Preparedness Notes for Monday — August 3, 2020

On August 3rd, 1914, Germany and France both declared war on each other, formally beginning of the First World War.

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August 3rd, 1846 is the day that the Donner party found a note warning the emigrants that their expected route through the mountains ahead was nearly impassable. Hastings, an unscrupulous trail guide had created his own “short cut” route and wasn’t even at the planned meeting place at Fort Bridger, but had left word for the party to continue on. Hastings had claimed easy passage through the rugged Wasatch Mountains, but had left a note attached to a forked stick for the party explaining that the route was more difficult than he thought. That shortcut cost the Donner party 18 valuable days, but their difficulties were only beginning. They crossed the Sierra Nevada Mountains late in the season and on October 28, a heavy snowfall blocked the high mountain passes, trapping them in a frozen wilderness. Eventually reduced to cannibalism, only 45 of the original 89 emigrants reached California the following year.

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A new listing through Survival Realty Brokerage Services: Homesteading and Wild Game in Montana. It is just 600 yards from the Canadian border. The nearest town is Eureka, Montana.

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

CRKT Linchpin, by Pat Cascio

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As I’ve mentioned many times before in my review articles, I’ve been packing some kind of folding knife since I was about five years old, so did most of my friends I grew up with, back in Chicago in the mid-1950s. My wife and I watched a movie a few weeks ago, called “Mr. Scout Master” and without going into the details, it was about a grumpy old gent, who decided to take on the task of being a Boy Scout Leader. At some point in the movie, this fellow actually needed to be rescued by an 8-year old, and as luck would have it, this little guy had a Boy Scout folding knife – as all good Boy Scouts did – back then. And, they were never without that multi-bladed folding knife. Today, they would be expelled from school if they were caught carrying a “weapon” like that. My, how times have changed. Many big cities will even prosecute you if you carry a small knife “concealed” in your pocket. Insane!

I’ve been around knives all my life, and when I was younger, I owned more than my share of cheap, poorly made folding knives – we all used to buy them from the local hardware store, and they didn’t think anything of selling us knives – even big fixed blade knives. You see, back then, everyone in the neighborhood knew everyone else. And, one of the guys who worked at this hardware store, went to school with my parents, so he didn’t have a problem selling me knives at all…and know one went around the neighborhood killing anyone with their knife. A prized possession was a genuine Boy Scout knife, and I owned several of them over the years. When I worked full-time for the Illinois National Guard back in Chicago, we sponsored a boy scout troop – myself and two other full-time workers worked with the kids back then – all inner-city most poor kids, but we had a good ol’ time just the same.

Today’s Boy Scouts of America does NOT resemble the Boy Scout troops we had back then. We had the Boy Scouts and the Girl Scouts. However, today, girls are allowed to join the Boy Scouts – and many do – instead of joining the Girl Scouts. And, needless to say, the Scouts were forced to accept leaders recently, that were prohibited from working with kids back in the day. And, if I have to explain it to you, then you haven’t been paying attention…there are numerous lawsuits that have come about because young boys were sexually molested by those leaders. ‘Nuff said!Continue reading“CRKT Linchpin, by Pat Cascio”

Recipe of the Week: Mrs. Alaska’s Greens Pesto Sauce

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The following recipe for pestos from gardened and foraged greens was contributed by “Mrs. Alaska”.

Chef’s Introductory Notes: Although basil pesto is perhaps the best known commercial pesto, this delicious topping for cheese, pasta, fish, chicken or meat can be made with any combination of greens.
The crunchy element can be any nuts or edible seeds (like sunflower or pumpkin), and the emulsifying oil can be varied, too.
Herbs and spices (like garlic) can be added or omitted.
Pesto Experimentation
This summer, I have made eight different pestos with:
Foraged Greens:
  • Chickweed (bright and grassy tasting)
  • Lamb’s Quarter (mild)
  • Sorrel (citrusy)
(The three above have a creamier texture than those below).
Vegetable Garden Leaves:
  • Mustard (my personal favorite)
  • Radish
  • Horseradish (just a little goes a long way!)
  • Nasturtium  (milder than I expected from this plant)
  • Mint
Ingredient Proportions
The proportions of these ingredients can be adjusted for personal preference, but the range to consider is:
  • 2-3 cups of raw greens
  • 1/2 cup of nuts or seeds  (toasting first elevates the flavor)
  • 1/2 cup cheese (this is optional, but I usually add parmesan or feta)
  • 1/4 – 1/2 cup of oil (I usually use olive oil, but have also enjoyed walnut oil and sesame oil)
  • 2 cloves of garlic (optional)
Preparation

Whirl them in a food processor to a smooth or chunky consistency, as preferred.

STORAGE

The bright color of the pesto will fade in the refrigerator after a few days, but this does freeze well.  Because it incorporates raw greens, it is not recommended for canning.

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Do you have a favorite recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? In this weekly recipe column, we place emphasis on recipes that use long term storage foods, recipes for wild game, dutch oven and slow cooker recipes, and any that use home garden produce. If you have any favorite recipes, then please send them via e-mail. Thanks!

Economics & Investing For Preppers

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Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. Most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at The Ammunition Drought of 2020. Gun store shelves were very well-stocked in February. But they now look barren. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)

Precious Metals:

Mike Gleason: “Government Sachs” Is Worried About the Federal Reserve Note

o  o  o

Neils Christensen: We are watching history unfold. Here is a snippet:

“The rally this past month has been incredible; the gold market is up more than 10%, its best monthly gain in eight years.

Although the gold market is looking a little overheated analysts have noted that there are strong fundamental reasons why gold is now making its historic move. Investors should expect to see significant volatility as gold trades in uncharted territory but analysts have said that everyone needs to keep an eye on the long-term picture.

The reality is that in the current environment, where real U.S. 10-year yields are -1%, gold is the last bastion of safety for many investors.”

Economy & Finance:

At Zero Hedge: A Quarter Of All Household Income In The US Now Comes From The Government. JWR’s Comments:  Face it, folks: We’re already in an early stage of The Second Great Depression. This is just the Denial Stage.  Get ready for some serious turmoil, disruption, dislocation. The real layoffs, foreclosures, and evictions have not yet begun. But they soon will.

o  o  o

Confession Time for Big Banks in Europe: Banco Santander Reports $12.7 Billion Loss

o  o  o

Also at Wolf Street: Average Age of Cars & Trucks on the Road Sets Record, Will Jump During Pandemic as New-Vehicle Sales Plunge to 1970s Level
Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“The so-called paradox of freedom is the argument that freedom in the sense of absence of any constraining control must lead to very great restraint, since it makes the bully free to enslave the meek. The idea is, in a slightly different form, and with very different tendency, clearly expressed in Plato.
Less well known is the paradox of tolerance: Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them. — In this formulation, I do not imply, for instance, that we should always suppress the utterance of intolerant philosophies; as long as we can counter them by rational argument and keep them in check by public opinion, suppression would certainly be unwise. But we should claim the right to suppress them if necessary even by force; for it may easily turn out that they are not prepared to meet us on the level of rational argument, but begin by denouncing all argument; they may forbid their followers to listen to rational argument, because it is deceptive, and teach them to answer arguments by the use of their fists or pistols. We should therefore claim, in the name of tolerance, the right not to tolerate the intolerant. We should claim that any movement preaching intolerance places itself outside the law, and we should consider incitement to intolerance and persecution as criminal, in the same way as we should consider incitement to murder, or to kidnapping, or to the revival of the slave trade, as criminal.” – Karl Popper, The Open Society and its Enemies, Vol. 1, Notes to the Chapters: Ch. 7, Note 4

Preparedness Notes for Sunday — August 2, 2020

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August 2nd was the birthday of Peter O’Toole (1932–2013). When his name is mentioned, Lawrence of Arabia immediately comes to mind.  But one of my favorites was his 1971 film titled Murphy’s War. That has some very memorable seaplane flying scenes.

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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, 2020, 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.

Announcing SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Prize Winners for Round 89

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We’ve completed the judging for Round 89 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The winning authors are:

First Prize:

First prize is awarded to Lisa for Adventures in Central Texas Gardening, which was posted on July 21, 2020 (Part 1), and on July 22, 2020 (Part 2). She will receive:

  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:

Second prize is awarded to Traveling Mechanic for Vehicle Preparation, which was posted on July 25, 2020 (Part 1) and July  26, 2020 (Part 2).  He will receive:

  1. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, that have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  4. An assortment of products along with a one-hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

Third prize is awarded to T.Y., for How to Teach Situational Awareness to Children which was posted in five parts from July 7th to 11th, 2020. (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, and Part 5.) T.Y. will receive:

  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 the delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Note to the top three prize winners:  Please e-mail us your address information for both UPS and USPS. Thanks!

Honorable Mention:

$30 Amazon.com gift certificates will be e-mailed to each of these nine Honorable Mention prize-winners:

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 Reality of Aging and Prepping – Part 2, by Muscadine Hunter

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Now, let’s talk more about ham radio: Beginning in February, 1991 the FCC, in their infinite wisdom, did away with the Morse Code requirement for Technician Class Operators. What that means is there are nolw a lot of ham radio operators who do not know Morse Code. Why is this important? It takes a lot less technology and output power to successfully transmit a message using code. And if you have developed your own alphanumeric code for your group (as we have) then it is even harder to break if sent in Morse code because so many people now days cannot copy Morse code in the first place. Also, if propagation conditions are not good, especially over long distances, it is possible to get a Morse Code message through that would be impossible via voice communications. Also, should you find yourself and members of your group being held captive by a hostile force you can possibly communicate between jail cells or even in the same room blinking Morse code with your eyes, taping it out on the desk or floor or just whistling it.

I don’t think we have more than maybe three or four months before we are faced with a total Schumer Hits The Fan (SHTF) situation. So, as a senior, spend that time learning code and developing your radio listening skills, it will make you a very valuable member of any group.

Reloading and Bullet Swaging

Disclosure: I have no affiliation and receive no compensation from Lee Loaders or Corbin Dies or any of their subsidies. The gentleman who introduced me to bullet swaging, recommended Corbin dies to me as a source for my needed supplies and Lee was the brand, I chose for my first loader 50 years ago. So other than as a consumer, I have no other association with any company or brand name mentioned. I also recommend using factory ammo for all self-defense situations, but at some point factory-loaded ammo may not be available.

Another skill which will prove invaluable to your group in a SHTF situation is reloading and bullet swaging. I have only started to learn bullet swaging and don’t feel knowledgeable enough to go into much detail on the particular how-tos but David Corbin has a wealth of information and Corbin dies are considered the premium in the bullet swaging community, in my opinion.

Ammunition will be a premium commodity in any extended SHTF situation. So knowing how to make bullets and how to reload ammunition will be very valuable skills. I started reloading 50 years ago at age 15. It started at the skeet club my Dad and I belonged to. The club had a shotgun shell loader and one of the gentlemen at the club took me under his wing and taught me to reload shotgun shells. Following that, I bought a Lee hand loader and learned to reload .270 caliber rifle ammunition. I still have and use that Lee hand loader to this day. The hand loader is not fast. And because it only does neck sizing, it is actually not recommended for ammunition used in semi-automatic weapons.  Without full-length sizing, there is a bigger potential for jamming. I have reloaded thousands of rounds of .270 ammunition and shot it through my semi-automatic deer rifle without issue. I also have reloaded roughly 1,800 rounds of .38 Special ammo and shot it through several of my revolvers with only a very occasional swollen cartridge casing being hard to eject. The Lee hand loader is lightweight and small enough to carry in your G.O.O.D. pack, with ease.Continue reading“The Reality of Aging and Prepping – Part 2, by Muscadine Hunter”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

Beloved, thou doest faithfully whatsoever thou doest to the brethren, and to strangers;

Which have borne witness of thy charity before the church: whom if thou bring forward on their journey after a godly sort, thou shalt do well:

 Because that for his name’s sake they went forth, taking nothing of the Gentiles.

We therefore ought to receive such, that we might be fellowhelpers to the truth.

 I wrote unto the church: but Diotrephes, who loveth to have the preeminence among them, receiveth us not.

Wherefore, if I come, I will remember his deeds which he doeth, prating against us with malicious words: and not content therewith, neither doth he himself receive the brethren, and forbiddeth them that would, and casteth them out of the church.

Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God.” – 3 John: 4-11  (KJV)

 

Preparedness Notes for Saturday — August 1, 2020

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August 1st is remembered as the election day in 1946 that sparked the Battle of Athens, Tennessee, when returning World War II veterans took up arms to oust a corrupt local government that was rigging an election.

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And August 1st is celebrated as Swiss Independence Day, in recognition of the signing of the Federal Charter of 1291, which united Switzerland’s first three cantons. As of 2014, Switzerland has been free and independent for 723 years. Having a well-armed populace has assured that.

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This is also the birthday of Lt. Colonel William B. Travis (born 1809, died March 8, 1836, at The Alamo.)

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present the first 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 Reality of Aging and Prepping – Part 1, by Muscadine Hunter

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To one extent or another I have been a prepper since I was in junior high school, 50 years ago. My dad was an avid outdoorsman who taught me to fish when I was old enough to hold a pole and taught me to shoot when I was 6 years old. By age 15 I was shooting skeet in state competition and began learning the art of reloading. I started bowhunting with a recurve bow when I was about 13 and had learned to make my own arrows, using blank shafts, by the time I was 15. Also, during my early teen years my best friend, who was a full-blooded Cherokee Native American, began teaching me about edible plants.

Now, 50 years later, I’m still learning. But age has taken its toll on my body. Two bad knees make it extremely painful to get around and impossible to escape and evade, run, or traverse rough terrain. Also, open-heart surgery two years ago forced me on to a daily regimen of medication which could be a problem when the SHTF. But, my lack of mobility does not mean I am unable to do my part in our survival group. In fact, I have a standing offer from two other groups to join up with them should the group I chose to link up with becomes unsatisfactory. I’m am not saying this to brag because all of my skills and knowledge come from God, without Him I can do nothing on my own.

I tell you this because the majority of articles I read on SurvivalBlog and most other preparedness web sites seem to focus more on a person’s tactical ability. I think many “groups” have the belief that unless you are physically fit enough to pass a Marine Corp PT test, then you are a liability. I should mention that I found SurvivalBlog just three months after Mr. Rawles started it, 15 years ago, and I read it daily.

What I have lost in physical ability I have made up for with other skills and knowledge. I believe make this ‘old timer’ worth having around. With this article, I hope to inspire other ‘old timers’ to make yourself valuable so that any group you choose to link up with will see you as a valuable asset and will welcome you into their fold. I also hope to cause groups made up of strictly fighting-age men and women to consider the benefits of having an ‘old timer’ or two in their midst. I will, hopefully, give you some basic information about each skill I think will make you valuable and give you a starting point to begin learning each skill or expand on skills you may already have.

Life is a continual learning experience so never think you know everything there is to know about any subject or skill. As I previously mentioned, some of the skills I have date back 50 years or slightly more but I still don’t know everything there is to know, so I keep my mind open to new concepts and ideas. There’s always a way to build a better mousetrap!Continue reading“The Reality of Aging and Prepping – Part 1, by Muscadine Hunter”

July 2020 in Precious Metals, by Steven Cochran

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Welcome to SurvivalBlog’s Precious Metals Month in Review, where we take a look at “the month that was” in precious metals. Each month, we cover gold’s performance, and the factors that affected gold prices.

What Did Gold Do in July?

I hope that nobody followed that old saying “Sell in May and go away,” because gold had a very, very good month in July. Both gold futures and spot gold repeatedly shattered all-time record prices in the last half of the month.

Gold built on the base formed at $1,800/oz to start the second week of July. After about July 20th, the yellow metal began to pick up steam. Amid a rally that lasted for 9 consecutive trading sessions, the gold price jumped $40 per ounce on July 27th to new nominal all-time highs.

Finally, we got some consolidation just before month-end. There was a significant pullback from gold’s highs around $1,980 per ounce on Thursday, July 30th. A sell-off in global equity markets that session prompted investors to liquidate long gold positions to cover margin calls from stock losses. Another reason for the big drop was the fact that weekly and monthly options both expired that day.

Silver hit 7-year high during the last week of July before giving back some of the gains. Nonetheless, the silver price has virtually doubled from its March lows around $12/oz to above $24/oz to close out the month.

Factors Affecting Gold This Month

CHINA–US RELATIONS SOUR
The closing of consulates between the United States and China, as well as new international sanctions against Beijing, are continuing to upend the world economy and global trade relationships.
It’s not just a struggle between these two world powers, either. Tensions have ramped up between China and its other neighbors: India moved 35,000 more troops to the disputed border with China in the HImalayas. China has moved tanks and artillery into the region, as it tries to seize more territory to widen a corridor to Kashmir and Pakistan.

FED & REAL INTEREST RATES
One major tailwind for gold is negative real interest rates. Investopedia defines real interest rates as “Real Interest Rate = Nominal Interest Rate – Inflation (Expected or Actual)”.
In a note circulated before the new highs, Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s Vivek Dhar said the fall in U.S. 10-year real yields has been the “most important driver.”

A handy sign for real interest rates is the 10-year TIPS bond. So long as this key rate remains in negative territory, gold looks attractive as a safe haven with its 0% yield compared to Treasury bonds that actually offer a negative real yield.

US DOLLAR
The DXY dollar index spent a good part of July hitting successive two-year lows. This helped gold buyers not just in the US, but in most foreign buyers as well. Since gold is priced in US dollars, a weaker dollar means it takes less of a foreign currency to buy gold in foreign markets.

Weakness in the dollar has been in part due to the fractured response to the COVID recession from Congress, compared to other nations. Ironically, it’s also in part because of good news on progress on a COVID vaccine, which reduces the safe-haven appeal of the USD.Continue reading“July 2020 in Precious Metals, by Steven Cochran”

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:

We finished nearly all of the hay hauling. Our friends only had about 23 tons of grass hay available to sell to us. Picking up the bales in the field saved us some money. This is an example of the old “Dollars-to-sweat ratio” that I’ve often written about. To be fully ready for winter, we’ll need another four tons. We’ll source that from another supplier, later in the summer.  But we’ll again do our own hauling.

Now that most of the hay hauling and stacking is done, I’m back to firewood cross-cutting and splitting.  I’m also knocking off items from the “Honey-Do” list. Next up will be adding some cattle panels to reinforce the bottom four feet of our main garden fence. That should keep the cows from nosing under the woven wire.

I’ve been very busy with the Elk Creek Company biz. Since the 12th of July, we’ve booked more than double our normal sales. Three of those pre-1899 guns went to a repeat consulting client and were delivered on-site, during our day-long consultation. The majority of the mailorder sales were also to repeat customers. It seems that they appreciate my “eye”, in picking out nice old guns. And of course, sales were helped by the fact that many gun shops are presently nearly sold out of guns and that most gun shows have been canceled. Americans are rightfully anxious to buy guns. I’ve been doing my best to re-stock, but at the rate that things are going, I won’t have much inventory remaining by September.  (I launched the biz back in February with more than 90 guns on hand. But now I’m down to just 51.)  So if you have an interest in buying a “no-paperwork” pre-1899 cartridge gun, then don’t hesitate to get your order in.

In the next two weeks, we have visits planned with all of our older “up and out” offspring, and our grand-kids. We really savor those visits, regardless of the time of year. But summertime is particularly fun, with plenty of sunshine, watermelon, and swimming. Those visits should be great fun!

Continue reading“Editors’ Prepping Progress”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.

Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.

For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.

In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also.

The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land.

O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker.

For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice,

Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness:

When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work.

Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways:

Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest.” – Psalm 95 (KJV)