The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column, another look at the threats posed by Artificial Intelligence (AI).

AI Poses Extinction-Level Threat to Humans

CBS reports: AI poses extinction-level threat to humans, study suggests. The article’s intro:

“A new study published by Stanford University’s Existential Risks Initiative has identified five major threats to humanity by the year 2075. Runaway artificial intelligence is considered one of them. “

Yellow-Legged Hornets Detected in Georgia

Reader D.S.V. sent this news from The Blaze: Live yellow-legged hornet said to have been detected in the open U.S. for the first time.

Those Flaming E-Bikes!

B.G. sent this: Exploding E-Bikes: Lithium Battery Fires Spread In New York And California. Here is an excerpt:

“Lithium-ion batteries have sparked hundreds of fires across New York and San Francisco this year, injuring dozens and resulting in the death of a few individuals, triggering worries about ongoing public safety.

In New York, “fires caused by Lithium-ion batteries have grown exponentially every year since 2021,” Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh said on Friday during a public safety briefing. “We are now, unfortunately, seeing more and more of these kinds of extremely fast-moving, very powerful fires with some regularity in the city. As of this week, there have been 131 fires, 76 injuries, and 13 deaths caused by these Lithium-ion batteries.”

This is a significant jump from 2021 when there were 79 injuries and four deaths from such fires. In 2022, there were 142 injuries and six deaths. The 2023 death toll has already exceeded the past two years combined with roughly five months remaining in the year.”

Continue reading“The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods”

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — August 23, 2023

On August 23rd, 1305, in London, William Wallace (pictured) was executed for treason, condemned for leading Scottish resistance forces during the first years of the long and ultimately successful struggle to free Scotland from English rule.

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August 23rd is the anniversary of the declaration of the independent state of “Franklin” in Eastern Tennessee by the settlers there in 1784. Unfortunately, the Continental Congress rejected it, so the state of Franklin never became a reality.

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On this day in 1833, Britain abolished slavery in its colonies and 700,000 slaves were freed.

 

 

Making It Count – Part 2, by Pat Cascio

(Continued from Part 1.)

Went I turned 13 years of age, I attended Luther South High School – a private Lutheran school. All the rest of my friends either attended a public high school or a Catholic high school. We didn’t associate with each other much after that. On a good day, it would take an hour and a half to get home from that high school – during bad weather it would take a lot longer. And many times I had some “interesting” bus rides home. I had to travel on public buses through a rough neighborhood and I had more than a few unpleasant encounters with some of the locals who tried to rob me. They never did. I not only carried a large folding knife, but I also carried a small tear gas gun that looked just like a small automatic pistol.

When I hit high school, something changed in me. whereas I used to be an almost “Straight-A” student, I became mostly a “D” student. Maybe it was the long bus rides to and from school – but I was bored to death with school. I was a seriously “problem” student. I got into fights, not only with other students but a few times with some teachers. After dropping out of Luther South High School in my junior year I was too old to qualify again, so I couldn’t come back to school. So, I dropped out rather than attend a public high school. The public high school wouldn’t accept a lot of the credits from the private school, and they said I would have to repeat my second year of high school all over again That wasn’t going to fly with me.Continue reading“Making It Count – Part 2, by Pat Cascio”

SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets

This weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters.

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This came to us by way of Whatfinger.com: Man Stranded For 3 Days On Uninhabited Bahamas Island Is Rescued By Coast Guard.

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Ferd spotted this news: Missing Tennessee couple found after eight days in Alaskan wilderness — just two miles from car. Ferd’s comments:

“Overconfidence and ‘familiarity’ breeding contempt of nature.  No inventory of what they took or had with them.  Strange that they were lost for eight days.”

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Reader P.G. had these comments, upon reading my article titled: Lessons From a Hard Disk Crash:

“Education never stops, especially with technology. I’m sure you are not committing this error, but many of the uninitiated probably are: No matter how convenient it may be, never use “the cloud” for backups. Ever. “The cloud” is just a catchy name for “some unknown guy’s computer in some unknown place.”

Maintain your own backups, multiple copies in multiple secure locations, protected against intrusion, fire and “stray electrons.” Unfortunately, ‘protected against government action’ must be now included in that list.”

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Continue reading“SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets”

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — August 22, 2023

Today is the anniversary of the founding of the London Armoury Company, in 1851. It was founded by Robert Adams (1810–1870). He patented the first successful double-action revolver in 1851. His revolvers were used during the Crimean War, the Indian Mutiny, the U.S. Civil War, and the Anglo-Zulu War.

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August 22nd, 1992 was the second day of the Incident at Ruby Ridge. FBI sharpshooter Lon Horiuchi wounded Randy Weaver and Kevin Harris, and murdered Weaver’s wife, Vicki. It should be noted that in 1994, after being acquitted by a federal court, Weaver filed a federal civil rights case against the FBI and U.S. marshals stemming from the siege. In 1995 the government settled Weaver’s case for $3.1 million. It is commonly thought that had the Weaver family stayed with the trial, the award would have been the full $200 million. In true FBI style, Lon Horiuchi was not prosecuted by the Federal government. When Idaho brought manslaughter charges against him, the trial was moved to federal court and then dismissed. Horiuchi has also been accused of firing unauthorized shots at the Waco siege, as well.

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We are seeking entries for Round 108 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest.  More than $840,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. We recently polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 108 ends on September 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Making It Count – Part 1, by Pat Cascio

Editor’s Introductory Notes: Several months ago, I asked our Field Gear Editor Emeritus, Pat Cascio, to write a serialized autobiography, and scan some photos, to accompany it.  In reading this, you will learn that Pat has had a remarkable life, with the opportunity to “wear many hats.”

The title of this series is an homage to the “Make It Count” tagline that Pat has habitually used in signing his letters and e-mails. Pat’s life has indeed counted for something. His influence has helped shape the lives, improve readiness, and provide spiritual guidance to countless others. Pat touched the lives of thousands in the U.S. Army, while keeping the peace on our streets, in Rhodesia’s bush country, countering international terrorists, teaching in dozens of martial arts dojos, writing for nearly a dozen publications, and even teaching in church pulpits. Pat is quite a guy. In his autobiography, you will see his rapid growth from an immature troublemaker from the streets of the south side of Chicago into a well-traveled and knowledgeable renaissance man who is worthy of emulation.

Rest assured that this five-part article series is not Pat’s “Swan Song”.  He intends to continue writing a few SurvivalBlog field gear reviews, as long as his health allows it. – JWR

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I was born in November of 1951. Since I’m now in my seventh decade of life, it gets harder to remember a lot of details. Additionally, in the past year, I’ve suffered from several strokes and my thinking process has slowed down a lot, and my typing skills have degraded. I used to type 100+ words per minute. But now I’m down to about 30-to-35 words per minute, with a lot of typos that have to be corrected. That is frustrating, to say the least.

Growing Up In Chicago

My formative years up to about age 10 years of age, weren’t much different than that of a lot of kids my age. However, I was raised by my grandparents from the time I was six weeks old. My grandparents had already raised nine kids of their own. As I was told, my mother just wasn’t ready to settle down and raise a child – she had just turned 17 two months before I was born. I don’t know any of the details of her divorce from my birth father, other than that she remarried when I was two years old. At the time, and I didn’t realize it, my birth father lived next door to my grandparent’s apartment building for several years. It wasn’t until 1979, that I met my birth father for the first time. And it wasn’t a pleasant meeting.

I lived in a very tight-knit community in Chicago, and everyone knew everyone. I was raised in the area called “Bridgeport” and it was known as one of the toughest areas of Chicago – I haven’t been back there for a lot of years – who knows it might still be “that” tough. Bridgeport was a mix of races, but we got along. I last visited Bridgeport in 1992 – and not much had changed since I lived there. Most of my old friends still lived there in 1992, and many still do.Continue reading“Making It Count – Part 1, by Pat Cascio”

SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies of interest to preppers and survivalists that are located in the American Redoubt region. Today, news of wildfires and the partial relief of rains from the remnants of Tropical Storm Hilary.

Region-Wide

Reader H.L. sent us this: The US States Losing & Gaining Population The Fastest.  JWR’s Comments: Idaho and Montana were near the top of the list of the “vote with your feet” influx, for good reason.  I anticipate that this self-sorting will accelerate in the 2020s and 2030s.

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September 1, 2023 Outlook Period – National Interagency Fire Center.

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Hurricane Hilary will help bring rain back to the Inland Northwest. The article begins:

“With fire season in full swing, the Inland Northwest desperately needs rain more than ever. The remnants of what is to become a historic hurricane is likely to give us some next week.

Hurricane Hilary is a powerful storm in the East Pacific. Around midday Friday Hilary was a Category 4 storm with sustained winds up to 145 mph. Hilary is expected to make landfall somewhere along the Baja Peninsula in Mexico before tracking north into the United States as a tropical storm. Hilary would be the first tropical storm to reach Southern California since Nora in September of 1997.

East Pacific Hurricanes normally track out to sea, but when there’s an opening, these storms will curve to the north. The movement of the heat dome that was over the West Coast into the Great Plains is one such opening.

Hilary is expected to bring once-in-a-generation rainfall to the desert regions of the Southwest. In some places two to three years worth of rain could fall. Extreme, life-threatening flooding is likely in parts of California, Nevada, and Arizona.

As Hilary moves inland it will be torn apart, leaving behind a vast region of tropical moisture that will ride the winds up to the Northern Rocky Mountains. These remnants of Hilary are what could bring the Inland Northwest some much-needed rain.”

Idaho

Weather Alert: record amounts of rain expected with remnants of Hurricane Hilary.

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Linked over at the Whatfinger.com news aggregation site: Idaho Mom Exposes Graphic Sexual Content in School Libraries.

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“It is hopeless for the occasional visitor to try to keep up with Chicago—she outgrows his prophecies faster than he can make them. She is always a novelty; for she is never the Chicago you saw when you passed through the last time.” – Mark Twain

Preparedness Notes for Monday — August 21, 2023

In 1986, Lake Nyos in Cameroon erupted with an estimated billion cubic yards of carbon dioxide gas. The gas had apparently been accumulating in the crater lake, held down by the weight of the water. When it finally erupted, the gas cloud smothered and killed every living animal, including insects, in its path until it dissipated. Outsiders learned of the disaster when they approached the villages and found animal and human bodies on the ground. The best estimate is that 1,700 people and thousands of cattle died.

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Today’s feature article is by SurvivalBlog Field Gear Editor Tom Christianson.

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We are seeking entries for Round 108 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest.  More than $840,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. We recently polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 108 ends on September 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

 

Trailblazer Firearms LifeCard in .22LR, by Thomas Christianson

The Trailblazer Firearms LifeCard is the ultimate in the “concealed” aspect of concealed carry. It folds into a tiny 3.38 x 2.06 x 0.5-inch package that looks something like a small cell phone, pager, or other electronic device. It unfolds into a diminutive derringer-style, single-shot handgun. It is a lot of fun to play with, and that is what I recommend it for: as a range toy and novelty. It has significant limitations as a tool for self-defense. But even the most limited tool that someone will actually carry with regularity is more helpful than a better tool that is left back at home in the gun safe.

Background

I have seen advertisements and read reviews for the LifeCard for a number of years now. It seemed like such a clever and fun idea that I wanted to give it a try. I contacted Trailblazer Firearms, and they were kind enough to provide me with a sample for testing and evaluation. A little more than a week later, a small (approximately 6.9 x 5 x 1 inches) box arrived at my FFL.Continue reading“Trailblazer Firearms LifeCard in .22LR, by Thomas Christianson”

Recipe of the Week: Fruit or Berry Cobbler Cupcakes

The following recipe for Fruit or Berry Cobbler Cupcakes is from SurvivalBlog reader Mike in Alaska.  It is his variant of a recipe that he found elsewhere.  Note: This recipe was originally developed for use with peaches or nectarines. It will also work for many types of berries.

Ingredients
  • 1 1/2 c. flour
  • 1 1/4 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/2 c. unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 3/4 c. brown sugar
  • 1/4 c. white sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 c. sour cream
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 1 1/4 c. ripe fruit or berries, chopped.
Directions
  1. Pre-heat your oven to 350 F.
  2. With a fork, whisk flour, baking powder, and baking soda in a bowl, and set that aside.
  3. Beat butter and the two sugars in a large bowl for 1 minute until light and fluffy.
  4. Beat in the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla until blended.
  5. Mix in the flour mixture that you set aside.
  6. Fold in the fruit.
  7. Fill cupcake liners or greased tins half full.
  8. Bake at 350 degrees F for approx. 25 minutes or until a test toothpick comes out of cupcake clean.
SERVING And STORAGE

Can be served after slight cooling. These will keep in a refrigerator for a day or two, but there are usually none left over!

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Do you have a well-tested recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? In this weekly recipe column, we place emphasis on recipes that use long-term storage foods, recipes for wild game, dutch oven recipes, slow cooker recipes, and any recipes that use home garden produce. If you have any favorite recipes, then please send them via e-mail. Thanks!

Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, another look at “shrinkflation”. (See the Inflation/Deflation Watch section.)

Precious Metals:

At Kitco: Key Downside Levels in Gold & Silver.

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A video link, at Gold-Eagle.com: Jim Willie Previews The Upcoming BRICS Meeting.

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Reader H.L. mentioned this, over at Zero Hedge: Poland Continues To Aggressively Buy Gold.

Economy & Finance:

Michael Burry Reveals Massive Bets Against Stock Market.

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MSN: China fuels US bond rout by slashing holdings to 14-year low as Washington-Beijing tensions drag on.

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H.L. sent this New York Post news item:  Workers making more than $100K laid off at alarming rate as number of US millionaires plummets.

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Steve Bannon’s War Room: A Rolling Credit Event and the Implosion of the Chinese Economy Drowning in a Sea of Debt — Chinese Bankruptcies And Biden’s Overspending Are Sending Global Capital Markets Into Crisis.

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Visualizing The $105 Trillion World Economy In One Chart.

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”