Preparedness Notes for Saturday — November 21, 2020

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On November 21, 1916, Britannic, the sister ship to the Titanic, sinks in the Aegean Sea, killing 30 people. In the wake of the Titanic disaster, the White Star line had made significant modifications to the design of the ship, but on its way to pick up wounded soldiers near the Gulf of Athens, it was rocked by an explosion causing even more damage than that which had sunk the Titanic. Many of the dead were from some of the crew who attempted to launch lifeboats while the Captain tried to run the ship aground. The lifeboats were sucked up into the propellers, killing all of those on board. The cause of the explosion is still unknown, but many suspect it hit a mine.

—

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.

Seed Saving Tips – Part 2, by St. Funogas

14

(Continued from Part 1.)

The first step in processing harvested seeds is to remove them from whatever the plant has stored them in. Many seeds are encased in small dry seed pods, or fine seed heads, either of which can be rubbed between your hands to separate the seeds out. This creates a lot of dust and detritus which must be removed by using some of the equipment mentioned above or other various methods. Larger dry pods, like beans and peas, can often be opened and the seeds easily stripped out while the pods are tossed aside.

Seeds from many fleshy-fruited plants such as cucumbers, tomatoes, and squash can be removed with some of the pulp, soaked in water for 48 hours, then more easily separated out. Using this fermentation method can kill many of the pathogens tomatoes are prone to, but not all.

A large portion of the seeds I collect require screens for separating the chaff from the seeds. When using screens, sometimes the seed falls through, sometimes the chaff falls through leaving the seeds on top, and sometimes a little of both. It depends on what kind of seed you are working with and the more experience you get, the better idea you’ll have of which methods and screens to use for each seed type.

Some Seed Cleaning Examples

Following are some examples of each seed-cleaning method I use.

The first example uses buckwheat. Buckwheat has a fairly large angular seed, slightly smaller than a pea. They are easily harvested by grabbing handfuls of dry material from the tops of the plants and putting them into the harvest bucket. When I have enough to process, I reach into the bucket and roll everything between my hands until the seeds are more or less separated from the stems. Photo 6 shows what they look like after I finish this process. You’ll notice there are large pieces of chaff, seeds, and lots of finer particles of dust and detritus.Continue reading“Seed Saving Tips – Part 2, by St. Funogas”

Editors’ Prepping Progress

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To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make long-term and short-term plans. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities and planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, ranch improvements, bug out bag fine-tuning, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year. Note that as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in the Comments. Let’s keep busy and be ready!

Jim Reports:

This past week, I snowplowed our road and parking area twice. I just wish the weather would make up its mind. Alternating rain and snow is depressing. I’d rather have it just consistently snow once a week, for a couple of months, with the temps staying below freezing. That would be best for our family’s X-C skiing and snowshoeing

I’ve kept busy, packing orders and adding antique guns to the online catalog of Elk Creek Company.  We have a Friday of Color Sale planned for November 26th and 27th, 2020. I will be traveling all of the month of December, so be sure to get your order in by midnight on the 27th!

It just struck me:  Anyone who enlisted or was commissioned shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and stayed on active duty or in the Reserve or National Guard is now very close to their 20-year retirement threshold. (September of 2021.) Wow!  There is nothing like an endless war of counterinsurgency to grind down a military fighting force.

I resigned my commission when I was a Captain (O-3). That was on January 20, 1993, the same day that Bill Clinton was sworn in. I wonder how different my life would have been if I had opted to stay on active duty.  Many of my friends who stayed in retired as full Colonels around their 20-year-marks. Soon, I may hear of promotions to O-7 or higher, from those who stuck it out to age 60.

Enough reminiscing. I’m handing this over to Lily…

Continue reading“Editors’ Prepping Progress”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of the Medes, which was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans;

In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.

And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes:

And I prayed unto the Lord my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments;

We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments:

Neither have we hearkened unto thy servants the prophets, which spake in thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.

O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far off, through all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against thee.

O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against thee.

To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against him;

Neither have we obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.

Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even by departing, that they might not obey thy voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against him.

And he hath confirmed his words, which he spake against us, and against our judges that judged us, by bringing upon us a great evil: for under the whole heaven hath not been done as hath been done upon Jerusalem.

As it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil is come upon us: yet made we not our prayer before the Lord our God, that we might turn from our iniquities, and understand thy truth.

Therefore hath the Lord watched upon the evil, and brought it upon us: for the Lord our God is righteous in all his works which he doeth: for we obeyed not his voice.

And now, O Lord our God, that hast brought thy people forth out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and hast gotten thee renown, as at this day; we have sinned, we have done wickedly.

O Lord, according to all thy righteousness, I beseech thee, let thine anger and thy fury be turned away from thy city Jerusalem, thy holy mountain: because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and thy people are become a reproach to all that are about us.

Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord’s sake.

O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies.

O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for thine own sake, O my God: for thy city and thy people are called by thy name.

And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the Lord my God for the holy mountain of my God;

Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation.

And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding.

At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to shew thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision.

Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.

Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.

And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.

And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.” – Daniel 9 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Friday — November 20, 2020

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National Sovereignty Day (Spanish: Día de la Soberanía Nacional) is a national public holiday in Argentina, celebrated each year on November 20th. It commemorates the Battle of Vuelta de Obligado, when a small Argentine army stood against an Anglo-French navy that broke into the Paraná River, against the will of the Argentine Confederation. Although the battle itself ended with an Argentine defeat, the losses of Britain and France in the whole military campaign were so high that both countries were forced to the bargaining table and signed a treaty with Juan Manuel de Rosas. The day was enacted as a national observance in 1974, following a request from the revisionist historian José María Rosa, and promoted into a national holiday in 2010.

—

On November 2, 1920, the radio station KDKA in Pittsburgh produced what is often cited as the world’s first commercial broadcast. However, it is noteworthy that an experimental station in San Jose, California was operated by Charles “Doc” Herrold, much earlier.  Herrold started broadcasting daily from 1909 to 1917 — long before the advent of KDKA. He began playing record albums on the air in 1912. Herrold’s station was licensed as KQW (in 1921) and later KCBS. In the fall of 1916, after the De Forest Radio Telephone & Telegraph Company began operating an experimental radio station, 2XG, in New York City. They were the first broadcaster to operating commercially, airing advertisements.

—

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.

Seed Saving Tips – Part 1, by St. Funogas

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This is not a how-to article, but rather a few tips on what I do to save seeds each year. I’m hoping we all can share ideas in the comments section to help us all become more proficient seed savers.

My first experience at saving seeds happened when I was nine years old. I grew lots of sweet corn in my little garden and decided I better save some seed for the next year. I let it dry enough so I could remove the kernels from the cob then stored them in a green candy tin. A few months later when I opened the tin, there was nothing but a large multi-colored mass of various fungi and my seeds were a total loss. I’m surprised the lid hadn’t blown off. Hence I learned Rule Number One early: always let seeds dry sufficiently before storing. Fortunately, I’ve learned many other seed-saving tips since that time.

First, A Little Botanical Enlightenment

Botanically, fruit is a ripened ovary. Much of the produce we call vegetables is actually fruit. If it has seeds it’s a fruit, if not it’s a vegetable. Tomatoes, squash, pumpkins, peppers, okra, eggplant, etc., all have seeds making them a fruit. In some cases, the only part of the fruit we eat is the seeds such as peas, dry beans, and walnuts. Any produce coming from the vegetative parts of the plant are vegetables. Radishes, carrots, beets, and turnips are roots. Celery and rhubarb are leaf stalks while asparagus and potatoes (yes, potatoes) are stems. Sometimes fruit is fleshy like peaches, plums, pears, and pomegranates, and sometimes fruit is dry such as pecans, peanuts, and pearl millet. Sometimes it’s something in between.

The majority of the plants we see around us produce flowers and have covered seeds. Only a few of the higher plants have naked seeds (not covered by the ovary) such as conifers. If you see a “naked seed” from a flower-bearing plant, those are not the seeds even though we refer to them as such, but are actually a type of dry fruit. These include things such as sunflowers and most other daisy-type flowers, and umbelliferous plants such as celery, carrots, cumin, and cilantro.

A fun fact: what we call the strawberry “fruit” is technically not a fruit at all but a part of the flower base called the receptacle. Since seeds from flowering plants are never naked, each “seed” on the outside of a strawberry is actually an individual dry fruit called an achene. Apples are another exception. What you eat is a fleshy receptacle and when you get down to the core, that’s the actual fruit. When you cut an apple along its equator, you can see the distinct line separating the receptacle from the fruit.

For the sake of keeping things simple, I’m going to refer to dry fruits like marigolds, buckwheat, and cumin as “seeds” even though we’ve just learned that these are actually fruits. 

Seed Collecting

There are many different ways to collect seed and each kind has certain requirements. Many seeds we separate out as we are preparing the fruit to eat such as squash, or while eating such as watermelon, so there isn’t any actual collecting involved. Other seeds require that we let the fruit ripen beyond prime eating stage, such as cucumbers. Cucumbers for eating and pickling are best when the seeds are underdeveloped and not yet large and hard. When harvesting cucumber seeds, we have to leave a few cukes on the vine until they turn from green to yellow to a dark yellow/brown. Only at that stage are the seeds mature enough to be viable.Continue reading“Seed Saving Tips – Part 1, by St. Funogas”

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, the prospect of $200 NFA tax stamps for every magazine of more than 10-round capacity. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)

Precious Metals:

2021 gold price target: ‘not wildly bullish, just positive’ – HSBC

o  o  o

Gold And Silver Under The Biden Government

Economy & Finance:

Reader H.L. suggested this at Zero Hedge: Is Another “Crisis” Imminent: The Fed Must Double QE In 2021 But It Needs A Catalyst

o  o  o

Peter Schiff: American Retirees Drowning in Debt

o  o  o

And at Wolf Street: Wild Ride for Used Cars & Trucks in Weirdest Economy Ever

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“The most dangerous man to any government is the man who is able to think things out for himself, without regard to the prevailing superstitions and taboos. Almost inevitably he comes to the conclusion that the government he lives under is dishonest, insane, and intolerable.” – H.L. Mencken

Preparedness Notes for Thursday — November 19, 2020

On this day in 1863, U.S. President Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address, at the dedication service for the National Cemetery in Pennsylvania.

—

My #1 Son asked me to mention that they’re giving away author-signed copies of Survival Retreats and Relocation to four drawing winners.  They are encouraging prize drawing entrants to share about the book with friends and family.

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Less than two weeks remaining, to get your article in, for the judging!

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.

 

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

60

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!

—

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

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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:”