Economics and Investing:

From Eric S.: 24,700,000 Unemployed or Underemployed Americans: Job Losses Accelerate with 6 million unemployed over last year. Real Unemployment rate now at 15.8 Percent.

Also from Eric: FDIC Insures $4.7 Trillion in Deposits with a $13.6 Billion Deposit Insurance Fund. This is Like Going into a Hurricane with a 99 Cent Store Umbrella.

Items from The Economatrix:

UK House Prices Continue To Plummet

401(k)s Hit By Withdrawal Freezes

Global Crisis “Vastly Worse” Than 1930’s, Taleb Says “The global economy is facing “big deflation,” though the risks of inflation are also increasing as governments print more money, Taleb told the conference organized by Bank of America- Merrill Lynch. Gold and copper may “rally massively” as a result, he added.”

Obamarket Update #74: You Want Stress? I’ll Show You Stress

Bond Market: Why You Should Be Worried ” …the last thing we need right now is a collapse in the bond market. Unfortunately, it could be just around the corner…”

Boomers’ Retirement Bummer

Small Business: Economic Recovery? What Recovery?

State Budget Gaps Widen as Revenues Fall

Mike Whitney: Economy On The Ropes

Rural Town Feel Downturn’s Ripple Effects as Jobs Vanish in Northern Virginia

States Resort to Furloughs as Need for Services Increase

Bankrupt Banks

What’s Up With These Numbers?

Odds ‘n Sods:

Several readers sent the link to this BBC article: Do you need to stock up the bunker? Rawlesians are looking more and more mainstream…

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The latest from Nanny State Deutschland: German government plans to curb use of guns. (Even paintball, Airsoft, and laser tag sports may be banned!)

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KAF mentioned this: The Grandson of Vespa will have Four-Stroke Engine. Talk about fuel economy!

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Also from KAF: Tennessee House OKs Guns in Eateries|

Letter Re: Deer Ticks – The Threat Within Your Perimeter

People who venture into the woods or fields should be aware of a very serious, but underreported, threat to their health, the deer tick. Deer ticks carry and transmit Lyme disease and a half dozen other serious diseases. Deer ticks can be found in most parts of the world. They are very common in Central Wisconsin which has a large population of deer, their preferred host. Thanks to the anti-hunting nuts and poor government management practices deer can found in residential neighborhoods, including large cities.

Most people are familiar with the dog or wood tick, a large, easy-to-spot tick that feeds on human blood and is very ugly when engorged. It is however, relatively benign. The deer tick is especially dangerous because it is very small, smaller than a match head. Their size makes it very difficult to detect on clothing or on your body.

Two years ago I was bitten a number of times while clearing land for our retreat. It was prime deer tick habitat; heavily wooded, high grasses and lots of deer. You may not know that you have been bitten by a deer tick (unless the tick is still embedded). It will however sting like a bald face hornet – and for a good 24 hours.

After I started developing the symptoms I put two and two together and did some Internet research. I suspected that I had Lyme disease. I had the classic bulls-eye rash on my hip; it looks like the Target logo. The primary symptoms were extreme fatigue and body aches. After years of outdoor work and practicing yoga I could barely get out of a chair.
I went to the local clinic. The NP took one look and said, “You’ve got Lyme”. She said she had got it earlier in the year, her husband the year before. I was given antibiotics. The symptoms went away within three days. I thought I was cured.

The following year I was not the same, better, but still lacking energy. Over the last year I have experienced the same deep fatigue as well as many other symptoms. I had previously been very healthy. The symptoms come and go and express themselves in a variety of ways. Reported symptoms include heart, lung, visual and mental problems – it can be fatal. It is one bad bug.
I cannot say for sure what the cause of my problems is or recommend a treatment. Lyme disease is poorly understood and often misdiagnosed or not diagnosed at all. It is a complex issue and requires much research into the subject. Most physicians are Lyme illiterate; they don’t have a clue about the disease. One place to start is with a Google search for Joseph J. Burrascano, Jr., M.D. for information from one of the foremost Lyme experts. Also see http://www.turnthecorner.org/lyme-disease-quick-facts.htm for more information.

Prevention is the best medicine. When we have been in tick territory we do a complete body check in the evening – head to toe. Ticks prefer the torso; I have been bitten in the center of the back, hip and groin. I was recently bitten under my arm, my wife under her breast. Ticks live in tall grass, especially along human or deer paths. They are most active during the spring and early summer. A powerful tick repellent should be used around the ankles, wrists and neck. I wrap my socks with wide duct tape – sticky side out, to trap ticks; it works, but is no substitute for a full body check.
It is reported that if you remove the tick within 24 hours of being bitten the disease will not be transmitted and not all ticks carry the disease, this may be wishful thinking. If you do get a tick follow these instructions for removal: http://www.lyme.org/ticks/removal.html

Note that dogs can get Lyme. There is a dog vaccination available.

I urge everyone who visits or lives in areas with a deer population to exercise constant vigilance for deer ticks. If you are bitten you should consult a physician familiar with Lyme disease. Failure to do so can lead to serious long term consequences.- Bill S.

Economics and Investing:

Swine Flu: Worst to Come in Autumn “Doctors are being warned to prepare for a second, “much worse” wave of swine flu hitting Britain in the autumn, the Health Secretary has disclosed.”

Tamiflu Linked to Abnormal Behavior

KAF sent this: Economic crisis in European Union

Items from The Economatrix:

Real Unemployment 15.8%; Highest Since ADA Began Tracking

The Greatest Boondoggle in History

Skousen: Bailouts & Bankruptcy: Undoing The Rule of Law

GM Spots Bankruptcy In Rearview Mirror as it Burns Tankfuls of Gas

Toyota First Annual Loss

Stress Tests Show 10 Biggest Banks Need to Raise $75 Billion

China Fears Bond Crisis as it Slams Quantitative Easing

Markets Bet Worst is Over

Lloyds Banking Group Warns on Surge in Company Debts

Economic Casualties Pile Into Tent Cities

AIG Bonuses Four Times Higher than Last Year

The Derivatives Elephant in the Room ” …$500 trillion of outstanding derivatives, or about 10 times the total annual economic output of the whole world…. And, according to Mobius and a contact of his who works at the SEC, no-one in the financial world understands how these products really work, which means that the threat of a massive blow-up is un-measurable.”

Insiders Selling at a Furious Pace “Last week there was a report that corporate insiders were selling at a faster rate that at any time since October, 2007 — right near the top of the market. Well, the market’s only raged higher since then and insider selling is only getting more intense.”

Bernanke Sees Signs of Recovery But Warns Of More Job Losses

US Dollar Decline is Accelerating

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Governments and central banks are going to lose the war on gold because they refuse to fight gold by the one technique that can give them victory: stop printing money." – Dr. Gary North.

Note from JWR:

The high bid in the SurvivalBlog Benefit Auction. is now at $1,010. This auction is for a large mixed lot, which includes:

1.) A Three-Color Desert Camo Interceptor OTV (Outer Tactical Vest) size XL only, and a spare Woodland camouflage outer shell, kindly donated by BulletProofME.com. These items have a combined retail value of $960!

2.) A vehicle detection system, which includes: one MURS Alert Probe Sensor (MAPS) with 50 foot probe cable and one MURS Alert Hand Held (M538-HT) transceiver. The MAPS unit’s probe can be covertly installed under the surface of a driveway or road to detect vehicular traffic and a voice alert is sent to the hand held transceiver when a detection occurs. Donated by MURS Radio. Retails for $303

3.) Two cases of Yoder’s Canned Bacon, courtesy of CampingSurvival.com. (12 cans per case.) A $276 retail value.

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

5.) Three Garden Security Collections, and two Garden Bean Collections, donated by SeedForSecurity.com. With included free shipping to any US postal address, this is a $100+ retail value.mat

6.) Two America Stone knife sharpeners (with belt pouches), donated by the manufacturer. (A $60 retail value.)

Thus, this auction has a combined value in excess of $1,800. This auction ends on May15th. Please e-mail us your bid. Your bid will be for the entire mixed lot.

Snippets From the SurvivalBlog Archives: Communications and Monitoring Advice

Plunging into the world of two-way radio communications and monitoring can seem daunting for newbie preppers. It is a technical field that has more than its share of jargon and acronyms. I suggest that you team up with someone that is a licensed amateur “ham” operator, and have them walk you through the basics of the frequency bands, radio wave propagation, the various equipment, and the legalities. Yes, there are plenty of legalities. Stay legal!

A ham who mentors new hams is called an “Elmer”. You can find an Elmer through your local ham radio cub. They are almost always very willing to help, and quite generous with their time.
The radio band designations can be confusing to folks who are newcomers to the short wave listening and amateur radio worlds.

One major source of confusion for newbies is hearing hams mentioning things like “…on the 40 meter band, or “I was talking on 2 meters.” So here is a link for a useful band allocation chart from the ARRL that will put the band designations in an easy to grasp graphic format.

Getting Started
I highly recommend that all SurvivalBlog readers at the very minimum buy themselves a short wave radio and a multi-band police scanner, and become familiar with their use. In a “When The Schumer Hits The Fan” (WTSHTF) situation, hard wire telephone, cellular phone, AM and FM commercial radio, the Internet, and television may be essentially unavailable. Read: Off the air. Most radio and TV stations only have enough fuel to run their backup generators for few days. Ditto for the telephone company Central Offices (COs.) After that, there will be an acute information vacuum. You may find yourself listening to overseas short wave broadcasters for your daily news, and to your police scanner for updates on the local situation–to keep track of the whereabouts of looter gangs. Be sure to buy a CB radio and few walkie talkies so that you can coordinate security with your neighbors. (The CB, FRS, and MURS bands do not require any license in the U.S.)

My favorite band for walkie-talkies is the Multi Use Radio Service (MURS) band, since most MURS radios can be programmed to operate in the 2 Meter band, and because they have much better range than FRS radios. But like FRS, they are unregulated in most private use. (No license required!) It is also important to note that the CB channels, FRS channels, and 2 Meter band frequencies will likely be very crowded WTSHTF, particularly in the suburbs, but the less well-known and less populated MURS frequencies will probably be largely available at any given time.
Once you’ve mastered short-range communications and public service band monitoring, the next step is to join your local Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL) affiliate club and study to get your amateur license. Someday you may be very glad that you did!

General Advice on Disaster Communications and Monitoring

Your first receiver should probably be a compact portable general coverage AM/FM/Weather Band/CB/Shortwave receiver. There are several brands on the market, most notably Grundig, Sangean, and Sony. I consider the Sony ICF-SW-7600GR receiver among the most durable portable general coverage receivers for the money. It is about the size of a paperback book. I’ve had one (actually mine is an earlier “pre-G suffix” model) since 1992 and even with very regular use it still works great. In my experience, the secrets to making them last are to buy a couple of spare hand-reel antennas (the most fragile part), show care in putting stress on the headphone jack and power cable connections, and to always carry the radio and accessories in a sturdy well-padded case. (Preferably a waterproof case. I found that a small Pelican brand case with “pluck and chuck” gray foam inserts proved ideal for my needs.)

One low cost alternative to buying Pelican cases is to cut closed-cell foam inserts to fit inside a .30 caliber or .50 caliber United States Government Issue (USGI) ammo can. SurvivalBlog reader MurrDoc calls GI ammo cans “The poor man’s Pelican Case.” These steel cans are very sturdy, inexpensive (under $10 each, at gun shows), and they also provide limited protection from nuclear EMP effects. (They would make near-perfect Faraday cages if you removed the rubber gasket and replaced it with Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) gasket wire mesh, but then of course the can would no longer be waterproof. Sorry, There Ain’t No Such Thing as a Free Lunch.)

Your first transceivers should probably be a pair of MURS walkie-talkies, such as those sold by MURS Radios.(One of our loyal advertisers.)

Next on your list should be a SSB-capable CB radio, such as the time-proven Cobra 148 GTL (BTW, this model is also readily adaptable for “freeband” frequency range modification.)

Then, before moving on to sophisticated ham gear, your next purchase should probably be a pair of military surplus field telephones, for coordinating retreat security.

Welcome to the world of communications and monitoring. I hope that you find the dozens of articles on these subjects in the SurvivalBlog Archives useful.

Letter: Re: Long Term Health Care Needs in TEOTWAWKI

Good Morning,

You may have addressed this previously, but I could use your help on this issue. Our six year old daughter has significant medical needs (none requiring electricity thankfully) requiring us to shelter in place. We live outside a major metro area and probably wouldn’t want to be on the roads anyway. Any comments for those of us who fit this bill? Thanks – Jeremy

JWR Replies: Yes, this has been addressed. See this letter in the archives, from 2007. OBTW, be sure to follow the back-links there for the previous SurvivalBlog article on mid-size photovoltaic systems for medical needs such as sleep apnea CPAP machines and small refrigerators for insulin storage.

Letter Re: The Tightwad Gazette Books

James,
I have been using the three Tightwad Gazette books, by Amy Dacyczn, for a few years now. While not really aimed at a survivalist audience, it sure fits the bill as preparedness and frugality. Lots of little ideas that may be important when the supply of “stuff” is cut off. The three volumes are available bound together in an omnibus edition The Complete Tightwad Gazette . Regards, – Hunter D.in Alaska

Economics and Investing:

Warren M. wrote to mention that in their 2010 planning document, the US Mint is now considering a new, less expensive composition for the US Nickel. (The five-cent piece.) The Mint document states: “…the unit costs to manufacture the one-cent coin (penny) and 5-cent coin (nickel) are more than their face value for the third consecutive fiscal year. Changing the composition of all circulating coins to less expensive materials would ultimately result in significant taxpayer savings without compromising the utility of these coins. Accordingly, the United States Mint plans to work with the Department of the Treasury and the Congress to examine alternatives to mitigate the effect current metal prices are having on circulating coinage…” Just as I warned, the window of opportunity for amassing the current composition nickels may soon close. Fill a ammo can or two with nickels now, while you can still get 75% copper / 25% nickel five-cent pieces at face value! Gee, if they made all the coins out of steel, they’ll be handy to beat into arrowheads, after Helicopter Ben totally collapses the economy.

In The Wall Street Journal: Fed Sees Up to $599 Billion in Bank Losses: Worst-Case Capital Shortfall of $75 Billion at 10 Banks Is Less Than Many Feared; Some Shares Rise on Hopes Crisis Is Easing. Are they in touch with reality? Real estate values are still plummeting, and foreclosures are due for another spike in 2010 and 2011 (as ARMs rates reset), so any such “hopes” are just wishful thinking.

A reader in England noted that silver ingot jewelry which was produced in large quantity for the Queen’s Silver Jubilee (in 1977) can sometimes be found selling below the spot value of silver on various Internet auction sites. My advice to SurvivalBlog readers in the UK is to watch the auctions closely, and you may find a bargain, even after the cost of postage.

GG sent this: Treasury yields soar after poor bond auction.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Integrity is not a conditional word. It doesn’t blow in the wind or change with the weather. It is your inner image of yourself, and if you look in there and see a man who won’t cheat, then you know he never will." – John D. MacDonald

Notes from JWR:

My Inner Nerd is itching to see the new Star Trek prequel movie, which is scheduled for release tonight (May 8th). But until my latest book manuscript is submitted to Penguin Books, I can’t go see it with a clear conscience. The May 11th manuscript deadline is looming! The new book will be non-fiction, titled How to Survive the End of the World As We Know It. This non-fiction book is scheduled for released in early October.

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Today we present a brief but very practical entry for Round 22 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The contest prizes include:

First Prize: 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 22 ends on May 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.