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’ll focus on a gator break-in. But first:

South African Army is Tapped Out

Our Editor-At-Large Michael Z. Williamson forwarded this: South Africa’s army has run out of money – here’s how bad things have got. Mike’s Comment: “Revolution is near in South Africa, and there’s no longer enough military force to stop it.” The article begins:

“The Department of Defence and Military Veterans has warned that a severe lack of funding could impact its ability to protect South Africa.

In a media briefing on Wednesday (17 July), Defence minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula said that her department has been forced to continuously adjust its plans downwards in response to the declining budget in recent years.

“The Defence Force is becoming progressively more unsustainable in terms of declining defence allocations,” she said.

“We have now reached the point where the Republic must decide on the kind of Defence Force it wants and what it can afford. We need a frank discussion very soon as we risk the irreversible damage to the defence force as a whole.”

In a portfolio committee meeting held earlier this month, the department said that the continued lack of funding may impact negatively on the ability of the SANDF to fulfill its constitutional mandate.

It added that over the past three financial years insufficient funds were available to cover expenditure related to compensation of employees.

This had led to the Department of Defence exploring additional sources of revenue, such as the sale of assets (including land), to cover the shortfall.”

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Freedom of speech is a principal pillar of a free government; when this support is taken away, the constitution of a free society is dissolved, and tyranny is erected on its ruins.” – Benjamin Franklin

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — July 24, 2019

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The late Jerry Ahern passed away on this day, July 24th, in 2012. His survival-themed novels created an entire genre.

—

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.

Including Old Books in Your Preps, Part 2, by Marica Bernstein

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(Continued from Part 1.)

As I mentioned, there are other categories of books-as-tools. Reference books– dictionaries, encyclopedias, foreign language dictionaries, books of mathematical tables– are among them (and are some of my favorites). With respect to dictionaries and encyclopedias, I recommend ones from various points in time. Word meanings change. For example, in Webster’s Elementary-School Dictionaryiv (1925) the first definition of ‘mend’ is “to free from flaws or defects—as in to mend one’s manners or ways; to correct; as to mend a fault; also, to repair; to put in shape again; as, to mend clothes, shoes.” Note that the emphasis of four of the seven clauses relates to behavior, not darning stockings. Contrast that with the definition at Dictionary.comxiv

As testimony to the worth I place in encyclopedias, I have 16 sets ranging from 1903 to 2010. I could write 3,000 words on the value of old encyclopedias, but I’ll leave this topic for another day. Here I strongly encourage you to include a set of children’s encyclopedias arranged topically, not alphabetically, in your library of old books. The Book of Knowledge: The Children’s Encyclopedia (many editions),xv is very good, though my very favorite is Our Wonder World: A Library of Knowledge in Ten Volumes (many editions).xvi When the lights go out and the kids get bored, these are fun, educational, and potentially life-saving!

My love of old books, especially old children’s books, compels me to call to your attention something quite disconcerting. Archive dot org is (was?) a treasure. When I blog about an old book, Archive is my go-to source for screenshot images of the book’s illustrations. The other day I was writing about a 12-volume collection of tales, fables, and poetry for kids, titled, for example, Through the Gate of My Book House Vol. 4 (1937).xvii That volume at Archive has a “limited preview.” Nothing beyond the table of contents is available. All of the volumes are limited; Volume 10 of Our Wonder World as well. This was new to me. I honestly suspect, given that I’ve looked through the actual books and know what’s in them, that they are being censored. Through the Gate has a poem about a white girl’s evening with “colored” folks, and the language to today’s ear is downright comical. It’s ridiculous to think of this as objectionable. In discussions of vocations and life’s work in Our Wonder World, boys’ jobs are treated separately from girls’. The section titled, “Home vocations for girls,” includes dress-making, learning to type, and the home tea room. It was 1923. Nevertheless, deciding what content children can or cannot be exposed to is a parent’s job, not Archives. This alone should make you want to preserve old books.

Old books filled with (often hand-calculated) values for, e.g., the sine of a 50° angle, come in handy. How else are you going to calculate how long ‘side c’ needs to be to hold your portable solar panel at optimal angle of incidence of 50° when the lights go out?Continue reading“Including Old Books in Your Preps, Part 2, by Marica Bernstein”

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 that have any tie-in to disaster preparedness, and links to “how to” self-sufficiency videos. There are also links to sources for both storage food as and food storage containers. You will also note an emphasis on history books and historical movies. This week the focus is on Raspberry Pi hobby microcomputers. (See the Gear & Grub section.)

Books:

The Volunteer: One Man, an Underground Army, and the Secret Mission to Destroy Auschwitz

o  o  o

Here is a great book that I’ve mentioned once before: The Dangerous Book for Boys

o  o  o

Black’s Law Dictionary, 11th Edition

o  o  o

A Woman of No Importance: The Untold Story of the American Spy Who Helped Win World War II

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Intellectual freedom is essential — freedom to obtain and distribute information, freedom for open-minded and unfearing debate and freedom from pressure by officialdom and prejudices. Such freedom of thought is the only guarantee against an infection of people by mass myths, which, in the hands of treacherous hypocrites and demagogues, can be transformed into bloody dictatorship.” – Andrei Sakharov

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — July 23, 2019

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On July 23rd, 1982, outside Santa Clarita, California, actor Vic Morrow (of Combat! fame) and two children were killed when a helicopter crashed onto them while shooting a scene from Twilight Zone: The Movie.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present first part of a four-part article. This is 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.

Including Old Books in Your Preps, Part 1, by Marica Bernstein

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My aim in this essay is to convince you of the worth of building a home library consisting mainly of old books. I will not suggest that you pack a set of Encyclopǣdia Britannicas in your bug-out-bag. I’m addressing those of you who are, or hope to be, hunkered down in your homes when the lights go out. Throughout, I’ll be making the same assumption that JWR makes: “Survival is not just about guns, groceries and gadgets.” To my mind is it also very much about preserving Western Culture– the values, traditions, mores, histories, and even anecdotes and funny pages that shaped our lives and the lives of our ancestors. Western Culture– American Culture– is preserved in old books. These old books should be on your shelves.

Preserving Western Culture is a good and lofty goal. It is jokingly what I said I was up to years ago when I began collecting old books in earnest. A dollar at the junk store here, $40 at the library sale there, and my collection has grown to over 3,300 books. So be forewarned! Western Culture and Civilization are rich. Building a library can become an obsession.

A subset of my library contains 300+ old cookbooks belonging to my husband who truly believes America’s cooking heritage is the only thing worth saving. A fair number of his cookbooks are spiral bound and come from Ladies’ Auxiliaries. But that’s another story.

“There are three services books may render in the home: they may be ornaments, tools, or friends.”  – Lyman Abbott, “Books for Study and Reading,” in The Guide to Reading (1925, p.1)

A good and lofty goal is a good and lofty goal, and worth pursuit in and of itself. But its grandness can overshadow other, more practical reasons for a prepper to build a library of old books. So let’s turn to Abbott’s “three services books may render in the home: ornaments, tools, and friends” and examine each from a prepper’s perspective.Continue reading“Including Old Books in Your Preps, Part 1, by Marica Bernstein”

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 the demise of the Federal Solar Tax Credit.

Hydro-Powered Idaho Retreat – Reduced

I just heard that there was a recent $60,000 price reduction on the home on 13 acres with hydro power near Clark Fork, Idaho that I first mentioned this property last week.) It is an amazing, affordable property.

How Bureaucrats Ruin Everything

I noticed this linked over at Claire Wolfe’s great Living Freedom blog: How Bureaucrats Ruin Everything From Dishwashers To Gas Cans To Cars.

All Hangs on the 2nd Amendment

A “must watch” video from John Lovell of Warrior Poet Society: All Hangs on the 2nd Amendment.

Staying Safe When a Flash Mob Descends

Frequent content contributor DSV sent this: How To Handle Yourself In A Flash Mob Looting
Continue reading“The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods:”

SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

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 Redoubt region. Today, we focus on North Idaho vloggers.   (See the Idaho  section.)

Idaho

Several North Idaho homesteading vloggers recently held this event: Meetup With North Country Off Grid, Essential Mountain Homesteading, Plus many more!! Be sure to check out their vlogs. They include:

o o o

H.L. spotted this mention of Boise, Idaho: City Halls Use Facial Recognition To Blacklist And Ban Residents

o o o

Gunfighters slated to move to North Idaho. A key quote:  “Dixon says the move to Idaho was driven by a variety of reasons, including Idaho’s more relaxed business climate and more gun-friendly attitude.”

o  o  o

The big annual Festival at Sandpoint will be held August 1st to 11th, 2019. The entertainers this year will include Jackson Browne, Kool & The Gang, Walk Off The Earth, The Avett Brothers, and Nathaniel Rateliff.

CRKT Du Hoc, by Pat Cascio

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Wicked! That one word, aptly describes the CRKT Du Hoc fixed blade knife. It it is made by Columbia River Knife & Tool (CRKT).  Most knives are designed to be used as everyday working tools, and they can double as a weapon for self-defense. However, make no mistake about it, the Du Hoc, designed by Austin McGlaun, in Columbus, Georgia – is purely a combat blade – in my humble opinion. It was designed specifically as a combat fixed blade knife. It is modeled after the Karambit, a curved blade that was meant for combat or self-defense.

If you have never heard of Pointe Du Hoc, it is worth your time to read up on this deadly battle in WWII – it was one of the targets during D Day – and it was one of the toughest areas to attack – mainly because it was about 100-feet above the beach. Our Rangers were assigned the task of scaling this cliff, using ropes and ladders, and it was a costly battle. However, if you leave military tactics to the military, and a good plan, we always prevail – just give us the wind under our wings and the tools and men to get the job done – and we’ll do it.

Many WWII movies showed how tough the fight was, for our Army Rangers to get up this cliff, and then battle the deeply entrenched Germans who held that position. Next time you see a WWII movie, that involved the Normandy beach invasion, you’ll more than likely see scenes of our Rangers and their fight to scale this heavily defended cliff and the heavy loss of life.

With the above in mind, Austin McGlaun, designed the Du Hoc, in memory of his late uncle, who was awarded the Silver Start because of his heroism at Pointe Du Hoc. To be sure, it was no small task to under take this battle to start with, and to win the Silver Star – wow! Not many in the military have earned the Silver Star, and many who did, it was awarded posthumously.

With the help of custom knife maker Ryan Johnson of RMJ Tactical, the Du Hoc came to fruition. To be sure, this large Karambit fixed blade is mission inspired and it is an eye catcher when you pull it from its sheath, and the curved tip and large thumb ring on the handle – all I can say, once again is – wow! I’d like to mention that, many custom knife makers have taken new and upstart designers and makers, under their wing, and helped to bring their designs to the buying public. I worked with a couple custom knife makers over the years, and even though I can’t draw a straight line with a ruler, those makers patiently tried their best to make a knife maker out of me! However, they did bring many of my designs to light by producing my designs.Continue reading“CRKT Du Hoc, by Pat Cascio”

Recipe of the Week: J.J.’s Cornmeal Dry Mix

Reader J.J. kindly sent us this recipe for a multipurpose cornmeal dry baking mix. This was tested as a 9-cup batch  (1 cup equals 5 ounces.)

Ingredients
  • 4 cups (18 ounces) finely ground cornmeal
  • 4 cups (18 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 2/3 cup (4 5/8 ounces) granulated sugar
  • 3 1/2 tablespoons (42 grams) baking powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons (10 grams) table salt
Dry Mix Making Directions

Combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large container with a tight-fitting lid (15- to 16-cup capacity), until thoroughly mixed.

Seal in an airtight container, label and store at room temperature until ready to use.

Using The Dry Mix

To make an 8-inch square or loaf (8  1/2-by-4 1/2 inches), use a fork to whisk together 2  1/2 cups Dry Cornmeal Dry Mix, 1/3 to 1/2 cup granulated sugar or packed light or dark brown sugar and up to 1 teaspoon of your chosen spices in a mixing bowl.

Continue reading“Recipe of the Week: J.J.’s Cornmeal Dry Mix”

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. 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 silver. (See the Precious Metals section.)

Precious Metals (Silver):

The recent breakout in the spot price of silver to above $16.28 per Troy ounce probably has some short-selling traders quaking in their boots. The price ratio of silver-to-gold is now running around 88-to-1, which although down from the recent absurd 92-to-1 high still screams opportunity for silver investors. I suspect that the price of silver will escape the market manipulators and the silver-to-gold ratio will revert to around 75-to-1, or possibly even lower. (75-to-1 would mean a spot price for $18.88 for silver, assuming that gold holds at around $1,415 per ounce.) And in the long run, with more silver than gold being consistently “used up” in unrecovorable industrial processes, I expect the silver to gold ratio to be down around 25-to-1, by the end of the 21st Century. Watch the metals markets closely, folks. I’ll admit that I’ve always had a predilection for silver, but the fundamentals here would convince just about anyone that the Silver Bull may soon have his day!

Economy & Finance:

The “Scared & Desperate” Fed Is Playing The Most Dangerous Game. Here is a key quote:

“On Wednesday odds for a 50bp rate cut had dropped to 34%, by the time Clarida, Bullard, and Williams were done these odds had skyrocketed to 71%.

Come on. None of this is an accident.

JP Morgan now expects 12 central banks to cut rates in the next 2 months. The global easing cycle has begun. With negative rates still in place.

What’s all this really tell us? A recession is coming, they know it and they are desperate to prevent it. It also says zero rates are coming back and I suspect, in due time, negative rates. Which means markets will eventually drop despite the current efforts to jam things higher.

But a Fed desperate to jawbone markets higher, to “influence markets” is playing the most dangerous game.

A Fed admitting they have limited ammunition and are openly abandoning their data dependency mantra to stop the business cycle is an open admission of weakness. And a weak Fed may commit the worst sin a Fed can commit: Lose confidence of the market. And once that happens all things are possible…”

o  o  o

The Victims of Inflation

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”