The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods:

24

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”.  Today, we look at the Liberty State movement that would partition eastern Washington from the counties west of the Cascades.

Liberty State Movement Ignored by MSM

The mainstream media (MSM) is paying just nugatory attention to the Liberty State Movement. This is the grassroots movement that would partition eastern Washington from the counties west of the Cascades. The new 51st state would be called Liberty. The MSM often soft-pedals the movement’s quiet, growing strength. There are frequent meetings, but these are often ignored or down-played by local ane regional media. And the grievances of those living on “The Dry Side” of Washington are rarely mentioned by the mass media–which is dominated by leftists. I encourage all SurvivalBlog readers living in central and eastern Washington to get involved. The first step is encouraging your County Commissioners to pass pro-Liberty State partition resolutions.

Hong Kong’s Protesters Versus the Surveillance State

Hong Kong’s protesters find ways to outwit the surveillance state.  Here is a brief quote:

“Protests that expanded over the past week against a bill allowing extraditions to mainland China were marked by something unprecedented: A coordinated effort by demonstrators to leave no trace for authorities and their enhanced tracking systems.

Protesters used only secure digital messaging apps such as Telegram, and otherwise went completely analogue in their movements: buying single ride subway tickets instead of prepaid stored value cards, forgoing credit cards and mobile payments in favor of cash, and taking no selfies or photos of the chaos.

They wore face masks to obscure themselves from CCTVs and in fear of facial recognition software, and bought fresh pay-as-you-go SIM cards.

And, unlike the pro-democracy movement in 2014, the latest demonstrations also have remained intentionally leaderless in another attempt to frustrate police, who have used tear gas and rubber bullets against the crowds.”

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

2

“And they came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes.

And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit,

Who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains:

Because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him.

And always, night and day, he was in the mountains, and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones.

But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him,

And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not.

For he said unto him, Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit.

And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many.

And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country.

Now there was there nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine feeding.

And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them.

And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea, (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea.

And they that fed the swine fled, and told it in the city, and in the country. And they went out to see what it was that was done.

And they come to Jesus, and see him that was possessed with the devil, and had the legion, sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid.

And they that saw it told them how it befell to him that was possessed with the devil, and also concerning the swine.

And they began to pray him to depart out of their coasts.

And when he was come into the ship, he that had been possessed with the devil prayed him that he might be with him.

Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but saith unto him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee.

And he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him: and all men did marvel.

And when Jesus was passed over again by ship unto the other side, much people gathered unto him: and he was nigh unto the sea.

And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet,

And besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live.

And Jesus went with him; and much people followed him, and thronged him.” – Mark 5:1-24 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Saturday — June 22, 2019

During World War II, the U.S. 10th Army overcame the last major pockets of Japanese resistance on Okinawa Island on June 22nd, 1945, ending one of the bloodiest battles of World War II. The same day, Japanese Lieutenant General Mitsuru Ushijima, the commander of Okinawa’s defense, committed suicide with a number of Japanese officers and troops rather than surrender.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 83  of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3,000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any 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 (an $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 gift certificate from Quantum Harvest LLC (up to a $2,200 value) good for 12% off the purchase of any of their sun-tracking models, and 10% off the purchase price of any of their other models.
  2. 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.
  3. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. 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).
  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. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Round 83 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.

4H Shooting Sports, by Zoe Harris

23

All across the nation, youth are getting exceptional training in firearms and archery. They are being taught how to be safe, responsible hunters. They are interacting with nature and learning about conservation. And all of this is through the 4H Shooting Sports Program and the generosity of sponsors such as Browning, Midway USA, Hornady Ammunition, CZ-USA, Bushnell, The Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP), Savage Arms, White Flyer, Champion Traps and Targets, Archery Advocates Association, SCI Foundation, National Shooting Sports Foundation, Hodgdon, NWTF, Whitetails Unlimited, Vista Outdoor, and Federal Premium Ammunition. Youth shooters are taught by instructors that are educated and certified in a 12-hour course. One of the goals of Shooting Sports is to provide youth the opportunity for partnerships with caring adults who can encourage, support and help the youth to reach their fullest potential in life.

There are 400,000 kids in shooting sports across the USA and 4,387 kids enrolled in 4H Shooting Sports in the state of South Dakota. Out of the total number of youth enrolled in the program of 4H (9,441) half are in Shooting Sports, which is a very good ratio, and the strongest in the nation. South Dakota is a huge hunting state, which means that we have lots of guns. It’s a part of our culture, and more guns equal more opportunities for firearm accidents. That’s why Shooting Sports is such a good program in rural areas to educate our youth about safe handling of guns and ethical hunting practices. Some say that hunting is “inhumane” and “barbaric”. In all reality, they are the complete opposite. Hunting is actually a form of conservation. In managing the population of game animals, you are ensuring that there is adequate food supply and that’s there is only so many animals per acre to make sure that the animals have the best quality of life possible.

Continue reading“4H Shooting Sports, by Zoe Harris”

Editors’ Prepping Progress

24

To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make long-term and short-term plans. Steadily, we work on meeting our prepping goals. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities. They also often share their planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, property improvements, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year. We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in the Comments. Let’s keep busy and be ready!

Jim Reports:

I took some of my own advice and bought another box of five Baofeng UV-5R transceivers.  For the next few months I predict that they yield better returns than money in the bank.

Since I was so busy writing the book manuscript for Carlton Publishing, I didn’t have much time for many outdoor activities. But I did take advantage of some cooler weather to do some turkey slaughtering and butchering.

Now I need to finish up my firewood cutting and hauling project for the summer. We have plenty of downed larch and red fir that was either deadfall or purposely cut in the past two years. But it needs to be cut to stove length, hauled, and stacked under cover.

Continue reading“Editors’ Prepping Progress”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

1

“Deliver me from mine enemies, O my God: defend me from them that rise up against me.

Deliver me from the workers of iniquity, and save me from bloody men.

For, lo, they lie in wait for my soul: the mighty are gathered against me; not for my transgression, nor for my sin, O Lord.

They run and prepare themselves without my fault: awake to help me, and behold.

Thou therefore, O Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel, awake to visit all the heathen: be not merciful to any wicked transgressors. Selah.

They return at evening: they make a noise like a dog, and go round about the city.

Behold, they belch out with their mouth: swords are in their lips: for who, say they, doth hear?

But thou, O Lord, shalt laugh at them; thou shalt have all the heathen in derision.

Because of his strength will I wait upon thee: for God is my defence.

The God of my mercy shall prevent me: God shall let me see my desire upon mine enemies.

Slay them not, lest my people forget: scatter them by thy power; and bring them down, O Lord our shield.

For the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips let them even be taken in their pride: and for cursing and lying which they speak.

Consume them in wrath, consume them, that they may not be: and let them know that God ruleth in Jacob unto the ends of the earth. Selah.

And at evening let them return; and let them make a noise like a dog, and go round about the city.

Let them wander up and down for meat, and grudge if they be not satisfied.

But I will sing of thy power; yea, I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning: for thou hast been my defence and refuge in the day of my trouble.

Unto thee, O my strength, will I sing: for God is my defence, and the God of my mercy.” – Psalm 59 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Friday — June 21, 2019

June 21st 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.

—

Today is the Summer Solstice. Here at our latitude, the nights are incredibly short, at or near the solstice. We have difficulty getting enough sleep. (It doesn’t get full dark until nearly 11 PM, and then dawn begins soon after 4 AM.) It is not quite like living up at Sommarøy, but close. I will actually be happy to have the days shorten, in the coming weeks!

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 83  of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3,000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any 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 (an $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 gift certificate from Quantum Harvest LLC (up to a $2,200 value) good for 12% off the purchase of any of their sun-tracking models, and 10% off the purchase price of any of their other models.
  2. 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.
  3. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. 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).
  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. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Round 83 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.

Surviving a Move to the Middle of Nowhere, by Ozarks S.

14

One women’s view on leaving the city behind and enduring tough lessons of love in training to become a “warrior mom.”

The Move

Moving from the city to the middle of the woods has done a lot to change my thinking on preparedness. I have studied survival training, read all the JWR (James Wesley, Rawles) novels, and practically majored in understanding the preparedness movement, from the reasonable to the extreme. However, reading and living are two very different things. My dear husband and son have been helping me to improve in areas that I have less exposure. They have both exhibited great patience and perseverance, and for this I am grateful and blessed.

I’ll begin with a quote:

“If you are serious about preparedness, then it is time to get out of your armchair and start training and preparing. It will take time. It will take some sweat. It will take money. But once you’ve prepared, you can sleep well, knowing that you’ve done your best to protect and provide for your family, regardless of what the future brings. Don’t get stuck in the rut of simply *studying* preparedness. Unless the shelves in your pantry and garage are filling with supplies, and unless you are growing muscles and calluses, you are not preparing.” – James Wesley, Rawles

Capable of Learning

To be clear, I am capable of learning. I left behind a high-level position in the medical equipment field some years ago to become a mother and to then homeschool our son. I am capable of scholarship and have advanced degrees. But to be honest, I could not seem to “learn” a protection mindset when it came to self-defense.Continue reading“Surviving a Move to the Middle of Nowhere, by Ozarks S.”

Economics & Investing For Preppers

17

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. And it bears mention that most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at investing in AR Lowers. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)

Precious Metals:

Gold at 14-Month High Heading into FOMC Meeting Next Week

o  o  o

Eight Reasons a Huge Gold Mania Is About to Begin

o  o  o

And for the leftist-globalist perspective, there is this discussion at CNBC: Traders discuss why gold is near highs as dollar also rallies.

Economy & Finance:

Walmart’s Desperate $3.3 Billion Acquisition of Jet.com Fails. But it Now Discloses its US Online Sales, and They’re Big

o  o  o

Reader H.L. sent this: PG&E’s bankruptcy: Renewable energy costs at 800% of market rates. H.L.’s Comment: Another nail in California’s coffin. How very sad. JWR’s Comment: Here is where Liberal Feel Good intentions conflict with common sense. I won’t be surprised to see electricity rates jump to 40 cents per  kilowatt hour in California, within two years. Here in the American Redoubt we are still paying under 10 cents per kilowatt hour.

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

Preparedness Notes for Thursday — June 20, 2019

June 20th is the birthday of Audie L. Murphy. He was born in 1925. He died in a plane crash on May 28, 1971. This is also the anniversary of the 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.

—

I just heard that Ready Made Resources has started another AN/PVS-14 night vision sale: Photonis PVS-14 Autogated WHITE PHOSPHOR ECHO SPEC tube “Onyx” P-45 On Sale $2,599.  These are 4G scopes with a 10-year warranty.

—

Today’s brief feature article is by SurvivalBlog’s founder, James Wesley, Rawles (JWR).

The Baofeng Sales Ban Countdown Continues

71

Here is a reminder on an upcoming rule change by the FCC:  On September 30, 2019, it will become illegal to sell or “offer for sale” (advertise) radios like the popular Baofeng UV-5R that can operate in the FRS radio band (462.5625 – 462.7250 MHz) and any other licensed band in a single device. Manufacturers will have to either quit selling them or block out the FRS bands–like they already do for the current cellular bands. This is the relevant verbiage:

§ 95.591 Sales of FRS combination radios prohibited.

Effective September 30, 2019, no person shall sell or offer for sale hand-held portable radio equipment capable of operating under this subpart (FRS) and under any other licensed or licensed-by-rule radio services in this chapter (devices may be authorized under this subpart with part 15 unlicensed equipment authorizations).

I strongly recommend stocking up on dual band Baofeng UV-5R handie-talkies before this regulatory change takes place. Presently, if bought in a set of five, the cost per transceiver is only around $23 each, postage paid.  By law, these may still be bought by any adult. But a license is needed to operate them outside of the no-license FRS, GMRS, and MURS bands. (That is, in the amateur operators’ bands.)

Note that this upcoming ban WILL NOT be a ban on the possession or use of FRS dual band ham radios. Nor will be it be illegal to gift them to other adults. Hence, any that are legally owned on or before September 30th will effectively become “grandfathered”. Read between the lines folks: The FCC doesn’t want non-licensed individuals to own radios that can transmit in both licensed bands and unlicensed bands. My supposition is that this is because in the long term they don’t want unlicensed folks to have plausible deniability for toting around ham band-capable gear. Ironically, it was a few boot-licking sycophants within the ham community that pushed for this rule change. Often, people jealously guard their own privileges and want to deny privileges to others who are not in their elite clique. This is essentially a Country Club Members mentality.

So, reiterating my advice: Buy a box of five of these, or perhaps two boxes, while they are still readily available and affordable. The FCC rule change won’t go into effect until September 30, 2019. But if you wait until July or August, then it will probably be too late. It is very likely that by then they will be sold out, or their price will escalate. But for now, they can be had for just $23 per transceiver. Within another month or so, they will be history.  The countdown clock is ticking. Don’t hesitate on this one.

Also note that there will also be some room for profit from the upcoming ban. It is safe to assume that just in the months of August and September, you may be able to double your money, if you decide to sell off any of your spare “new in package” UV-5R transceivers. But starting September 30th, you will only be able to give them away–not advertise or sell them.

Update: Several readers wrote to mention that there are a few other more capable but still quite affordable Baofeng models that will also become import-banned on September 30th. These include:

Regardless of the model that you choose, I recommend getting one spare battery (preferably the long 3800mAh capacity one), and at least one spare antenna per transceiver. The latter, because the Baofeng  antennas are notoriously fragile.

For Baofeng frequency programming instructions (both from the keypad, and “off-board” with a CHIRP cable and PC), see this web page.

I hope that your readers find this information useful, and that you act on it. Again, the clock is ticking. – JWR

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods:

22

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”. Today, we look at the Army’s plans to develop a new high velocity SMG. Instead of a Trench Broom, the Army now wants a Room Broom.

Brits Handing Out ‘Blunt’ Knives to Reduce Stabbings

Reader H.L. sent this news: British Police Handing Out ‘Blunt’ Knives To Reduce Stabbings

The First Pinterest Whistleblower Speaks Out

Project Veritas Features – Pinterest Insider Speaks Out: “The tech companies can’t fight us all”

And here are some details and leaked documents showing how Pinterest actively blocked Christian and conservative content: Pinterest Bans Zero Hedge By Adding To “Porn Domain Block List” Used To Target Conservatives.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

3

“Let us hope our weapons are never needed – but do not forget what the common people of this nation knew when they demanded the Bill of Rights: An armed citizenry is the first defense, the best defense, and the final defense against tyranny.” – Edward Abbey

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — June 19, 2019

June 19, 1834 was the birthday of Charles Haddon (C.H.) Spurgeon, who died 31 January 1892. He was a British Particular Baptist preacher.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 83  of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3,000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any 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 (an $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 gift certificate from Quantum Harvest LLC (up to a $2,200 value) good for 12% off the purchase of any of their sun-tracking models, and 10% off the purchase price of any of their other models.
  2. 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.
  3. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. 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).
  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. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Round 83 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.