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 emphasis 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 are also links to sources for both storage food and storage containers. You will also note an emphasis on history books and historical movies. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This week we again mention the now dwindling supply of BaoFeng UV-5R and UV-5XP handie-talkie radios. (See the Gear & Grub section.)

Books:

In case you missed it, this book was recently recommended in a SurvivalBlog article on microgreens: Year-Round Indoor Salad Gardening: How to Grow Nutrient-Dense, Soil-Sprouted Greens in Less Than 10 days. This is is an important book to add to your bookshelf, especially if you live in a city or in the suburbs.

o  o  o

And speaking of non-traditional gardening, here is another great book: Integrated Forest Gardening: The Complete Guide to Polycultures and Plant Guilds in Permaculture Systems

o  o  o

The Complete Guide to Hunting, Butchering, and Cooking Wild Game: Volume 1: Big Game

o  o  o

If you enjoyed the first one, here is the sequel: The Double Dangerous Book for Boys

o  o  o

Firefly: A Celebration (Anniversary Edition)

o  o  o

On Call in the Arctic

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“[H]is heart is ever lifted up to God at all times and in all places. In this he is never hindered, much less interrupted, by any person or thing. In retirement or company, in leisure, business, or conversation, his heart is ever with the Lord. Whether he lie down or rise up, God is in all his thoughts; he walks with God continually, having the loving eye of his mind still fixed upon Him, and everywhere “seeing him that is invisible.” – John Wesley

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — September 8, 2020

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On September 8, 1565, the first permanent settlement in what would become the United States of America was formed. (St Augustine, Florida)

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September 8, 1943, Italy surrendered to the Allies in World War II.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 90 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First 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 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. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  4. 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).
  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. 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.
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. A transferable $150 purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Round 90 ends on September 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 Next Two Years, by A.E.

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The following is my conjecture about the turmoil ahead in the next two years.

I have this waking nightmare that we are living on a knifes edge and the next two to five years may be the time we slip on that edge.  I started writing this to try and get my head around where we are and where we’re going. It spiraled out from there. I have tried to rewrite it so it isn’t so negative, but that hasn’t worked, it keeps veering in the following direction.

China had the Cultural Revolution and the Red guards; we have the Cancel culture movement and BLM-Antifa. They want to destroy our history, the lessons both good and bad that it taught, and rewrite what our country is. They draw the line at nothing and the rioting and destruction will continue. Defund the police, and they have free rein for all the burning, looting and murder they want. This is true democracy in action, otherwise known as rule by the thug and the mob. This is what the Europeans at the beginning of our country expected of the US of A.

From the very beginning of this run-up to the election, our two major political groups have both made every effort to see that the probable presidential candidates are lame ducks: Biden is mentally wobbly(easily manipulated) and Trump is a reviled outsider(he stole the election). I think this is on purpose, each group hoping the other ‘wins’ and can therefore be held responsible for the upcoming financial and social disaster.

Turmoil Ahead

Regardless of which is elected, there will be lots of turmoil.  In turmoil, there is an opportunity for the politicians to drive their political agendas forward. They will bemoan the damage, but it won’t stop them from gleefully profiting by it. They will probably steal a page from Hitler’s book and blame somebody for all the ills of the country. Hitler used the Jews; currently the cops or Trump are the scapegoat du jour. When they run out of the current target, possibly it’ll be “the evil, greedy preppers” who are responsible for all the shortages and who don’t want to share. If not them, they’ll find someone. A liberal here, a conservative there. There is always someone to pick out and vilify. They are willing to eat their own.

With the economy in tatters and the future economy no better(the thousands of brick and mortar business are the economy and many are closing permanently), racial accusations being thrown about, Covid (whether you believe in it or not), supply system problems (empty grocery stores will be the least of it if the trucks don’t run) and political upsets, we will see a level of turmoil and national angst of incredible levels. Just think of all those people that are suddenly out of work, out of cash, out of hope and probably hungry. There is nothing more dangerous than people that are scared, angry, hungry and hopeless. If they can be motivated, say rather rabble roused, it will be mass riots with little or no holds barred.Continue reading“The Next Two Years, by A.E.”

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, we focus on a problem cougar.  (See the Idaho section.)

Idaho

Cougar killed by wildlife officials after being spotted twice near Priest River Junior High School

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US gives first-ever OK for small commercial nuclear reactor. The article’s opening paragraphs:

“The U.S. for the first time has approved a design for a small commercial nuclear reactor.

A Utah energy cooperative wants to build 12 of them in Idaho.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Friday approved Portland-based NuScale Power’s application for the small modular reactor Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems plans to build at a U.S. Department of Energy site in eastern Idaho.”

o  o  o

Man gets prison sentence after attacking woman

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

Preparedness Notes for Monday — September 7, 2020

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September 7th is the birthday of Richard Cole, born in 1915. He passed away on April 8, 2019, at age 103. Cole was the last living Doolittle Raider. He was General Doolittle’s co-pilot.

This is also the birthday of novelist Taylor Caldwell (born 1900 – August 30, 1985).

Today is the birthday of Dr. Ludwig Vorgrimler (born 1912 in Freiburg, Germany; died 1983). Vorgrimler was the designer of the Spanish CETME rifle, from which sprang a plethora of roller-lock descendants from HK, including the G3, HK21, and MP5. His bolt design was also copied by the Swiss for their excellent PE57 and SIG 510 rifles. (Although the Swiss felt obliged to mount a “beer keg” charging handle on the right side of the receiver, for the sake of familiarity to Schmidt-Rubin shooters.)

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Here is an affordable new listing, over at my #1 Son’s site: Montana Off-Grid Cabin Retreat.

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Today we present another review researched and written by our Field Gear Editor, Pat Cascio.

Taurus Model 85, by Pat Cascio

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Taurus Firearms has been around since 1941, when it began producing near clones of some of the Smith & Wesson revolvers. Since then, Taurus has produced near clones of other makes of firearms, as well as some models of their own design. Today, some Taurus firearms are being produced in the USA, and that’s a good thing if you ask me. Early on, the quality of Taurus firearms was really lacking, they didn’t hold up very well with a lot of use. Still, for the money, they were a decent gun. Today, that has changed for the most part, as Taurus is producing all kinds of firearms, and their quality is much improved. My only complaint is that their 1911 line of handguns has uneven quality control. To wit, they are either outstanding handguns, with many custom features, or they aren’t done up as well as they should be, with sloppy thumb safeties, or horrible trigger pulls, to a poorly fitted slide, just to name a few. When you find a Taurus 1911 that that was made right, you’ll know it, and snap it up.

Over the years, I’ve owned more than a few of the Taurus Model 85 revolvers and most were really nice guns — a great concealed carry piece. Several years ago, I did have a problem with just one brand-new, out-of-the-box Model 85. I checked out the gun at a local gun shop, and bought it. However, when I inspected it at the store, I only checked the hammer and pulled the trigger in single-action mode – I didn’t test the double-action trigger pull, until I was out at the range. I found that it was impossible to pull the trigger in double-action — it just didn’t work! I sent the gun back to Taurus, as they have a lifetime warranty on their guns, and it was returned about two weeks later. Seems like, some guns slipped through – a machining operation was missed, and you couldn’t pull the trigger in double-action – in single-action, yes – but not in double action. That just shows that someone who was doing the final inspection on some of these guns wasn’t doing their job, or they would have caught that the double-action trigger pull problem. It happens. I’m not saying it only happens to Taurus, but many gun makers lave some guns slip by final inspection that have problems.

Truth is, Taurus gives you a lot of gun for your money. If you are on a tight budget, and looking for something for self-defense or home defense, then take a close look at a Taurus, they have a pretty extensive line-up of revolvers and semi-auto pistols, and I’m sure you can find one that will fit your budget and needs.

The little steel frame Taurus Model 85 is a snub-nosed revolver that holds 5 rounds. It can handle the hottest .38 Special and .38 Special+P loads you care to fire through it. I would hesitate to constantly run +P loads through the gun. if you want to target practice do so with standard velocity .38 Special loads, and reserve the hotter +P load for self-defense. Sure, at the end of your shooting session, go ahead and fire some +P loads, and then load them up in the Model 85 for self-defense. However, the just 21-ounce Model 85 – steel-framed revolver will sure let you know you are touching off a hot round. So you may not like the +P loads and stick to standard velocity loads – there are a lot of very good standard velocity loads that will suffice for self-defense.Continue reading“Taurus Model 85, by Pat Cascio”

Recipe of the Week: Game Bird Pie

The following recipe for Game Bird Pie (for quail, pigeons, ground doves, quail doves, or other small game birds) 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
  • 6 small game birds
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1/4 cup minced parsley
  • 1/2 chopped onion
  • 2 whole cloves
  • 1/4 pound diced salt pork
  • 2 tablespoons browned flour
  • 2 tablespoons butter or butter substitute
  • 2 cups diced potatoes
  • Rich paste for top and bottom crust\
Directions
  1. Clean the birds thoroughly.
  2. Halve them, put them into one quart of water and bring to boiling-point.
  3. Remove the scum, add salt, pepper, parsley, onion, cloves, and salt pork.
  4. Simmer until tender, carefully keeping the birds covered with water. When the birds are done, thicken the liquid with the browned flour and let the gravy come to a boil.
  5. Add the fat, remove from the fire and cool.
  6. Put the paste around the sides of a greased pudding-dish.
  7. Lay in some of the birds, then some potatoes, and repeat until the dish is full.
  8. Pour in the gravy, put on the top crust, slashed in the center, and bake until done.

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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 rising semi-auto pistol prices. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)

Precious Metals:

Alasdair Macleod: Inflation — Running Out Of Road. Here is a quote:

“Last week saw a virtual Jackson Hole conference, where Jerome Powell downgraded inflation targeting in favour of the other Fed mandate, employment. And Andrew Bailey, Governor of the Bank of England, claimed “We are not out of firepower by any means…. to be honest it looks from today’s vantage point that we were too cautious about our remaining firepower pre-Covid”.

Both men were tearing up earlier scripts. Since they will likely tear up these as well there is little point in examining them further. For the fact is that all the major central banks are trapped in problems of their own making, and some time ago they lost control of their destinies.”

o  o  o

SPX to Gold/Silver Ratios Explored What to Expect Next

Economy & Equities:

At Investment Watch: Markets facing potential ‘Minsky moment’ collapse, strategist says… Surprising to see such outflows from growth ETFs in the midst of this euphoric rally.

o  o  o

At Zero Hedge: An Epic Battle Is Raging Beneath The Market Surface

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A Peter Schiff podcast: The Biggest Bubble Ever

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At Seeking Alpha: The S&P 500 Is Not Diversified And Looks Quite Risky

o  o  o

Nasdaq 100: The Bubble Flag Has Been Raised

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

Preparedness Notes for Sunday — September 6, 2020

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September 6th, 1757 is the birthday of Marquis de Lafayette (often known simply as Lafayette), a French aristocrat and military officer who fought in the American Revolutionary War. He was a close friend of George Washington, Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson. George Washington met him through his connections in the Free Masons and was impressed with him. After he offered to serve without pay, Congress commissioned him as a Major General and he was an integral part of the battle at Brandywine.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 90 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First 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 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. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  4. 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).
  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. 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.
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. A transferable $150 purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Round 90 ends on September 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.

How to Safely Pressure Can Meat, by Sandi H.

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I grew up eating my grandmothers’ canned vegetables and fruits. Both of them put up the harvest to feed their farm families in the winter. But neither of them canned meat. It never crossed my mind that one could can meat until, in my thirties, I started canning my own spaghetti sauce and wondered if I could add hamburger to it. It turned out that I could! And that opened up a whole new world of canning opportunities.

Now, canned meats are a pantry staple for my family. I enjoy being able to grab a jar and have dinner on the table in less time than it would take a package of frozen meat to thaw. I have canned chicken, turkey, pork, stew beef, beef meatballs, and meat sauce. The shelf life of canned meat in my experience is 10+ years. If the home canner follows simple rules for safe canning, meat will be safe to eat for many years to come.

Meat MUST be pressure canned. It is a low acid food, and it can NEVER be water bath-canned. Water bath canning can only bring the contents of the jars to 212 degrees, the temperature of boiling water. Pressure canning increases the temperature to 240 degrees, killing botulism and all other micro-organisms that could cause spoilage or toxicity. Thus, one must have a pressure canner that is intended for home canning. This one is my favorite, but this one is a good, affordable option. You will also need mason jars, lids, and rings. It is nice to have a jar lifter, canning funnel, and a lid magnet, but these are not essential.

The idea of canning meat may seem daunting or even a bit frightening, but by carefully following the steps below, you will safely store meat for your family’s future.Continue reading“How to Safely Pressure Can Meat, by Sandi H.”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.

For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.

Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.

For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.

For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.

Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?

This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you.

A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.

I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be.

And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased.

I would they were even cut off which trouble you.

For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.

For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,

Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,

Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.” – Galatians 5 (KJV)