What Happens When You Get Old, by R.F.D.

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I have been blessed with good health and a clear mind these many years. I also have been blessed with inherited traits, or maybe they were learned, which have allowed me to pursue interesting (for me) activities outside my job during my working career. These activities have mainly revolved around becoming self-sufficient, physically capable, working with my hands, and clear thinking. Another trait that may be good or bad is, I tend to be quite obsessive when, I,m picking up a new skill.

I was fortunate in being born late in the Great Depression and having parents who were brought up on the farm. My father was a Michigan Conservation Officer and an avid sportsman. When I was young, a Conservation Officer did not make much money, so hunting and fishing were part of our life. We also had to make many things ourselves because we couldn’t afford to purchase them. Don’t get me wrong here, in the small Northern Michigan town we lived in, most people were in the same boat financially as we were.

Some of skills that I picked up while still living with my parents:

  • Firearm safety skills.
  • Small and large game hunting skills.
  • Fishing skills.
  • Wild game butchering skills, you caught it or shot it, you cleaned it.
  • Foraging for food. (primarily low bush blueberries, blackberries, and morel mushrooms).
  • Cooking skills, everyone in my family learned how to cook at an early age.
  • Camping skills, both locally on the river and in Canada.
  • Was active in High School sports, football, basketball, and track. Some baseball outside of school.
  • I was also a meat cutter during the 4 years of High School, yea, I know, but back then if you were 15 years old, you could work behind the meat counter, use a boning knife, meat cleaver, meat saw, slicer etc., if you were lucky enough to get the job.
  • Being Bull-Headed or stubborn is also a plus, I guess.

What do you do when you get old and hope to survive a few more years in reasonable comfort and security? What are the things that you have done or have acquired that will help in that desire? What things does one really need when you are getting there?Continue reading“What Happens When You Get Old, by R.F.D.”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

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SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— 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. Today, we take another look at invasive Murder Hornets.

Chicago Charts the COVID-19 Comorbidities

Our Editor-At-Large Michael Z. Williamson sent us this data from Cook County, Illinois: Corona Comorbidities.

Are There More Murder Hornet Nests?

Reader C.B. spotted this troubling news: Destruction of murder hornets nest doesn’t end threat. The article begins thusly:

“When scientists in Washington state destroyed the first nest of so-called murder hornets found in the U.S., they discovered about 500 live specimens in various stages of development, officials said Tuesday.

Among them were nearly 200 queens that had the potential to start their own nests, said Sven-Erik Spichiger, an entomologist leading the fight to kill the hornets.

“We got there just in the nick of time,″ he said.

Still, that didn’t end the threat from the that can deliver painful though rarely deadly stings to people and wipe out entire hives of honey bees.

Scientists think other nests already exist and say it’s impossible to know if any queens escaped before the first was destroyed.

Asian giant hornets, an invasive pest not native to the U.S., are the world’s largest at 2 inches (5 centimeters) long, and a predator of other insects, including the honey bees that pollinate many of the crops in Washington’s multi-billion-dollar agriculture industry.”

Trump Lawyer Sidney Powell Predicts Court Action on Election

H.L. was the first of several readers to send us this: Trump Lawyer Sidney Powell: “We’re Getting Ready To Overturn Election Results In Multiple States”.

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

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — November 18, 2020

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On this day in 1978, Peoples Temple founder Jim Jones led hundreds of his followers in a mass murder-suicide at their agricultural commune in a remote part of the South American nation of Guyana. This incredibly tragic occurrence introduced the term “…drink the Kool-Aid” into modern parlance, since poison-laced punch was the vehicle behind most of the deaths. This serves as a stark warning and reminder to those in the prepping/survivalist community who would join with like-minded friends under the leadership of a charismatic leader. Always know who you are following!

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 91 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 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. 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.
  5. 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. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  4. 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 91 ends on November 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.

The Modern Possibles Bag, by Steve in Missouri

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In recent times, we’ve seen cities burn due to riots and violent protests, fights in stores over others wearing masks, increased crime in some of the major cities, all the while law enforcement across the country is vilified and constrained by their local leaders. Some cities have cut police budgets, which will reduce response times and necessary resources to solve crimes. Anymore, dialing ‘911’ may or may not bring help in time! Meanwhile, criminals continue unabated, secure in the knowledge that corrupt politicians will support them, and in many cases encourage their illicit activities.

More and more Americans have realized this and are becoming more self-reliant. Much like the original pioneers, the concept of being able to call for help is becoming a foreign concept. Having your necessary items ready at a moment’s notice is not new. The Mountain Men, the ‘Minutemen’ of the American colonies, all had a ‘possibles’ bag to carry along with their rifle. This would contain everything needed to fight with. The same thing is becoming a necessity today, and the smart individuals will have one with them.

The question then becomes, what to put in it? Remember this is not a bug out bag, which is what we have for when we’re not planning on coming back for a long period of time. Nor is it a dedicated rifle fighting bag that will have minimal extras outside of rifle magazines, a couple of pistol magazines, some medical gear, and that’s it. Your possible bag will have a variety of things that will allow us to get back home in a day or so, or hunker down in place for a little while.

We’re assuming that in this case you have your rifle with you. This could be an AR, an AK, an FAL, an M1 carbine, a PTR91, or whichever fighting rifle you choose. We’re also assuming you have your pistol with you, because if you have pants on, you should have your pistol on. I’ll tell you about my gear, and why I chose those items.

Rifle: this is a Wilson Combat SR Recon Tactical, with an Aimpoint CompM4 red dot sight, and a Surefire X300 600 lumen weaponlight. This was a gift from some dear friends, and is one of the best AR rifles I’ve had. The Aimpoint CompM4 was chosen because it uses common AA batteries, and has a battery life of 5 years. The Surefire light uses CR123 batteries, but isn’t used unless needed. Spare batteries for each are kept in the pistol grip.

Handgun: Glock 19 9mm semi auto. It’s pretty universal, magazines and parts are everywhere. Small enough to conceal all the time, large enough to be comfortable to shoot. It’s carried in a strongside Kydex hip holster from AAA Concealment, along with two magazines in a double magazine carrier from the same maker. The owner, Greg Yen, is a firearms instructor and successful competition shooter, and makes simple but solid gear.Continue reading“The Modern Possibles Bag, by Steve in Missouri”

JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:

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Here are JWR’s Recommendations of the Week for various media and tools of interest to SurvivalBlog readers. The focus is usually on emergency communications gear, bug out bag gear, books, and movies–often with a tie-in to disaster preparedness, and links to “how-to” self-sufficiency videos. There is also an emphasis on links to sources for storage food and a variety of storage and caching containers. You will also note an emphasis on history books and historical movies. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This week the focus is on the film music of the late Maestro Ennio Morricone. (See the Music section.)

Books:

Good news! The 2021 edition has been released: A Guide Book of United States Coins 2021

o  o  o

41st Edition: Blue Book of Gun Values

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The Declaration Of Independence, United States Constitution, Bill Of Rights & Amendments

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This book was written by a SurvivalBlog readers:  How to Build an Igloo – and Other Snow Shelters. (Norton Books, 2007.)  The author wrote me with this description:

“It is available through Amazon and other sources.  The book was written based (at time of publication) on nearly a decade of instructing snow shelter construction.  This year will be my 21st year of instructing a family-friendly igloo building workshop at the Montshire Museum of Science in Norwich, Vermont.  Annually the event draws well over 1,000 participants from throughout New England.

In the book and through workshops, I emphasize two things: “make friends with winter” and “appropriate structure for given snow conditions”.  The workshop and book are intended for a wide audience — from  wilderness/outdoor enthusiast, hunter, snowmobiler, and family groups/homeschoolers.  I emphasize safety, and team building.  I also emphasize that this activity, while a great winter survival education, it is a fun low/no cost activity that a family can perform together — right in the backyard. It can be used as a platform for teaching other survival skills, self-reliance, teamwork, etc.”

Continue reading“JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Under Biden, expect the economic crash to speed up dramatically. Biden will initiate Level 4 lockdowns nationwide within weeks of becoming president and this will cause the destruction of the small business sector, which is already barely hanging on for dear life. The globalists will have to bring down the economy faster under Biden so that they can claim the crash is a residual effect of the Trump Administration. If they wait too long, the blame will fall on Biden and by extension the globalists.

Level 4 lockdowns would also help prevent conservatives from relocating to more friendly states and regions. And, they would help prevent conservatives from congregating in large groups and organizing resistance to leftist policies.

Censorship of conservative voices and platforms will have to accelerate under Biden as well, because the more conservatives are able to share information in real time, the more galvanized they will become and the more confident they will be in refusing to submit to pandemic restrictions (among other things). I believe that web service providers will start directly censoring conservative websites that use their servers. Sites like mine will be removed from the web entirely, or filtered out completely by search algorithms.

Finally, under Biden there will be an immediate call for draconian gun control measures and perhaps even gun confiscation. This will be done by executive order, and it is likely that Red Flag laws will be used. A leftist or globalist agenda cannot progress while conservatives are armed. It is impossible. No one will go along with pandemic restrictions in conservative leaning states. No one will agree to carbon controls. No one will adopt new and insane hate speech laws designed by social justice lunatics.

A Biden presidency would galvanize and unify conservative groups more than anything in recent history. Eventually, conservatives will revolt (including many in the military and law enforcement) and there will be nothing leftists or globalists can do about it. Disarmament would have to happen quickly.” – Brandon Smith, in his Alt-Market blog.

Tips for Moving to the Country, by The Novice

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Civil unrest has rocked many American cities. Looting, arson, assault and murder are common. As a result, a growing flood of refugees is fleeing the cities and their surrounding suburbs in order to seek safety in more rural settings. For those of you who may be voting with your feet in this way, I have gathered some tips regarding moving to the country. These tips deal primarily with unfamiliar things you may experience in a rural setting, and how to best respond to them.

SurvivalBlog readers with experience living in the country are encouraged to supplement my list in the comments section with tips of their own.

Situation 1: Your spouse exclaims, “Look, the neighbors are shooting guns out behind their barn!”

Bad Responses:

  1. Reply, “Call 911.”
  2. Reply, “How terrible. Let’s try to get a local nuisance ordinance passed to prevent such behavior in the future.”

Good Response:

  1. Reply, “What a great idea! We should invite them over for dinner, and ask if they would let us sight in our new gun on their range?”

Best Responses:

    1. Reply, “What a great idea! We should invite them over for dinner, and ask if they would help us set up a range behind our barn?”
    2. Reply, “What a great idea! I wonder if they would prefer a box of 9 mm or 45 ACP with the plate of chocolate chip cookies that we are giving them for Christmas?”

Situation 2: Your spouse exclaims, “Look, the neighbors are spreading chicken manure on their garden!”

Bad Responses:

  1. Reply, “Call 911.”
  2. Reply, “How terrible. Let’s try to get a local nuisance ordinance passed to prevent such behavior in the future.”

Good Response:

  1. Reply, “What a great idea! We should invite them over for dinner, and ask where we can get some chicken manure for our garden?”

Best Response:

  1. Reply, “What a great idea! I wonder if we should raise chickens?”

Continue reading“Tips for Moving to the Country, by The Novice”

SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

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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 a car that was apparently driven intentionally through a store. (See the Montana section.)

Idaho

Idaho National Guard mobilized, Idaho back to Stage 2 due to coronavirus spike

o  o  o

Hundreds March Through Downtown Boise In Support Of Trump After Biden Claims Victory

o  o  o

Judge rules to join Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow Daybell’s cases

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“And yet in early democracies, as in American democracy at the time of its birth, all individual human rights were granted on the ground that man is God’s creature. That is, freedom was given to the individual conditionally, in the assumption of his constant religious responsibility. Such was the heritage of the preceding one thousand years. Two hundred or even fifty years ago, it would have seemed quite impossible, in America, that an individual be granted boundless freedom with no purpose, simply for the satisfaction of his whims. Subsequently, however all such limitations were eroded everywhere in the West; a total emancipation occurred from the moral heritage of Christian centuries with their great reserves of mercy and sacrifice. State systems were becoming ever more materialistic. The West has finally achieved the rights of man, and even to excess, but man’s sense of responsibility to God and society has grown dimmer and dimmer.” – Aleksander Solzhenitsyn — Quote from A World Split Apart, Harvard Commencement Address, 1978

Preparedness Notes for Monday — November 16, 2020

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November 16th was the birthday of Michael D. Echanis (born 1950, died September 1978), a former United States Army Special Forces and 75th Ranger Battalion enlisted man. He was awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star with “V” device as a LRRP in the Vietnam War. He was born and raised in eastern Oregon. Echanis was killed while working for the CIA in Nicaragua in 1978 in a plane crash along with his colleague Charles Sanders and members of the Nicaraguan armed forces. There was conjecture that the plane was destroyed in flight by a saboteur’s bomb. My novel Survivors includes a minor character from Oregon with the surname Echanis, as a small homage to Mike Echanis.

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Avalanche Lily wanted me to post these two important “emerging threat” video links:

Ice Age Farmer: “Next Crisis Bigger than COVID” – Power Grid/Finance Down – WEF Cyber Polygon. Pay attention: Klaus Schwab is warning of a huge “Fire Sale” cyber attack. (Yes, a Hollywood movie from 2007 provided the predictive programming.)

and,

Adapt 2030: Work From Home Taxes and Planned Red Meat Phase Out

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Today, another product review from our staff Field Gear Editor,  Pat Cascio.

 

Glock Model 45, by Pat Cascio

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Just as I reached the back of the gun shop that I haunt, one of the owners, Mark, reached into the display case, and asked me: “Have you seen the new Glock forty-five?” Before I could even answer, it was in my hands, and I liked it – a lot. Wow! A single-stack Glock in .45 ACP, and it feels sooo good…” Boy, what I wrong, I should have known better – you can’t tell what a Glock is by the model numbers they assigned to their handguns. I admit that I don’t keep up with all the latest firearms like I used to – just not enough hours in the day for that. So, I had mistakenly believed that this Glock forty-five, was chambered in .45 ACP. Every now and then, the guys at the gun shop pull a “gotcha” moment on me, because they learn about a new handgun before I do.

Needless to say, the new Glock “forty-five”, isn’t chambered in the .45 ACP. Instead, it is chambered in the ubiquitous 9mm Parabellum, but there’s a whole lot more to the story. The gun felt good in my hand, very familiar, to say the least. Had I taken a moment to put on my reading glasses, I would have seen on the slide, that it was marked 9mm, and not .45 ACP. Another thing that caught my eye immediately was that the barrel extended beyond the slide and it is threaded to accept a suppressor. That had me excited. I’ve been thinking hard about getting a sound suppressor for quite some time, even though the Hearing Protection Act has stalled in congress. That proposed law would have treated suppressors much like firearms and removed the Federal registration and the $200 transfer tax.Continue reading“Glock Model 45, by Pat Cascio”

Recipe of the Week: Chicken Pie

The following chicken pie recipe is from The New Butterick Cook Book, by Flora Rose, co-head of the School of Home Economics at Cornell University. It was published in 1924. A professional scan of that 724-page out-of-copyright book will be one of the many bonus items included in the next edition of the waterproof SurvivalBlog Archive USB stick. This special 15th Anniversary Edition USB stick should be available for sale in the third week of January, 2021. The 14th Edition sold out quickly, so place a reminder in your calendar, if you want one.

Ingredients
  • 1 chicken
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Pie paste
  • FIour
  • MiIk
Directions
  1. Clean, singe and cut up chicken as for fricassee.
  2. Place in a kettle and add enough hot water to cover.
  3. Put the cover on the kettle, and simmer slowly until the chicken is tender, adding a little more water if needed.
  4. Make a gravy of the stock, using two tablespoosns flour for each cup of stock.
  5. Use for the crust a good pie paste, rolled a little thicker than for fruit pies or puff paste. Half and half proportions of drippings and chicken fat may be used for the paste.
  6. Line the sides of a deep baking dish with crust
  7. Invert in the middle of the dish a small cup or ramekin.
  8. Put in part of the chicken and season with salt and pepper, then add the rest of the chicken, and season the same way.
  9. Put in the dish two cups or more of the gravy made from broth in which the chicken was cooked.
  10. Cover the top with crust. The cup or ramekin will hold the crust up and will prevent evaporation. Most chicken pie is too dry; therefore, use a generous amount of the broth.
  11. Bake one hour, or until crust is done.
SERVING

When serving, after cutting the first slice carefully slip the knife under the ramekin and release the gravy which is held there by suction. Any gravy left over should be served in a gravy-dish.

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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

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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 the surging price of Bitcoin. (See the Forex & Cryptos section.)

Precious Metals:

Gold, silver see price gains as Covid-19 rages in U.S.

o  o  o

Hub Moolman: Is Silver Leading Bitcoin or is Bitcoin Leading Silver?

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Economy To Shut Down Again This Winter, Says Lobo Tiggre, Investor Who Called Gold Price Drop

Economy & Finance:

The WSJ reports on the presumptive president: The Economy’s Struggles Will Shape Joe Biden’s Presidency

o  o  o

Wolf Richter: Wolf Street “Pickup Truck & Car Price Index” for 2021 Models Crushes Official “CPI for New Vehicles”

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Another from Wolf: Big City Exodus: Rents of Single-Family Houses Rise Across the US, Even as Apartment Rents in Expensive Cities Drop Sharply

o  o  o

And at Zero Hedge: Fed Warns Assets Could Suffer “Significant Declines” If Covid Is Not Contained

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”