In Defense of the Fortress Mentality–and Architecture

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I recently got an irate letter from an outspoken Peak Oil commentator who often stresses “community agriculture” and “sustainable development.” He castigated me for “advocating a fortress mentality…” and “encouraging gun-buying…” I think that he meant those as insults, but I took them as compliments.

I am indeed an advocate of the fortress mentality, and fortress architecture. The two go hand-in-hand. As I pointed out in my book “How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It”, modern American architecture with flimsy doors and large expanses of windows is just a 70 year aberration from a global norm that dates back many centuries. The real tradition in architecture outside of the tropics has always been to build homes with small windows, very stout doors, and lots of mass in the walls to absorb projectile impacts and to delay entry by evil-doers. Since 1945 we’ve been blessed to live a country that is relatively safe and peaceful. But don’t expect that to last forever. Plan and build, accordingly.

Just look at the long history of the mote-and-bailey and castle in Europe and Fujian Tulou (Hakka) in China. Or look at the stout walls that are still the norm in Afghanistan and Pakistan. And consider the HESCO bastions that are almost always used by the U.S. military when deployed in any of the world’s hot spots. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: There is no substitute for mass. Mass stops bullets. Mass stops gamma radiation. Mass stops (or at least slows down) bad guys from entering a home and depriving its residents of life and property. Sandbags are cheap, so buy plenty of them. When planning your retreat house, think: medieval castle.

The fortress mentality necessitates adopting fortress architecture. Whether you turn yourself into a moving fortress (with body armor), or you decide to design fortress features into your next home, I recommend that you prepare for as many different threats as possible. If you cannot afford to build your house like a fortress, or if that would “stick out” where you now live, then at least add a combination vault/shelter basement room to your house. (Either via new construction, or by remodeling.) Several SurvivalBlog advertisers can supply the know-how and crucial components for such a project such as inward-opening vault doors, blast valves, and HEPA filters. These companies include: Hardened Structures, Safecastle, and Ready Made Resources.

The bottom line is that in the event of societal collapse, looters will prey upon those who are obviously weak and defenseless. Unless they are suicidal, looters will consciously pass by any well-defended retreats. Why would they go up against an Alpenréduit when they could instead go pick on some defenseless granny living in a veritable glass box, a mile down the road? Why would they risk getting ventilated by a group of well-armed Rawlesians who are standing behind ballistic protection–especially while living in a world without readily-available medical care?

Planning ahead for bad times isn’t paranoia. It is prudence. An integrated national defense should start with every hearth and home, and proceed systematically all the way to national borders. This is the true and righteous fortress mentality. The Swiss call this an “intellectual defense of the homeland” (Geistige Landesverteidigung). Their well-armed citizenry and their extensive system of réduits (many of them very well-hidden) have kept them free and essentially independent for 720 years. We should learn a lesson from that.

Letter Re: Archery Equipment for Those Living in Gun-Deprived Locales

Hey James,
I just got into SurvivalBlog after reading “Patriots” and “How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It” in consecutive nights. 

I have checked out  a lot of posts on many helpful topics so far.  I wanted to post a question on the blog if possible, or simply ask you.  What is the viability of using crossbows in the survival situations we are all talking about?  I am also interested in compound bows as well.  I live in a country where I cannot legally own firearms, though the mafia here do, but I can legally own a crossbow if I fill out a lot of paperwork and pass a background check.  Since it is the only option I am likely to go for it, but I would like some input/ideas/warnings from your readership, some of whom may already own them.

Thanks and Blessings, – J. in Taiwan

JWR Replies: My advice is to buy a medium draw-weight compound bow rather than a crossbow. This is because compound bows are much faster to fire repetitively than crossbows.

If you can afford it, there might be some utility in getting a compound bow for yourself, and medium-power crossbows for your wife and children. The latter require less practice, but can be kept “cocked” for brief periods. The key question for determining the maximum draw weight of a crossbow is: can they handle the task reloading, with a crutch. (Reloading tool.) Join a local hobby archery club, and choose the right equipment for your particular circumstances. Then practice, practice, practice.

Most modern arrows are essentially modular. The current trend is definitely toward carbon fiber shafts. You screw on plain target points for practice, bird points for garden defense, or various broadheads for big game hunting or self-defense. Some broadheads even have individually replaceable blades. Buy plenty of carbon fiber arrow shafts, spare heads, and spare fletchings. Any arrows or components that are excess to your needs might someday be valuable barter goods.

Arrows can also be used with some slingshots. So, if there is no paperwork required to own a slingshot and arrows, then that might be an even better option than a bow and arrows for those that strive to maintain a low profile.

Also check on the local legality of owning and/or carrying edged weapons, impact weapons, slingshots, flammables, Tasers, stun guns, and chemical irritant sprays. If you opt for a sword, then a Wakizashi (short sword or “companion” sword) is the best length for home defense.

I’ve heard so many stories from my readers all around the globe of this or that being banned. These laws vary widely from country to country, province to province, or even from city to city. Do your homework and stay legal. If all else fails, in almost all locales there is recourse to the humble cane or walking stick, which has been discussed at length in the blog. (Search the SurvivalBlog archives.)

Letter Re: An Alabama Snowstorm

James Wesley:
It is beginning to snow in Alabama.  In small towns all around, the grocery stores have been stripped down to the shelves.  People were buying food to cook in fear that they might not make it to the grocery stores when they need to.  Milk is all but gone.   

I went to the grocery store Sunday morning to pick-up a few doughnuts for our Sunday school class.  I saw one of my wife’s friends on the junk food aisle.  She is a single mom of two.  She said, “I have $40 to buy groceries to get us by for the next few days.  What do you recommend I buy?”   

We quickly developed a plan based on what her kids would eat and drink and under the assumption that the power will go down.   This was her shopping list…

1.       Pop tarts – She wanted a hot cereal for her boys; I said stick the pop tarts in an oven.

2.       Coca-Cola.  She said that she had to have caffeine.

3.       Bread.  She asked about sandwich meat. I recommended tomato, banana or peanut butter.

4.       She wanted milk.  I said good.  Asked if she had a cooler.  She said yes.  I said if the power goes out, stick it in the snow and throw the milk in it.  By the way, she bought a half gallon because there were no gallons on the shelves.

5.       She bought a few soups and cans of chili in case the power does not go out.

6.       She also got the ingredients to make vegetable soup from cans and potentially some cornbread.

7.        She was going to buy a case of water.  I got her to buy an extra case.  

Then she surprised me when she asked if she could cook on their natural gas stove.  I asked it got hot enough to boil water.  She said it did.  So we talked about cooking on the stove if she needed to and she only had to worry about the power going out and not having electricity to keep her fridge running.   So she bought some chips and Little Debbie cakes.  She said she had a popcorn popper on the wall that was given to her.  So she bought some popcorn to pop on her stove in her antique corn popper. 

We then talked about how to make snow cream and she realized that she had everything she needed to give the boys a treat.   After talking to her, she realized that she was in better shape than people with just electric heat and water heaters.  She has a gas stove and gas water heater.   I then invited her to church and I was surprised to see her and her boys sitting in our sanctuary.  I told her I was glad to see her.  She told me that she was confused about what to buy and prayed that if someone would help her she would go to church today.     

Being prepared to help others can pay dividends for our Lord.    By the way, she had $12 leftover from the $40.  Most of all, she does not have to worry about what the kids will do for food.  She has it all laid out.   – J.E.H.

JWR Replies: Coincidentally, I was recently sent a photo link that illustrates the immediate result of yesterday’s ice storm warning in Trussville, Alabama: No Bread at Trussville Wal-Mart. (Thanks to J.B.G. for the link.)

Mention of all that soda pop and those high-sugar processed foods really makes me wonder. Do people really eat that way? We don’t claim to have a perfect diet here at the ranch–yes, plenty of corn chips and even a few potato chips have passed through our portals without alarm–but we certainly eat a better diet than that young lady. Please, folks! For the sake of your health and your ability to perform physically and mentally when the proverbial Schumer hits the fan, adjust your diets:

  • Less refined sugar
  • Fewer processed foods
  • Little or no MSG
  • Moderate protein intake
  • Fewer carbohydrates
  • Wholesome oils (like coconut oil and olive oil)
  • Plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables
  • Lean fresh meats, preferably either home-raised or wild game

And, guess what? If you buy healthy foods in bulk then not only will you have better health, but your weekly grocery expenses will go down!

Letter Re: Storing Fats and Oils

Dear Editor:
There are many in the medical field who will dispute Dave the R.N.’s assertions in his recent post on fats and oils.

A recommendation that is more in line with the mainstream thinking is to store 3 liters (three quarts or approximately 90 ounces) of oils or fats for each person-month of preps.

The assumption is that everyday life will become intensely physical and a per-person calorie budget of 2,500 Calories (or more!) will be required.  Three liters of oil will provide 30-35% of calories-from-fat which is consistent with mainstream wisdom.  Other stored foods and supplementation with produced food might make some of the stored fats and oils a surplus.  The surplus will be a valuable barter or charity item. – Joe H.

Economics and Investing:

Richard Duncan: A Catastrophic Global Economic Breakdown May Be Unavoidable!

Reader P.D. sent an article that is surprising to see from a mainstream media outlet like Reuters: Economists foretell of U.S. decline, China’s ascension

Over at The Daily Bell: Peter Schiff on Why the American Economy Is Broken – and What to Do About It

SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large Michael Z. Williamson mentioned this article at The Atlantic: How The Recession Changed Us. JWR Adds: Their use of simplistic “sand pile” graphs is disingenuous. They make the recession look like a discrete post facto event. It isn’t! Traditional linear or stair steps graphs like the ones published by The Heritage Institute would have better served the truth.

Items from The Economatrix:

Confirmed:  We are Literally on the Brink of Catastrophic Collapse  

Not For Profit (The Mogambo Guru)

Odds ‘n Sods:

Terry D. sent a link to a fascinating interactive map, based on U.S. Census Bureau data. Terry suggested using this to your data set, when judging retreat locales.

   o o o

My old friend Fred the Valmet-meister sent a link to a great web page: Farming in the 1920s.

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California’s mail order ammunition ban and fingerprinting for face to face buyers goes into effect on February 1st. One more nail in the coffin for the Citizens of a once-free state.

   o o o

Honey laundering: The sour side of nature’s golden sweetener. (Thanks to Cameron for the link.)

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Dr. Gary North recently posted a reminder that it is important to have your personal details removed from the Spokeo database. (It is wise to mark your calendar, to do this twice per year, since their data mining is relentless! Gary also mentioned that anyone with a Facebook account should crank up their privacy settings.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“What people did not realize was that war had started.  By 1 p.m., a few minutes after Molotov’s speech, queues, especially in the food stores, began to grow.  The women shoppers in the gastronoms or grocery stores started to buy indiscriminately – canned goods (which Russians do not like very much), butter, sugar, lard, flour, groats, sausage, matches, salt.  In twenty years of Soviet power Leningraders had learned by bitter experience what to expect in time of crisis.  They rushed to the stores to buy what they could.  They gave preference to foods which would keep.  But they were not particular.  One shopper bought five kilos of caviar, another ten.

At the savings banks the people clutched worn and greasy passbooks in their hands.  They were drawing out every ruble that stood to their accounts.  Many headed straight for the commission shops.  There they turned over fat packets of paper money for diamond rings, gold watches, emerald earrings, oriental rugs, brass samovars.

The crowds outside the savings banks quickly became disorderly.  No one wanted to wait.  They demanded their money seichas-immediately.  Police detachments appeared.  By 3 p.m. the banks had closed, having exhausted their supply of currency.  They did not reopen again until Tuesday (Monday was their closed day).  When they opened again, the government had imposed a limit on withdrawals of two hundred rubles per person per month.” – Harrison E. Salisbury, The 900 Days: The Siege of Leningrad

Note from JWR:

Today we present another two entries for Round 32 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round will 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 “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $400, B.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and C.) 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 32 ends on January 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.

365 Meals: What to Do With All That Dehydrated Food, by Kory M.

It all started while reading Survivalblog. In an article about providing charity during a pandemic and not getting sick, Jim talked about putting food out where others could get it and then retreating to keep a safe distance between you and other people to keep your family from getting infected. While reading this article, I had an epiphany.

Instead of handing out some rice, wheat, oats or a can of spam, I could concoct a “meal”, a Home-Made Meal (Almost) Ready to Eat (HMMARE?).  My first HMMARE idea was to dump 1 cup of rice, a chicken bouillon cube, ¼ cup of chicken TVP and a ¼ cup of dehydrated peas into a Ziploc sandwich bag. It would be easy, just add three cups of water and boil, viola, a decent meal!

I joyously told my wife about my great new idea. “Yuck,” she said, “we can do better than that!” So she sent me back to the drawing board (although these days ‘the drawing board’ looks more like a Google search engine than an architect’s table). I scoured the internet endlessly until finally I came across a web site where a woman had thoughts similar to mine, and had made what she called “365 meals”. She had taken the reserves that she already had on hand and combined them with a project that her church group had done in years past. They made “Soup in a Jar” meals to give as gifts during the holiday season. She adapted this idea and thought that if she could make 365 meals then she would KNOW that at least she had one decent meal a day for her family for an entire year.

This idea set my mind racing. My wife and I sat down and worked out a plan. We had several criteria that we wanted our meals to meet.

  • They had to be in a sturdy container (We live in earthquake country, so no glass containers for us.)
  • They need to be complete. You could add to them, but the recipe shouldn’t require any extra ingredients.
  • They needed to be simple – so that our children could make them, in case the adults were incapacitated.
  • They needed to be good tasting, hearty and nutritious.
  • They needed to be capable of long term storage.
  • And, If possible they needed to use the supplies of food stuffs we already had on hand.

We quickly worked out what we could do to make this a better option for our family. We learned from the (now extinct) 365 meals web page that the host had used the recipe book “Gifts in a Jar: One Dish Meals”. I turned to Amazon.com and discovered there were several books in the Gifts in a Jar series, and we purchased the ones that looked most applicable (like: Gifts From a Jar: Soups, Chilis & More). We wanted to start simply with items we already had on hand, and make a few meals in our kitchen. The first recipe we made was chicken soup. The recipe called for making a soup “stock” and adding fresh carrots, celery and chicken pieces. We adapted it with dehydrated carrots, celery and chicken TVP and more water than the recipe called for to rehydrate the vegetables. (TVP is Textured Vegetable Protein; it is a cheap and long term solution for dehydrated protein in meals. Real dehydrated chicken is also available on the market, but at 5 times the cost. Although Textured Vegetable Protein sounds unappetizing at first glance, chances are, you’ve had it without even knowing it. Bacon Bits are TVP!) [JWR Adds: I don’t recommend stocking storage foods that are heavy in TVP, because of the potential health consequences. Too much soy can be a bad thing.]

Now that we’d settled on a test-recipe, we had to figure out how, exactly, we were going to store them. We had a “Food Saver” vacuum sealer and that seemed like a good solution. Take out all the air and the meal should last a good long time right? So we gathered all the ingredients, had our children help with the assembly and made our first batch. The recipe said that the meal would feed 4 to 6 people and we had a family of six-two adults and four growing children, so we decided to double the recipe. Each meal was about the size of a 3lb. chub of hamburger (10” long x 8” in circumference). We made the meals until we ran out of ingredients, which yielded about 15 meals. After they were vacu-sealed we then set about to find another meal to make-we were on a roll!

Our next meal (Untested by our professional taste testing children) was Ham Hock Stew. My wife and I thought it sounded wonderful, but our children disagreed. As before, we altered the recipe to fit our storage needs and made a few. When we were sealing the soups we noticed that the dehydrated carrots that were called for in the recipe were poking through the Food Saver Bags! We were crestfallen-how had our brilliant plan been foiled by a dehydrated vegetable? Just then we remembered that we had recently been gifted with an impulse sealer  and 250 Mylar bags (A member of our church said he bought it, never used it and no one in his family wanted it, so he thought I would put it to good use-boy was he right!). It didn’t draw a vacuum, but we could overcome that by using oxygen absorbers; and the Mylar bags were much thicker than the Food Saver Bags (7 mils instead of 4). I knew that food stored in opaque storage containers kept food longer due to the deteriorating effects of sunlight, and these Mylar bags were sure to keep the sun out.

We decided that the bags were too large (11” x 13”) so we cut them in half length wise and that was a perfect fit. We then transferred most of  the Food Saver pouches to the new Mylar bags. After making 30 or so meals we decided to try one out. Our kids wanted the Chicken Soup but we wanted to know if they would like the ham hock stew…they didn’t like it…..THEY LOVED IT!

Since we had doubled the recipe we expected to have a little left over…boy were we wrong. There was enough to feed Sherman’s Army! We all had our fill, and there was enough left over for me to have lunch the next day, and freeze enough for dinner for our family again! (Guess we really didn’t need to double those recipes after all).

With this success under our belt we expanded, we ended up making about 12 different recipes and a total of 175 or so meals (since we doubled most of them we didn’t need as many). We took this idea to our friends and family and it was an instant success! After a few YouTube videos on the subject (Food Storage Secrets, 365 Meals or Making 365 Meals and others) we have demonstrated this method of food storage for over two years now, including several Church groups who have made upwards of 8,000 meals! (I guess we put that gifted impulse sealer to good use, huh!?) And I have had at least 50 other inquiries from individuals and groups wanting recipes and advice on how to make this work for them.

After having personally been at these 8,000 meal making groups we have learned a few things to make this process fun and inexpensive. Here are the FAQs:

  • The cost of each meal varies due to the ingredients but they average about $4.00 each.
  • An impulse sealer isn’t required but makes it a lot easier. (We still have some Chicken Soup in a Food Saver bags and they are doing well.)
  • You will need to do some conversions to make sure you have the items you will need in bulk. This is the one that I used. But a good way to do it was to see what the FDA label said were in a package (Unit size vs. number in container.)
  • The more hands you have to process the meals the better. It’s easier to make two hundred meals for fifteen families, than fifteen meals for one family.
  • An assembly line makes it all work very easily.
  • It’s hard to tell exactly how long they will store, but most of the dehydrated items purchased say they will store for up to twenty years, and that sounds good to me!
  • You can tailor your meals for your dietary needs and personal tastes (No/low salt, gluten free, etc.)
  • With all your items on hand and with enough helpers you can make about five hundred meals in two hours.
  • Because of their light weight, they ship quite well. They are great for gifts.
  • A 16oz plastic picnic cup with its bottom cut out makes a great funnel/opener for the Mylar bags.
  • Go to the dollar store and buy a few sets of measuring spoons and cups, you’ll need them.
  • All of our now 200ish meals store under our son’s twin size bed.
  • Meals we’ve successfully made: Split Pea Soup, Chicken Soup, Ham Hock Stew, White Rice and Chili, Mac-n-cheese, Black Bean Chili, Pasta Fagioli, and Chicken and Rice.

Our food stores are varied and deep but our TEOTWAWKI 365 meal plan is to have a simple breakfast, of oats or grains, a hearty lunch/supper of our bagged meal, and a dinner of breads and snacks. I know that having one meal a day does not a full food plan make, but to know for sure that you have at least one meal a day for an entire year takes the guess work out of your planning, although the very best benefit is peace of mind.

I’m sharing this food storage concept with SurvivalBlog readers in the hope that it will inspire you to move ahead and get your meals set aside. If  there is enough interest I will be making “Meal Kits” in the future. If you’d like to contact me with questions, to purchase a full list of recipes and instructions for the soups mentioned here, or to purchase emergency preparedness supplies, please visit my web site: FrostCPR.com.

Practical Christianity for TEOTWAWKI, by J.A.G.

I suspect many today might think that the words ‘practical’ and ‘Christianity’ don’t seem to fit in the same sentence. In many minds, practical is what one does Monday through Saturday to get ready for hard times on earth, having to do with nuts and bolts and clothes and food and fuel and power and…well…things. Christianity seems to be what one does on Sunday, in a church. That may be the version of spiritual life that has emerged in our nation’s culture over the years, but it is certainly not the version of life the founder of Christianity had in mind—it fails to acknowledge the sovereignty and rule of God over all things, and it will certainly do no one any good in the times to come. So…permit me to share some rules for practical Christianity—something so elemental to preparation for the times in which we live that I would go so far as to say that getting this right is the single most important thing you should undertake—the first thing, the most important thing, and the best thing you should do. Everything else you might do to prepare depends and builds upon these foundational principles. If you get this right, your odds of getting everything else right skyrocket; if you get this wrong, you could get everything else right and still end up in a very bad place.

These practical steps are ‘denominationally neutral’—there is no plug for one denomination or another. In the days to come, true Christians will probably drop their denominational differences (persecution tends to have that effect). If you believe that Jesus is the Son of God, if you believe the Bible is His Word to us, and if you strive to obey Him daily, then we will all be agreeing on much, much more in the coming days—whether we expect to or not.

1. Get the Cross Right: Understand what the Cross means and pick it up—every day.  This term ‘Cross’ can be sort of ‘church-speak’, and while it is the essence of Christianity, it doesn’t make sense to many people—many Christians, actually. I say this because of the current state of Christianity in the world; if it did make sense to most Christians, we wouldn’t be in the mess we’re in at the moment. And  ‘getting the Cross right’ does not mean simply going to church; too many people equate ‘going to church’ with real Christianity. Church is important, but it isn’t a substitute for spiritual life. Actually understanding the Cross is pretty simple. You can understand it by just looking at the life of the Founder. He gave up everything He had so as to obey His Father; He sacrificed His life so others might live. He put away what He was entitled to so as to set an example for us. The Cross involves a breaking; it means we come to a point in our lives when we really, truly realize to the depth of our soul that we have failed as a human being and can in no way succeed; that we have failed in some way that reflects such horrendous discredit on ourselves that there is no hope that we can continue to live unless God gives us His nature and lives His life in us and through us. This typically results in a dark night of the soul, accompanied by a cry of agony and desperation that cries out in remorse, anguish, and despair. If you have uttered such a cry, you will know what I am talking about; if you haven’t, you won’t. If you are lucky, you will see yourself as God sees you (and be affected by that understanding for the rest of your life). How will this apply to your preparation activities? Practically speaking—stop seeking to have things your own way; stop seeking your own ‘rights’, and look to find instances where you might help secure the rights of others (I mean really, after seeing what we look like through God’s eyes, no one could be prideful again). Recognize that before you can truly live in this life, before you can truly be productive in the sense that you will produce good for others besides yourself, before you can take the right steps to prepare for the coming fight, and before you can really do anything that pleases God, you have to come to the realization that you are not in charge; that you are not even capable of being ‘in charge’—of your life, or anyone else’s life; and that our natures are, in fact, such that if left to ourselves, we would muddy the baths of angels. And why, lastly, is all this important? Why is this eminently practical? Because we are coming into a time when warriors are required. The coming fight, however, is not about freedom, or constitutional liberties, or the right to own guns. No, the ground on which we’re fighting and will fight is spiritual—the enemy of freedom and liberty is also, coincidentally, the enemy of your soul. Every one of you who reads this blog feels this, deep down. Every time you read of another encroachment on freedom, an intrusion into previously sacrosanct rights, or some new abuse or trampling of human dignity, something in you twists in anger; you cry out against it. Why? Because the fight we’re in is spiritual, because these things affront your spirit, and no amount of political or prepping efforts will avail you if you have not prepared first spiritually. Not recognizing this is a spiritual fight, and just stocking up and learning skills (all quite important, mind) without first understanding and applying the Cross is like stepping into a boxing ring against a powerful (only once-defeated) opponent—he’s got a baseball bat, and you’re wearing a blindfold…good luck.

2. Men—Cowboy Up. Men need to be the spiritual leaders in their family. A man who needs to be nagged by his wife to lead spiritually will let down his side in the bigger battles to come (because remember, the fight we’re in now is spiritual, and will only get more so). This is important because this is the way God structured our society: it doesn’t mean men are more or less important, it is just that leadership in the home is the role God has assigned to men, so as to maintain the symbology He has put in place so we could know Him. Men—you need to lead your families spiritually by reading them sections of the Bible each day. You need to speak to them about what you read (which means you need to be able to hear from God what He tells you to say). You need to be able to handle the Word of God like a master re-loader handles his re-loading equipment; like some master gardener handles their garden; like some master electrician can whip up a DIY alternate power source. And I mean every man, not just some minister or pastor. This means, practically, that every man needs to be able to answer the tough questions, and every man needs to be setting the example for their family with their own life. And this means every man needs to know the Bible better than anyone in their family…and it means then that you need to humble out, and it means that if you are doing things you ought not to be doing, knock it off, ask God’s forgiveness, stop doing those things (that’s what ‘repent’ means), and start learning the things He wants you to learn and doing the things He wants you to do. You won’t make one lick of progress toward understanding the Bible unless you are willing to line up and do what it says to do. No one said this would be easy, but any home with a man in it who isn’t leading spiritually isn’t firing on all cylinders. Any family that hopes to prepare, led by a man who thinks this ‘spiritual stuff’ is just a crutch, or something not manly enough to deal with, will get rolled over when the enemy’s big spiritual guns are rolled out (remember the baseball bat and the blindfold). And remember, gentlemen…you can’t be the spiritual leader in your homes unless you have first executed step one, above.

3. Obey the Word. This phrase, ‘the Word’, is what Christians mean when they are referring to either what they read in the Bible, or what God actually tells them to do (yes, Virginia, God still speaks to people today). Typically God speaks to people through His written word, which is why it is so important to correctly handle it. If you were zeroing your battle rifle for 100 yards and you didn’t know how to ‘correctly handle’ the settings on your sight, you really wouldn’t make any progress with the exercise now, would you? If you were building an alternative energy source and you didn’t ‘correctly handle’ the principles of electricity, you’d suffer the consequences. Well, the Word of God is a tool He’s given us to be able to (a) obey Him the right way, and (b) live our lives so that we can benefit others. But you can read the Bible and talk about it and spread it around, but if you don’t actually do what God tells you to do, you’re wasting your time. Obedience is that actual thing that helps us understand what God is telling us in the Word; this is why people who have absolutely no intention of actually obeying God read the Bible and can’t make head nor tail out of what it says. Warriors need to obey their commander, and in this upcoming spiritual fight, God is the commander, and if you want to fight in this upcoming fight, you had better learn how to obey Him. Obey in the small things first, and soon He will give you more critical tasks. Obedience is critical—and that means you need to humble out and get a right sight picture of where you stand relative to God—and that takes us back to step one, above.

4. God is God. It seems that somewhere, American Christians have gotten the idea that waving a flag is tantamount to worshipping God…and I think that is because most people who might call themselves Christians are actually worshipping America (this is because it is easier than executing step one, above). At the bottom of that slippery slope one sees that there is the tendency to simply worship any construct or political system that provides them a required lifestyle or level of convenience or freedom to engage in a preferred activity. America should not be God, the Constitution should not be God, and I would even go so far as to say that one’s efforts to prepare should not be your God (and by ‘God’ I simply mean ‘that which is most important to you’). In any fight, one needs to see clearly whom you are fighting. In a dogfight, typically the first one who sees the enemy has an immense advantage; in any sort of combat, seeing your opponent clearly is critical. Not having a clear picture of God will keep you from clearly seeing the real opponent in these days. Our opponents are not ‘the Progressives’ or the gun control fanatics, or ‘the evil left’. No…our opponent is the enemy of souls, the deceiver of nations, the hater of your heart. Adjust to that fact and stop swinging at illusions. Accurately place God in the scheme of things, and you will accurately comprehend your enemy. But if you continue to worry about the restoration of constitutional freedoms and rights and all the other things ‘guaranteed by the Founding Fathers’ without first executing step one, above, then you will be playing into the hands of the enemy, swinging at moonbeams, and sooner or later, you’ll get that baseball bat in the head when the enemy rolls out his big guns and everyone recognizes the fight as spiritual. You’ve heard it said, “Don’t bring a knife to a gunfight.” Well, focusing on surface political and national issues is bringing a knife to a gunfight. Don’t be caught without the appropriate spiritual weapons.

5. Life isn’t the sine qua non of existence. If you are continuing in a relationship of obedience with God, then you should not fear death. Rather, you should fear He Who consigns souls to hell (that would be God). Death isn’t the enemy; loss of freedom isn’t the main threat. Denying God is that which we should most fear. Practically speaking, how might one deny God? Let’s put it in terms we can understand. Let’s say you have a Dad who’s the greatest Dad in the world. He’s taken care of you, raised you to be an honest, hard-working, true man or woman who knows what love and truth and beauty and obedience means. So one day someone comes along and asks you to engage in an activity that you know would upset your Dad, something which would be against all the principles for which he stands. If you go ahead and engage in that activity, such would be tantamount to denying your Father. ‘Render to Caesar that which is Caesar’s, and to God that which is God’s.’ No man can force you to deny God if you have already come to that place in your mind where you would rather die than do so.  One doesn’t get to that place easily. You can only get to that place by realizing that your life is less important than your faithfulness to your Father in heaven (presuming, of course, that you have executed step one, above). Now, I am not advocating that you run upon the nearest sword that happens to present itself so that you can become an instant martyr. No…I am telling you that the product of a solid relationship with God in which you are obeying Him on a daily basis (after you have accomplished step one, above) will be a firm, unshakable determination to die or suffer hardship rather than to disobey Him, or be forced to engage in an activity or adopt a philosophy or adhere to any policy or principal that requires you to disobey God’s rules, nature, or commandments. Another product of that close relationship will be God’s hand on your life, shepherding you through the days such that when the time comes for you to perhaps give up your life before denying Him, it will be an instance that He has arranged, and it will be for His glory, not yours. This re-adjusted mindset may result in some dramatically different approaches to your preparations. Consider—how would your preparation activities change if you were to ask yourself, “How will God be glorified by what I am doing?” (this term ‘glorified’ can be ‘church-speak’: it simply means, for example, “How will God get the credit; how will God’s excellence and wonderfulness be made evident to people; how will the people affected by this thing I’m doing realize that God is the one who made it all possible, and thank Him and not me?”). Everything you do to prepare—every gun you buy, every food item you store, every balaclava you procure—needs to be done with the objective in mind that somehow, someway, people will sooner or later, because of what you are doing, thank God (not you).

6. Dropkick the World. Once upon a time, a man had two dogs, a Red dog and White dog. He would tell everyone who came to visit that he loved that White dog and really hated the Red dog. Oh, and how those two dogs would fight each other. The man would tell his guests that he always wanted the White dog to win, and sometimes that White dog did (usually when guests were around), but most other times that mean ol’ Red dog would just get the upper hand. Now, twice a day that man fed the Red dog a huge porterhouse steak and once a day he fed that White dog just three small garbanzo beans and a Ritz cracker. Well, pretty soon, you can guess who was winning the fights—yup, that mean ol’ Red dog. So the point of the story here is that those two dogs are in each of us. The Red dog is that thing in us—our human nature—that wants to do the bad stuff; the White dog—God’s nature (presuming again you’ve executed step one)—is that which is trying to get us to do what’s right. When we put into our hearts the garbage that comes from the world—the philosophies, the entertainments, the ethics, the value systems, and the general mindset the world has (the ‘world’ being those things opposed to God), we’re feeding the Red dog and starving the White dog. Better we starve the Red dog and feed the White dog; read the Word every day; dwell on what God is doing through His body on earth; associate with others who are accomplished in performing step one, above; read solid books that accurately and in an honoring way depict the wonderful things God has done in human history; stay away from movies and books that dishonor Him (Hollywood being what it is, that narrows the field down a bit). Now, you won’t be able to come completely out of the world—I’m not advocating you join some sort of monastery (you can’t have an M1A in a monastery, I’ve heard—that would cut it for me). You will need to have some familiarity with what is happening around you to make some sense of the days in which we live—but don’t starve the White dog in doing so.

7. Love what God loves (hate what God hates). Imagine a little boy who looks up to his father and wants to be ‘just like his Dad’. Well, what do we see in little boys who have this desire? They do what their Daddies do; they love what their Dad loves, and if their Dad somehow expresses distaste for something, you can be sure that little boy will walk right up to it and give it a kick as well. What does God love? God loves truth, and justice, and righteousness (another ‘church-speak’ word that simply means doing what is right in God’s sight—which means that to do righteousness you need to know what God considers right, which means you need to understand His Word, which requires executing step one, above); He loves mercy, and a humble and contrite heart—this means a heart that knows where it stands in the great scheme of things, and owns up to and is deeply sorry for the rotten things it has done in its past. He loves compassion and He loves defending those who cannot defend themselves. He loves protecting the innocent and the weak. He stands against evil and does not give way before it. And God hates, too (oh yes He does, absolutely, positively, make no mistake—you can read it in Psalm 5 and elsewhere). He hates sin, and He hates those who sin; he hates injustice and tyranny and murder and rapine and all the evil things men do…and evil men. And He will one day come back and His robes will be dipped in blood from all the death and destruction He will deal out upon men and women who are opposed to His rule (my suggestion is to be on the right side of that coming fight). So in your daily life, begin to make a habit of doing what your Father in heaven does; uphold truth and justice and do righteousness and hate those who do iniquity. Keep yourselves from idols—that is, keep yourselves from anything that might get to be more important in your life than obeying God.

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And so…

Do you want to be a warrior in this fight? Do you want to take up arms with your heavenly Father, to do what you can to fight on His side? Do you want to identify with others who have a devotion to a mission so intense that they would be willing to die for it? God is not so concerned about restoring the Constitution; He is not so concerned about restoring the principles of the Founding Fathers. He is concerned, though, about individual hearts being so tuned to Him that every person functions as if they were part of His own body here on earth. It may be that the outcome of this coming conflict results not in some rejuvenated American nation but in a completely new world, with God actually ruling and reigning on this earth (which might impact your food storage plans a bit). Prepare well—God says that those who see danger and prepare to avoid it are prudent. But remember the most important aspect of preparation. Warriors in this fight will know how to use these practical steps (for they are weapons); they will know how to take orders; they will know where and how they fit in the grand scheme of things (for such is the true definition of humility); they will know the voice of their Commanding Officer, and they will do what He says—regardless of cost.

The Twisted World of Jared Lee Loughner

The tragic news on Saturday of the shooting of a congresswoman and a Federal judge in Arizona was quite troubling. (At last report, six dead and 13 wounded.) Chief Judge John Roll of the U.S. District Court for Arizona was killed and Representative Gabrielle Giffords was badly injured but is expected to recover.

Who is the suspect? Jared Lee Loughner, age 22. His YouTube channel makes him appear to be a certifiable flag-burning lunatic, and possibly a mind control subject. His list of favorite books included: “Animal Farm, Brave New World, The Wizard Of OZ, Aesop Fables, The Odyssey, Alice Adventures Into Wonderland, Fahrenheit 451, Peter Pan, To Kill A Mockingbird, We The Living, Phantom Toll Booth, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, Pulp, Through The Looking Glass, The Communist Manifesto, Siddhartha, The Old Man And The Sea, Gulliver’s Travels, Mein Kampf, The Republic, and Meno.” Somehow, I expected to see: “The Catcher in the Rye” on the list.

So what is he? A communist? A neo-Nazi? Or is just your basic Looney Tune? And what about the name Loughner? (Loner? Lone gunman?) Or Lugner? (That is German for “liar”.) This whole episode is surely going to prompt plenty of Conspiracy Theory style speculation.

The sad truth is that we live in a world where there are loonies and radicals (and looney radicals–the most dangerous sort) wandering the streets. The world is a dangerous place.

One part of the Arizona tragedy that will surely be overlooked by the mass media is that the outcome would have been much different if we had a better-armed citizenry. If there had been several private citizens present armed with guns, then the assassin might very well have been stopped before he had the time to shoot so many people. At least Arizona has reasonable gun laws. (Open carry is legal, as is Vermont style no-permit concealed carry.)

I suspect that Mayor Bloomberg and his band of fools will try to use this tragedy as an excuse for more so-called “gun control”. Most likely they’ll ask for another magazine ban (a la the idiotic 1994-2004 ban), since the shooter reportedly used a pistol with an extended magazine. They might also use this to denigrate Vermont-style concealed carry.

Economics and Investing:

T.&.P. sent this item: Legislation proposes Utah adopt a gold-based system. Similar legislation has been introduced in several other states.

Blame the U.S. Mint for Lack of Silver, Don’t Blame Customers (Thanks to Alec N. for the link.)

Reader M.E. sent this: Seven Reasons Food Shortages Will Become a Global Crisis

Richard S. recommended this piece at the Economania blog: UK Preppers.

Siggy like this one: America’s 10 worst years start right now

Items from The Economatrix:

Regulators Close Florida Bank; 1st For The Year  

Slow Growth In Jobs Shows Challenge Ahead   

Bernanke:  4-5 Years To Reach Normal Unemployment. Does Helicopter Ben honestly think that we will print our way to prosperity! 

EU Plans For Bondholder Haircuts Unsettles Debt Markets  

Permanent Student Loan Debt Bondage Racket

Odds ‘n Sods:

For anyone who is grumbling about the cancellation of the BBC television series Survivors, there is now a petition to get Season 3 reinstated.

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Another reason for OPSEC: Cop Slain for gun collection. (A hat tip to David N. in Tennessee.)

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SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large Michael Z. Williamson sent a useful article with relevance to EMP protection: Bonding and Grounding C4SIR Facilities.

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I recently got a lengthy heartfelt letter from a Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) employee that I’ll quote just briefly: “The number one lesson I have learned [as a DMV employee] that I want to share is that GDP really does mean, General Dumb Public.  When TEOTWAWKI begins, the collective mental breakdown and anguish of those still living huddled in the corner of ‘the box’ is going to be horrible and unimaginably destructive.  I don’t pity them in any regards, just the distance we have fallen morally as a nation.  Seeing the rampant stupidity in my fellow constituents and the stocked pantry/hidden blunder busters at home, I can’t help but feel a little dead inside.  I grew up in a different America and I’m not sure if we can ever return to that.  And as controversial as it sounds, this nation is ripe for the judgment.  America is a rebellious house and a catharsis of Biblical proportions is at our doorstep.”

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Kevin S. suggested this: How To Completely Erase Your Hard Drive

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“1) David Berkowitz, Ted Bundy, Richard Speck… 2) what about them? 1) Serial killers. Serial killers only have two names. You ever notice that? But lone gunmen assassins, they always have three names. John Wilkes Booth, Lee Harvey Oswald, Mark David Chapman… 2) John Hinckley. He shot Reagan. He only has two names. 1) Yeah, but he only just shot Reagan. Reagan didn’t die. If Reagan had died, I’m pretty sure we probably would all know what John Hinckley’s middle name was.” – Mel Gibson, in the movie Conspiracy Theory. (Screenplay by Brian Helgeland)

Note from JWR:

Today we present another two entries for Round 32 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round will 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 “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $400, B.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and C.) 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 32 ends on January 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.