally hidden. But this also makes the site hard to live in. One of the small town in Belgium that was built this way (Dolheim) had fields that were an hours walk away downhill, and nearly two hours uphill. I don’t know about you, but after following the rear end of a mule all day the last thing I want to do is walk for two hours up a hill.

The fortified farms of the 1400s and on would probably be a better design choice for a retreat though — and many of these were either built on or following the design of Roman and Greek homes. In these designs the outside walls of the house, barn, and storage shed or stables, and the kitchen would not have any windows or doors on the first floor. All three or four sides would open into a spacious interior courtyard and the corners of the three or four structures would be joined with stout walls. Some of these structures, such as those found on the borders between Scotland and England, the walls were up to three feet thick. Since stone construction and tile or slate roofs were used, they were also fire resistant. Similar construction approaches can be seen in fortified farming villages in China (whose walls could withstand hits from black powder cannon), the Pueblo culture of the American Southwest, and fortified farms in Afghanistan that are in use even today. Yes, modern high explosives make these much harder to defend, but short of having a modern weapon like an anti-tank rocket (or a tank, as our Bosnian friend pointed out), these structures could and still do what they were designed to do: shrug off attacks from “bandits” and “raiders.” They were not designed to withstand a military siege but rather resist the depredations of fast moving quasi-criminal gangs who would move on to an easier target rather than slug it out with those inside.

Since the goal of longer term survival is to have productive locations and facilities to use, a farm with a fortified farm house is a much better model to base our modern retreat on. Now, I don’t know about you but the thought of giving up any farm animals to the depredations of a roving band does not sit well with me. While huddling inside the fortified farm is not the correct approach (aggressive patrols outside of it to spoil any attacks and move the bandits along), I also would much rather leave my wife and younger children inside something that they can defend for a while by themselves while I am out, than to simply expect them to hide and hope. – Dr. Hugh

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"There is a tendency in our planning to confuse the unfamiliar with the improbable. The contingency we have not considered seriously looks strange; what looks strange is thought improbable; what is improbable need not be considered seriously." – Thomas Schelling

Letter Re: Constructing Farm Ponds

James,
Hail from Kentucky. I just wanted to add my two cents and maybe some advice to anyone thinking about building a pond to help support their retreat. I just want to say that I am not an expert, just learned a thing or two from the school of hard knocks, and would love to hear the feed back and thoughts of other SurvivalBloggers.

I saw a post by a lady a week or so ago that mentioned she wanted to have a pond dug on her five acre plot but she stated that the water table is 12 feet in her area so the pond would have to be pretty deep, this is what sparked my thinking. If you’re having a new pond dug keep a few things in mind while planning. If you already have one I recommend a good cleaning and re-stocking.

  1. Of course: location, location, location. I’ll refer to this farther down.
  2. What are your reasons for digging this pond? What purpose will it serve and how will it help you and your fellow retreaters?
  3. What is your soil type? Will it support a pond? How deep is your bedrock?
  4. What can you do before your pond has water to support it?
  5. When choosing a location for your pond will it hinder your security in any way? Will it help? Remember principle number 1: People will walk around water before walking through it.

Could you put it in a place that allows rain water to drain into it to keep it filled and oxygenated, but is higher than your home? I’ve seen a filtered gravity-fed water system supply a cistern for various uses; garden irrigation, gray water uses such as bathing or washing clothes, you could even treat it in the cistern for drinking, but with the high bacteria count I wouldn’t drink it without treatment.

I had my pond stocked with channel catfish and panfish. Channel catfish thrive in a farm pond as they don’t need the high oxygen contents other species do. I contacted my local farm store and they directed me to a fish wholesaler who in turn made a time to come out and pump my order directly into my pond. The fish are hatchlings when you get them, so they aren’t contaminated with the diseases and parasites the ones you catch in rivers and streams could be. So you have farm raised catfish which in 3 to 5 years reach 1-4 pounds and are very tasty, also the panfish, such as blue gill and Pumpkin Seed Hybrids do very well in the same pond, they provide a steady supply of food for your cats. Plus, the ones that survive and grow large enough to eat are tasty as well. They are fast reproducers so once they are in there you will always have plenty. (Keep in mind that it’s a good idea to have a pond dug in the fall, then let the winter fill it, and give it all of spring and into summer before introducing fish, thus allowing the new environment to develop, flora and healthy bacteria.)

Our soil type here is a rich silty dark earth that drains rainfall very well but has just enough clay to allow a pond to form a nice bowl. Our problem is that we live in a limestone rich area and the first layer of bedrock is at 5 or 6 feet. Some contractors truck in clay to help build your bowl. If your contractor doesn’t know what he is doing and the pond is dug improperly your pond will leak and you won’t be able to do anything about it. You’ll notice the water level going down and find a wet spot 100 yards or so below your pond as the water follows the bedrock. I also recommend your levy be built with a keyway type levy, this is another topic for another day, but there is more to a levy than just building a wall of dirt to hold back water. Don’t hire just anyone with earth moving equipment, check them out by their references.

When prepping your pond before it starts to fill, keep in mind that fish like small places to hide so leave some debris in there, I’ve heard of people throwing cinder blocks, tree tops, almost anything you can think of just remember you will be fishing at some point and those hooks catch more than fish. This is also the time to install your gravity feed for your needs. Build a dock, or any other cosmetic thing you want to add that may be difficult while full of water.

On a final note. In a TEOTWAWKI situation you will want make sure that you pond is deep enough to last. It will fill up over the course of time with dirt contained in run off, and there probably won’t be many people around to clean it out. Like I stated earlier I am no expert and would love feedback from you or any one your readers, Thank you for you time, your books, and your dedication to others who are awake enough to try preserve what our founders gave us but is dying before our eyes. I’m looking forward to the next book release, The Lord willing and if the creek don’t rise. – Gary in Kentucky

Three Letters Re: Marksmanship Training

Sir:
For the past 12 years I have served in the US Army as an Infantryman. Two deployments to Iraq and one in Afghanistan have taught me valuable lessons that I will never forget. The biggest one being the importance of marksmanship. There is not a firearm in the word that will make up for lack of practice or being a lousy shot. Some considerations…

  1. While at the range do you only fire from the standing position? In a gunfight the name of the game is finding cover and concealment and returning accurate fire. Standing is almost never the best option. Practice shooting from the kneeling, prone supported, and prone unsupported positions. Reflexive firing is another useful skill if you need to make a quick shot. Reflexive firing is not looking through your sights, but down your sights. Try firing two rapid shots at a paper plate 25 meters away. This will develop muscle memory with a lot of practice and time. Use only for close range.
  2. Magazine change drills. This could be the difference between life and death! The more time you spend reloading your firearm is the less time you are returning fire. In a gunfight with your adrenaline pumping your hands will most likely be shaking. Practice magazine change drills often to minimize the fumbling around to get your weapon back in action.
  3. Immediate action drills. Try this: load a rifle or pistol magazine with a spent shell case mixed somewhere in it. Hand the firearm to someone else and have them fire. When the weapon fails to fire and just goes click, what do they do? The surprise will make most people just stare at the weapon and wonder what went wrong, instead of charging the weapon and resuming fire.
  4. Remedial action. When immediate action does not work you are now at the point of remedial action. Know you firearm well enough to break it down to fix any problems that may occur. It may be as simple as a double feed or as difficult as a bolt over ride.
  5. Know your target and what is beyond it. Let’s face it you will miss a target from time to time. To minimize collateral damage you may need to wait for a shot. Don’t shoot at something unless you absolutely must if there is something behind your target you don’t want to hit.

I hope this helps. – Bryan C.

Dear Mr. Rawles,
Thank you for your blog. I homeschool and read your blog every day for “Current Events.” I have studied both of your books, “Patriots” and ““How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It”, and I’ve learned a lot from them.

I would have to agree that you shouldn’t under estimate a pre-teen with proper firearms training. I am thirteen years old now, but started my training at nine years old when I went to my first Appleseed Shoot with my Dad. I got a “Rifleman” qualification when I was ten years old at the next Appleseed match. When I was eleven, I got my own Bushmaster AR,which I shot the full distance AQT with. I have now attended four shoots and a seven day Appleseed Boot Camp. Boot camp was very hard but I made it! We got sun burns, wind chapped, it poured rain, and it sleeted. Our guns were so muddy, we had to wash them with a hose. I was cold, wet, and tired but I loved every part of it. I would highly recommend that more kids be involved in the Appleseed Project, not only for the hands on training, but also for the fun history I’ve learned and good friends I’ve made.

Other ideas for education in this area would be to participate in a local 4H shooting sports program or Hunter’s Education. My Mom and I took Hunter’s Educatoion class together this last Spring and for my 13th birthday I got a Tikka T3 .308. It really kicks hard, so I don’t enjoy shooting it very much. I’m planning on selling it and saving for a FNAR. It would be great to have more kids being educated, because most of the time at the range, I’m the only kid there.

Here are a few things, from a kids perspective, to consider:

Safety and Respect for firearms – Safety is the most important factor – I think that the maturity level in other areas of life will let you know if a kid is ready to learn to handle a gun. There were a couple of kids in my Hunter’s Ed class that should not have any access to weapons for quite a while. Boston T. Party that parents should not let kids play with toy guns and I can understand why, but I always played with cap guns and the sort. I think that every kid will make a gun out of something; LEGO, sticks. or their fingers. So teach them young to have a healthy fear and respect for firearms.

Eye dominance – Figuring out eye dominance correctly from the start is important. I’m left handed but had trouble shooting Rifle Left handed. I shoot Rifle right handed right eyed and Pistol Left handed Left eyed.

Proper gear sizing – Having your gear sized properly is also really important. A shortened stock is very helpful as well as a good fitting sling. Cabela’s has a good selection of junior- sized ear and eye protection. If you’re not struggling with poorly-fitted equipment, it’s easier to focus on hitting the target.

Indoor practice – I dry fire when we can’t get to the range. As for pistol, I shoot a Glock Model 23 and have had a few tactical pistol lessons. I don’t dry fire as much as I should, but I think that it helps to make the motions an automatic reaction. Airsoft is also an awesome invention. The guns are correctly sized and most are fairly accurate.

Family involvement – Shooting is also a great thing to do as a family. We all shoot in my family except my three year old Brother, but he still goes to the range with us and has his own “ears and eyes.” My Grandpa and I love to re-load together. We’re both learning. I think it’s important to know how every part of the bullet works and how different loads change your results on the target. We read a lot in our family and some of my favorites are Boston’s Gun Bible, Army field manuals, the “Enemies Trilogy” by Matthew Bracken that my folks read aloud and edit out the bad stuff, and many other survival and self sufficient books.

I may not be an adult, but I know that I’m an important part of our group. My Dad and Mom know that I’ve got their back and they can trust me to be safe, calm, and accurate. Because of my training and many hours of practice, I may be an unexpected force to be reckoned with. Thanks – “Teacher’s Pet” in Montana

Mr Rawles,
I have read your blog off and on for a while. I am just getting settled in to living as a civilian and living in the U.S. I spent 13 years overseas. I thought I would pass this link on, about a five year old who defended his life against an alligator just north of Houston. It is never too early to teach gun safety and proper shooting techniques to your kids. Respectfully – E.F.

Two Letters Re: The “After Armageddon” Documentary

Jim,
I wanted to give a shout out to Michael Bane and the others with common sense who helped with the “After Armageddon” docudrama. I was pleasantly surprised when my wife wanted to watch the History Channel for once. The scales fell from her eyes while she was watching, how fragile our lives and standard of living can be.

Right after she started asking “Is that why….” (you fill in the blanks) I was elated! Now she understands my favorite saying, “hope for the best & prepare for the worst.” That used to make her roll her eyes. She always figured I could take care of the family in a bad situation. Now she sees how much we take for granted.

My wife works at a pharmacy, and a day later she brought home extra medical supplies. “What can we store these in?” she asked. “You know those green metal things that are lying around? They work great for storing supplies.” I didn’t mention that there’s already quite a bit of first aid stuff in ammo cans.

Then she started asking about water; how we could get it without electricity and if I could put an old fashioned pitcher pump in the back yard. The realization that people are so soft now has her scared, but I assured her that that realization is a good start for her. Now she’s asking if we can get books to teach us useful skills. I kept a straight face and said yes. I guess they can expand our collection. And my favorite, “Can we move farther away from the city? I’d like to be at more rural place if things ever really get bad. Don’t you have friends in Idaho and Wyoming? Can you get a job there?” Now she’s thinking!
The History Channel gave some of us a chuckle on some subjects, but it has been an eye opener for some. And now I can read “that web site” without interruptions. Thanks for all the great information! – Josh from Michigan.

JWR,
I have been reading your blog of about two years and just wanted to share a recent experience with my wife. First of all, I have been storing food, have solar power and a generator for backup power. We have purchased land in a remote location 2 hours from here and 12 miles from the pavement for a G.O.O.D. retreat and will have a cabin by March. We have rifles and ammo in several common calibers, first aid supplies, etc.

My wife has been agreeable to all this, but didn’t understand the urgency. We have a year’s food stored and she will ask ” Why do we need all this food” every time I bring more home. (We have a bedroom in the house with nothing but food in it and we rotate the food.) I have explained many times and I think she just humors me. Well, last Saturday night, I was out in my ham shack and she was in the house watching “After Armageddon” on the FTA satellite setup. She called me on her cell phone and told me I needed to come in and watch the program because it was about the things I had been telling her about. Before she hung up, she said “We need more food, I don’t want to have to eat a snake.” – Kenneth in Oklahoma

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