Odds ‘n Sods:

I spotted two interesting articles on the Improvised Explosive Device (IED) threat faced by our deployed troops, and some prospects for IED countermeasures:
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0131/p01s03-usmi.html
and:
http://72.14.203.104/search?q=cache:hqHuuDmRiN8J:www.opencrs.com/getfile.php%3Frid%3D44184+IED+countermeasures&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=6

   o o o

The Buckminster Fuller Institute has an informative web page that highlights dome building.  (For the sake of weatherproofing I prefer monolithic domes, but a lot of principles are common to both both geodesic and monolithic domes.  See: http://www.bfi.org

   o o o

It has been reported by the U.S. Commerce Department that the U.S. consumer savings rate has recently dropped to NEGATIVE 0.5 percent. Collectively, we are “spending it all”–and then some. This sort of insanity cannot go on very long. The –0.5 % rate cited is the lowest rate of savings on record since 1932 and 1933–back during the depth of the Great Depression. Hmmm…

   o o o

Don’t forget to sign up for one of the RWVA’s Spring Appleseed Tour series of rifle training sessions/matches. They have shoots scheduled for North Carolina and Kentucky (both in March), Indiana (in April), and Wyoming and possibly Wisconsin (both in May.) It is dirt cheap to attend, so don’t miss it. And for those of you that live in the Pacific Northwest, don’t  miss the annual “Boomershoot” dynamite shooting competition, in north-central Idaho. It’s about the most fun that you’ll ever have on a weekend. See: http://www.boomershoot.org/  Be sure to check out the pictures at the web site. IMHO, the Boomershoot makes the Knob Creek machinegun shoot look tame by comparison.

   o o o

I have once again updated and expanded the SurvivalBlog Glossary.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Of course, our failures are a consequence of many factors, but possibly one of the most important is the fact that society operates on the theory that specialization is the key to success, not realizing that specialization precludes comprehensive thinking." – R. Buckminster Fuller, Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth, 1963

Note From JWR:

And The Winner Is… It was tough judging all of those great entries, but we reached a decision on the winner of Round 2 of our non-fiction writing contest. Congratulations to “EMT J.N.” who wrote the excellent article: “Getting Your Group to Buy In: The $20 Medical Kit.” (This article was posted on Friday, January 13th.) J.N. wins the contest prize: a “gray” fully transferable four day Front Sight course certificate. These certificates can be worth up to $2,000 each!

Start writing and sending your entries for Round 3 of the contest. This contest round will again run for two months. Thanks to the generosity of Front Sight’s director Naish Piazza, the contest will have the same awesome prize. Please limit your entry to non-fiction pieces only, preferably articles about practical skills rather than something that is just motivational. 

The following is the first of the Round 3 writing contest entries. BTW, this article brings up a thorny issue amongst SurvivalBlog readers. Our readership runs the gamut:  Atheists, Agnostics, Orthodox Jews, Messianic Jews, Christians of umpteen different denominations, New Agers, Unitarians, and Buddhists. I love all of you. Some claim that my blog is “too religious”, while others complain that it not sufficiently religious. Obviously, I cannot please everyone, so I’ll just do what I believe is best and hopefully not offend too many of you. If any of the religious content bothers you, then just skip past it. But don’t ask me to censor this blog. I don’t hide the fact that I’m a Christian. I consider both preparedness and charity as my Christian duty. I sincerely believe that prayer works. Enough said.

A Biblical Defense of Preparedness, by N.

Before we get into this, a few folks may ask “Why prepare? God will take care of us.” If one wants to approach preparedness from a scriptural point of view, consider history when the Pharaoh of Egypt dreamed there would be seven plentiful years followed by seven years of famine. Pharaoh was instructed to store corn “that the land perish not through famine.” The Pharaoh was told by God, through Joseph, to set food aside. In the Gospel books Matthew, Mark and Luke we see famine is once again predicted. If we follow God’s previous instructions, perhaps it is time to set aside some provisions again.
We need to prepare both spiritually and physically for potential upheavals. There are those who have been rather vocal and strident, who believe that the only necessary preparation is spiritual – that anything else demonstrates a lack of faith. For the most part, these are not bad people. I believe that they are misinformed, and that they misinterpret the Scripture. They cite such Scripture as the following:
Matt. 6: 19 “Lay not up for yourselves treasures on earth…” They argue that preparing is contrary to Jesus’ teaching. No one is suggesting that the food we save to keep body and soul together is a “treasure,” or that we let it become an idol. We don’t consider the food that we stock in our pantry for 2 weeks a “treasure.” Nor do we hold it up idolatrously. It’s just stuff we need. The same is true for larger amounts for longer times.
Matt.6: 25 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink…” The “worry” referred to here is an all consuming preoccupation, and fear of want – that you won’t have enough. It also denies that God is faithful and will provide for His own. But, simply preparing for the normal necessities of life hardly constitutes “worry” in this sense. We are not to wring our hands, get all worked up about it and drive everyone into a panic.
Matt. 6: 26 “Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them.” But Jesus didn’t say the birds don’t work. Anyone who has watched a sparrow build a nest and feed itself and its young knows that it does indeed work. Birds, however, do not worry. They aren’t anxious. They just do what they have to, and because they do God takes care of them.
Matt. 6: 31 & 33 “Therefore do not worry, saying, what shall we eat or drink…But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you. Jesus is not teaching indolence or idleness. He explicitly says, don’t worry, seek God’s kingdom First, and what you need will be added to you. How? By just standing there with our mouths open and our hands out? As you will see from what follows, that’s not how the Apostles Peter, Paul and John understood the teachings of Jesus.

My Commentary: A Biblical Defense of Preparedness
1. Consider 1 John 3: 17 – 18 “If anyone have this worlds goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children let us not love in word or speech but in deed and in truth.” You cannot help a brother in need if you can’t help yourself. If we wait too long to prepare for problems we won’t be able to help ourselves or anyone else. If this verse is to be obeyed then some sort of preparation is not only in order, but required.
2. Paul exhorted a collection for the saints in Jerusalem who were experiencing a famine. Why didn’t Paul just write to the Church in Jerusalem and tell them to trust the Lord. Didn’t God provide the Manna for ancient Israel? Wouldn’t He do it for them in Jerusalem, and for the needy in a crisis?
3. When God gave Israel the promised land, except for those places that were under the “ban” and were completely destroyed, He left them with cities they hadn’t built, fields they hadn’t plowed, crops they hadn’t planted and vineyards they hadn’t tended. Did He then say, I’ve given you all this, just sit and enjoy it? Did He not expect them to tend the vineyards, plow and plant and harvest. In short, did they have no responsibility to be a good steward of what they had been given and to make them even more fruitful so they could live off the bounty of the land as the Lord blessed their labours?
4. If God expects us to do the everyday work by which we glorify Him and sustain our families during normal times, why doesn’t He expect us to do the same for crisis times? If after our best efforts, guided by His gracious hand, we do not have enough to survive on, then perhaps we may expect Him to intervene in extraordinary ways to take care of us. If not, “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” Under normal circumstances the Lord gives us the strength to provide for ourselves and families, why should we expect something different in hard times? Not to provide for ones self and family when one had the power to do so seems to tempt God. When God provides the opportunity to prepare and we don’t, are we any less foolish than the 5 virgins who could have, but didn’t take enough oil for their lamps. We all know that this parable has to do with being watchful and ready for the coming of the Bridegroom, but an ancillary lesson is that the 5 foolish virgins were declared foolish precisely because they could have avoided their plight but didn’t.
5. Malachi 3: 10 speaks of bringing all the tithes into the storehouse and “see if I will not pour out a blessing such as you cannot contain” But how are you going to bring in a tithe if you haven’t worked to produce a tithe, either in good times or crisis times?
6. What does Prov. 6: 6 – 11 mean, if not that we are responsible to do the work of preparation while we are able. “Go to the ant you sluggard! Consider her ways and be wise, which having no captain, overseer or ruler, provides her supplies in the summer, and gathers her food in the harvest. How long will you slumber, O sluggard? When will you rise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep – So shall your poverty come on you like a robber, and your need like an armed man.” See also Prov.13: 4; 20: 4; 26: 16. One brother suggested that the proper interpretation of this passage was a “spiritual” one. Even if that were true, and I don’t concede that it is, it would be true spiritually ONLY if it is also true physically. We can hardly expect to get spiritual truth from false statements.
7. 2 Thess. 3: 10, says, “For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat.” No amount of exegetical legerdemain can make that verse say anything but what it says. My version – “No work – no grub.” Obviously that does not include the infirmed or the aged. But it does plainly teach that indolence should not be rewarded. What else can it be called, when we could have prepared for the crisis but we didn’t? That is a principle that applies in either normal or crisis situations.
8. Please note that I have refrained from calling names. The “names” you’ve seen are what the Bible has to say about those who do not provide for their own, or who are “sluggards” or “imprudent” by ignoring the obvious.
9. With regard to fleeing from life-threatening situations – what one brother sarcastically refers to as “hidey hole” theology – Both Peter and Paul escaped from life-threatening situations. Peter fled from Jerusalem after his miraculous deliverance from prison by the angel. Paul was let down over the walls of Damascus when a plot against his life was uncovered. Both of these were escapes from the physical persecution that arose against them because of their testimony and preaching of the Gospel. Are we supposed to believe that God is only interested in preserving His people if they are in danger as a result of their following Jesus? That if the shortsightedness or greed of the world, places Christians in danger, that somehow that is not sufficient reason to escape in order to continue to serve, worship and love God and those around us? I can’t speak for others, but I know my purpose in preparing for eventualities. It is not merely to save my hide; it’s not worth that much anyway; but to do what Christians have done throughout the centuries, namely to maintain a LIVING witness to the redemptive love of God in Christ, and to continue nurturing the Church which God has called me.
10. Some Christians believe that it is wrong to leave your urban or suburban home to find a rural setting where survival would be more likely. They call this “hidey hole” theology. Yet, after the stoning of Stephen much of the Church in Jerusalem dispersed precisely to preserve their lives, to continue to care for each other and spread the Gospel in the new surroundings. God called Stephen to martyrdom, but not the whole Church. The Church in Rome met in the catacombs. Some lived in the catacombs. Was that “hidey-hole theology?” When Jesus began his ministry He read from Isaiah in the synagogue, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me….This day the Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” They wanted to kill Him, but He “passed through them.” He escaped. Was that “hidey hole” theology?
11. In 1 Kings 17: 8 – 16, Elijah instructed the widow of Zarephath to give him her last cup of flour and last bit of oil. He told her don’t be afraid, God will provide. God caused there to be a daily miracle provision of flour and oil for her survival. But another widow and her son in 2 Kings 4: 1 – 7, were instructed by Elisha to gather many containers, for God was about to provide for her needs. There was an immediate miracle of multiplication of the oil, part of which she was told to pay off her debts, but the remainder she was to store. Thus, there was preparation, provision, and then storage in order for this woman and her son to survive. Sure, the provision was miraculous; but her use of God’s provision was quite normal and mundane. Nor did Elisha criticize her for storing her oil for her family’s future needs.
12. Am I stupid, sinful and unbiblical because I want to see that my family survive? Am I to suppose to believe that God doesn’t want me to do anything about the survival of those whom I love, whom He has given to me? Have I no responsibility? Do I just stand with my eyes scrunched closed and say, “OK God, you take care of me and mine?” Survival is not the ultimate value or goal for me or my family. It never was or will be. “Glorifying God and enjoying Him forever” is. If God wants me and mine dead, so be it, and may He be praised forever. But I don’t see that glorifying God and staying alive are mutually exclusive, especially when He seems to be graciously giving us advanced warning precisely so that we may continue to survive, so that we may serve Him and others.
And you, O mortal, do not be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns surround you and you live among scorpions; do not be afraid of their words, and do not be dismayed at their looks.- Ezekiel 2, verse 6
The clever see danger and hide; but the simple go on, and suffer for it. – Proverbs 22, verse 3.
A closing thought:  When Noah built the ark, it wasn’t raining

Letter Re: David in Israel on Fire Suppression and Fire Fighting

Mr. Rawles,
The Ben Meadows catalog is a great place for all kinds of outdoor equipment. The print catalog is a few hundred pages long, with everything from soil testers to firefighting gear and arborist supplies. I consider it recreational reading as well as a supply source. Their website has a “Wildland Fire Management” page: See: http://www.benmeadows.com/refinfo/wildlandfire.htm?cid=W51206  Regards, – TFA303

Letter Re: S.F.’s Letter Re: Medical Kits

Jim,
In regards to S.F.’s letter regarding medical kits, suture/wound closure, and use of Ipecac… 1. I would not recommend the use of Syrup of Ipecac to anyone without proper training in airway management, i.e.: intubation/suction equipment on hand .The airway problems far outweigh the gains, you have to know what can come back up without problem also, leave this to the trained and save your money for other supplies. 2. Wound closure, “to be or not to be closed,” again if you do not have the supplies or the know how ALL wounds can close from secondary intention, that is clean and let heal over time, yes the scar is worse but the associated problems of infection/drainage are overcome. 3. Cleaning wounds is a long subject, [but in brief]: pressure and copious amounts of normal saline 0.9% will clean most wounds others have to be debrided, large pieces of contamination can be removed with hemostats or tweezers that are sterile/clean for the rest of the debris use a large syringe (sterile) with a needle attached (18 ga sterile) to increase the pressure and normal saline in copious amounts until [completely] clean to the eye.Use of Betadine and hydrogen peroxide mixed 50/50 initially is an accepted process it makes for a foamy mess but kills most all bacteria in the wound. Then again flush with normal saline until clean. With can discuss wound care of wounds healing for secondary intention at a later date if anyone is interested. 4. Most supplies can be obtained from veterinary supplies in bulk much cheaper than anywhere else: needles, syringes, dressings, tape suture(fresh not surplus), normal saline solution, betadine, et cetera.  Do a search for veterinary supplies get a few different catalogs and compare prices prior to ordering. I get a lot of meds from the vet but I have a ranch. Antibiotics/ointment et cetera are sometimes on the shelf–you just have to know what you want/need and the name and most vets will sell it off the shelf. Buy stainless steel bowls that can be sterilized for use in wound cleaning or use glass. These two items have been used for ages and can be cleaned sterilized in the oven or pressure cooker and reused over and over again. – John

Still More About Silver’s Imminent Price Explosion

You may have noticed that the spot price of silver jumped another 20 cents yesterday. Take a few minutes to read these two interesting analyses that recently ran at Gold-Eagle.com:  http://www.gold-eagle.com/editorials_05/stein012706.html and, http://www.gold-eagle.com/editorials_05/murphy012806.html

In the latter article, it is noted that the silver 60 date lease rates just went into an upright spike. This is a clear sign that alarm bells have sounded at the COMEX and they are
trying desperately to suppress the galloping spot and futures silver prices. (Some futures contracts are presently pushing $12 an ounce!) But unless the COMEX does a repeat of its 1979-1980 shenanigans and changes the margin requirements for the futures market, then they won’t be successful at holding down the spot price of silver. I suspect that a total desperation move like that won’t happen until Kodak and the other big industrial users start to whine. You can expect that to happen once silver crosses the $40 mark. But by then it won’t matter. Even if they slap a 100% margin requirement on silver futures contracts (like they did a quarter century ago, to stop the Hunt Brothers , it will be too late. Why? Because by then, the Generally Dumb Public (GDP) will have finally woken from their slumber and will be swarming to their local coin shops to plunk down some of their spare cash to get some 1 ounce silver rounds or pre-1964 junk silver.  At that stage, “junk” silver will probably be selling at 20+ times face value.

I predict that this market is going to completely get away from the COMEX and Wall Street manipulators. Today (January 31st) they will probably do their best to push the metals prices down temporarily.  After all, they wouldn’t want to cast a bad light on either the President’s State of the Union address or upon Ben Bernanke’s first few days at his new central bank job. They’ll sell enough to keep the price down for a few days or perhaps even for a few weeks, but inevitably it will be like trying to stop a a rising tide. The mainstream media will probably refer to this as “Bernanke’s first management crisis.” Given the fanciful underpinnings of the U.S. Dollar (which has a REAL value that approaches ZERO), this will doubtless be the first of several Volker-esque crises for “Helicopter Ben.”

The futures markets for gold and silver are getting frantic. I suspect that there will be a massive short squeeze in the near future. The run up in prices may take all but us die-hard silver bears by surprise. Mark my words: Silver could double in price and then double again, all within the span of a month, once the perma-shorts realize that something has changed fundamentally and they have to cover their short positions, fast. As I’ve mentioned before, the silver market is very thin compared that of gold, and hence tends to be more volatile. After a short term correction, look for some volatile moves upward in the near future!

Today’s Daily Reckoning had some extensive quotes from Dr. Kurt Richebächer. Here is just a brief snippet:
“You know what amazes me most is that Americans have come to believe that consequences no longer exist. They think they can do whatever they want for as long as they want…and nothing will ever go wrong.” This is probably the first generation of Americans to believe that savings don’t matter. It is also the first generation to believe that America
doesn’t really need to make anything; it can buy what it needs from abroad. But where will it get the money? “That’s the thing,” Dr. Richebächer went on. “They think the bubble
economy will never end, but bubbles always end. This one will end, too. And there will be consequences, and not very pleasant ones. This is not
something the Fed can manage…”

The Gold-Eagle pundits summarized Dr. Richebächer’s conclusion thusly: “According to Dr. Richebächer, our nation’s “recovery” is largely a matter of the short-term transference of money from people’s home equity, secured and unsecured loans and credit cards into consumer-level retail purchases – into the hands of financial institutions or the risky realm of
speculative investment.”

If you have the time, read Dr. Richebächer’s full report: “Your Choice: The Truth – Or The Consequences” See: http://www1.youreletters.com/t/332871/7796936/783705/0/

Letter Re: Questions on Petromax Lanterns (and Clones Thereof)

Hi Jim,
When TSHTF it is nice to have a lantern that can use almost any flammable liquid for fuel, including used motor oil. Also, one can mix the present fuel with whatever else is available to fill the lantern and continue to use it.This German designed lantern has been around since the [early[ 1900s. It is now in its fifth generation and the fifth generation is the only Petromax lantern to be tested and listed as a truly multi-fuel lantern. Please note, all previous generations are not truly multi-fuel lantern although that claim is advertised. Caveat emptor! There are many places to purchase a Petromax lantern on the Internet, survival, hardware and other stores. One has to be careful since some do not have the thick glass globes that can withstand rain drops without shattering and some have cheap parts that wear out quickly. There are many impostor such as the cheap Chinese spin offs selling far below the price of the fifth generation Petromax. Some of us, if not most, have been down this road before: purchasing a cheaper copy cat item only to find out we got taken to the cleaners.

Not only is this a multi-fuel lantern, it can be easily adapted to be a multitasking tool to light, heat (50 square feet area) and cook at the same time by purchasing the accessories. It takes only a minute to convert it. One does have to have the lantern operating in order to cook. If light discipline is not an issue this is a great setup for saving fuel. I have two of these setups with extra globes, mantels, bicycle EZ-PUMP adapters, EZ-COOK adapter and rebuild kits in my survival supplies. BTW, the rebuild kits and instructional video were free when I purchased the lantern. I researched for about two months before deciding to purchase mine. As a general rule, if time permits I call a prospective place of business to see if they are knowledgeable of the item(s) I am interested in, if they keep a current inventory of spare parts, and gauge their professionalism. That is the reason I chose to purchase from Britelyt Multi fuel Products http://www.britelyt.com/. They also sell methanol lanterns. Methanol can be used inside with less worry of carbon monoxide and it stores indefinitely. If you have never used one of these lanterns, then the video is a must. They sell a multi-fuel stove weighing 4 pounds that runs 5-6 hours on 1 quart of fuel, producing 8K-to-10K BTUs.  – Find1

Letter Re: Storing Retort Packaged Ultra High Temperature Pasteurized Milk

Howdy Jim,
For those with sufficient storage space, an item worth considering is the UHT (Ultra High Temperature) pasteurized milk products.

In one-quart containers at around $1.40, they are available in whole milk and the 2% variety. The manufacturers give a shelf life of 6 to 10 months and the product requires no refrigeration until opened.

UHT dairy products have been on the shelves in Europe for more than 20 years. They were previously unavailable to the U.S. consumer because the government felt their availability would “disrupt the milk support program.” Sure beats powdered milk! – Dutch in Wyoming

JWR Replies:  For a short term supply (up to six months), UHT Retort -packaged milk makes a lot of sense. For longer term, you should store nitrogen-packed canned powdered nonfat milk from a competent and reliable vendor such as Ready Made Resources or Walton Feed. I have found that the nonfat variety stores the best because it is the butterfat in whole milk that goes rancid, significantly shortening the shelf life. (BTW, the powdered milk sold at grocery stores that comes in foil-lined boxes goes rancid far too quickly–at times it is borderline rancid even when bought in a brand new package!) The Memsahib has been drinking retort packaged rice milk for about five years now. Rice and soy “milks” store even longer than cow milk. Like any other storage food, be sure to store retort package “bricks” in the coolest (but not ever below freezing) part of your house, and away from vermin. (It is amazing what rats will chew on.) Never stack individual retort bricks horizontally more than five bricks high, or vertically more than seven bricks high, or in cardboard cases (of vertical bricks) more than five cases high.

Letter from The Army Aviator Re: Follow-Up Letter From “Shooter” Re: The Draw Technique, or “Shooter’s Five Steps to Keeping Ten Fingers”

Jim:
Shooter wrote: “as Instructor Greg told me last night, armed citizens will probably draw their weapons more times than they will shoot them in a potential lethal force encounter.” I’ve been carrying for over 40 years now and have always gone by the rule if you show your weapon to your opponent, it’s as you are firing it. To do otherwise is “brandishing” and giving away your advantage. I also carry a $20 wrapped around a matchbook with a rubber band. [This is the “throwaway” concept popularized by self defense writer Massad Ayoob.] Several years ago, in Aurora, Colorado, I was sort of accosted by a Hispanic group. Having identified the leader, I threw him the $20 and suggested that he “Go buy the boys some drinks on me.” They left. That was a lot cheaper than explaining why I killed the three of them. They never knew how close they came and it was none of their business. Just my two cents worth. Regards, – The Army Aviator

Letter Re: The Best All-Around Dog Breed for a Retreat?

Note from JWR: The following letter is a reply to the excellent series of informative letters on various dog breeds that ran in December of 2005. Refer to the SurvivalBlog Archives for those letters.

James:
I would like to mention the cur breeds as dogs that could be useful in a retreat situation. The Blackmouth cur, mountain cur, catahoula, and blue lacy would all make good choices. These were the original homestead dogs, used by the pioneers to work livestock, hunt and trail game, and to protect the family from Indians, bandits, and wild animals. These breeds are still common in many parts of the rural south and are used by many people to hunt wild hogs and work cows. They range in size from 30-50 pounds (blue lacy and mountain cur) to 60-100 pounds (blackmouth). Because they haven’t been used in show breeding programs these dogs are relatively free from most health problems, although the catahoula is becoming popular and starting to develop problems in some strains. If I didn’t have a dog and was looking to get one for a retreat I’d ask around feed stores and sale barns and find somebody who’s dog had puppies. You could get an idea of it’s parents demeanor and what it was used for. Don’t restrict yourself to purebreds, I have a heeler/border collie mix that can blood trail, work cows or goats, bay hogs, and is willing to fight anything that walks if it threatens my family or any child. He also stays alert and as long as he’s around nothing can sneak up on me. Thank you so much for your website, I am fairly young and have learned a LOT from it about topics I had never even considered until recently. I just got Patriots in the mail yesterday and this is the first time I’ve put it down, between that and reading [the shareware novel] “Lights Out” I have really changed my mindset a lot in the last few weeks. Keep up the good work. – K.I.

Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader M.W. recommends: http://www.trackertrail.com/survival/fire/cokeandchocolatebar/index.html

  o o o

A reader wrote to mention that in a controlled, independently reviewed study published in the Journal of Trauma, a comparison of Traumadex and Quickclot in a porcine model (severed femoral artery) showed that Quickclot was much more effective.

  o o o

Several long term storage food sellers report that storage food sales have been brisk–even to the point that there are now shortages of some varieties of freeze-dried foods. A lot of customers are citing concerns about the Asian Avian Flu, especially after the segment about how to prepare for a flu pandemic ran on Oprah last week. Even the U.S. Government is now recommending storing food for “several weeks” instead of the “three day supply” mantra that they have been chanting for decades. Think this though:  If and when the A.A. flu jumps species lines into an easily transmissible form, suddenly EVERYONE is going to want storage foods so that they can hunker down in self-quarantine. Consider that if just five percent of American families increased their food storage larder by one or two weeks, it would devastate the supply chain for long term storage foods.  Quit just “considering it”, folks!  Stock up. Please take a look at the web sites for our advertisers that sell storage foods.  They have a wide selection and some great prices. By patronizing any of these vendors, you will help support SurvivalBlog:
Survival Enterprises
Freeze Dry Guy
JRH Enterprises
Ready Made Resources
 Safe Castle
Safe Solutions

 

  o o o

There is a new blog at http://NoNAIS.org to educate people about the upcoming USDA’s National Animal Identification System regulations that will harm small farmers, homesteaders and pet owners as well as raising the prices of food for consumers.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“The average man’s love of liberty is nine-tenths imaginary. It takes a special sort of man to understand and enjoy liberty — and he is usually an outlaw in democratic societies.” – H.L. Mencken

Letter Re: David in Israel on Fire Suppression and Fire Fighting

Greetings JWR,
A few words about the article that David sent you on fire suppression: While I admit my wildland fire fighting experience is limited, as a member of private forest industry we do a lot for fire prevention. My associations with fire run deep. David recommended talking to state and Federal forest entities…look up your local private industry forester. Often these people are happy to give advice and know contacts of people with the equipment and knowledge to do the work at reasonable rates.
First, do not wait to make a clearing around your house…make one around your property. Two of the best fire breaks are roads and clear cuts. The ideal situation is a backhoe or Cat[erpillar tractor] line around your property with no trees (ideally) within 1-1.5 tree lengths of the fire line. As David mentioned, properly thinned forests are key as well. Crowns should have air around them, such that crowns are not touching. Spacing should be increased the drier your property is–dependent on rainfall and aspect (i.e. slope: south, north, etc. facing). It’s wise to research what species are fire resistant in your area and select for them [to remain] when thinning. Fire that is on the ground is fire that can be controlled. So keep the ladder fuels (i.e. smaller trees that lead up to bigger trees) thinned out. Multi-story management is alright as long as spacings are still observed and crowns do not touch crowns.
Roads or skid trails (taken down to bare mineral soil ) in key defensible locations like along ridge lines can be used to your advantage. Remember that roots burn as well, so hack all those bad boys off and clear the trail. During a worst case scenario, a couple people could run along a ridge line and with chain saws dump the trees into the fire side away from the skid trail. This is not necessarily advisable while the fire is at your door step but if there is one burning in your general direction it may be necessary. Fire lines around your property can be easily maintained with a back pack sprayer and Round Up [herbicide]. This also comes in handy since under burns have to be reburned every couple years, depending on vegetation types. Good and well-maintained fire lines keep your fire off your neighbors land as well as their fire off yours. Heavy woody debris or brush can accumulate over periods of 4-5 years before having to be burned. Grass needs burning more frequently. Personal observations of excess vegetation will be required.
Fire can also be fought with fire. While burning your own property, play around in small areas with black lining ( or burning fuel in front of the fire so that it cannot go further ) and learn what works best…i e. heat is drawn to heat et cetera. I burn my grass field every spring as soon as the grass will hold a flame and try something different every time I can, just to learn and see what will work best.
It might be handy to invest in a diesel drip torch [“dribbler.”] I’ve found that this is the best tool for managing under burns–it is easy to use… walk along [with the tip held out to the side of your path] and drip. It does all the work. Forestry suppliers will carry this item.

Regarding Boots: I spend A LOT of money on boots as they are vital to my livelihood. “Whites” are no longer “the best” in my experience and opinion. “Nicks” (located in Spokane, Washington) is a smaller company started by an ex-Whites employee who wanted to make boots the way “Whites” used to make boots. A new pair starts at about $375.00. As long as the uppers stay sound you can have them rebuilt for about one hundred seventy-five bucks, usually a 3-4 month wait for them, so order early. Vibram soles for fire, but for everyday woods stomping I like calked (“corked”) boots, unless, of course, there is a lot of rock in an area. Expect to rebuild them every 1-2 years with HEAVY use. On any boot designed like the “Whites: Smoke Jumper” the spot that I’ve found will wear and crack first, is the instep by the arch support–design makes it difficult to grease this area and keep it supple. I recommend Obernaufs…it is good for greasing your boots. I like to bake it in- then I take a bees wax ring (the ones used for toilets) and smear that over the top and bake ’em little more. Be careful, however, the wax is a drying agent (I have cracked leather using pure wax.) Be sure and use your grease first, before applying the wax. Laces are also a problem— Leather with the heavy wet dry action, tend break a lot. Most of the fiber ones seem to fray and are pricey as well. I have started using parachute cord as a cheap alternative…seems to work great. Thanks much – E.B. of N. Idaho