Note from JWR:

The high bid is now at $250 in the SurvivalBlog benefit auction, for six items: 1.) a Katadyn Pocket water filter, (with a $200 retail value) 2.) a Watersafe field water test kit ( a $27 retail value), both donated by Ready Made Resources, 3.) A copy of the latest edition of “The Encyclopedia of Country Living” by the late Carla Emery (a $32 retail value) 4.) an autographed copy of my novel“Patriots” (a $23 retail value), 5.) an autographed copy of my nonfiction book “Rawles on Retreats and Relocation” (a $25 retail value), and 6.) a SurvivalBlog Logo Contractor/Operator cap (a $13.50 retail value.) The auction ends December 15th. Please send us your bid via e-mail.

Off the Record Comments from a Saudi Prince: Possible Collapse of the US Dollar

A big red flag went up on Saturday, when a “must read” article was published on the web site of The Business (a British international business news magazine): Saudi minister warns of dollar collapse. I loved the bit about the inadvertently open microphone. There is something about “off the record” comments about a potential US Dollar collapse that is strangely reminiscent. (I just can’t quite place it…)

Meanwhile, our friend Stephen in Iraq pointed out this article signaling trouble ahead: US inflation reaches 14-month high. The economic pendulum is definitely starting to swing more violently. I predict that things will turn ugly, possibly quite soon. Once the dominoes start to tumble, countless billions will be wiped out overnight. The derivatives markets are now on the multi-trillion dollar scale, and perched on a precipice. Tomorrow’s headlines will be full of: failed hedge funds suspending all redemptions, stock market collapses, currency collapses, emergency controls on expatriation cash flows, mass inflation, huge taxpayer-funded bailouts, corporate layoffs, $150 per-barrel crude oil, bank withdrawal restrictions, full scale bank runs, and soaring credit card and mortgage default rates. I can’t give you specific time frames for any of these, but I can tell you that we are much closer to living out Chapter 1 of my novel “Patriots” than I’ve ever seen before. Be prepared!

I spotted this news story linked at The Drudge Report: The dollar’s decline: from symbol of hegemony to shunned currency. Think this through to its logical conclusion, dear readers. Get your investments out of anything dollar-denominated, as soon as possible. Don’t let the current relative strength of the Euro and Pound fool you. All of the world’s un-backed paper currencies are on the same downward spiral. It just so happens that the US Dollar is now leading the pack in the race to the bottom. In this economically turbulent decade of the Aughts, the safe place to put the majority of your assets is in tangibles. (First and foremost is a viable retreat in lightly-populated farming or ranching land with plentiful water.) Speaking of tangibles, I noticed that spot silver has dipped back down into the $14.40/ounce range. This might be your last chance to buy some before it zooms up past $20 per ounce.

Those off the record comments by Prince Al-Faisal may have some repercussions. When I last checked, the USD Index was at 75.792. It will be interesting to see where it moves when the markets open on Monday morning. Watch the FOREX closely in coming weeks. I think that we can expect to see some deep drama.

Three Letters Re: The Importance of Making Your BOV Less Visible

Mr. Rawles,
For those of us whose BOV is their primary POV, even using flat one-color paint would draw unnecessary attention. Even if your vehicle needs a “normal” (not flat) paint job, my recommendation would be that you keep your choices of colors dull, and earthy.
Charcoals, browns and dark tans are good colors to use, generally popular and available, yet are much harder for they eye to detect than other colors. In daylight and low-light conditions, these colors blend
with every background. Even at night, a moving, flat black vehicle will stand out more than a moving dark gray/dark tan vehicle.
Matt on the Tennessee/Kentucky border

 

Hey Jim,
Wanted to comment on the visibility of a persons BOV in the everyday world as well as while in the bug out mode!
Camouflage has nothing to do with fancy patterns of earth tones panted on your vehicle and everything to do with blending in and being able to pass unnoticed. It is the art of traveling without standing out
or being singled out as something unusual or interesting!

My 25 year-old maroon Mercedes 300D with an almost constant light coat of road grime on it can go anywhere without notice!! The diesel engine is very dependable and gets pretty good fuel mileage and the trunk is large enough to keep a decent kit, spares and tools ready and at hand. It is the kind of BOV that you could walk by in the parking lot of any sized town or city and never look at twice! It is also a lot farther down the list of [most often] stolen vehicles which is also something that should be considered when looking for transportation.

Yes, I have and think that it is smart to have 4×4 options available for bugging out. But I used the same kinds of thoughts when choosing that vehicle, too! Mine looks like (and actually is) an old work truck [with a Reading/Utility “tool” or “service” body]! Once again it blends in due to its low visual attention drawing looks not any fancy paint work. Tools like a More Power Puller and a H-Lift Jack can be safely hidden away and allow you to go most places you want to go with out the attention grabbing camouflage paint, jacked up 4X4 [suspension] with winch bumper and mud tires that towers over the parking of lesser vehicles! – SD in WV
.

Jim
In reference to the article on camouflage for your BOV. Your point is well taken as to not drawing attention to your vehicle by use of abnormal paint schemes before and during travel to your secure site. A very simple way to camouflage a vehicle after arrival at your site is to simply cover it with mud. Once it bakes on for a few days it seems to become impervious to rain. This is quick, simple, and requires little preparation depending on your location. I’m sure you have seen 4x4s coming in from a weekend playing in the back country and it is sometimes hard to determine what make they are let alone what color. I’ve spent a couple of weeks at a time camping and hunting in back wood areas and due to the accumulation of mud on my 4×4 it began to blend in quit well with the surrounding landscape. Once I had a hard time locating it from a distance when it was parked in the edge of a meadow next to pine timber. From across the meadow, about 300 yards, it was near invisible and I knew where to look. If the paint is already a good background color such as brown, tan, gray, this will help with the process. Also eliminate as much chrome as reasonably possible. Parking in a shaded area such as under trees also helps. – Jack R.

Odds ‘n Sods:

Thanks to SJC for sending this: Virulent form of cold virus spreads in U.S.. The general trend is for mutation into less virulent forms, but sometimes a “sport” shows up.

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Hawaiian K. sent us this: The Prophet of Climate Change: James Lovelock–One of the most eminent scientists of our time says that global warming is irreversible — and that more than 6 billion people will perish by the end of the century

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Michael Panzner, writing in his Financial Armageddon blog, posted an article about how troubled Fannie Mae has changed how it calculates the value of bad loans,: A Bearish Treasure Hunt. (Thanks to D.V., for the link.)

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Thanks to Eric S. for sending us this: GE money fund redeeming 96 cents on the dollar

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand." – Joel 2:1 (KJV)

Notes from JWR:

The high bid is now at $210 in the SurvivalBlog benefit auction, for six items: 1.) a Katadyn Pocket water filter, (with a $200 retail value) 2.) a Watersafe field water test kit ( a $27 retail value), both donated by Ready Made Resources, 3.) A copy of the latest edition of “The Encyclopedia of Country Living” by the late Carla Emery (a $32 retail value) 4.) an autographed copy of my novel“Patriots” (a $23 retail value), 5.) an autographed copy of my nonfiction book “Rawles on Retreats and Relocation” (a $25 retail value), and 6.) a SurvivalBlog Logo Contractor/Operator cap (a $13.50 retail value.) Please send us your bid via e-mail.

Many thanks to the five new subscribers that signed up for 10 Cent Challenge subscriptions this week. (This was unusual, since we usually get just or two new subscriptions per week.) These subscriptions really help pay the bills here. Less than 2% of SurvivalBlog readers subscribe. To those of you that do, my sincere thanks. Subscriptions are entirely voluntary and without the PBS/NPR-style guilt trips and arm twisting, nor with endless pledge drive chatter. OBTW, we don’t even send out subscription renewal notices, so please mark your calendars. Thanks!

Letter Re: Show Caution When Dispensing Charity

Jim,
I read the letter posted about showing caution when dispensing charity. I like the “give ’til it hurts” philosophy from “Patriots” a lot. I have had some training on handling displaced refugees/evacuees/displaced persons which I hope could benefit some readers. I would strongly suggest dividing charity into two distinct areas; charity to neighbors (fixed location) and charity to refugees (mobile). The main purpose of giving aid to refugees is to enable them to keep moving along. Give them water and (if you can spare it) food that they can prepare later when they stop for the night and anything they are desperate for if you can spare it, give them advice about routes and potential destinations. Do not cook for them or allow them to cook and under no conditions let them camp or sleep over, unless you want to adopt them. There is no better way to make a group stick around better then feeding them and letting them sleep! Give them what you can and keep headed down the road! To give credit where credit is due I though dealing with this situation was handled well in “Patriots”.

When dispensing charity to neighbors in a long term TEOTWAWKI situation I would suggest sticking to teach a man to fish type items like fish hooks/nets, game snares, seeds, etc. Unless you are able and willing to feed the neighbor for a prolonged period of time (i.e. through winter until they can plant and harvest crops with the heirloom seeds you give them) I would not start. Telling a neighbor that you can’t continue feeding his family seems like the beginning of a real nasty problem to me.

Thanks for the great work keeping this blog going. Seeing what interesting new stuff gets posted is a highlight of my day and unlike most entertainment is could someday help me out.

Letter Re: New-Found Respect for .223 as a Potential Man Stopper

Jim:
When you stop an think about the thickness of the human chest as compared to a large well-muscled deer they are about the same.
This is what my family and our friend have done with the same .223 rifle this year:

– Buck 150 yards one shot one kill. Dropped on the spot, dead.
– Doe 125 yards one shot one kill. Walked five feet and dropped dead.
– Doe 220 yards one shot one kill. Dropped on the spot, dead.
– Doe 275 yards one shot one kill. Dropped on the spot, dead.
– Buck 400 yards one shot one kill. Walked and dropped dead fifty feet from impact.

The rifle: 24 inch heavy barrel 1 in 9 twist, bolt action with a scope, hand loads Nosler .224 68 grain solid base moly hollow point boat tail screaming out of a moly barrel. Point of impact, just behind the shoulder.
All shots were taken from a standing rest or prone.
The meat damage not a bad as a .30 caliber, but the shock of a hollow point moving at a very high speed does a real number on them. This bullet one seems to explode internally. They just stand
there a minute, then fall over dead. All the bleeding is internal.
Now I am a big .308 fan but my respect for the .223 just went up 500%. Now we have one more doe tag to fill and we are looking for a 500 yard shot.
So when the SHTF do not forget the little .223., especially one that is dialed into a sub-1/2 minute of angle (MOA) accuracy.

Speaking of dialing in a rifle, everyone should get to know every rifle they plan to depend on, and every scope they plan to use. Commonality in scopes is just as important and commonality in rifles.
Kind regards, – Martin

Letter Re: Recommended Spare Parts for Firearms

Sir:
I am interested in acquiring a good stock of spare parts for my firearms but am not sure where to start. For my AR-15 I got a spare parts kit which covers all the likely culprits for failure (I know it well enough to be sure of that). Eventually I will get an extra bolt carrier group for it. However I do not know enough about the parts that tend to fail for other firearms in my collection. The other firearms I am concerned with are: Springfield Mil Spec .45 [Colt M1911 clone] , Mossberg 500 12 gauge, Ruger 10/.22, Winchester [Model 18]94 30-30. Any advice be it specific or general would be greatly appreciated as having a 10 dollar part break and render a precious weapon useless would really ruin my day. – Ryan

JWR Replies: The most robust gun on your list by far is the Winchester Model 1894. They hardly ever break. I have seen a few that were badly abused in the field. A surprising number of these lever guns end up with broken stocks, when horse take a roll. (Which often bends the tang.) Rear sights occasionally get broken and, less frequently, magazine tubes get dented.

The basic high breakage parts for nearly all semi-auto guns to consider “musts” for spares are: firing pin, extractor, and ejector.

Some firearms designs have parts that are notoriously prone to breakage. (For example, the forend bars on Ithaca Model 37 shotguns and the rear sights on Ruger 10/.22s. Be sure to do some research at the various Internet forums for gunsmithing discussions on each gun make/model that you own. One of the most comprehensive gun forum sites is GunBoards.com.

Surprisingly, from what I’ve heard in conversations with several gunsmiths, they replace more lost parts than they do broken parts. Any small part that is removed during cleaning and that is under spring tension is likely to go flying off into the weeds. (Or just across your garage workshop, never to be seen again. “Been there, done that.”)

I don’t feel personally qualified to make recommendations on spares for Mossberg 500 series shotguns, but since I’ve owned all of the others, here are my comments on them:

For AR-15s, I recommend:

Firing pin and 2 firing pin retaining pins

2 Extractors, 3 extractor pins, 2 extractor springs, and 3 extractor spring nylon inserts

Buffer retainer pin and spring

Ejector with spring, and pin

Ejection port cover assembly complete, plus 3 spare C-clips. (The C-clips are almost microscopic.)

Buttstock

1 pair of handguards

20+ magazines


For Ruger 10/.22 rifles, I recommend:

Firing pin

2 Extractors

2 Trigger group retaining pins

Ejector (The little plate that flops around in the top of the trigger group when it is removed)

2 rear sight assemblies, complete

5+ magazines. (I particularly like the Tactical Innovations milled aluminum magazines. They are fully adjustable, feed flawlessly, and are practically bombproof.)


For M1911s and Clones, I recommend:

Firing pin, spring, and retaining plate

Slide release

2 Extractors

Barrel bushing

Mainspring and plug

Ejector and 4 pins

Triple leaf spring

12+ magazines. (I prefer original Colt, Metalform, and Shooting Star brands. Most of the aftermarket magazines are not worth buying. See my M1911 Magazine FAQ for details.)

 

For Winchester Model 1894 rifles, I recommend:

Firing pin

Magazine tube

Rear sight assembly, complete

Odds ‘n Sods:

Thanks to our friend L.C. who alerted us to this news story: Manteca homes up for auction. Manteca (which fittingly means “lard” in Spanish) is a small town at the far eastern fringe of commuting distance to the San Francisco Bay Area–a full two hour drive from San Francisco when there is no traffic. Similar auctions have taken place recently in Los Banos and Tracy, California. Most of the homeowners in these neighborhoods have eaten their slice of Humble Pie quietly, but others have protested. L.C.’s comment: “One recent auction raised howls of protest from some of the owners that had bought houses in this same development at the peak of the market for close to $600,000 each. The most vocal protestor was a homeowner who said that he had spent $90,000 putting in a swimming pool and landscaping his yard. At one of the auctions, a fully-furnished and landscaped model home that would have sold for somewhere in the vicinity of $600,000 this time last year sold for around $320,000.” JWR’s Comment: And the scary thought is that we are not even close to the bottom in the developing bi-coastal bear market for residential real estate. If you live in any of the overbought and overbuilt coastal markets, watch for similar headlines in your local newspaper, soon.

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Something struck a chord! More than two dozen SurvivalBlog readers all sent us links to news articles about two recent government raids and precious metals confiscation at NORFED. Here are a couple of the articles Liberty Dollar office raided, and this one. Here is a statement from Liberty Dollar’s President. In the raids (one was at Sunshine Minting), the Federales reportedly confiscated over $20 million worth of silver, gold and platinum. Most notably, they seized almost 4,000 pounds of 1 ounce copper medallions specially made to promote the Ron Paul 2008 presidential election campaign. Of course politics had nothing to do with it…

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RBS suggested this piece from the Dr. Housing Bubble Blog: Heart of Foreclosure Darkness–Every County in Southern California is now Negative Year over Year.

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Reader CDR recommended an Internet auction site where he said that has had great success in finding pre-1965 “junk” US silver coins at below the current spot price of silver: PropertyRoom.com.

Note from JWR:

Congratulations to CDR, the high bidder in the benefit auction that ended yesterday, for four items including a Baygen Freeplay Summit AM/FM/Shortwave digitally-tuned radio, and a Baygen Sherpa hand crank flashlight. These were kindly donated by Ready Made Resources.

Today we are starting a new SurvivalBlog benefit mixed auction lot. This one is for six items: 1.) a Katadyn Pocket water filter, (with a $200 retail value) 2.) a Watersafe field water test kit ( a $27 retail value), both donated by Ready Made Resources, 3.) A copy of the latest edition of “The Encyclopedia of Country Living” by the late Carla Emery (a $32 retail value) 4.) an autographed copy of my novel“Patriots” (a $23 retail value), 5.) an autographed copy of my nonfiction book “Rawles on Retreats and Relocation” (a $25 retail value), and 6.) a SurvivalBlog Logo Contractor /Operator cap (a $13.50 retail value.) The opening bid is just $50. Please send us your bid via e-mail.

Letter Re: Freeze Dried Versus Dehydrated Foods for Storage






Shalom Jim:

I’ve been researching freeze-dried and dehydrated food as a long-term strategy. I would like to put up at least a years worth for a family of four. Yes, I know that you pretty much grow your own food, but I’ve got a couple of questions if you don’t mind.
1.) Are you storing up any freeze dried, or dehydrated, or not?

2.) If so, are you storing both or more of one or the other? Shabbat shalom, – Dr. Sidney Zweibel

JWR Replies: Because of their lower cost, here at the ranch we store nearly all bulk grains/legumes/honey and various nitrogen-canned dehydrated foods. We have just a few freeze dried items, such as a freeze dried fruit as well as some peas that we got from Freeze Dry Guy. At a fixed-location retreat with copious storage space and plentiful water from a shallow well, dehydrated foods make more sense. If we were planning to G.O.O.D., then logically we would want more freeze dried items–to take advantage of their reduced weight and volume. Living at our retreat year-round has its advantages!

Long term storage foods (both dehydrated and freeze dried) are available from a number of our advertisers including: Freeze Dry Guy, JRH Enterprises, Ready Made Resources, Safecastle, Best Prices Storable Foods, EM Gear, and Nitro-Pak.

Weekly Survival Real Estate Market Update

Today we are featuring Northwest Arkansas. One of our readers Jaina B. highly recommended our newest SurvivalBlog Realtor, Jeff Allen. Congratulations Jeff! Some of his listings may soon be featured on SurvivalRealty.com. The following is a review of the area written by Mr. Allen:

Welcome to Northwest Arkansas! The market in Northwest Arkansas is surviving the downturn very well. Land prices in rural areas are holding very steady on the very few sales that are taking place. The housing market has been overbuilt and we have 8-10 months of inventory to work through before things can look more “optimistic.”

I have been selling mostly land and commercial real estate in Northwest Arkansas for 18 years and I’ve seen land prices go up nearly four-fold in that period of time. There’s always opportunity for a distressed sale to show up, but they are few and far between, even with the recent downturn. Most of the speculative buying has been in the housing sector, as opposed to the bare land side of the market.
One of the biggest draws to Northwest Arkansas is our nearly 32,000-acre Beaver Lake with 449 miles of shoreline that sits on the East side of Benton County and is the first Corps of Engineers lake in the White River Basin. Northwest Arkansas is very unique in that we sit on the Ozark Plateau, and the White River does run northeast up to Missouri from this area. Our elevation is from 1,150-1,300 feet above sea level.

Much of our rough, timbered land is located around Beaver lake and has already been subdivided into 1-5 acre parcels but has not been further developed. It is getting tougher to find land that does not have restrictive covenants, but there is still some available in the outlying areas.

Anyone that owns a home on the lake, even if it is not in a very secluded area, has access to water, fish, and wood for the fireplace, should a national crisis occur. Lake property is least expensive on the North end of the lake with very little development and dirt roads to most areas. This would be one of the ideal places to invest and to build a survival retreat. Shopping from those areas is about 30 miles and often the drive is through hilly and winding roads, perfect for defensible operations and keeping the wandering refugee(s) at bay.
There are currently over 50 properties between 3 and 15 acres listed for sale on the East side of Benton County, where land prices are the most affordable. We also have a tract that is 536 contiguous acres.

See this search engine for the local MLS.

Conversion of farm land to development land has slowed down in recent months and therefore leaves beautiful farms like this one on the market, waiting for just the right owner:. It certainly is a wonderful example of a nature lover’s delight! Already set up for livestock, too, which is something to consider in one’s quest for self-sufficiency. Acreages can be purchased in about any increment; it depends on where you want to be and how much you want to pay.
In conclusion, our climate here is moderate; the winters are mild, the scenery is beautiful, hunting and fishing are among the area’s most enjoyed sports. Industrial and retail growth continues and Northwest Arkansas is fast becoming one of the nation’s number one desired areas to live in due to low cost of living and low unemployment.

I work on a confidential basis, if desired. You can search my personal web site to find acreages and complete homes with land that are retreat worthy at www.JeffAllenRealtor.com by clicking on the “Property Search” link or use the “Helpful Links” button to find out more about our area. If you need a more refined search, please give us a call (479.246.1657), or e-mail your request specifications to jeffallen@lindsey.com and we can e-mail you search results. [Our parent agency] Lindsey and Associates is ranked # 1 in real estate sales for the State of Arkansas, giving our clients top rated service with their transactions.

TDS Adds: I did a search and found 750 acres outside of the town of Westville for $1,000 per acre. It has a small man made lake, cabin and is in 50% timber and 50% in pasture. It seems that the MLS system will not link back so to view it you’ll need to click the search engine above and input 750 acres or MLS number Ref #: 511622. That amount of acreage would make a nice retreat for several families and at that price it would be hard to pass up. Although like anywhere (especially here in northern Idaho) there are some overly expensive properties, overall it looks like the home and land deals are splendid down there and the terrain and climate lend themselves to making very productive retreats. Happy retreat shopping!