Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader Ben. L. tells us that the US Transportation Security Agency (TSA, a.k.a.”Thousands Standing Around”) has banned most lithium batteries from passenger plane checked luggage. This includes certain laptop and pro camera batteries, and those ubiquitous “123” batteries used in Surefire flashlights. The new rule reads in part:
“Effective January 1, 2008, spare lithium batteries – extra batteries not installed on devices – will no longer be allowed in checked baggage. Spare lithium batteries may be packed in carry-on baggage and lithium batteries installed in a device may be packed in either checked or carry-on, as long as the battery is installed in the device.”

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From The Financial Times: Euro gains on dollar in official reserves

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Thomas Tan’s predictions for 2008

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I spotted this over at Mish Shedlock’s blog: More Writedowns Force Citigroup To Sell Assets

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Let your heart feel for the afflictions and distresses of every one, and let your hand give in proportion to your purse; remembering always the estimation of the widow’s mite, but, that it is not every one who asketh that deserveth charity; all, however, are worthy of the inquiry, or the deserving may suffer.” – President George Washington, letter to Bushrod Washington, Jan. 15, 1783

Note from JWR:

Today we present another article for Round 14 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The writer of the best non-fiction article will win a valuable four day “gray” transferable Front Sight course certificate. (Worth up to $2,000!) Second prize is a copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, generously donated by Jake Stafford of Arbogast Publishing. Round 14 ends on January 31st. Remember that articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival will have an advantage in the judging.

Time and Energy Efficient Cooking, by KBF

I wish to share some valuable information on my personal experiences with the use of two cooking devices which I incorporate into daily homemaking practice when I am attempting to conserve on water and on fuel usage. Both of them are extremely time and energy efficient.

The two kitchen products which have earned their weight in silver in my home are my pressure cookers, and my newest kitchen toys, which come from an old Asian origin and cooking concept, the thermo cooker pot.

I have and use several sizes of pressure cookers. I chose the pot size for use for the job I’m performing based on the fill capacity of the product I am cooking in it. The pot capacity should never be over 2/3rds full. The food is liquid pressure cooked on the basis of requiring very little water or liquid and a minimal amount is lost and released as pressurized steam, thus it cooks evenly, thoroughly, and quickly. Time savings average about one half compared to the usual on the stove top methods. Fuel savings are dependant on the time required for the recipe. I use this method for large vegetable batches, and large cuts of meat, like roast cuts or several chickens and get a finished product that is tender to cut with a fork. My very large pressure pots are mostly used for canning purposes to put up jars of volume batches of seasonal produce, meats, and jellies. Using the pressure cookers overall cuts my actual cooking and canning time by one third, compared to using the open pot boil methods. When you are putting up hundreds of jars, this time efficiency becomes necessity. I have had a few mishaps however over the years. They were character building learning experiences of what not to cook in a pressure cooker. Beans, rice, and whole grain cereals need to be constantly monitored, as the small needle outlet from which the pressurized steam escapes becomes easily clogged, and when it does you have now created a bean bomb! If you’re like me and are multitasking in or out of the household, constant sitting to a pot is not time efficient or possible. I have discovered my next favorite device as a result of this need to cook my one pot meal favorite dishes and also to simultaneously free myself to leave to do other equally important jobs. This device allows me to leave the house and come home hours later to a safe, hot cooked meal.

The thermo cooker pot is actually two pots, one (the cooking pot) is inserted into a second thermo insulated pot and is sealed with a hermetic seal lid. The pots can be found in Asian market stores, online, and from high end kitchen and industrial supply houses and are sold by numerous makers. Some makers sell their pots to other distributors who stick their retail labels on them. More expensive in this case is not necessarily a better pot. Key points of its success for your needs are to consider the following issues when searching to procure one. The pot set needs to be constructed of excellent quality stainless steel in order to maintain heat conductivity and easily clean and withstand staining. The floor of the pot must be constructed of no less than two air-insulated layers. The inner pot’s volume size needs to be one that will compromise and accommodate the majority of food dishes you normally prepare, if you desire to own just one size. Think in volumes of servings somewhere between how much soup, stew, arroz con pollo [rice and chicken], or how much hot grain cereal you make in one batch. Waste is non productive and expensive ultimately in time and money. Thermo cooker pots work on the principals of applying fast radiant energy cooking to your prepared dish by using the inner cooking pot on the stovetop. The recipe chosen must be able to be brought up to and kept to a boiling temperature for at least 5 minutes, the longer you can boil it the better. Secondly, this inner pot is covered and then immediately placed inside the slightly larger external thermo chamber pot, it is tightly sealed, and taken off the radiant source to finish the cooking process over the next hour on its own kinetic heat requiring no external fuel source. I leave mine in the warmest location in the house. The food contained inside the thermo chamber continues to cook by conductant heat for the next hour or so at a heat temperature gradient loss of kinetic energy which gradually decreases over 6 hours of time and maintains itself at a warming temperature up to 8 hours. The food will then remain warm to +/- 160 degrees up to 8 hours, this being dependant on normal external ambient room temperatures. I have tested my unit with a thermometer after 8 hours, and it made the grade in 65 degree ambient room temperature. This can be a boon to use in fuel and time conservation modes during TEOTWAWKI. It can also be used inversely chill perishable foods safely for consumption for 6 to 8 hours. Think summer mayonaise and egg based salads or cool fruit salads or transporting fresh farm pot cheeses without ice.

I have now mastered my pots usage to include making yogurt, soft goat cheeses and tofu successfully by not boiling the milk or soybean curd but by bringing it slowly up to incubation temp for the culture I am using, and then using the thermo pot to finish the process of maintaining the heat source. In the past I used an old wide mouth thermos bottle to do this method but it did not hold enough volume for my family’s consumption or barter needs. We also now wake up to fresh hot maple wheat berry cereal in the morning by preparing this before retiring for the night. I have used the thermo pot now on different stove and fuel sources, including wood burning and get pretty consistent result. I have used it even away from home to travel and on hunting trips using the butane camp stove. I have boiled the recipes required water, and dumped in our packaged dehydrated camp food, to either wake up to warm eggs and sausage or to come back from the hunt to eat a great hot meal.

I hope this info will help all the cookies create more efficiency in their survival preparations and also to help them find more enjoyment time to read JWR’s great postings and books!
Have a blessed and bountiful New Year!

Letter Re: Peter Schiff’s Commentary–“Not Your Father’s Deflation”

Greetings!
Here’s some more ‘great’ news [from Peter Schiff, by way of Kitco.com] for the coming economic crash.

Thanks to ‘fiat currency,’ this [nascent] economic disaster won’t be nearly as “mild” as the Great Depression, because consumer prices will rise, and, our worthless money will de value at the same time! At least in the 30’s, the gold standard that backed the US dollar, made it hold value – even if there were fewer in circulation. Ditto silver & gold coins, that were still worth something (I found your blog late, and got started late, but I’m buying junk silver coins and the occasional gold one as fast as I can!!!) Don’t guess we’ll have to worry as much about toilet paper as we thought, after the economic SHTF – ‘Helicopter Ben’ [Bernanke] will print us wallets full of toilet paper! – Bob McC in Pittsburg

Odds ‘n Sods:

Stephen in Iraq flagged this: Home Sales Plunge, Feed Recession Fears

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Reader Nick B. says that he has started experimenting with sprouting, starting with alfalfa. He is looking for tips on how to drain them when they are still in seed stage. He has been trying coffee filters, but the filters seem to clog quickly. I’ve always used paper towels, but perhaps there is a SurvivalBlog reader with a better idea. Any tips?

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Thanks to SJC for this: Gold rises after Bhutto death, platinum hits record

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And RBS sent this: Worms infect more poor Americans than thought

Note from JWR:

The high bid in the current SurvivalBlog Benefit Auction is now at $300. The auction is for a scarce original 1980s-vintage Heckler und Koch 19mm Emergency Flare Launcher (EFL) aka “Notsignalgerät“ from my personal collection. It comes with three magazines and 28 scarce original German 19mm flares–10 red, 10 white, and 8 green. Together, this package is worth approximately $400. It is not classified as a “firearm” under Federal law. (Consult your state and local laws before bidding.) Sorry, no overseas bids will be accepted for this auction. This auction ends on January 15th. Please e-mail us your bids, in $10 increments.

Letter Re: Going into Debt to Acquire Firearms Before New Ban Legislation is Enacted?

Mr. Rawles,
Thanks for your recent advice. My question to you now combines questions of politics, debt, and firearms. The last time the executive and legislative branches were [both] held by the Democrats, we all got to enjoy the Assault Weapons Ban for 10 years. How removing a bayonet lug from firearms reduced gun violence, I’m not sure. The big problem with this, however, was obviously the magazine capacity limitations. The election of 2008 makes a similar act quite possible. By October 2008, a front-runner will probably have emerged. If that front-runner is not gun-friendly, where do we go from here? I will not have cash on hand to purchase firearms, but I do have consumer credit lines – kept completely free of debt – of around $8,000. I will probably be able to quickly convert this credit card debt (APR around 14%) to student loans (APR around 7%). Instinct tells me that credit cards should only be used in time of emergency, and going into additional debt when I don’t need to do so is foolish. However, it may also make sense to jump through a closing window of opportunity and make sure I get what I need to have before I can no longer have it.

Once the decision to go into debt is made, the question is then one of priorities. Weapons most likely to be affected by legislation are “assault rifles” and handguns. The goal would be to acquire at least one handgun, one carbine, and one MBR, each with a large stash of magazines – at least a dozen, probably more like 20. The handgun(s) would likely be a high capacity 9mm or .40 S&W, (Glock, SIG, H&K – we’ll see) to be supplemented later with 1911s, which are less likely to be affected by the ban. The carbine would likely be from the AR-15/M4 family, based on the popularity of these weapons and therefore the ease with which spare parts can be acquired. The MBR would likely be a PTR-91. I do not yet have personal experience with this weapon – and would certainly learn more before purchase – but I base this decision on the extremely low price of high-capacity magazines and parts right now and the generally positive reviews I have read. A rough estimate on all of this comes to, in my mind, around $3,000 to $4,000, not including training or substantial stores of ammunition – no small investment. I do not feel confident enough in my own abilities to select a quality used weapon, and would buy new – I see little point in risking my security on skills I do not feel confident in. Other weapons likely to be added later include a lightweight bolt-action rifle chambered in .308, a shotgun, and, of course, a .22 pistol and .22 plinking rifle – these are the least likely to be affected by any “ban”, and are therefore at the lowest priority level.

Should I rush out and purchase before the ban – even if it means going into debt? Should I wait to avoid debt and accept whatever I can get afterwards? Should I just purchase magazines and hope that there is no legislation requiring weapons be modified to prevent the use of hi-cap mags? Your advice is always appreciated. My best,- S.

JWR Replies: In my opinion, just the chance of new legislation is not enough to justify going into debt–even if you can shuffle any new debt into low-interest student loans. One option might be borrowing the requisite cash from someone beneficent in your family (does either you or your wife have a sympathetic “gun nut” uncle?) Otherwise, I would wait until passage of a new gun law seems truly imminent, then go get cash (perhaps by cashing one of those dreaded credit card “convenience checks”.) To avoid a paper trail, you should then buy all of the guns privately at a gun show in your own state. (From private parties that have tables, rather than from Federally licensed licensed dealers.) Other options include GunBroker.com (on-line auctions) or GunsAmerica.com (fixed price sales–usually more expensive). You need to concentrate exclusively on private party sellers from your own state–that way you won’t run afoul of the Federal law that prohibits the transfer of a modern (post-1898) gun across state lines, except through a FFL dealer.

It wouldn’t hurt to work up a detailed shopping list in advance. If your priority list is “legislatively driven”, then of course snatch up just the guns themselves, spare magazines, and a bit of ammo . You can get the other accessories and larger quantities of ammo at a later date.(After a new gun and/or full capacity magazine ban is enacted.)

Firearms selection is, and rightfully should be, highly personalized, based on your budget, your likely shooting distances at your intended retreat, regional caliber favorites, and your personal preferences. Both from the standpoint of adequate self -defense and in anticipation of legislated restrictions, a .308 MBR should be your top priority. I consider the FAL, L1A1, M1A, AR-10, and the HK-91 clones (such as the excellent Vector V-51 or the passable JLD PTR-91) all functionally equivalent, and for the sake of argument, roughly comparable. (Yes, I know that glass-bedded match grade M1As can be insanely accurate. But they can also be insanely expensive–and so can their spare parts and extra magazines. I recommend that you pick from that short list and buy what ever “fits” you best–both your ergonomics and your budget. But regardless of what you choose, consider the full life-cycle cost of the weapons system, including scope mounts, spare parts and magazines. In today’s market, this tilts the scales toward the HK-91 clones. (Since like-new alloy HK G3 magazines are available for as little as $3 each!)

Someone on an extremely spartan budget might consider a Century Arms International (CAI) or Federal Arms CETME clone, which are also blessed with cheap, plentiful magazines. (I have heard that HK G3 Alloy magazines will work, in a pinch.) However, if you buy a CETME, I strongly suggest that you put it through a 60+ round functional firing test, and examine it closely it for excessive magazine well tightness, using unaltered magazines. (Since some of the CETME clones that have been built since 9/2004 exhibit receiver dimensional tolerance problems and/or feeding problems.) Also, as with any other “parts kit”-assembled gun, closely examine the bore.

As for handguns, the Glock .40 S&W models are a fine choice. As I have posted previously, I would probably switch to Glocks if it weren’t for the fact that I have 30 years of muscle memory invested in shooting the Colt Model 1911 platform. (Never try to teach an old dinosaur new tricks.) However, do yourself a favor and try borrowing or renting both a Glock .40 (such as a Model 22 or 23) and a Glock .45 ACP (such as a Glock 21-SF or the newly-announced 30-SF). Shoot them “side by side”, under the instruction of an experienced Glockophile. If you can handle the recoil of the .45 then that should be your caliber choice., rather than the .40 caliber. If any of those Glock models feel just a bit too big/fat, there is an neat option for you: Both Robar and Arizona Response Systems do very nice machined grip reductions on Glocks. In his excellent book Boston’s Gun Bible, our compadre and Glockophile extraordinaire Boston T. Party highly recommends frame reductions and mentions that a large frame (G20/G21) Glock with a grip reduction feels a lot like holding a Browning Hi-Power. I have done business with both Robar and Arizona Response Systems for more than a decade. Both firms are very competent and reputable. But as I recall, Robar tends to have higher gunsmithing rates and a deeper backlog of orders. So you should probably go with T. Mark Graham at Arizona Response Systems. OBTW, if your budget allows it, have tritium sights installed at the same time as the grip reduction job.

Two Letters Re: Sources for Gasoline and Diesel Fuel in a Grid-Down Collapse

Mr. Rawles,
A good out-of-the-box solution to diesel fuel transfer comes from Northern Tool & Equipment, item #360. I use mine for diesel, waste vegetable oil, and heating oil.
One nice feature is that it pumps at 10 gpm. That’s moving a lot of fuel in a short period of time. I usually run mine off a 12 VDC jumper battery.
Water often sits at the bottom of storage tanks. You really don’t want to pump that into your vehicle. A quick and cheap modification of the pump assembly solves the problem. I spliced in two feet of 1 inch clear hose near the nozzle. Cut the 3/4 inch pump hose near the nozzle, leaving a few inches to clamp onto. The 1 inch hose slips right over the 3/4 and is fastened by clamps. It’s an easy way to monitor the condition of the fuel being transferred. As soon as the color changes, I shut off the nozzle, to keep water out of my tank.
This winter I was given over 150 gallons of heating oil for the price of hauling it away. It didn’t take long for my pump to pay for itself. – Raymond

Jim,
This is in regard to your comments, about automotive-type fuel-pumps used as emergency fuel-transfer pumps from underground tanks. In many to most cases, those pumps are useless for that type of task and will not work. Automotive electric fuel pumps are designed to push fuel, not draw fuel. That is why they are mounted either inside the fuel tank, or if external, as near the fuel tank as practical. Most cannot draw fuel from more than 5 feet below (with some variations). One typical example is a full size extended cab pickup truck or a Chevy Suburban. At 17 to 18 feet long, if an electric fuel pump was mounted up front near the engine, and you got the truck pointing up a very steep hill, the engine would die from lack of fuel. That because the front mounted electric pump could wind up being 8 feet above the fuel tank on a 50% incline. That is is why such a rig will have either an engine-mounted mechanical pump, or an electric mounted back towards the fuel source.
The mechanical fuel pumps are more able to draw fuel. Electric fuel-transfer pumps that are specifically designed to draw fuel, also have much more capability to draw fuel than a conventional electric automotive pump. No matter what you get, the laws of physics prevent any pump from drawing any practical amount of fuel from a depth exceeding thirty feet. Most underground tanks are 8 to 12 feet deep and with those, an electric transfer pump, or a hand-suction pump will work, and an automotive-type electric pump will sit there and do nothing but make noise. If you could drop the automotive pump down inside the tank, and let it push fuel up- it could be made to work – but that would be difficult to do in most situations.
There are also hand-driven mechanical pumps that can work at virtually any depth. That because the actual pump goes down in the fuel source, and linkage connects it to up above where the hand-pumping takes place.

[He added in a follow-up e-mail:]
I don’t have any good, easy, and/or cheap suggestions. I have a portable 12 volt fuel internal-gear transfer pump – made for transferring fuel. It will do a lot more than most automotive fuel pumps, but costs over a $100 and is far from the perfect solution. It will work down to 12-15′ but pumping capacity goes way down at those depths. I also suspect, that once a little worn, it won’t do so, without priming.
In regard to the Ford electric pump you mentioned – yes – there are some that do better than others. Some are vane-pumps, some are diaphragm pumps, some are gear, some are piston-pulse, some are bellows – and they all work different. Even those that do manage to pump fuel from a 10′ lift have their pumping volume go down to near zero, i.e. almost, but not quite useless.

I’ve spent a lot of time pumping liquids from various suction depths – when collecting maple sap for making syrup. The physics are the same, just pumping tree sap instead of fuel. The gas-driven diaphragm pumps work the best for depths down to 20 feet, but they are a royal pain to get primed. It’s not so bad dumping water or sap all over the place to get one going – but would be a mess with gas or diesel. All those pumps will work with fuel for short periods of time – and all have warning stickers on them saying not too. Homelite has -or had – a little gas-driven pump called the Waterbug. It is a really nice, compact and light pump that works very well – and hooks to a conventional garden hose. It is marketed for water-pumping only, but there’s nothing inside of it that can’t stand up to diesel fuel. Gasoline, on the other hand, can be dangerous. Since the Water-bug uses small 1/2″ or 3/4″ hose, instead of 1″ or 2″ hose, it is much easier to prime than the bigger pumps. I haven’t used any of mine for pumping fuel – since once I’ve done that – I don’t think I’d ever want to use it for food-grade stuff like maple sap again. I would though, if I had to.

If I ever got into a situation where fuel was 20 feet down and I needed it – I guess I’d have to improvise. The situation will be limited to the size of the hole you have to enter – that may, or may not allow certain types of mechanical rigs. The little automotive electric fuel pumps that usually mount inside a tank will fit through a 1 1/2″” diameter hole – but – if you send one down into a tank, you’ve got to have fuel hose and wire attached to it.
I guess – my answer is still – I don’t have one, good solution. – John from Central New York

JWR Replies: I’ve used an electric fuel pump (salvaged from an old Ford) to pump diesel 8 vertical feet–from a barrel sitting in a pickup bed up to a typical 200 gallon above-ground farm tank (on a +/- 7 foot stand)–using 1/2″ inch (i.d.) hose, without much difficulty. (Although it did seem slower than when I was transferring fuel from one vehicle to another.) Granted, I’ve never tried pumping any higher. The absolute limit, based on atmospheric pressure, would of course be 33 feet but I really doubt that it would pump more than 10 or 12 feet.
I gave away the last pump rig that I had built as a gift last summer. So I’ll have to build another and try testing it to check its vertical limit.
You are absolutely right that the best solution would be a mechanical pump where the pump itself–or at least the pump cylinder, connected by a sucker rod–sits down in the tank. The problem is fitting that assembly down a 3″ diameter tank filler cap. Any ideas, folks?

Odds ‘n Sods:

MWR mentioned than investment counselor Jim Willie posted another interesting piece at the Financial Sense University web site: Exit 2007: Denials and Tontaria

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RBS found us this one: Credit Downturn Hits the Malls

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And here is another courtesy of RBS: Police in Metro Vancouver [British Columbia] Seeing New Gang Fashion – Armored Vehicles

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Reader Bob B. noted the new RWVA match and shooting clinic schedule for 2008 is now up on the RWVA web site. Click on “Appleseed” to the left in the task bar to learn more and to find the schedule.

Letter Re: Skills Versus Gear for Survival

Jim,
After reading the Profiles you have posted. I have come to the conclusion I cannot hold a dime to these folks. Makes me wonder why should I bother. Hmmm, that thought lasts all of five seconds. A lot of the people for whom you profiled are in a much higher income bracket than the rest of us working folks. Personally, I have two jobs and work 12-14 hours a day. I was unlucky enough to be in a third rear end collision. In my life time this year, although instead of being rear ended by an illegal uninsured illegal alien like the last two times. This time I was rear ended by a 94 year old woman who also was uninsured. Makes it hard to work with post-concussion syndrome from Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). I have a hard time with short term memory. But do what I can, the best that I can.

I live in a small city in Massachusetts in a 500 square foot second floor apartment in a house.
I have four 15-gallon water containers + 15 cases of Poland Spring 3 liter bottles, About 20 cases of MREs or the equivalent thereof. I bought only the items I knew I liked, 20 cases of the two person pouches from Mountain House again a chosen menu but rather extensive. Also 50 #10 [one gallon] cans of both freeze-dried food and dehydrated foods–mostly soups in the dehydrated department. I have close to 15 weeks supply of groceries. I work in a supermarket for one of my jobs and I look around during my break for “ideas ” to expand my dietary habits.

I have canned butter, cheese, bread, and meats. My other job allows me to get discounts on a product called a Vittle Vault. An 80 gallon air/water tight container which I use to bury my other food (all freeze dried pouches) but not before sealing it in plastic from a nifty device I found at Costco one day ( One day I was shopping at Costco and I stopped to look at something else and came back to my cart and there it was just sitting in my cart. Never did find who put it there. Anyway it has found a good home with me ever since.:) Everything is hidden away. Amazing what one can stuff safely under the bed. I have a couple of products that run on propane one-pound cylinders like the Mr. Heater Big Buddy and a Coleman lantern. The Christmas Tree Shoppe is world renowned for having lots of candles on sale all the time too. Although do not want to have any lights on when other do not. Not too draw any unnecessary attention to ones self.

I have a Black Berkey water filtration system, with a half dozen back up filters and several 5 gallon buckets for either the collection of snow or from the stream out back, or to use as an emergency dry toilet.

I am a faithful practitioner of homeopathic remedies,and have quite the collection of remedies and books and homeopathic today magazines. Which I read all the time, to keep it fresh in my memory. Also read a lot of medical/ wilderness first aid books. Took a class from the National Ski Patrol. Thought it would be another 1st aid class. Boy was I wrong. Three months later they awarded me with a WEMT certification, finished top 3 in my class of 20. I have an easier time learning ” if I can play with it “. So now I have a collection of 500 EMT flash cards that I go through twice a week, Also Wilderness Way magazine read through my collection of 40 magazines every week as well. My library also included books on herbs, symptoms, pathology, anatomy, first aid, NBC, wilderness survival.

I’m obtaining a [State-issued] Firearms Identification (FID) card soon, God willing for a long gun or three. Handguns are not allowed in Massachusetts for subjects err I mean citizens. Also magazines over ten rounds are not permissible unless one has a handgun permit for that as well or its off to jail for a year, no questions asked. Trying my best to avoid the jail part.
Go to a gun range three times a month and rent a instructor and a gun of my choosing over 300 to choose from ( guns)and say teach me how to use this. Stocked up on medical supplies and trauma kits mostly from Galls.com. I have wiped out many a first aid kits just from cutting my finger. What am I preparing for I think the economy is going to blow out sooner than later. Like it would not surprise me if it happened in the next 30-to-60 days. How bad it will be and how long it will last?. No clue but history shows major wars start with major economic troubles.
Oh forgot to mention already went shopping at KI4U and got the complete package. A lot of other items I am sure I left out but you get the gist of it. The longer the economy survives the longer we have time to prepare, for whatever. I do not wish the dollar to die but if it does die then I hope it enjoys a long, very long lingering death. – Scott V.

JWR Replies: I commend you for your dedication, Scott. I have long held the opinion that true preparedness is more about skills than it is about money. I have a lot of wealthy consulting clients that have heaps of supplies and tools, but I have my doubts about their ability to actually survive when things get Schumeresque. When I ask them about firearms training, they often say that they have the money, but that they don’t have the time to attend. What good is a large firearms battery if you aren’t confident and competent with these tools? (Some owners admit that they haven’t even zeroed all of their guns!) I hear similar lame excuses about first aid training. Many community classes are available free or for a nominal fee, but few take the time to attend them. And the same for physical fitness. Most exercises take little or no equipment, or can even be done with improvised “low cost/no cost”) equipment.

Weekly Survival Real Estate Market Update

2007 is over and the new year looks like it will bring some of the best survival real estate deals to be had in years. For those of you out there that are on the edge of actually making a retreat purchase anywhere in the world, your best bet will be in the next three months (in the snowy northern latitude climates that is) as the mad panic is now in full swing. Sellers are dropping prices and now willing to carry private notes on their properties with reasonable down payments. If you can wait it out until the fall of 2008 I’m sue you’ll be able to save a few more bucks on your purchase, although then you are gambling on not having your retreat should some ‘event’ take place between now and election time 2008. Personally, I don’t think such a gamble is worth the savings.

As more and more of the SurvivalBlog readership put off their retreat purchase due to worsening financials in their real estate and 401(k) holdings there may be a light at the end of the tunnel. I have mentioned it before but as time goes on the idea has more relevance. The fact is that most preparedness-minded folks do not have many, if even one friend/family that is like minded (due to the public’s perception that we’re “survivalist” nuts, I suppose) and therefore have nobody to a purchase a retreat property with. On the surface one may think that anyone you’d be dealing with on a retreat purchase should be a well-trusted friend, but the reality of the issue is this: If you could only afford 5 or 10 acres you’d be buying a property next to someone you have never met anyway, right? So, why not go in with some fellow SurvivalBlog readers and purchase a parcel together. What would be the difference? At least you would know they were preparedness-minded folks whom own their parcel free and clear. People seem to think that their neighbors need to be the same religion or like the same baseball team or whatever ‘standard’ they have made up. Do you remember the old saying that goes something like this: “everything changes when the first shot is fired”?

There are several parcels in Montana and Idaho which would be perfect for such a venture. One of these is already split into 7 parcels dividing a 100+ acre piece, here in Idaho. The others range in size from 80 to 160 acres with a price range of $369,000 to $640,000. All of them can be worked out to be split into a minimum of 10 parcels or more and sizes ranging from 5 to 20 acres. This would be a great opportunity for less than $30,000 to $50,000 each to secure a retreat property ready for building before the Dollar loses more of its’ value. Please contact me via e-mail if you’d like more detailed information on how such a purchase would be completed and for details on the properties.

Speaking of having limited funds there are some opportunities to build a very nice retreat by utilizing a simple manufactured home on top of a heavily built and fortified bunker basement. I know, manufactured homes are not the best built but given the times most of us are in financially it’s a great alternative to the log home bunker that now is out of reach for most of the SurvivalBlog readership. And if it comes down to actually having a retreat or just dreaming I’m sure it will be much appreciated. The overall goal would be to spend 60% of your cash on the ‘basement’ then the other 40% on a basic manufactured home to have installed on the top of the bunker.

Here is what you’ll want to do. First, the bulk of your money will be spent on your high tech ‘wine cellar’ as the contractors will know it as. Pick your size and type but make sure that the basement is 15 feet deep from finished floor to ceiling. There will be four feet of the concrete that will stick up out of the ground with culvert style windows one each corner (for the defensive emplacements of course). The wall thickness from the ground to four feet above should be a minimum of 24 inches thick for obvious ballistic reasons. You’ll need a separate tunnel, made out of 12′ diameter culverts to save on concrete, leading to your secure vault and the NBC shelter (to house those most precious wine bottles), which will be an alternative bug out route to the OP/LP position constructed at the end. The idea here is to frame up after construction is complete and the contractors are gone, a simple but effective gun port/fighting position platform that runs the perimeter of the basement and yet can be sealed off should a breach occur, to allow for proper defense and/or escape.

With today’s building prices and the sowing sales in the home building business my expectation is that you can pick up a decent newly manufactured rancher style log home look a like with 1,500 square feet for about $45,000 to $60,000 (shop around your intended retreat area). Remember that this gives you 1,500 square feet below ground (or more) as well for a total of 3000+. Here in north Idaho a finished basement bunker like detailed above with all the fixings should run about $65,000-to-$75,000. Using insulated foam block construction would be the best in this situation. Including a land purchase a ready to go retreat could be had for just over $200,000 or so. Not a bad price tag depending upon your situation, some may pay cash and others will need to finance it, either way, what a nice investment it’ll be one day.

We have a spectacular new listing featured on SurvivalRealty.com. This unique and beautiful property features almost 156 acres nestled among the tranquil Amish and Mennonite communities of South Central Kentucky.

Well, I’m off to start reading the expanded edition of JWR’s novel “Patriots”, having read the first edition four times. I’m looking forward to it. God Bless, – Todd Savage

Odds ‘n Sods:

Robert B. mentioned that Internet old-timer Clayton Cramer posted this to his blog: Wow! $1/Watt Solar Panels! (FWIW, I can a remember reading Clayton Cramer Usenet posts back around 1989. That was back before the days of web browsers, when we would log in to the text-only Usenet.)

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“Hawgtax” sent us this one from Derry Brownfield’s site: New swine flu virus has genes from avian flu

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Cathy Buckle mentioned in a recent African Tears post: “Air Zimbabwe announced that one return air fare from Harare to London had increased to $804 million Zimbabwe Dollars. To put that price into context is the recently publicised information by the Teachers Union saying that government school teachers presently earn an average salary of just $17 million Zimbabwe Dollars a month.” When last reported, it cost $3,450,000 Zimbabwe Dollars to buy one US Dollar, and and meat now costs about $5 million Zimbabwe Dollars per kilogram.

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Bill in Las Vegas sent us this one: NRA Lawsuit: New Orleans Gun Owners’ Rights Violated During Katrina Firearm Seizures