Note from JWR:

Life in "The Mud Season" continues. Yesterday we had another power failure. We seem to get most of them in the Fall and the Spring. Things are presently very soggy with all the melting snow, so it is inevitable that some trees will fall. That is life in the hinterboonies. But as a well-prepared family, we can take these glitches in stride.

Letter Re: Advice on a High Capacity .45 ACP Pistol

Jim,
Tell me, what is your view on the Glock 21 platform? I made an election to go with this as opposed to a 1911 platform…mag capacity, accuracy, etc. The only down-side to the Glock 21 or any of those platforms, is the absence of a manual safety. It must always be holstered. For $450, they tend to outshoot their contemporaries; at 13 rds per magazine they pack a payload of punch.Your feedback? – Matt

JWR Replies: I think the Glock 21 is a fine pistol. As I have mentioned in SurvivalBlog before, if I hadn’t 30+ years of “muscle memory” invested in the M1911 design, that I would probably switch to Glocks or one of the new Glock clones. Most recently, I’ve been very tempted by the Glock-ish Springfield Armory XD .45 ACP, which also holds 13 rounds. The XDs have a grip safety as well as a Glock-style trigger safety, plus a “drop” safety. They also have both striker status and loaded chamber indicators, which might be a bit “gadgety”, but reassuring to have available. Even more importantly, they have a fully supported chamber, and a more natural grip angle than the Glock. (The grip feels a lot like a M1911 to me.) If I were to re-design the Glock, it would result in something a lot like the XD.

Regardless of your choice in handguns, use the right holster! I generally recommend designs that are molded from stiff Kydex, with a fully-adjustable tensioning system. Protecting the trigger is crucial for safety with a Glock, an XD, or other “safety in the trigger” Glock-ish designs. Here at the Rawles Ranch, we almost exclusively use Bladetech brand Kydex holsters. (We use them to carry our stainless Colt 1911 .45 ACPs. In fact, our only remaining traditional leather holsters are a couple of inside-the-waistband concealment holsters made by Milt Sparks.) When The Memsahib and I were at Front Sight last May, we I noticed that about 80% of the people on the firing line used Bladetech gear. That speaks volumes! BTW, Bladetech’s “Combo” packages (holster + mag pouch + separate detachable paddle) are a very good deal. The Fobus brand (from Israel) is another good buy in a stiff, adjustable tension, molded Kydex holster.

I should also mention that with a new Federal magazine ban (H.R. 1022) pending, make sure that you line up a large supply of magazines to buy before–or coincident with–your next purchase of any high capacity rifle, pistol, or submachinegun. Budget for buying at least 8 and preferably a dozen or more spare magazines for each gun, and don’t delay in doing so! If you dawdle, you may end up kicking yourself. (High capacity magazine prices are likely to at least triple if the ban passes!) I’m often asked why I’m “such a fanatic” about buying so many spare magazines. Here it is in essence: Most modern guns–especially those made of stainless steel–will last two hundred or three hundred years, with typical civilian use. It is not inconceivable that some of your great-great-great-great grandchildren will inherit functional guns from your collection in the year 2300. They may still be in commission then. But unless you buy a lot of spare magazines, odds are that they will be inheriting guns with no magazines. Let’s face it. the magazine is the most fragile part of a modern firearm. Magazines get lost–especially in combat. Magazines get stepped on or otherwise dented. Magazines get broken. Magazines might also become a political target and get confiscated. So if you want a 300 year supply of magazines to match the potential 300 year useful life of a semi-auto rifle or pistol, then we are talking about a lot of magazines. Stock up!

Letter Re: Stocking Up on Augmentin–the Antibiotic of Choice

Jim:
I finally bit the bullet and bought 100 tablets of Augmentin (Co-Amoxiclav), the survivalist’s antibiotic of choice (or so I’m told). It was a tidy sum and unlike the rest of my supplies, it is not something that will store indefinitely (18 month expiration date, but I’d use it at twice that date as it is being stored in a refrigerator), nor is it something that I can rotate though and use like food. On the way back from the pharmacy I showed the kids what I’d gotten. “But dad, I thought you hated antibiotics.” my eldest said. “I don’t hate them, I just don’t like to use them unnecessarily.” I replied. I then went on to tell them about how penicillin was discovered and how bacteria and scientists are in a continual war of trying to outsmart each other. I then said “I’d rather have it..” and before I could finish, my two young sons said in unison “…and not need it than need it and not have it.” Does a dad proud. – SF in Hawaii

Letter Re: The Herd Instinct on Highways in TEOTWAWKI

As a professional road service mechanic I see all manner of stupid human tricks on a daily basis.
I live in the north east and find it sad but comical how people react to adverse road conditions. This has been a fairly mild winter for us Yet I have been caught in the tail end of three multi-car pileups due to snow/ice.
Now my service truck is prepared in the extreme tools, fuel, maps for my area of operations (AO), food, and water. So these were just minor delays for me until I plotted an alternative route.
Now cut to a major failure of the system. Katrina, accidents, grid lock, and no fuel. I would say most people would become pedestrians in the first 24 hours, and on road travel for anything less than a D-9 caterpillar tractor would be all but impossible.
I would use my self as an example with a loaded pack and overland travel I could cover about 24 miles in a 12 hour day this is about 160 miles in a week this is best case at 2 miles per hour and I am in fair shape. I would estimate that the masses would be able to manage less than a fourth of that. Leaving dedicated looters easy pickings for quite some time near the high way system.
People rise to their level of training and frankly american masses are little more than herd animals when the chips are down.
Look how they vote, how they live, and how the act en masse in [situations like Hurricane] Katrina. It is sad but true: Self reliance is indeed a rare quality.
If the Bible shows us nothing else human nature is slothful and evil. Fate favors the prepared. Semper Paratus, – Mike H.

Odds ‘n Sods:

Frequent blog content contributor Ben L. mentioned this article that confirms that the origin of H5N1 Asian Avian Flu was in southern China. Ben’s comment: “As if we didn’t already know. Hello, again, 1918.”

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Ben L. also recommends a site with some of the collected essays of Ed Harris (of “Ed’s Red” bore cleaner fame.) Ben’s comment: on Ed’s essays: “[they] bustle with subsonic rifle loads, “minimalist” (my wording) firearms usage, bore-cleaning, sighting, old-time gun writers (Jack O’Connor, Townsend Whelen, etc.), and the like. Quite the relief from “Keeping up with the Jones’s”, re buying the most-expensive and the newest stuff on the market.” OBTW, it is notable that Ed Harris mentioned the gunsmithing services of John Taylor Machine company in Spangle, Washington (near Spokane). John Taylor has done several gunsmithing projects for me over the years. And he has also done a lot of work for The Pre-1899 Specialist (one of our advertisers.) Taylor specializes in re-boring and re-lining rifles and revolvers. I am amazed by the quality of work that John Taylor does, and his low prices.

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More than a dozen readers sent links to various news stories on this: The long-standing Washington DC gun ban has been struck down by the courts. Here is a link to the full text of the decision. Hooray!

Note from JWR:

Please mention SurvivalBlog whenever you post about survival or preparedness topics at your favorite Internet Forums and chat rooms. Thanks!

Honey–Storage Life, Crystallization, Storage Quantities, and Medicinal Uses

The recent letters and posts on honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) have prompted several readers to send comments and questions about storing and using honey, which are summarized below. For some of my answers, I relied heavily on the 3 Bees Honey (of Canada) FAQ page, the Golden Blossom Honey FAQ, a Mayo Clinic web page on Infant Botulin poisoning, BeeSource.com, and the Sugars and Honey FAQ, courtesy of Vickilynn Haycraft’s RealFoodLiving.com.

Q.: What is the big deal about honey? Can’t I just store cane sugar, instead? Is honey really more healthy?

A. Honey is much more healthy and nutritious than cane or beet sugar. Honey has 15 nutrients whereas refined sugar has essentially none, other than “empty carbohydrates”. Honey contains healthful enzymes, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. The minerals in honey include zinc and selenium, which could play a role in preventing the spread viral infection. The enzymes in honey include glucose oxidase, invertase (sucrase), diastase (amylase), catalase and acid phosphate, which help predigest our foods, lessen the work of digestive organs and relieve the stress on the digestive glands. Honey is an aid to digestion when taken in the raw state because of its enzyme content while sugar interferes with digestion. Honey enters the bloodstream slowly, at about 2 calories per minute. In contrast, sugar enters quickly at 10 calories per minute, causing blood sugars to fluctuate rapidly and wildly. Sugar causes calcium leakage from bones, contributing to osteoporosis while honey does not.

Also, consider that cooking with honey is much more sustainable in TEOTWAWKI. Beet sugar is grown domestically, but most cane sugar is imported from overseas. Growing up near California’s Central Valley, I watched trainloads of sugar beets roll by. High labor costs have shut down much of Hawaii’s sugar cane production in recent years. While sugar is produced in only a few states, honey is produced in every state. So it makes sense to get used to using and storing honey, since that will be the form of sugar that will be most commonly available after the balloon goes up.

Q.: Can you give me a rough idea of how much honey the typical person or family would use in a year?

That is simple. What is the weight of the honey you currently use per month? And how much sugar? Add those two numbers together and then multiply that by 12. Then multiply that product by the number of years that you want to store. I recommend that you add much more to your storage plan, to allow quantities for barter and charity. Western societies have been accustomed to large amounts of refined sugar in many packaged foods. In a sugar-starved post-collapse world, you will find that two gallon pails of honey will be high valued–almost like liquid gold.

Q.: How long does honey store, practically?

JWR Replies: If it is stored in a tightly sealed container, honey can literally last a lifetime, and probably even your children’s lifetimes, too. There are even accounts of 2000+ year old honey found in tombs that is still edible.

Q: Does honey gradually lose all of its nutritive value in storage?

JWR Replies: Some but not most of the nutritive value in honey is lost with time. Honey is 85% pre-digested carbohydrate, and that is its greatest food value. That essentially doesn’t change with time. There hasn’t been much scholarly research on exactly how much enzyme loss occurs in honey, with time. It is know known that diastase (or more properly, amylase)–the useful enzyme that “digests” starch–does degrade with time. Researchers have found that when in storage, honey loses about 3% of its diastase per month. This makes long-term storage honey slightly less nutritious, but it is still quite useful as a sweetener and as a useful carbohydrate.

Q.:I have some old honey that solidified in storage. How do I restore it to a useful consistency?

JWR Replies: Store honey at room temperature rather than in a refrigerator. If honey becomes cloudy, it isn’t cause for alarm. That is just normal crystallization, which happens over time. Place the honey jar or bucket in a bath of warm water on the stove (the classic “double boiler” arrangement) and set the stove element to low. (Not hot enough to melt a plastic bucket!) Even a two-pound bucket of honey that has fully crystallized will usually liquefy in less than an hour. BTW, an alternative method that doesn’t require fuel is just to leave a honey container on the floor a car with its windows rolled up, on a sunny day. (A natural “solar oven.”)

Q,: Should I buy raw or pasteurized honey?

JWR Replies: Honey does not benefit from pasteurization. It is naturally low in bacteria and other microbes.Some commercial honey is heated practically to the boiling point, which destroys some of its nutritive value. The main touted benefit of pasteurizing honey is the prevent botulin poisoning. But pasteurizing does not reliably kill botulinum, so there is no real point in pasteurizing honey.

Q.: Does heating solidified honey to melt it destroy its nutritive value?

JWR Replies: There is obviously some damage to enzyme chains, so over-heating honey is not recommended. But heating honey short of the boiling point will not destroy its basic food value. Remember, use only low heat.

Q. Can honey be used as a substitute for sugar in most recipes? Where won’t it work?

JWR Replies: Yes, honey can be substituted in most cases. You might have difficulties with some confections that depend on the unique properties of sugar, such as meringues. Because honey is ounce for ounce sweeter than sugar, you need to use less of it in most recipes.

Here is a recipe sugar substitution chart for honey, from the Sugars and Honey FAQ, courtesy of Vickilynn Haycraft’s RealFoodLiving.com:
1 C. sugar = 3/4 C. honey minus 1/4 C. liquid or plus 4 Tbs. flour plus 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 C. sugar = 6 Tbs. honey minus 2 Tbs. liquid or plus 2 Tbs. flour plus 1/8 tsp. baking soda
1/3 C. sugar = 1/4 C. honey minus 1 1/2 Tbs. liquid or plus 1 1/2 Tbs. flour plus 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 C. sugar = 3 Tbs. honey minus 1 Tbs. liquid or plus 1 Tbs. flour plus 1/16 tsp. baking soda
Hint: cook cakes and other baked goods made with honey on lower temperature.
Hint: honey will soften cookie batters. If you want the crisp variety of cookies, add 4 Tbs. flour for each 3/4 cup honey used.

Q.: I’ve read that infants and pregnant women should not be eat honey. It that correct?

JWR Replies: It is safe for a pregnant woman to eat honey. Although it is rare, infants are at greater risk or botulin poisoning, so children under 14 months should not be allowed to eat honey.

Q.: I’ve heard that honey can be used to treat wounds and burns. Is that true?

JWR Replies: According to a paper presented at an international wound healing conference in Australia, “Honey… has an excellent “track record” over 4 000 years of usage as a wound dressing. In recent times it has been “rediscovered”, with numerous reports of animal model and clinical studies, case reports and randomised controlled trials showing it rates favourably alongside modern dressing materials in its effectiveness in managing wounds. Honey has a potent antibacterial activity and is very effective in clearing infection in wounds and protecting wounds from becoming infected. It also has a debriding action, an anti-inflammatory action, and a stimulatory effect on granulation and epithelialisation.” Honey is best used on wounds by soaking it into bandages so that it doesn’t seep or run away from the wound.

Although honey has been proven to have some efficacy on burns, I generally do not recommend using honey to treat major burns that might require a trip to a hospital emergency room. Why not? Many standard hospital ER burn treatment regimens call for removal/debridement of honey or any other topical ointments that were applied at home, and that is painful! But in a WTSHTF situation where hospital treatment is not available, I’d probably be more prone to use honey on deep tissue burns.

Letter Re: The “Third Way” Approach–A Forward Base En Route to a Remote Survival Retreat

James Wesley:
With respect to “Marc in NJ”‘s comments posted on 3/6/07 – He recommends that if one is a bachelor, then getting an apartment/condo near work (in the city) to use as a forward base, then
have a truck to haul things. If you’re going to do that, why not go with a motor home/RV and rent a spot at a mobile home park ? No need to pack, just be on your way.
Might not work in really big cities where such places are hard to find, or you may have to do some interesting negotiations with a parking garage near work.
A smaller RV, something like a mini-Wini, wouldn’t be much less maneuverable than a pickup, would have more amenities and you could keep things organized in it better than a panic-packing of your condo into the back of a pickup.
You do have a trade off on the 2WD rather than 4WD issue. But if you’re in that much of an urban area, there isn’t that much unpaved out there. I do have to disagree with you a bit on the “Golden Horde“/”300 mile” rule. I think you’re right about people going into a mass exodus of the cities, but I think most of them are going to be trying to go to some destination – Grandma’s house, Uncle Fred’s place, etc. People being what they are, that will have them following major transport arteries.
I think being off of those by several miles will lead to “out of sight, out of mind” for most of the refugees.
Consider the pictures of WWII refugees walking along the side of the roads – when there’s wide fields nearby. They’re all following the road, heading for presumed safety, not spreading out over the country side.
I think folks will stay on the interstate or US highway until they run low on gas, then get off at the exit and try to refuel. If they can’t, they’ll start walking their original course for the place they’ll
think is safe, rather than spreading out at random over the countryside.
I agree that 300 miles from anywhere is safer, but I think that “a day and a nights walk for a couch potato from the interstate” is a decent buffer if you can’t get the 300 miles. If you’re 20-to-40 miles from the interstate, then you’re outside the distance that Mr & Mrs Joe Q. Video will walk after he runs out of gas in the minivan, and the DVD stops playing, and the kids start whining.
And, sad to say, they’re the most likely prey for Mabu & the Barbarian Horde… which means the Horde will mostly likely sweep 10-15 miles to
either side of the interstate to scoop up prey. Just my opinion – Take care, – Jeff

JWR Replies: It is not so much the refugees that worry me–it is the dedicated looters. (The members of what Kurt Saxon dubbed “Killer Caravans.”) The looters that are both clever and resourceful will be willing to burn up lots of precious gasoline looking for isolated houses and farms that look like easy pickings. (They won’t want to risk taking significant casualties.) By bursting through the doors of the “right” houses at o-dark-early, they know that they’ll A.) find at most two adult defenders, who’ll they hope to catch sleeping, and B.) they’ll find plenty of food and fuel so that they can continue their rampage. Statistically, a looter will probably survive no more than 4 or 5 such encounters, over the course of several weeks or months. So after six months or so, there won’t be many looters left in business. Picking a retreat that is 300 miles from a major metropolitan center and that is away from channelized areas or refugee lines of drift will drastically reduce your chances of ever having such uninvited visitors. In essence, it will be suburban NRA members that live closer to the cities that will be slugging it out with the looters. They will be thinning them out for you. I hate to sound Machiavellian about this, but better them than me. I want to live to a ripe old age and enjoy bouncing grandbabies on my knee.

Odds ‘n Sods:

Dr. Ralph mentioned this technology, that could forestall Peak Oil’s perils: Oil Innovations Pump New Life Into Old Wells

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We are happy to welcome uControl Home Security to our roster of Affiliate Advertisers. Check them out. This isn’t your daddy’s burglar alarm system. The uControl method offers great redundancy and resiliency through multiple communication paths.

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Net worth of U.S. households skyrockets. The article ends ominously: “One risk facing the economy is that the housing slump will take an unexpected turn for the worse, a development that likely would cause consumers to clamp down. That could spell trouble for overall economic activity.”

Note from JWR:

We had some fun here at the Rawles Ranch yesterday. Now that the snow is off, we are enjoying decent canoeing weather. (There is not a lot else to do during the early part of The Mud Season–at least not until the morels start to sprout.) We went down to The Unnamed River (TUR), which traverses the back end of our property. We ran a 120-foot length of army surplus 7/16″ “green line” (rappelling rope) across the river via canoe, to use as a one-rope bridge. (BTW, 120-foot coils of brand new green line are available from Survival Logistics, one of our advertisers.) The rope is secured to trees on both banks, with just a dozen feet rope to spare. (Just barely enough slack to allow us to tension the rope using a transport tightening knot arrangement.) It has been 27 years since I learned all this when I attended the U.S. Army Northern Warfare School, in Alaska. But some things you just never forget. As a pair of Bald Eagles circled above (pre-dalliance behavior, by the look of it), I showed the kids how to tie a Swiss Seat. Then The Memsahib gave the new bridge a try. Woops! It was time for more tension on the rope. (Green line is notoriously stretchy.) Otherwise she would have been in the water, which is a chilly proposition this time of year. We greatly enjoy a vigorous outdoor life.

Letter Re: Which Band is Best for an Unlicensed Handheld Transceiver?

Mr. Rawles:
We would like to purchase a weather band radio, plus several walkie-talkies. We want radios that don’t need a license, for use around our house and around town, as well as for up at our cabin in the U.P. [Upper Peninsula] of Michigan, which we are stocking for a retreat. (My husband is a part-time building contractor. Last summer, we made a fairly narrow windowless utility room in the cabin “vanish” by removing its door and molding and sheetrocking it. The only entrance to the room is now via a secret door at the end of a paneled closet in an adjoining bedroom.) We have some low power [500 Milliwatt] walkie-talkies, but they don’t have the power to talk between our [Ford 4WD] Excursion and our Winnebago RV when we “convoy” on our trips to Michigan. What do you recommend? What band is best for walkie talkies? CB? MURS? Is MURS in the same band as a weather radio? Thank you for your time. – Alice in Akron

JWR Replies: Unless you want to go to the trouble of getting license, where 2 Meter band and GMRS have advantages, my advice is to get several MURS band hand-held radios. The MURS band is near the NOAA weather band, but in different allocated frequencies. NOAA weather alert radio stations all broadcast in a set-aside small band allocation from 162.400 to 162.550 MHz. Local frequencies can be found at a NOAA web page. Most police scanners, MURS radios, and 2 Meter Band radios can receive in the NOAA “WX” band. Dedicated WX band receive-only radios are available from Radio Shack for less than $30. As you might expect, broadcasting by anyone other than NOAA in this band restricted. Most MURS hand-held have four times the power of your current walkie-talkies. BTW, if you can order one or more MURS hand-held transceivers from $49 MURS Radios, they can program your local NOAA frequency (in receive-only mode) upon request. BTW, they can also program them to use a Dakota Alert “driveway alarm” intrusion detection system frequency. (These also use the MURS band.) That is exactly what they did for us, for the three MURS hand-helds that we recently bought to use here at the Rawles Ranch. BTW, I recently found a link to a useful FAQ on MURS. Among other things, the FAQ describes some of the advantages of MURS over FRS and 27 MHz CB, and spells out the FCC limitations on MURS external antennas, which are thankfully quite generous.

Letter Re: Counter-Sniper Rifle Advice

Shalom, Jim:
I am interested in purchasing a rifle for sniper and other long-range purposes. I was looking at a Savage Model 12 chambered in .308, with the varmint, long-range barrel. I have several questions for you if you don’t mind:
1.) Can a rifle chambered in .308 also shoot 7.62 NATO rounds?

2.) What make and model of rifle do you recommend for this type of shooting?

3.) Do you currently have a weapon that you would use for sniper purposes, if necessary? Or is a long-range, sniper rifle even a necessity for a retreat scenario?

Thanx for your input! Baruch HaShem Yahweh (Blessed is the Name of Yahweh) – Dr. Sidney Zweibel

JWR Replies: In answer to your questions:

1.) Yes, as already discussed in SurvivalBlog, it is perfectly safe to shoot 7.62mm NATO in a bolt action rifle that is chambered for .308 Winchester. (Although the reverse is not always safe, since .308 Winchester commercial loads typically have higher chamber pressure than military 7.62mm NATO FMJ loads.)

2.) The Savage is a fine choice. I prefer the models with the pillar-bedded synthetic stocks. Dollar-for-dollar, they are in my opinion the best buy in very accurate centerfire rifles. For roughly half the price of a Steyr SSG, you can buy a rifle that is just as accurate. (They consistently shoot 1/2″ groups at 100 yards with Federal .308 Match ammo.)

3.) We have a Savage Model 10FP-LE2 Tactical bolt action here at the Rawles Ranch that is chambered in .308 Winchester, and we shoot it regularly. It is a bit heavy for hunting, but great for its intended purpose. It is it topped with Trijicon 3-9X Trophy Point scope. (With a tritium-lit reticle.) It is also equipped with a medium height Harris bipod and a Holland’s cheek piece/zippered stock pouch. Ours is essentially a “stock” rifle, except that I had Holland’s thread the muzzle with 1/2 x 28 threads. (The same threading used on AR-15s and AR-10s.) Like all of the rest of our centerfire bolt actions, it normally wears a Holland’s of Oregon muzzle brake, but we also have Smith Enterprise Vortex flash hiders for them, in case of TEOTWAWKI.

Is having a counter-sniper rifle in your battery a necessity? In open country, yes, definitely. There could come a “worst case” day when muy malo hombres try sniping at retreats, to thin out the defenders before attempting a stealth blitz or a frontal assault. So you need to be prepared to defend yourself at long distance. You must be able to at least match your opponents in long range shooting capability, and preferably out-class them. (Both in terms of training/proficiency and equipment.) A long distance-capable rifle can be both a defensive and offensive asset. And speaking of training, I highly recommend that at least one member of each retreat group take a rifle course at Front Sight or at one of the other major shooting schools like Gunsite or Thunder Ranch. That individual can then come home and share that expertise.

Odds ‘n Sods:

While it is surely no substitute for writing letters to your congresscritters, there is now a “No to H.R. 1022” (semi-auto and magazine ban) petition, with the goal of one million virtual “signers.”

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Michael Z. Williamson and Tim. L. both mentioned this news story: Blues Traveler Frontman John Popper Gets Popped. Mr. Popper has pretty good taste in guns and gear. In the photograph, notice the pair of Steyr Scout rifles, the stainless Mini-14 and the PVS-7 night vision goggles. Mike’s comment: “Preparedness is no good if you get busted for speeding and drug possession.”

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Special note to SurvivalBlog readers in Illinois the pending “Assault Weapons Ban” (SB 16) has passed out of committee, and will soon come up for a vote before the full state senate. This one is bad: It would prohibit the sale, transfer, and ownership of umpteen named “assault weapons”, .50 BMG rifles, and any magazine that can hold more than 10 cartridges. Illinois residents would have just 90 days to register them or face felony charges. Call and write your legislators! Call (217) 782-2000 and ask the switchboard to connect you with your senator. Or go on the Internet to: www.ilga.gov and use the “Legislator Lookup” feature in the lower right hand corner to identify your senator and get their phone number.(A hat tip to John T. for alerting us on this legislation.)

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Meanwhile, also in the People’s Republic of Illinois, folks are getting harassed for running their cars are waste vegetable oil. Gotta pay that road tax, donctha know…