Spices for Long Term Storage, by Upper Midwesterner

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This isn’t going to be just another food storage article. For excellent advice on that subject, start by exploring  the SurvivalBlog archives and the LDS web site. But there’s a related topic that I felt was worthy of discussion.

It wasn’t that long ago that .22 rimfire ammo disappeared from shelves, and conversations about PMAGs in stock sounded pretty similar to claims about Yeti and the Loch Ness Monster – utterances viewed by most listeners with great skepticism. We live in a ‘just in time’-supplied world, where almost anything can quickly affect the price – or the availability – of many products we’re used to seeing on our store’s shelves.

If you bake, you’ve probably noticed the massive increase in the price of vanilla. Last year, a hurricane in Madagascar so damaged the crop that today’s vanilla prices have nearly doubled. Vanilla, like many other spices we rely on, still come from isolated places on the globe. Any environmental, economic or political disruption could cause them to rapidly disappear from our markets – perhaps for a very long time. More than our recipes would be affected, because some of these things are essential components of food preservation as well.

Continue reading“Spices for Long Term Storage, by Upper Midwesterner”

SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

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Here is SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt. This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. We also mention companies of interest to preppers that are located in the region. Today, we focus on concerts in the region scheduled for the remainder of 2019.

As an aside, I had one reader e-mail me to say that much of the news that I report in this column is “boring”.  So, welcome to Mayberry, RFD. I don’t publicize many riots, or mass murders, or street protests, or nudist festivals–simply because we don’t have many of those here in The American Redoubt. Life is a bit more mundane, slow-paced, and bucolic here, and we like it that way! We had zero murders in my county in the past four years. When they do occur, a murder in the Redoubt is usually big news–not just a statistic.

Region-Wide

RFR on KTW – 2019-03-23 Righteous Will Be Accused of Rebellion Our Army Is Bigger Than Theirs

o o o

Now available: Spokane & Inland Northwest Relocation Guide.

Idaho

There are a raft of concerts scheduled for 2019 in Idaho, including: Bela Fleck, Celtic Woman, Old Dominion, Riders In The Sky, Vince Neil, Josh Ritter, Tracy Byrd, Jackson Browne, Travis Tritt, and Josh Groban.

o o o

Rep. Fulcher Introduces Bill for One Subject Rule

o o o

Yes, many Californians are moving to Idaho. Here are the other states new residents are coming from.

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

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”.  Today, we focus on field gear.

Practical Legalities of Magazines in California

First up, from The Daily Shooter: Can I USE My California Standard & High Cap Mags?

The JLTV (Humvee Replacement)

Video: Update for US Army – The new JLTV gives a demonstration of its capabilities. JWR’s Comments: I have to warn myself not to covet.  The good news is that the JLTV will replace the older-generation vehicles. That, in turn, will hopefully mean that a large number of surplus up-armored HMMWVs will probably be hitting the market–at reasonable prices. Be patient.

Europe’s Draconian New Copyright Rules

Several readers sent this: Europe looks to remold internet with new copyright rules. JWR’s Comments: Even though I’ve personally lost out on tens of thousands of dollars due to copyright infringement (e.g. pirated electronic copies of my books and audiobooks) I oppose this legislation.  The inability to quote snippets of articles or even to simply link to articles will stifle freedom of press.

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

Preparedness Notes for Monday — April 22, 2019

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Today is the birthday of actor Eddie Albert (born Edward Albert Heimberger on April 22, 1906.) He died May 26, 2005, at age 99.) Prior to World War II, and before his film career, Albert had toured Mexico as a clown and high-wire artist with the Escalante Brothers Circus, but secretly worked for U.S. Army intelligence, photographing German U-boats in Mexican harbors. For his actions in the battle of Tarawa, he was awarded the Bronze Star with combat “V” device.

This is also the birthday of the late Charles Rankin Bond, Jr, who was born in Dallas on April 22, 1915. He was one of the last of the AVG Flying Tiger pilots.

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Today we present another product review by our Filed Gear Editor, Pat Cascio. You’ll note that Pat never pulls any punches. When a product doesn’t live up to expectations, he never hesitates to tell you about it.

Taurus PT1911, by Pat Cascio

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I’m a huge fan of the 1911 style of handguns. I have been, just about all my life as a shooter. I’m a sucker for a well-made 1911, new or used, at a good price, too. Today, we’re checking out the disappointing Taurus PT1911, full-sized 1911 in .45 ACP.  Pictured is my test gun, with some upgraded grips.

The following hyperbole is a snippet directly from the Taurus web site:

“Destined to become the standard that all 1911 pistols are compared to, the Taurus 1911 offers you the most accurate and feature-laden model on the market today. Starting with our own hammer-forged not cast-ordnance grade steel frame, slide and barrels. Our skilled pistolsmiths hand-fit and assemble each firearm in our state-of-the-art factory. Available in the powerful .45 ACP or 9mm, this aggressive, rock solid firearm is ready to go, right out of the box. The Taurus 1911 is an unbeatable firearms that also provides an unbeatable value.”

Wow! Those promises are quite a bit to take in.

To be sure, this is not the first Taurus 1911 I’ve owned, I’ve had several since they were first introduced some years ago. And, on my Taurus sample, it is marked PT1911 – on the Taurus website, they simply refer to it as a “1911” – something changed some place along the line, for some reason.

Continue reading“Taurus PT1911, by Pat Cascio”

Recipe of the Week: Anita’s Basic Seasoned Flour

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This is a family multipurpose standby that yields about 5 cups of flour mix that can be incorporated into many meat recipes– most often as a flour in which to dredge or roll various meat cuts before baking or cooking. But it can also be incorporated into meat-based soups, or for use in dough to include in meat pies and pasties. (For the latter, add more unseasoned flour, unless you want a really peppery flavor.)

Note: This flour can be stored refrigerated in a tightly-sealed container for many weeks.

You can greatly reduce the quantity of salt, for low-salt diets.

Ingredients
  • 4 C All-Purpose Flour
  • 1/4 Cup of Salt
  • 2 T Fresh Ground Pepper
  • 2 T Dry English Mustard (Powder)
  • 1 T Paprika (or less, to suit your taste)
  • 1 tsp Dried Basil
  • 1 T Chervil (aka French Parsley)
  • 1 tsp Thyme
  • 1 tsp Parsley Flakes
Directions
  • Sift flour, salt, pepper, mustard powder, and paprika together.
  • Stir in the herbs.
  • Store in an airtight container, refrigerated.
Notes

Typically, we use this to dredge pork chops, chicken, beef round steak, or beef chuck steak, cut into pieces.  (After dredging, brown the meat in a skillet , put it in a baking dish, cover with foil and place in a 350 F oven for 30 to 60 minutes.)

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Do you have a favorite recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? Please send it 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. 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 Sand Color PMAGs. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)

 

Precious Metals:

A Recession, Debt Crisis Would Be Good For Gold – VanEck

o  o  o

Arkadiusz Sieroń: Will Powell’s Dovish Turn Support Gold?

Economy & Finance:

H.L. spotted this, over at Wolf Street: How Big or Tiny of an Apartment Can the Median Household Income Afford to Rent in the 100 Largest US Cities? A snippet from the article:

“In only 14 of the 100 cities can 30% of this median household income rent an apartment that is larger than average for that city…”

o  o  o

Moving on to this at The WSJ: The Long Bull Market Has Failed to Fix Public Pensions

o  o  o

From the analysts at Eide Bailly: Economic Update – April 2019

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“This has happened many times before, and is part of a predictable cycle. As I show in my new book Socialism: The Failed Idea That Never Dies, socialist projects always go through honeymoon periods, during which they are enthusiastically endorsed by Western intellectuals. But since socialist policies generally lead to economic failure, and sometimes even political repression, those honeymoon periods typically don’t last for more than a decade. Then these foreign example fall out of fashion, and get retroactively reclassified as counterfeit socialism. The USSR, North Vietnam, Cuba and Maoist China all functioned as utopias du jour. In the 1970s, some Western intellectuals even pinned their hopes on more obscure areas of the world, such as Cambodia, Albania, Tanzania, Mozambique, Angola and Nicaragua.

One common, backward-looking delusion in all of these cases: When explaining away the failures of the past, it was assumed that the hierarchical, stratified character of failed socialist projects had been a result of some deliberate political choice. Which is to say: It was believed that previous socialist experiments had failed because the leaders of these movements caused them to be centralized and autocratic as a matter of design—as opposed to a democratic socialist system based on mass participation and a radical decentralisation of power.

But the truth is that mass participation and radical democratization always had been idealized by socialists, including by socialist leaders who led successful national movements. But these dreams never survived, because it simply isn’t feasible to run a large society and a complex economy in this kind of participatory way. Democratic socialism works perfectly fine in small, self-selecting and homogenous high-trust communities with relatively simple economies, the prime example being the Israeli Kibbutz. But that model is not scalable (and hasn’t even aged particularly well in Israel itself). There is a reason that, even at the height of the Kibbutz movement, Kibbutzim never grew beyond a certain size. There seems to be an upper limit of around 1,500 people, and even that is rare: Most Kibbutzim have fewer than 500 members.

Regardless of what socialists say they want to build, socialism can only mean a society run by large, hierarchical government bureaucracies. It can only mean a command-and-control economy directed by a distant, technocratic elite. The reason it always turns out that way isn’t because revolutions are “betrayed” by selfish or undisciplined actors, but because no other path is possible. Unfortunately, this is a lesson that every generation needs to learn for itself—which is why each cohort is sneered at by its younger counterparts.” – Kristian Niemietz, in an essay titled Socialism’s Endless Refrain: This Time, Things Will Be Different, in the Quilette blog

Preparedness Notes for Sunday — April 21, 2019

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In addition to Resurrection Sunday falling on the 21st of April this year, the 21st is traditionally the annual Aggie Muster Day, for all Texas A&M Corps of Cadets graduates. Aggie Muster celebrations/meetings are held as far away as Japan, Germany, and Afghanistan. Other than the officers that matriculate though West Point, the four institutions that seem to have the greatest ongoing esprit de corps for graduates are Texas A&M, The Citadel, Norwich University, and VMI.

Retreat Owner Profile: Mr. & Mrs. Alaska

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Area:  Alaska (off-grid, fly-in access only, a 20 minute flight to the nearest rural airport)

Present Home:  In 2007, we bought five undeveloped acres on a lake surrounded by tens of thousands of acres of state owned boreal forest in Alaska. One couple lives full time within 10 miles of us.  The nearest rural airport is a 20 minute flight away. No roads through the forest or across the mountains or rivers. The nearest river access to a road is a 3.5 hour snowmachine trip cross country.   Our home is a two-room, 750 sq. ft. log cabin (built from 106 spruce trees) supported by about 8 outbuildings (see description). Most of the year our minimal electrical needs are supplied by a small solar array and wind turbine  (we have no television, dryer, microwave, or other common electrical appliances). We primarily feed ourselves from several gardens, wild foods, small animal husbandry, and hunting/fishing. We go 10 weeks at a time without seeing anyone else.

Ages:  61 (her) and 58 (him).

SOs (significant others):  Two adult sons, siblings, and parents in other states.   Only one son and my parents have visited. The others have no interest.

Annual Income:  Retired/Savings/Occasional income from business consulting in the financial and call center industries. We live debt free.

Profession:  Former careers in telecommunications, finance, business writing/analysis, and teaching.

Investments:  Gold and silver coins, junk silver, cash.  We regard our long term food storage, perennial plantings, and tools as investments in our future, too.

Vehicles:  1954 Piper PA-20 two-seater plane with floats and skis; 1993 GMC Suburban 4WD; 2 Arctic Cat snow machines with freight sled; ATV with game trailer and tow-behind backhoe

Continue reading“Retreat Owner Profile: Mr. & Mrs. Alaska”

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”.  Today, we focus on Pistol Shooting at Distance.

Ireland’s Survivalists

‘We’re really only nine meals removed from total anarchy’: Ireland’s preppers and survivalists. Here is a quote:

“The prevailing sense of crisis following the economic crash may have inspired people to consider getting back to basics. Across society, Deegan said, people who were laid off or had hours cut also found themselves with more free time then they knew what to do with.

But social media sites like Facebook, than in its infancy, also helped people with an interest in survival skills and equipment find each other. The Irish Survivalist Group, which Deegan co-founded, now has more than 2,000 members on Facebook.

So what does it mean to be a survivalist in Ireland?

As Deegan explained, in addition to working personally on their own skills his group’s members arrange regular meetups of up to 30 or 40 people, heading out to the wilderness with no tents or equipment ‘to get to know each other and talk about various aspects of survival’.”

The National Guard’s Dramatic Logo Change

Over at the Yer ol’ Woodpile Report weekly bog there was a link to this at Guns.com: National Guard Ditches Iconic Minute Man, Gun Logo. “The rebrand makes it clear that the Army National Guard is part of the Army.”  Ol’ Remus Comments:  “And just like that, what were the country’s organized militias are now admitted to be the domestic standing army so feared by the founders.” JWR’s Comments: I can recall being in the Army Reserve back in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Even though we were Federal troops, (rather than under teh State National Guard Bureaus) some of the recruiting paraphenalia for the Army Reserve used the Minuteman logo, with the motto “America’s Home Team.” Yes, times have changed.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.

And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.

And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.

And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven.

Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language.

And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans?

And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?

Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia,

Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes,

Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God.

And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this?” – Acts 2: 1-12 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Saturday — April 20, 2019

On April 20th, 2010, an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil platform, leased by BP, killed 11 workers and began spewing an estimated 200 million gallons of crude into the Gulf of Mexico for nearly three months, creating the worst known offshore oil spill.

April 20th is also the day that we remember the victims of the Columbine High School tragedy, where two students stormed into a suburban high school in Littleton, Colorado in 1999, at lunch time with illiegally-obtained guns and explosives, killing 13 and wounding dozens more in what was, at the time, the nation’s deadliest school shooting.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 82  of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3000 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 Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
  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. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  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 82 ends on May 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.

1803: The Preps of Lewis and Clark, by S.K.

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Prepping is many things to a great and growing number of people. Americans have been prepping since the entire European presence was behind a wall, back there in the Jamestown Colony.  As a people, we have this written in our DNA.  The long trek west and the adversarial relationship of native and non-native is a compelling story filled with survival lessons for everyone.

And none is more spellbinding than the story of the Corps of Discovery.  How did Lewis and Clark do it, and what was in their “G.O.O.D. bags”?

Thomas Jefferson had been interested in exploring the American West since childhood.  In the ten years after the revolution, four plans were developed for its exploration.  Jefferson was behind three of them.  The Corps of Discovery was in the planning stages prior to the consummation of the transaction that was the Louisiana Purchase.  This post is an attempt to learn from their preparations.  They were not “Bugging out” or struggling to get home.  However, it was the ultimate camping trip and we can learn much from studying their efforts.  If the value of the prep is obvious, I will just leave it alone.  If obscure, I will expound on its virtue.

Continue reading“1803: The Preps of Lewis and Clark, by S.K.”