Letter Re: Preparedness Wisdom from The Foxfire Book Series

Dear Jim,
I just got my new (old) set of The Foxfire Books. I sat down and began to cruise through the pages of the first one. What a wealth of information!
Then it happened. I turned over page 370 and there was a picture of Hillard Green. He is almost 80, (the book was published in 1972) and here is what it says, unbelievable:
Excerpt from the facing page: “The last time we visited him, he was busy peeling tomatoes he had just gathered and scalded. He waved us in, put a fresh plug of tobacco in his cheek, and went on with his work chuckling as we got our camera ready.
‘People’ll look at those pictures,’ he laughed, “and say, ‘What is that crazy old man a’doin’? You tell’em I’m puttin up ‘maters for th’ winter, that’s what. People might laugh at such stuff as this, but I’ll tell y’, I’m not about t’let’em rot. And when you’ve got old, you’re not a’goin’t lay down and die just because you’re old. Feller’s got t’have somethin’ t’do. Well, this is one of th’things I do, and I’m proud I can. Let’em laugh. I’ll be eatin’ good this winter and laughin’ back.’
The peeling process over, he next sliced and cored them, put them on to cook, and began to heat the canning jars.
‘Everyone ought t’learn how to do such as this. One a’these days, times might get back hard again, and then what will they do? Nobody not knowin’ how t’do nothin’. Might have t’live off th’land again, one day. We never had nothin’ fer th’winter only what we put up. What we put up was what we had. Goin’t be a lot of hungry people someday.” – Northern Art

Letter Re: The Real Threat is Deflation

Mr. Rawles,
I greatly respect your advice and columns on most matters yet I continue to see people like yourself claiming we are facing an inflationary holocaust. People in the inflationary camp point to the size of the Mother of All Bailouts (MOAB) or the rate or printing as if that number alone meant something. You cannot take that number alone, sir, but must measure it against the value of assets that have been destroyed by the deflation going on around you. The total inflationary pulse from Europe, Japan, and the US thus far is approximately $7.5 trillion as best I can estimate. On the other hand, the total value of assets destroyed in 2008 alone was over $60 trillion dollars. In other words, deflation outweighs inflation here by a factor of about 8 to 1. Even if we get another $50 trillion in inflationary action, which I seriously doubt will occur, it would only be an attempt to stand still against the massive wave of deflation going on around us. And that doesn’t count the losses that will come in 2009, 2010, and beyond. It is my firm belief that we are in the midst of a deflationary crash that is going to last 3-5 years and at the end of that crash is the dissolution of the United States due to its incredible financial obligations. What will come after that is similar to the breakup of the Soviet Union and the emergence of new nations, each similar to but different from what preceded it.

Given the above, I find it hard to take these warnings of impending inflationary disaster seriously. The US cannot inflate without antagonizing its trading partners who hold its bonds. Antagonizing them not only cuts off cash via lending but likely cuts off trade, resulting in a lack of goods here in the US which the US is no longer capable of filling by itself. Thus inflating is suicide. Instead all the action I see appears to be an attempt by the very rich to “ride the wave down” until it bottoms out. This bottoming out is the perfect time to consolidate wealth in the hands of those that hold cash by picking clean the pockets of the middle class who were heavily invested in the sucker’s stock market. Paulson is guiding the consolidation of financial institutions into those few controlled by “friends of Hank” while people like Ben Bernanke harp on bailing out the financial institutions (the very wealthy) with hundreds of billions of dollars while disdaining to throw even breadcrumbs (by comparison) to companies that employ the middle class of America.

In fact, the classic advice during an inflation is to be in debt up to your eyeballs so you can pay the debt back with cheaper currency. Yet you give sound deflationary advice – be out of debt – with which I agree. I truly enjoy your column but wonder if it is time for you to prayerfully step back and really examine the direction of the financial world rather than simply continue to run based on old assumptions. If you stand back and simply examine the data, rather than beginning with an assumption, the data appears to very strongly point to deflation. Remember, Americans were told that the US would not allow the deflationary mess of the 1930s to happen either, but it did. And if you examine the Federal Reserve’s role in that you see that they even inflated the money supply to extremes. For starters, I recommend that you please consider [Mish Shedlock’s essay] Humpty Dumpty On Inflation. It’s a well written article and certain graphs in there are truly eye-openers. If you are not a regular reader of Mr. Shedlock’s column, you may wish to become one. He has been spot on the mark about everything in terms of deflation or else he has been too conservative. For instance, he said 2008 unemployment would exceed 6% clear back in 2007 when unemployment was 4.9%. People said he was insane yet look at what happened. He also documents the many ways wealth is being destroyed, such as the $10 trillion in household wealth destroyed during the 15 months from the beginning of the 4th quarter 2007 to the end of the 4th quarter 2008. And that doesn’t count pension losses, or corporate and government losses plus it’s only the US. Further, it’s through Mish’s columns (Mish is his nickname) that I discovered that many large corporations like HP and FedEx are freezing wages and suspending 401(k) contributions entirely. Those are not inflationary actions!

I really do urge you to give the deflationary scenario a good second look. The end of that road is just as horrible as the hyperinflationary one but the way we get there may be different and it may cause you to prepare in a somewhat different manner. Sincerely, – David R.

JWR Replies: You should be aware that I revised my predictions for inflation considerably since the onset of the global credit collapse in the third quarter of 2007. For more than a year, I have been predicting that we’ll experience at least 18 months (more likely 24+ months) of sharp deflation, then followed by mass currency inflation. I stand by that prediction. Once the “worm turns”, and the Almighty Dollar is rightly seen abroad as the bird cage liner that it really is, there will be some spectacular failures of US Treasury auctions. Then, in the great banana republic tradition, the Treasury Department will have no choice but to offer higher and higher rates of return in order to successfully peddle their paper. Meanwhile, the multi-trillions in spending that cannot be covered by tax revenues and borrowing will have to be covered by monetization, which as I’ve mentioned before is highly inflationary. Once the Treasury and Federal Reserve take the turn down that path–and I’m fairly confident that they will–then the fate of the dollar will be certain. From then on, it will be time to “warm up the helicopters“, as the Dollar heads into at least double digit inflation–and possibly much higher rates.

Odds ‘n Sods:

The Memsahib is now “Happy McHappy” because her annual Murray McMurray poultry catalog just arrived. Along with the obligatory pile of seed catalogs, this annual event is one of the things that keeps our spirits up during the snowy winter months.

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Eric spotted these articles: Kansas wheat acres continue downward trend and, German bond auctions fail, and, Latvia is shaken by riots over its weak economy

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More gloomage, courtesy of Cheryl: Crude Tumbles Below $35 — Fears Grip Banking Sector as Barclay’s Cuts 2,100 More Jobs — FTSE 100 Joins Global Rout of Markets — UK Jobless Rise 40 in Just One Week — China Bails Out its Steel and Auto Makers — Ireland: Drastic Cuts to Prevent Debt Crisis — Asian Markets Dive as Economy News Darkens — Banks in Need of Even More Bailout Money — US Foreclosure Filings Up 81% in 2008 — Fiscal Situation of 50 States: Combined Budget Gaps Estimated at $350 Billion for 2010 and 2011 — No Taxation Without Inflation (Mogambo Guru) — Jim Sinclair: The Unavoidable Face of Hyperinflation (Sinclair writes: “The dollar cannot and will not remain strong, nor can a planetary Weimar experience now be avoided.)”.

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Sean M. flagged this: Solar Jerrycan that purifies water with sunshine

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Many citizens are questioning the numerous disconnects between the futures markets in precious metals and commodities and the realities of global supply and demand. As the saying goes: keep an eye on the referee. Maybe this match/game isn’t quite as fair as it’s advertised.” – Charles Hugh Smith

Notes from JWR:

Your last day to bid! The high bid in the SurvivalBlog Benefit Auction is now at $1,500. Get your bid in by midnight, eastern time, tonight. The auction is for a large mixed lot that includes:

1.) A large “be ready to barter” box of full-capacity gun magazines, from the JASBORR. This box includes: 12 – Used original Bundeswehr contract HK91 (G3) steel 20 round magazines, 6 – Used original FN of Belgium-made FN-FAL alloy 20 round magazines, 6 – Used AR-15/M16 USGI (a mix of Simmonds & Colt made) alloy 20 round magazines, and 2 – New and very scarce original FN (Belgian-made) US M1/M2 Carbine blued steel 30 round magazines (marked “AYP”) . All of these magazines are of pre-1994 manufacture (and hence legal to possess in New York.) These magazines have a combined value of approximately $450. Note: If you live in a state where full capacity magazines are banned, then you must choose to: refrain from bidding, or designate a recipient in an unrestricted state, or re-donate the magazines for a subsequent auction.

2. ) A brand new in box Big Berky Water Filter, with your choice of either four white ceramic filter elements or four black filter elements. This is a $329 retail value, courtesy of Ready Made Resources.

3.) A huge lot of DVDs, CD-ROMs and hard copy nuclear survival/self-sufficiency references (a $300+ value) donated by Richard Fleetwood of www.SurvivalCD.com

4.) A NukAlert compact radiation detector donated by at KI4U.com (a $160 retail value). 

5.) A desert tan SOG Trident folding knife, courtesy of Safecastle. (a $92.99 retail value.)

6.) A case of 12 recent production full mil-spec MRE rations (identical to the current military contract MREs, but without the civilian sale restriction markings). This is a $90 retail value, courtesy of CampingSurvival.com.

Thus, the combined retail value of this combined lot is at least $1,275. This auction ends today, January 15th. Please e-mail us your bid by midnight, eastern time, tonight. Your bid will be for the entire mixed lot.

 

Today we present another entry for Round 20 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The contest prizes include:

First Prize: The writer of the best contributed article will be awarded two transferable Front Sight  “Gray” Four Day Training Course Certificates. This is an up to $4,000 value!
Second Prize: A three day course certificate from OnPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses.
Third Prize: A copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, from Arbogast Publishing

Round 20 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 will have an advantage in the judging.

Hurricane Lessons Learned and Some Advice on Getting Prepared, by Ken on the Gulf Coast

Sometimes it is not an option to relocate so you have to get prepared wherever you are located. I am located on the Gulf Coast 60 short miles from New Orleans, Louisiana. We were ground zero for Hurricane Katrina, so I have a first hand experience of what can happen I will describe some things that I did right and some things that I did wrong.

We were unable to relocate to a place like Idaho as we had elderly parents who could not and probably would not relocate to a more appropriate survival area.

My mother was born in 1930 the daughter of a sharecropper in the Louisiana delta. They lived a survivor lifestyle as a matter of everyday life. She instilled in me a fear of having absolutely nothing. Until her
death in 2007 she refused to run a dishwasher or air conditioner. She could not bring herself to waste electricity, water, or anything for that matter. She would not waste anything.

Although not as dedicated to thrift as my mother, I did inherit her fear of hunger, and vulnerability to the unexpected. She died in fear of depression era conditions returning. When she died I lost a valuable
source of survival information.

Because of my mother’s influence, the day after Hurricane Katrina, we were one out of 75,000 or so who had lights and running water 36 hours after the storm. The following is what most people did wrong:

A lot of people had generators, the problem was that they only had a couple of cans of gas. So they were all without power in less than 24 hrs. All of the gas stations were disabled. No gas means no
power!

Nobody had enough food, they recommend three days, it took almost three days just to get the roads clear.

No guns! I had friends who did not “believe in guns” that ended up borrowing some weapons.

No dogs! Without dogs, you have no warning of intruders. Alarm systems don’t work after the batteries are dead.

The following is what I did right:

I had a natural gas generator installed. I was up and running less than 36 hours of the storm. It was also a mistake to select natural gas as a fuel source. Upturned trees broke gas lines all over the region, it was only blind luck that left me with gas pressure. A propane system would have been better.

I had drilled a water well. I was able to provide water pressure to my house, city water was out for weeks. I tied the system back to the house by a simple water hose going from a faucet on my pump to one on the house.

I had lights and water. Here is what I did wrong:

I evacuated the elderly mothers and dogs to an area 100+ miles north. Electricity was out over the entire state, my motor home generator powered my sisters house where I left our parents and dogs. I left the dogs at my bug out location before I returned to the disaster area.

Mistake #1: I sent my dogs elsewhere.

The other thing I was unprepared for were refugees. I call them refugees because they would have gone hungry without the food in my pantry and freezers. I was totally unprepared for the 16 families looking to me for food and direction.

Some other things I did wrong:

I did not have enough food. I fed a lot of people. In a real end of life as we know it scenario, I would have been forced to choose who I would have to turn away. It’s one thing to take care of people when you know help is on the way, quite another when there is no help in sight.

Weapons: I loaned my old shotguns to all the people who did not believe in the private ownership of guns. When gangs of illegal aliens and welfare recipients’ were roaming the streets, the folks who didn’t believe in guns didn’t hesitate to request assistance.

I did not have a fuel source independent of the grid.

The following are changes that I have made:

I now have a Bluebird Bus motor home. It has a huge fuel tank that I can use to run the house if the natural gas generator quits. It’s diesel generator can put out 12 kw for a long time.

I have a much larger store of food.

I have a photovoltaically-powered water supply.

I have a bug out vehicle that has a 1,200 to 1,500 mile range. It has a propane refrigerator. It has a water
system that can provide water pressure to my house.

I have dogs. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, thieves were cranking up lawn mowers and pushing them up next to running generators after the storm. They would then shut down the running generators and leave the running lawn mowers while they absconded with the generators. You cannot stay awake 24 hours a day. Dogs do not miss much if anything. I can’t recommend a breed of dog, but the following work for me: Miniature Schnauzers, Australian shepherds, Catahoula Curs. If you live in the south and have some land you cannot beat a Catahoula Cur. An Australian Sheppard is a close second for all climates.

I have ten acres and good soil, I am putting in a very large garden. However, I do not feel that I can overcome the huge welfare population we have here, If things get out of hand, I plan to bug out. I now have an RV that has a tremendous range. It has a propane refrigerator, and full facilities. I can literally live on the side of the road for weeks or months. It is equipped to pull a full-size 4WD with trailer. I have several bug out locations within four hours where I can evacuate to. When I leave I will have dogs, food, tools, and arms. I also have shortwave radios.

You have to develop a survival mentality, you have to add to your preparation everyday. Each trip to Wal-Mart is an opportunity to add to your supplies. The one thing I learned is that when the storm hits, its too late to think about being prepared. You have to think: if a disaster strikes, how long can you feed and protect your family? I add to my provisions every day.

Start to prepare now. Think: food, food, and more food, ammo, bandages, and unless you can go without sleep 24 hours a day don’t forget the dogs!

Four Letters Re: The Thin Blue Line

JWR,
[In his article “The Thin Blue Line”,] Deputy W. makes a very good observation about the tipping point when law enforcement retreats to protect their own families. This situation has occurred twice in recent history here in the U.S., during the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles in 1992 and most recently in New Orleans at the time of Hurricane Katrina. I lived through the riots in L.A., as well as two earthquakes and would like to share some of what I learned from this experience.

The fact I want to impress on SurvivalBlog readers is that they will most likely experience a situation like this wherever they live at some point in their life, it is almost unavoidable. Mention this experience to most people and they will think “this will never happen to me”. However, human behavior really hasn’t changed very much for thousands of years. If you starve people or remove the threat of arrest and incarceration, some of them will turn into animals who will stop at no evil, causing a breakdown of civil society. The saying “at any time, you are three days from anarchy” is no doubt true.
As the riots began, most people assumed the situation would remain under control in the South Central part of Los Angeles, a poor and rundown area. The story ran on the evening news and everyone went to sleep thinking it would blow over. Law enforcement (the Los Angeles Police Department – LAPD) made a number of errors in handling the situation and it rapidly spiraled out of control. By the next morning, the air was smoky and the news was filled with scenes of mobs attacking defenseless people like truck driver Reginald Denny, who was nearly beaten to death because he had the misfortune to drive his truck through the wrong neighborhood. Keep in mind, at that time LAPD was considered to be one of the best run police forces in the U.S. If the LAPD couldn’t keep control, then could your local law enforcement keep control in this kind of situation?

What did it feel like to be there for “the end of the world”? Power and water still worked, and I had about a weeks worth of food on hand, so it was a comfortable, though scary “end of the world” for me — I didn’t own a gun at the time and the flimsy gate and sliding glass door at the entrance to my apartment didn’t offer any protection if someone wanted to get in. Because LA is a media center, the local helicopter news coverage was quite good and people stayed glued to their televisions, just to make sure the mobs weren’t heading our way. So good in fact that looters would burn down the business they finished robbing and go home to watch the fire on television. Once it became clear to the public at large that no police would be there to stop anything, it became a free-for-all. Television crews on Sunset Boulevard filmed people breaking large storefront windows, the alarm bells blaring and dozens of looters entering to help themselves to the “30 Minute 100% Off Sale”. I remember quite clearly an interview with a looter who had just exited a shoe store holding up a pair of shoes for the camera and saying excitedly, “Granny, they didn’t have the shoes you wanted, but I got you these in your size”.

Another scene burned a memory I will never forget. Many of the businesses in these poor areas were owned by hard working Korean families. These merchants banded together and got on the roofs of their businesses with shotguns. Four days later when the smoke cleared, they were the only businesses left in town and I don’t believe many of them even had to fire a shot.

I ventured out to the local grocery store after the first day — you could hear gunshots from neighboring Venice. The parking lot at the shopping center was full of panicked people, desperately buying anything. They patiently waited in lines over ten people long — at least people were still reasonable in this neighborhood. We traded stories with people who had just come down from Sunset Blvd., where the looting was really taking off, it was completely out of control. The shelves in this store, however were stripped clean — it looked like a store you would see behind the Iron Curtain, people had money, but there was nothing to buy.

After this experience, I swore that I would never be unprepared — you can’t always count on someone else to look out for your interests and protect your family. – CK

 

Mr. Rawles,
I have been a law enforcement officer (LEO) in a small city – western New York and was raised in New York City. I believe that Deputy W. stated his facts on the nicer side. The mental state of anyone in survival mode is not a pretty thing, ff they are not prepped as most here [where I live] are. I would venture to say better than 50% of the LEOs in the nation would not go to a callout under TEOTWAWKI scenario. And how many would respond to a SHTF moment? They have to take their families as primary importance and you would not expect otherwise. The only way to avoid this is to make certain that the families were well provided for and protected, that is not done anywhere that I am aware of. So do not take the law into your own hands just to be righteous, but protect yourselves and be prepared to defend family and property, food, et cetera, if you see the legal system break down.

I was once told by a fellow LEO: “I don’t need to store food, I have guns and I will feed my family” .And, yes this man was basically [otherwise] ethical and honest as are majority of LEOs in this country. I am not Christian or Jewish nor any variation of that. So my faith in your savior is not what I lean on, but my faith and my belief in my right to survive will allow me to do what I must to survive. I pray for all whom ‘he’ would protect and allow all to live — if they do not threaten me and mine.

Get a firearm and practice with it, and if they will listen, train your family as you might not be there to use it. If possible, have a plan and a backup plan, and have a gun with you at all times. That plan should include a bug out bag (BOB) and it should be portable,many sites to find what should and should not be in there. Shalom, – S.S.B.

 

Jim,
I would like to add that during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina that the New Orleans Police Department was doing just as much looting as the Citizens and the National Guard was there to disarm the survivors. So I’m not even going to trust a LEO during the bad times ahead, they have family to feed too. What makes the matter worse is the average citizen has been conditioned to obey law enforcement.

What do you do when a LEO comes to your door and wants [to ‘requisition’] your supplies? Signed, – Dan

 

Dear Mr. Rawles,
Regarding the recent article concerning the Thin Blue Line being the “only” thing separating honest citizens from criminal chaos: I think one of the basic suppositions is incorrect.
For the past year I have been living in two places. Approximately 3-4 days a week I live in a large Pacific Northwest City and the other 3-4 days I live on the edge of a very small town (pop. 2,000, which is my Bug Out Location) somewhere in the Inland Northwest. The police force in the large city is doing the best they can, but I am am constantly at Condition Yellow. Crime is serious and getting worse. In contrast, the small town doesn’t have a single police person. There is virtually no crime. While I think a societal breakdown is more than likely in the city, given almost any excuse, I also think that almost any kind of problem in the small town will most likely bring the town to an even higher level of cooperation and care for the common welfare of the citizens.

I plan on making the small town my permanent residence as soon as possible. The ramifications for quality of life issues are vast, even if the Schumer doesn’t hit the fan!
I in no way mean to take anything away from the police. They are doing the best they can, but these days they should be getting combat pay! As Dirty Harry said: “We’ve got our finger in the dike, and the whole dang thing is crumbling around us!” The future is not in any city. Thank you (again) for your guidance and fellowship. God bless, – E.T.

Odds ‘n Sods:

Eric sent us this: Prices for rooftop solar systems fall as supply grows

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“OffGrid”, James S., and KAF were the first of more than 10 readers that flagged this: U.S. military report warns ‘sudden collapse’ of Mexico is possible. Speaking of emerging threats, Semperfiwife sent this Newsweek piece: Bob Graham talks about the possible nature and likelihood of a WMD terrorist attack over the next few years.

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From FloridaGuy: Detroit’s credit rating downgraded to junk bond status

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Nick sent this: The New Paranoia: Hedge-Funders Are Bullish on Gold, Guns, and Inflatable Lifeboats

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The latest economic news and commentary, starting with three items from reader H.H.: “Frightening” Global Downturn — Pension Crisis Coming — Really Scary Fed Charts (H.H. comments: “Probably the most unnerving charts I’ve ever seen. Future hyperinflation seems totally unavoidable now.”) And from Cheryl (The Economatrix), comes these: Wall Street Dives on Bank Woes and Grim Retail Sales Data — Oil Tumbles to $36/Barrel — Trading in Gold Soars 60% — S&P May Strip Spain of its AAA Rating — Chinese Exports Biggest Fall in Decade — UK Trade Deficit for Months is Record $16 Billion — World in Mad Rush for Gold Coins — Shipping Ratest Hit Zero as Trade Sinks — Ruble Devalued, Gas Dispute Deters Investors — Deutsche Bank EU4.8 Billion Fourth Quarter Loss — World Trade Suffers as Oil Price Plunges — Pandit Prepares Citigroup for Breakup — 2009: The Largest Economic Train Wreck in History is About to Occur — Roubini Forecasting 40% Home Mortgage Failure? — Big Brother’s New Target: Tracking All Firearms

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“What we as a nation have done recently is eat the seeds and kill off the game which is necessary to regenerate surplus in the future. We have consumed our future surplus. This is essentially why the Coming Depression will not end in 2009 or 2012–we as a nation have consumed our future surplus via stupendous deficits and the stupendous interest payments which must be paid out of future surpluses.” – Charles Hugh Smith

Note from JWR:

Just one day left! The high bid in the SurvivalBlog Benefit Auction is now at $1,500. The auction is for a large mixed lot that includes:

1.) A large “be ready to barter” box of full-capacity gun magazines, from the JASBORR. This box includes: 12 – Used original Bundeswehr contract HK91 (G3) steel 20 round magazines, 6 – Used original FN of Belgium-made FN-FAL alloy 20 round magazines, 6 – Used AR-15/M16 USGI (a mix of Simmonds & Colt made) alloy 20 round magazines, and 2 – New and very scarce original FN (Belgian-made) US M1/M2 Carbine blued steel 30 round magazines (marked “AYP”) . All of these magazines are of pre-1994 manufacture (and hence legal to possess in New York.) These magazines have a combined value of approximately $450. Note: If you live in a state where full capacity magazines are banned, then you must choose to: refrain from bidding, or designate a recipient in an unrestricted state, or re-donate the magazines for a subsequent auction.

2. ) A brand new in box Big Berky Water Filter, with your choice of either four white ceramic filter elements or four black filter elements. This is a $329 retail value, courtesy of Ready Made Resources.

3.) A huge lot of DVDs, CD-ROMs and hard copy nuclear survival/self-sufficiency references (a $300+ value) donated by Richard Fleetwood of www.SurvivalCD.com

4.) A NukAlert compact radiation detector donated by at KI4U.com (a $160 retail value). 

5.) A desert tan SOG Trident folding knife, courtesy of Safecastle. (a $92.99 retail value.)

6.) A case of 12 recent production full mil-spec MRE rations (identical to the current military contract MREs, but without the civilian sale restriction markings). This is a $90 retail value, courtesy of CampingSurvival.com.

Thus, the combined retail value of this combined lot is at least $1,275. This auction ends on January 15th. Please e-mail us your bid for the entire mixed lot.

Inflation, Taxes, and Self-Sufficiency

I recently received an e-mail from T.F. in Utah, who quipped: “They tell us that inflation is now non-existent. Well, how many years of deflation will it take to get prices back to where they once were? It is noteworthy that the average annual property tax on a house on a city lot now exceeds the entire land purchase price and construction cost of a comparable square footage house, in 1890.” Inflation is indeed insidious. And its has implications that are far-reaching. For example, consider the following:

Creeping tax increases one of the reasons that it is now nearly impossible for someone to “live off the land” on small acreage. Even if you own your house and land free and clear, property taxes are inescapable. Thus, in “self-sufficient” mode, although you can feed yourself, you still need a cash-earning job, just to pay the taxes. I pray that at the far end of the coming depression, our debt money system–which is the root of inflation–will be replaced by a system of sound currency that is redeemable in specie. That is the only sure, long term solution to creeping inflation, and corresponding creeping taxation.

I’ve mentioned this tale of woe before: Back in the 1930s, my great grandparents lost a considerable portion of their 5,000+ acre sheep ranch in northern California to back taxes. At the beginning of the Great Depression they were land rich but cash poor. But by the end of the Depression, that had neither much money or land. (By 1942, the county had taken most of the ranch for back taxes.) Although the chances of a long-lasting deflationary depression are fairly small (since I think Helicopter Ben will try to inflate his way out of this mess), it is prudent to do your best to maintain a cash income to supplement “the fat of the land”, from your self-sufficient retreat. See the SurvivalBlog Archives for some suggestions on building up home-based businesses.

Letter Re: Waste Vegetable Oil for Fuel in Diesel Engines

Sir,
I purchased a 1982 Mercedes 240D diesel. These old diesels will all run on used cooking oil [also known as waste vegetable (WVO)]. I have run mine for more than a year on 100% used cooking oil with no modification other than a larger fuel filter. You do not have to spend hundreds of dollars for a large capacity diesel filter. I bought a large water filter at the hardware store for around $30. I use the wound rope or string insert that you can buy for less than $20 per pair. It works great for a fraction of what an auto parts store will charge for a diesel fuel filter. If you use new oil from the bottle the larger filter is not necessary. If the temperature drops below freezing you will need to mix [the WVO] with [petroleum-based] diesel to thin it, but otherwise you are good to go. You can also run motor oil in them and I understand they will also run on transmission fluid. I have not tried running 100% motor oil but I have added several gallons at a time to a tank of diesel. There are millions of them still around. Some are still in remarkable shape. The old engines are bullet proof. You can still buy every part new for the cars. I recommend the 1981 to 1985 Mercedes diesel cars. I am not sure about ones older than this. They started changing the engines and injection pumps on the newer ones. Hope this helps, – Ken

JWR Replies: In cold climates, owners may need to add a fuel tank heater. As previously discussed in SurvivalBlog, when burning WVO or WVO blends, it is preferable to have two fuel tanks: A small one containing only standard #2 diesel fuel, and a main tank containing WVO or a WVO blend. The engine is started and warmed up using the small tank, then switched to the main tank. Then, a few minutes before shut-down, the fuel supply is switched back to the small diesel tank. This leaves only “dinodiesel” in the fuel lines and hence eliminates most problems with hard-starting.

Ready Made Resources sells a well-proven WVO to biodiesel processing system. Properly blended B60 biodiesel containing WVO can reportedly be used even in vehicles with more sophisticated fuel-injected engines.

BTW, from a preparedness standpoint, the best diesel passenger cars to look for is a older (pre-turbo) Mercedes built on a W123 chassis, specifically the 240D and 300D models made from 1977 to 1985. I recommend the “T” designated “estate” station wagons, since they a have a lot more cargo room than a typical four door sedan. This configuration also provides room for an auxiliary fuel tank, as described. For a utility-type diesel vehicle, I’d recommend getting a US Army surplus a M1008 CUCV pickup.

Letter Re: New “Defiance” Resistance Warfare Movie

Hi;
I have learned a great deal from your site and recommend it to my customers (I sell preparedness books).
There is a movie being released on January 16th called Defiance. You can go to the movie web site to get a several minute long previews.
This is a movie on the Polish Partisans, or resistance forces that fought against the Nazis in World War II. My dentist escaped from communist Poland and told me that her grandfather was a Partisan leader. I have done was research I could to learn about her grandfather and the resistance forces. Basically, as this movie will “teach”, they moved great numbers of Jews into the forests and built underground houses, shops, entire villages. They conducted guerrilla warfare against the Germans while protecting the young and old from capture.

I have meant to contact you about this basic idea as a tie in to this scenario in your book. If people were to prepare positions in advance, build more permanent structures equipped with a small wood stove, well, septic, supplies, the odds of survival would drastically increase. But we can learn from what has already been done. And they did this with minimal weapons, and those, when available, were a few pistols and bolt action rifles. Compare this to what we have available and already in our hands today. Keep up the good work. – Don in Ohio

Letter Re: Red Dot Sight Battery Longevity

JWR,
I have a red dot sight battery, lithium Energizer CR2032, which was stored in it’s original packaging in a refrigerator since May 1996, almost 13 years ago. I recently opened it and have been testing to see if it would still work, at present I have about 11 hours of use on it. I know this is anecdotal, but the point is, if you use red dot aiming devices and it uses one of these type batteries, it is probably worthwhile to store a good supply of batteries for long term use. Regards, – K. in Texas

JWR Replies: Lithium batteries should be stored in a refrigerator. But reader Shirley A.–who is an audiologist–mentioned that this is a bad idea for zinc air batteries. She notes: “…do not store zinc air batteries in the refrigerator. The batteries are inert until the tab is removed. Once air reaches the hole(s) on the back of the batteries, they become activated, hence “air-activated” batteries. The humidity in a refrigerator will cause the protective tabs to become loose, thus allowing air to reach the holes and activating the batteries.They will all go dead in a short time. Zinc air batteries should be stored in a cool, dry environment, like a dresser drawer. For the same reason, don’t store your batteries (or your hearing aids) in the bathroom.”

Letter Re: Documentary Film Producer Seeking Interview Subjects

Dear SurvivalBlog Readers:
I can’t thank you all enough for the numerous responses to my earlier posting. It’s a pleasure meeting you all and reading about your different approaches to survival and a preparedness mentality. I have been doing my best to respond to all of your emails, but wanted to let you know if you haven’t heard back from me directly, it is not due to a lack of interest, but more the logistics of responding to the volume! I have read through all of the emails that have come my way and encourage those who haven’t responded but might be interested to please don’t hesitate to get in touch. I am quite encouraged by the number of people who have written with advice and/or an offer to participate in this project. I am more than ever convinced, after hearing from you all, that this is a subject whose film time has come, and I’m going to be making every effort to get funding and a green-light so that we can move ahead as soon as possible. Warm regards, – Amy Bucher, Engel Entertainment