Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — June 23, 2021

On June 23, 1868, American inventor Christopher Latham Sholes received a patent for a typewriter. Sholes invented the QWERTY keyboard. Along with Samuel W. Soule, Carlos Glidden and John Pratt, Sholes has been contended as one of the inventors of the first typewriter in the United States.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 95 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three-day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (a $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, that have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  4. An Israeli CBRN Gas Mask with Hydration Straw and two Extra 40mm NATO Filter s – Manufactured in 2020 (a $229.99 value), courtesy of McGuire Army-Navy.
  5. Naturally Cozy is donating a “Prepper Pack” Menstrual Kit.  This kit contains 18 pads and it comes vacuum-sealed for long term storage or slips easily into a bugout bag.  The value of this kit is $220.
  6. An assortment of products along with a one-hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. Siege Stoves is generously donating a SIEGE® STOVE kit, including a Titanium Gen 3 Flat-Pack Stove with titanium Cross-Members and a variety of bonus items including a Large Folding Grill, a pair of Side Toasters, a Compact Fire Poker, and an extra set of stainless steel universal Cross-Members. (In all, a $200 value.)
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. A transferable $150 purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Round 95 ends on July 31st, 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.

Survival Gardening: The Most Vital Prep – Part 2, by T.J. Dixon

(Continued from Part 1.)

The planting process starts by seeding most crops indoors under artificial lights about 4-6 weeks before it is time to plant them outside; Here, refer to the USDA Hardiness information for planting times. Most crops need from 60 to 90 days to mature after you’ve transplanted. In Zone 5, I start spring seeds indoors in February, summer seeds indoors in April and fall seeds in July. Once things have sprouted, they need to be transitioned outside. You cannot just take a plant from the low light of the indoors into the full power of the sun without letting to plants become accustomed to the change gradually. Each cell on the plant has sensitive cells to allow photosynthesis – the process of converting sunlight into energy. These are similar to your eyes in the sense that they open wide in low light to allow more light in, then close down in brighter light. Taking a plant directly outdoors is like walking from a dark basement into the bright sunlit sky and looking up at the sun – your eyes snap shut to protect your cornea until your eyes adapt. Plants do not have eyelids and their cells will literally explode if you do this – not instantly, but the day after you put them in direct sunlight you will see leaves starting to turn brown and die. You must take them outdoors and place them in shade, or cover with shade cloth, for a week or so, then move to the full light. Make sure to factor this into your transplant schedule. Once they are hardened off, and the timing is right for your zone, transplant them. Then, you have two to four weeks before it is time to start the next wave – unless it’s fall. Then you have to wait until closer to spring to start over. Always start more seeds than you need to account for loss – you can get more seeds from your harvest, but you can never get the time back you lost on a total crop failure.

After the first year, expand your 10×10 space by 4 feet in length and width and add two more rows. Now, in addition to the original four crops, add cabbage and carrots for spring and fall and lentils and winter squash for summer. Each year, add a little more space and add a new crop or two into your rotation. Soon, you will have a large garden and the ability to make the compost material to grow what you need to feed your family. By slowly adding space and crops you will not overwhelm yourself trying to plant two dozen things – like the little can of Emergency Seeds would have you do. You will build your space, your soil and most importantly your knowledge. Your failures are more important than your successes. Every year some part of my garden fails. From these failures, I learn new lessons. These lessons are frustrating now, but in a real survival scenario, they may be fatal. Learning as much as possible now will serve you well.

As you begin to get successful, say in year three or four, you will learn just how much space you will need to sustain your family long-term. You will also understand that your small can of seeds is not even close to enough seeds to feed even a small family. You must have the seed stock in place before WROL if you hope to grow food after the first year. In fact, you will need that year’s supply of food to allow you to begin to expand your space and get large-scale crops in the ground.

Counting Calories

You have to know how many calories are in each crop, and how much to plant for each person. A 2,000 calorie a day diet is close to 800,000 per year. For a quick break down that might end up being:
• 225 pounds of dried corn
• 200 pounds of dried peas and/or dried beans
• 50 pounds of greens such as Kale, lettuce, spinach and green beans
• 50 pounds of beets
• 200 pounds of potatoes
• 50 pounds of squash

That is for one person, and it is daunting. Using intensive growing techniques, with lots of compost and adequate crop rotation, that is close to 1/5 acre per person, per year. That includes growing all three seasons. It also means you must have the seed stock on hand for each. For easy calculations figure a 20:1 ratio of harvest to seed stock and you will begin to understand how much you need to have on hand to even start. The best way to have that stock is to grow your own in your scaled-down Survival Garden now and be sure that it is big enough to produce your seeds stock every year. So, your Survival Garden is exactly the size you need to have adequate seed stock for a full WROL event. That way your stock is from proven materials, is fresh and has the best chance of germination. You are not a hobby gardener, but a practicing Survival Gardener.

Calculate your needs and make a plan to get there. Do not start big – you will fail and get discouraged. Start with my action plan and accrue knowledge and seeds over time. It is possible to generate all the seed stock you need in a small space, say a ¼ acre. You can do it in containers, raised gardens, and vertical gardening if you are short on space. A lack of land cannot be an excuse, just a challenge. Without the seed stock you have no ability to grow your next year’s crop. If a sudden WROL situation occurs, will you have the time and ability to go get all the seed stock you need? It’s so much better to have it in your Survival Garden ready for use.

Starting from scratch can seem quite daunting. There are so many details, so many ways to fail – some are potentially your fault while others are beyond your control like weather and critters. It doesn’t have to be a huge effort, however. I’ve laid out a small 10 by 10 starter space that can be prepared in a weekend with nothing more than a shovel. To begin, there are a few immediate steps to take; it is your action plan. It assumes you have no experience gardening, no prepared land and no clue where to start.

Start With a Compost Pile

First, start building a compost pile. Use lawn clippings, weeds and kitchen scraps. Match that with all the cardboard you probably receive from deliveries, shred your junk mail, pick up shopping advertisements and shred them too. Build in layers making sandwiches of greens and browns. The point is, this should be a free activity that actually reduces some of your trash. The pile will decompose over months, so you’re building next year’s compost. Keep adding all year long, if you turn the pile frequently, it will decompose quicker, but if you just practice benign neglect, nature will take care of it for you. I do that myself, just build huge piles of freely available materials and “harvest” it in the spring. You cannot have too much – a giant pile today composts down to less than a tenth of the size by the time it’s ready. Make lots of big piles, way more than you think you need.

Secondly, find your space. Look for a location with as much sun as possible. South facing spaces get the most sunlight as the sun moves from east to west during the day. Get your shovel and turn the soil, break it up as you go. This is tough labor, but remember in a WROL you’ll be doing this on a scale a thousand times as large. It can be done by most healthy adults in a single day’s labor. Now it’s time to amend your soil. Since your compost pile is not ready, this time you will need to add organic material you obtain elsewhere. If you have a pickup truck, you can get free horse manure from many farmers or horse barns. I truck in 20 tons a year myself. If it is “fresh”, meaning you can still see the sawdust or hay they use to cover the floor and easily spotted droppings, then you can either pile it up somewhere to break down, or mix it well into your soil.

If you can’t get free manure, you can buy bags at most box stores. Get enough to cover 3-4 inches of the entire space, but you really cannot overdo organic material – more is better. If your soil is full of clay, you can also mix in some peat moss to help break things up. If you have access to a rototiller, the mixing will be easier. You can probably borrow one from a neighbor or rent one. It is certainly possible to mix it with a shovel, but it is a lot of work; teenagers are a good source of free labor if you have some in your home. When things are prepared, designate four rows with a path between them. These will each hold one of the crops listed above.

(To be concluded tomorrow, in Part 3.)

SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets

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

Our Editor-At-Large Michael Z. Williamson suggested this article: Ground-breaking night-vision film can be applied to regular glasses.

o  o  o

H.L. sent us the link to this fascinating page: Animated Map: U.S. Droughts Over the Last 20 Years.

o  o  o

Garand Thumb reviews the SIG “DVO” LPVO: US Army’s New M4 Optic.

o  o  o

Tim. J. in Florida sent us this: Disney World sees an increase in number of concealed weapons found: report.

o  o  o

Over at American Partisan: The Kinder-Morgan Incident, Stealth Drones and China’s Growing Threat on the Southern Border, an analysis by NC Scout.

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets”

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — June 22, 2021

On June 22, 1633, Galileo Galilei was coerced by Pope Gregory XV to recant his belief in heliocentrism–that the Earth orbits the Sun. The Vatican did not concede that it was wrong until October 31, 1992.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 95 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three-day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (a $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, that have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  4. An Israeli CBRN Gas Mask with Hydration Straw and two Extra 40mm NATO Filter s – Manufactured in 2020 (a $229.99 value), courtesy of McGuire Army-Navy.
  5. Naturally Cozy is donating a “Prepper Pack” Menstrual Kit.  This kit contains 18 pads and it comes vacuum-sealed for long term storage or slips easily into a bugout bag.  The value of this kit is $220.
  6. An assortment of products along with a one-hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. Siege Stoves is generously donating a SIEGE® STOVE kit, including a Titanium Gen 3 Flat-Pack Stove with titanium Cross-Members and a variety of bonus items including a Large Folding Grill, a pair of Side Toasters, a Compact Fire Poker, and an extra set of stainless steel universal Cross-Members. (In all, a $200 value.)
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. A transferable $150 purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Round 95 ends on July 31st, 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.

Survival Gardening: The Most Vital Prep – Part 1, by T.J. Dixon

Many of us would regard someone with one year of freeze-dried food as a good example of someone who is prepared. They are ready to ride out the storm when a major Without Rule of Law (WROL) scenario comes along. The issue then becomes, what happens after that first year? Even if they escape mob violence because they have effective self-defense supplies and have trained both at the gun club and in tactical scenarios, they will be out of food in one short year. While they have may all the medical supplies to handle small and large emergencies throughout that year, they will still be hungry. Once the local area is hunted out, there is only one possible solution – grow your own. Without the ability to produce all the food your family or team needs, you are only delaying the inevitable – a slow starvation. You will spend the year eating all your preps knowing that there is nothing else coming after that. For that reason, gardening – Survival Gardening to be specific – is be your most vital prep; it’s not as flashy as great tactical gear or buckets full of food, but it has the wonderful property of being sustainable unlike anything you have to buy in the store.

This article is aimed at the non-gardener, or previously failed gardener, who may have never successfully planted a single seed. I am going to outline a getting started guide, not a comprehensive list of everything you can do, but the essentials to get started without much time or money invested. It is designed to take you from zero gardening experience to sustainable Survival Gardener in easy, small steps. You do not need anything besides a shovel and some seeds, although better equipment will make the job faster and easier.

Many people have purchased “Survival Seeds” and stored that small can away in a cool dark place. Once WROL hits, they imagine taking them out, putting them in the ground and watching the magic of nature as it blooms into a garden of abundance and they are able to sustain themselves. As a master gardener and someone who has gardened seriously for decades, I can assure you that the above scenario is a likely as a novice gun owner taking out their unused AR-15 and successfully winning a battle against a squad of Navy SEALs. It will absolutely not happen. What will happen is a series of mistakes, natural predators, disease and failure after failure as hope slowly dies out.

Continue reading“Survival Gardening: The Most Vital Prep – Part 1, by T.J. Dixon”

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, we focus on Pastor Matt Shea’s fledgling ministry. (See the Central & Eastern Washington section.)

Region-Wide

Judge deals blow to Oregon group’s vision of ‘Greater Idaho’.

o  o  o

Forecasts show drought continuing for Inland Northwest.

o  o  o

Inland Northwest Insights provides current economic and demographic data.

Idaho

Idaho unemployment rate drops to 3% as pandemic fades.

o  o  o

Idaho Home Prices Continue to Skyrocket

o  o  o

Liberal tourist freaks out at the sight of an armed shopper in Sandpoint. JWR’s Comments:  It is laughable to think that this post made it to the widely-read “Upworthy” site. Here in the Redoubt, everyday people are often seen legally armed. Only a handful of tourists feel any stress at the sight of it.  Get over it, Annie. Open carry is legal in more than 40 states. And permitless concealed carry now a growing trend, legal in 21 states. Now scamper back home to Illinois, where you will mistakenly feel more safe. But be advised that Idaho is ranked #42 of the 50 states for violent crime, while Illinois is ranked #19. And for intentional homicide rates, Idaho is ranked #48, while Illinois is ranked #14.

o  o  o

A Boise television newscast: Extreme heat, severe drought afflicting Idaho and much of the West. (Thanks to SurvivalBlog reader A.K. for the link.)

o  o  o

Northwestern Band of Shoshone sues Idaho over hunting rights.

o  o  o

Alaska Air adds Boise to Moscow flight in partnership with U of I. (Well, the flights are actually to Pullman, Washington, just across the state line.)

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Be it remembred, however, that liberty must at all hazards be supported. We have a right to it, derived from our Maker. But if we had not, our fathers have earned, and bought it for us, at the expence of their ease, their estates, their pleasure, and their blood. And liberty cannot be preserved without a general knowledge among the people, who have a right from the frame of their nature, to knowledge, as their great Creator who does nothing in vain, has given them understandings, and a desire to know—but besides this they have a right, an indisputable, unalienable, indefeasible divine right to that most dreaded, and envied kind of knowledge, I mean of the characters and conduct of their rulers. Rulers are no more than attorneys, agents and trustees for the people; and if the cause, the interest and trust is insidiously betray’d, or wantonly trifled away, the people have a right to revoke the authority, that they themselves have deputed, and to constitute abler and better agents, attorneys and trustees.” – John Adams, A Dissertation on the Canon and Feudal Law (1765)

Preparedness Notes for Monday — June 21, 2021

June 21st — the Summer Solstice in the northern hemisphere–is the birthday of Rex Applegate (June 21, 1914 – July 14, 1998), author of Kill or Be Killed. He was the friend and mentor of SurvivalBlog’s Field Gear Editor, Pat Cascio — who authored today’s feature article.

—

Last week’s scheduled Senate Judiciary Committee preliminary vote on David “Waco” Chipman for ATF Director was postponed to Thursday of this week (June 24, 2021), without any explanation. Apparently, all of our phone calls to our U.S. Senators are having an effect.  Keep up the pressure to have them reject the horribly anti-gun zealot Chipman. And while you are at it, ask your two U.S. Senators to co-sponsor new legislation to remove all barrel length restrictions from the National Firearms Act (NFA).  That would be an “end run” around the ATF’s proposed rulemaking that would redefine arm braces and unwittingly turn several million American gun owners into felons, overnight. Thanks!

—

I should mention two noteworthy new listings, over at my #1 Son’s SurvivalRealty.com:

and,

Since I’ve been blogging for 15 years, it was inevitable that other websites would pirate SurvivalBlog’s copyrighted work. I’ve of course written many of the requisite “cease and desist” letters, but I have had no response. There are lots of such sites, and since they even pirate my blog’s Top Note posts, they appear to be fully automated. Here are a few examples of the half-dozen frequently pirating sites here in the States:

The latest pirate site that I’ve heard of is interesting: Rester En Vie. (“Stay Alive.”) It is in France, and all of their content is in French. So, not only do they copy SurvivalBlog’s content — no doubt as filler, so that they can sell merchandise — but they’ve gone to the trouble of running our articles through an automatic translator. This auto-translate conversion produces a horribly stilted French text. Ceux salopards! (I know some other French that is more colorful that is also applicable, but I’ll refrain since this is a family-friendly blog.)

Does anyone out there who is reading this know a good copyright attorney that is willing to work on a contingent fee? – JWR

CRKT Jumbones Blackout, by Pat Cascio

As a rule, for an Every Day Carry (EDC) folder, I like a blade between 3.5-inches long and 4-inches long. That length just seems to fit my daily needs more than anything else does. However, I’m not closed-minded about most things, and I’m always open to new ideas. So, when CRKT sent me the new Jumbones Blackout for a possible article, I wasn’t all that excited about it. “Gee, another long-blade folder that I won’t carry…” was my first thought. But I was wrong! But that was simply a first impression, and in short order, I changed my mind, and thought to myself “Why didn’t I request a sample of this folder, immediately?”

The original Jumbones was quite the folder, got one, and love it. The Jumbones, is designed by Jeff Park, in Hawaii. He is under the tutelage of Ken Onion, probably one of America’s most well-known custom knife makers. If anyone is familiar with Ken Onion’s designs, you know he knows his stuff. He comes out with more new designs all the time – and I don’t know how he does it…his brain must feel like it is ready to explode at times, with all the information locked-up inside.Continue reading“CRKT Jumbones Blackout, by Pat Cascio”

Recipe of the Week: Joe T.’s Chocolate Pudding or Pie Filling

The following recipe for Chocolate Pudding or Pie Filling is from SurvivalBlog reader Joe T., This makes enough for one large pie or six chocolate pudding servings.

Ingredients
  • 1 cup of sugar
  • 3/4 cup cocoa
  • 2-1/2 cup milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 5 tablespoons of corn starch mixed with 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla
Directions
  1. Heat all except corn starch and vanilla.
  2. Just before boiling, add corn starch and vanilla.
  3. Stir with wire whisk for one minute while boiling.
  4. When it thickens, pour into pie crust or individual serving dishes.
  5. Let cool before eating.
  6. Top with whipped cream, and serve.

—

Do you have a favorite 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 and slow cooker recipes, and any 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. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. Most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at market reactions to recent Federal Reserve signals. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)

Precious Metals:

Why is gold down nearly $100 after Fed shakes up markets?

o  o  o

Neils Christensen: Panic selling in gold could last a little longer as Wall Street turns bearish on gold, but many look to buy the dip. Here is an excerpt:

“The Federal Reserve unleashed considerable panic in the precious metals market. While there is still some bullish sentiment in the marketplace, some market analysts say that it could take some time for gold to work through all the selling pressure.

The latest Kitco News Weekly Gold Survey results show that sentiment in the precious metals market has dramatically shifted as the gold ends the week down $100. The yellow metal is seeing its worst weekly performance since March 13, 2020, when financial markets collapsed due to the spreading COVID-19 pandemic.

Sentiment among retail investors is at its lowest point since early April when gold prices were just starting their two-month rally.”

Economy & Finance:

ING: US household wealth surged $20tn despite the pandemic.

o  o  o

At Zero Hedge:  Feels Like 1977: Inflation Too High, Money Too Loose.

o  o  o

CNN: Major US mall owner files for bankruptcy.

o  o  o

At Activist Post: Unemployed Households Can Earn $25/Hour on Welfare in 21 States, New Study Finds.

o  o  o

Democrats planning $6T spending bill that sidesteps Republican support. JWR’s Comment:  It takes someone with a really special statist agenda to phrase a headline that way.

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

Preparedness Notes for Sunday — June 20, 2021

June 20th the anniversary of the 2013 death of novelist Vince Flynn. (Born April 6, 1966, died June 19, 2013.) His death at age 47 was a loss to the literary world.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 95 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three-day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (a $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, that have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  4. An Israeli CBRN Gas Mask with Hydration Straw and two Extra 40mm NATO Filter s – Manufactured in 2020 (a $229.99 value), courtesy of McGuire Army-Navy.
  5. Naturally Cozy is donating a “Prepper Pack” Menstrual Kit.  This kit contains 18 pads and it comes vacuum-sealed for long term storage or slips easily into a bugout bag.  The value of this kit is $220.
  6. An assortment of products along with a one-hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. Siege Stoves is generously donating a SIEGE® STOVE kit, including a Titanium Gen 3 Flat-Pack Stove with titanium Cross-Members and a variety of bonus items including a Large Folding Grill, a pair of Side Toasters, a Compact Fire Poker, and an extra set of stainless steel universal Cross-Members. (In all, a $200 value.)
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. A transferable $150 purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Round 95 ends on July 31st, 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.