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 rocketing rise in precious metals prices, and the corresponding decline of the Doillar on the Forex. (See the Precious Metals section and the Forex section.)

Precious Metals:

Back in January, I had surmised that the year 2020 was going to be a year of 20/20 hindsight. Well, now it appears that 2020 will be: The Year of SurvivalIst “I Told You So.” In summary: We were right about stockpiling gloves, hand sanitizer, and N95 masks. We were right about storing toilet paper. We were right about food storage. We were right about buying rural real estate. We were right about investing in guns and ammunition. And now we’ve been proven right about investing in both precious metals and Swiss Francs. Give glory to God for grantng you wisdom and discernment. And give yourself a pat on the back, folks. – JWR

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Gold price marks highest settlement and intraday price on record. The article notes, in a subhead:  “Silver tops $24/oz for highest finish since 2013.”

JWR Warns:  Whenever the banksters see precious metals “out of whack” (read: in variance with their plans), then they do their best to drive metals prices down with short selling, changing COMEX margin requirements, and other chicanery.  Be prepared for a roller coaster ride, in the next few weeks.  But please keep your core metals holdings. The banksters and politicians will not be able stop this bull market in metals.  They can’t double the size of the national debt and expect gold, silver, and platinum prices to stay in the doldrums. Eventually, currency market equilibrium must be reached. They can’t fight the law of supply and demand. And in this case they inflated the supply of Dollars. When they create trillions of new Dollars like papier hygiénique, then precious metals will inevitably rise! Oh, and the last time I checked (on the evening of 30 July, 2020), it took just over $11,000 USD to buy one Bitcoin.

Economy & Finance:

The Irish Times reports:  US economy in biggest fall since the Great Depression

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Fed Sticks to Whatever It Takes With No Sign of Virus Easing

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And at Zero Hedge: Aviation Flu? It Will Take Years For Passenger Numbers To Fully Recover

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“There has grown up in the minds of certain groups in this country the notion that because a man or corporation has made a profit out of the public for a number of years, the government and the courts are charged with the duty of guaranteeing such profit in the future, even in the face of changing circumstances and contrary to the public interest. This strange doctrine is not supported by statute or common law. Neither individuals nor corporations have any right to come into court and ask that the clock of history be stopped, or turned back.”  – Robert A. Heinlein

Preparedness Notes for Thursday — July 30, 2020

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Today we remember the birthday of author Reginald Bretnor. He was born Alfred Reginald Kahn on July 30, 1911, in Vladivostok. He died on July 22, 1992 in Medford, Oregon. In addition to penning many witty science fiction novels and short stories in his characteristic style, he also wrote nonfiction articles for Mel Tappan’s P.S. Letter

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 89 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 89 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.

Body Armor Basics, by Raskolnikov

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It’s always struck me as odd that we often think of defensive preps almost exclusively as involving firearms. Don’t get me wrong, I love guns. I’ve taken courses and train regularly so I can use them effectively if the need should ever arise. But in a gunfight, the bullets don’t just go in one direction. Often, they come back at you as well.

Today, we’re going to talk about how we can protect ourselves with various types of body armor or ballistic protection. We’ll talk about some of the basics of body armor, how it works, what options are available, and a few considerations when buying your first armor set. Unfortunately, if you see ads for body armor online, the comments reveal that many folks believe misinformation about body armor. I’m hoping to provide you accurate, verifiable information to help you get started. I’m not an expert by any means, so do your homework and verify what I say (after all, your life is at stake, so take this seriously). In this article, I may also mention specific companies, but that’s just because they’re the ones I know. I’m not affiliated with any of them, I don’t benefit from sending business to them, and I don’t have any specific inside-the-industry knowledge. I’m just a regular guy hoping to share a bit about one of his interests, and hopefully help out those who feel overwhelmed by all the options.

One additional disclaimer: Some jurisdictions restrict use and possession of body armor, so know and follow your local laws (and consider moving to a free state!).

The Basics

Body armor usually comes in the form of a vest, with either a flexible material like Kevlar or a hard material like steel or ceramic serving to absorb the force of an incoming round. By distributing the force over a wider area, the vest lowers the likelihood that the round penetrates the chest area. Today’s ballistic vests are just the latest iteration of the armor worn by combatants for thousands of years, except that instead of protecting yourself from the swords of the Huns, you’re protecting yourself from the guns of the lawless. It’s tested and rated according to a scale from the National Institute of Justice, which rates body armor based on the rounds it’s capable of stopping.Continue reading“Body Armor Basics, by Raskolnikov”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

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SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. Today, we look at a suggestion for Mandatory Vaccinations for COVID-19.

Rioters Draw Guns on Drivers in Eugene, Oregon

Reader H.L. sent this portentous news: Crowds launch fireworks at brewery, draw guns on drivers as riots spread from Portland to smaller Oregon city. JWR’s Comment:  Of course Eugene is a college town in the Willamette Valley, but this spread of rioting from Portland does not bode well.

COVID19: Long Lasting Damage & More HCQ ‘Controversy’

Reader A.K. suggested the latest video from Chris Martenson: COVID19: Long Lasting Damage & More HCQ ‘Controversy’

In August: QSO’s Virtual Ham Expo

Petter sent us a link to this announcement of a free event, on August 8th & 9th:  QSO Today Virtual Ham Expo

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Literature and drama is how abstract ideas are made real in people’s minds and attach themselves to the soul and heart. Because a storyteller needs to make the storytelling convincing storytelling works best when it finds realities people can relate to, and that puts a discipline on the storyteller to ground abstract ideas in human experience. Ideology that can’t find its common humanity makes for dull stories and unconvincing plots, and this acts both as a filter to keep out dogmas that don’t work well in the real world and makes popular ideas that strike universal chords.” – J. Neil Schulman

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — July 29, 2020

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29 July 1805 was the birthday of Alexis-Charles-Henri Clérel de Tocqueville. He died 16 April 1859. He is best known for his lengthy treatise: Democracy In America.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 89 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 89 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.

Springfield Hellcat Review, by G.L.W.

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I am an amateur shooter at best and three years new to concealed carry. My goal is to give you my impressions of this newly-introduced gun and hopefully assist anyone considering one of these “micro-compact” handguns. I am in no way affiliated with Springfield Armory.

After beginning our family in 2015, it was clear that the best, most responsible way for us to protect ourselves was to relocate us into the beautiful American Redoubt. You can be protected by the biggest arsenal, but in my mind, if your own local government is against you, you are at a disadvantage.

Following a successful move and relocation to an incredible loving and accepting church community in the American Redoubt, I began to focus more on preparedness. Basic food storage, backup items, and firearms. My guns fall into basic categories like: family heirloom, hunting, and protection. I do not have an extensive collection. (Though my wife may disagree!).

For my “protection” battery of guns, I began with a Sccy CPX-2, which may be a review for another day. 600 rounds in, it still would not feed hollowpoints reliably, with about one malfunction in every 50 rounds. So I sold that gun and went back to my “ol’ reliable” revolver, a Ruger LCR in .38 Special. I carry an extra five rounds in a speed strip and my ammo of choice is the Black Hills 100 grain Honeybadger. While I am happy to carry it, and a decent shot around 10 yards, I still felt underpowered.

With a recent addition to the family, identical twin girls (pray for us!), the feeling of being underpowered grew. I had a strong desire for a gun that could function as an easily concealable carry weapon, with as high a capacity as possible for home defense. It also had to be bomb-proof reliable, as I did not want a repeat from the “budget gun” category. I know some budget guns can be extremely reliable (my mossy Maverick is going on 10 years strong!) but having been recently bitten in that category by the Sccy CPX-2, I opted to stay away.Continue reading“Springfield Hellcat Review, by G.L.W.”

JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:

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Here are JWR’s Recommendations of the Week for various media and tools of interest to SurvivalBlog readers. The focus is usually on emergency communications gear, bug out bag gear, books, and movies–often with a tie-in to disaster preparedness, and links to “how-to” self-sufficiency videos. There 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 the focus is on Bragg Apple Cider Vinegar. (See the Gear & Grub section.)

Books:

The latest book by Dinesh D’Souza: United States of Socialism: Who’s Behind It. Why It’s Evil. How to Stop It.

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I’ve recommended this book by Mark Levin before, but I didn’t know that it is also available as an audiobook: Unfreedom of the Press.

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Temple Grandin’s Guide to Working with Farm Animals: Safe, Humane Livestock Handling Practices for the Small Farm

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The Negro Project: Margaret Sanger’s Diabolical, Duplicitous, Dangerous, Disastrous and Deadly Plan for Black America

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Unbelievabowl Paleo: 60 Wholesome One-Dish Recipes You Won’t Believe Are Dairy- and Gluten-Free

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

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — July 28, 2020

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I just heard that actress Olivia de Havilland–famous for her role as Melanie Hamilton in the film Gone With The Wind, has died at the age of 104.

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On July 28, 1932, U.S. Army troops, using tanks, cavalry, and tear gas demolished and burned the shanty town set up near the U.S. Capitol by unemployed Bonus Army protestors.

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July 28th is also the anniversary of the outbreak of World War I, in 1914. This war irreparably changed geopolitics. Officially, the war lasted until November 11, 1918, as did our involvement. But American troops were still running around shooting Russians until 1920.

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Today we present an article that because of its short length will not be part of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest judging. It was written by John Adrian, the owner Heracles Research, the company that makes the now famous Bed Bunker guns vaults — and a variety of other vaults for homes and vehicles. We have several of them installed here at the Rawles Ranch, and we highly recommend them. By the way, their products are made here in the United States, primarily in Texas.

Finding The Right German Shepherd, by John Adrain

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I don’t profess to be a writer or the authority on German Shepherd dogs. But I can share almost four decades of experience with my German Shepherds. Growing up in Ohio, one of my first experiences with dogs was with Golden Retrievers. They are fantastic loving dogs, and you’re more likely to be struck by lightning than bit by a Golden Retriever. However, if you want a dog to protect your family, they are pretty much worthless. They are more likely to roll over and piddle than protect you. We had a female, which is generally more protective than males, and that was the drill. There are also documented cases of carjackings where the Golden refused to get out of the car and went with the carjacker.

My first experience with German Shepherds was in the mid-1980s. My roommate who was a notorious swordsman in Southern California brought a puppy home one night. Since Ben (an alias) spent every free moment he had helping a woman with floor exercises, he had very little time for his dog Ranger.

The first time it rained, Ranger was whining outside. So, I let him in, to sleep in the hallway. Then during the night, I thought we were having an earthquake. At the time I was sleeping on a twin bed, yes that isn’t a typo twin. Immediately there was a real estate problem on the bed. I looked at him and he looked at me with: “what are you looking at?” He was only about six months old at this time.

From then on, I took him everywhere I could when Ben didn’t have him. He was a devoted and loyal friend. For about the last three years of Ranger’s life, I had him full time. By this time, I was living on the beach in the Ventura, California area. My neighbors would compete to watch him when I traveled. He loved to swim in the ocean every day. I had a waterproof military strobe light that I fastened to a small log for him to retrieve from the ocean at night when I got home. I had an older car just for traveling with him so I could keep my other car hair-free. On the beach, fleas are a problem, so I would bomb that car for fleas once a month.Continue reading“Finding The Right German Shepherd, by John Adrain”

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 the Greater Idaho project.   (See the Eastern Oregon section.)

Idaho

Reminder: ITD to open Highway 95 near Riggins on Monday after lengthy rock slide closure

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From humble beginnings, north Idaho company is now a food industry leader

The piece begins:

“For the past 50 years, a company up in Sandpoint, Idaho – seven hours north of Boise – has been churning out a product that probably all of us have had in our fridge at one point or another: refrigerated salad dressing from Litehouse Foods.

The north Idaho company is the producer of those well-known salad dressings in the glass jars with the colored lids. In fact, company president and CEO Kelly Prior says with pride, ‘We’ve now reached the status of the number one refrigerated salad dressing in the country.'”

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Video: Rep. Heather Scott on Kootenai County’s mask order.

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Police searching for information about missing Rigby woman

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“The Noble Lord advocates Union, what doth such a union mean? When the Smaller unites with the greater, what happens? The greater absorbs and engulfs the lesser, it is ever thus and so will be! There are ten times as many English as Scots. Think you then, when the ten becomes eleven, the eleventh will partner the ten? Or, be swallowed up by the ten? Is this what my Lord of Stair wants? An end to Scotland? The most ancient nation in Christendom, a kingdom when England was but a medley of warring tribes! Scotland, from whence Christianity spread to the English. Scotland, a people with their own Kirk and laws, their freedoms, customs and pride. Is all that for which our forefathers fought for untold generations, to be merely thrown aside for a mess of trading privileges and navigation rights? I would rather that Scotland sank to the bottom of the ocean rather than we lost one least part of our cherished Independence and ages old identity!” – Andrew Fletcher

Preparedness Notes for Monday — July 27, 2020

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The mainstream media hoopla over the “second wave” of COVID-19 is getting tiresome. Yes, hospital occupancy is of concern, but the number of “confirmed cases” is more of a function of a more widespread testing infrastructure than it is of actual infections, per capita. I found some recent charts that are instructive. They show that the number of hospital beds in use is back up to where it was in April. But the number of deaths relative to the number of cases (i.e. the Case Fatality Rate) is down. Therefore, it is safe to conclude that this bug has mutated into a still highly transmissible but yet less lethal strain. I’d say that there is the prospect of reaching the Herd Immunity, within six months.

The leftist mainstream media’s current goals seem to be:  1.)  Get lots of news viewers latched on to the news cycle, and 2.) Make this look like The Orange Man’s fault, and thus seal his doom in the upcoming November election.

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An interesting new listing in Wyoming that adjoins National Forest land, over at SurvivalRealty.com: A Piece of Paradise.

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And now, the latest product review from Pat Cascio…