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 “HJL”. Israel continues to be hammered by terrorist rockets from Gaza.

Getting You Through the Storm

The Biblio Blog has a list for you. Whether you are prepping for hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, economic crises or any other man-made or natural disaster, they have a list of books for you. This list is their top ten recommendations that should be on every persons book shelf. Some of the books, we are very familiar with and others not so much, but they all look good. I especially like the last book that they recommend. That one is truly indispensable.

Gun Control Proposals

Pat Cascio, SurvivalBlog’s Senior Field Gear Editor, sent in this article on six different ways that Nancy Pelosi plans to take away your firearms freedoms. Should democrats gain control of the House in this coming election, she will most certainly be the Speaker of the House. The Washington Times has reported that Nancy believes it is more important to secure more gun control than it is to win future elections and is fully prepared to put her career at risk to pursue this agenda. This article lists six specific proposals that she has mentioned that she will go after. These include the standard “Assault Weapons” ban and “Universal Background Checks” as well as a few others like gun confiscation laws and dropping the Hearing Protection Act.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“A Methodist (Christian) is one who loves the Lord his God with all his heart, with all his soul, with all his mind, and with all his strength. God is the joy of his heart, and the desire of his soul, which is continually crying, ‘Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth whom I desire besides thee.’ My God and my all! ‘Thou art the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.’ He is therefore happy in God; yea, always happy, as having in him a well of water springing up unto everlasting life, and over-flowing his soul with peace and joy. Perfect love living now cast out fear, he rejoices evermore. Yea, his joy is full, and all his bones cry out, ‘Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, according to his abundant mercy, hath begotten me again unto a living hope of an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, reserved in heaven for me.” – John Wesley

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday – October 17, 2018

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On this day in 1835, Texans approve a resolution to create the Texas Rangers– a corps of armed and mounted lawmen designed to “range and guard the frontier between the Brazos and Trinity Rivers”. After winning their revolutionary war with Mexico the following year, Texans decided to keep the Rangers, both to defend against Indian and Mexican raiders and to serve as the principal law enforcement authority along the sparsely populated Texan frontier.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

This has been another entry for Round 79 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $11,000 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 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,
  3. A gift certificate for any two or three-day class from Max Velocity Tactical (a $600 value),
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. RepackBox is providing a $300 gift certificate to their site, and
  6. 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).

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 79 ends on November 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.

‘Twas the Night After SHTF- Part 1, by H.C.

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Twas a night after SHTF, when all through the house,
Not a creature was stirring, except for the louse;
The rifle was hung over the chimney with care,
In hopes not to use it, but to know it was there;

 

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of normalcy, danced in their heads;
And mamma still canning, and I getting undressed,
Had just been discussing how we felt so blessed;

 

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang with my rifle to see what was the matter;
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Peeked through the shutters and quietly open the sash;

 

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow,
Gave a lustre to people I knew down below;

 

When what to my wondering eyes did appear,
But a desperate group in old ragged gear;
With guns and pipes in shadows I saw,
I remembered that moment, there was no more law;

 

Continue reading“‘Twas the Night After SHTF- Part 1, by H.C.”

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 JWR. (SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor.) Today’s focus is on Militaria. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)

 

Precious Metals:

Poland Raises Gold Holdings To Record High In September – IMF

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Peter Hug: Gold Lifts Against Macro Concerns

 

Economy & Finance:

A fascinating piece, at The Atlantic: How Manhattan Became a Rich Ghost Town

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At Zero Hedge: US Treasury Sells The First Ever 2-Month Bill: Here Are The Details

 

Cryptos:

Price of ‘Stable’ Cryptocurrency Tether Tanks to 18-Month Low

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Reuters reports: Fidelity launches new company for trading and storing cryptocurrencies

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

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. This week the focus is on Packs and Bags. (See the Gear section.)

Books:

The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse, by Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre

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Past Tense: A Jack Reacher Novel

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Reader Ryan C. suggested this quite useful book: Engineering In The Ancient World,  by J. G. Landels. Ryan noted: “It is quite an interesting read. It has basic explanations of the [ancient] machines, and a few diagrams as well.”  Sometimes, Old Technology is Appropriate Technology!

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The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Geocaching, 3rd Edition: Explore the Latest Advances in This Exciting and Popular GPS Adventure

 

Movies & Television:

I was a bit disappointed by Season 3 of The Man in the High Castle. It is now available in its entirety for Amazon Prime binge watchers. The acting, cinematography, sets, costumes, vehicles, props, and the general production value were all top notch. However, the script writers of Season 3 felt obliged to make two blatant bows toward 21st Century homosexual liberal culture, even though the show was set in a parallel universe version of 1962.  Homosexual couples kissing in public, in 1962?  That is simply not believable. What a waste of a big budget. Philip K. Dick is now doubtless spinning in his grave. For the record, Philip K. Dick once wrote: “Just because something bears the aspect of the inevitable, one should not, therefore, go along willingly with it.”

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Back to the Future 30th Anniversary Trilogy

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Yalta’s Last Secret: Betrayal, Bravery, & Resistance at the End of WWII.  Available on DVD, also  Amazon Prime streaming.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Previous prime ministers, be it William Gladstone who said, ‘There will never be peace on this earth as long as we have the Koran, it’s an accursed and violent book.’ Then we have Winston Churchill who said, ‘Islam in a man is like rabies in a dog.’ And then we have David Cameron, who says Islam is a religion of peace. What’s changed? Because the [Koran] hasn’t changed.” – Tommy Robinson (Born Stephen Christopher Yaxley-Lennon), in a CBN interview. His second trial on contempt charges is now scheduled for October 23, 2018.  Please pray for justice.

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday – October 16, 2018

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October 15th, 1859 is the anniversary of abolitionist John Brown’s raid against the federal armory in Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia), in an attempt to start an armed slave revolt and destroy the institution of slavery. Although the raid failed, it inflamed sectional tensions and raised the stakes for the 1860 presidential election. Brown’s raid helped make any further accommodation between North and South nearly impossible and thus became an important impetus of the Civil War.

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It is worth noting that SurvivalBlog has now surpassed 30,000 archived articles and columns since August of 2005. We’ve also quickly garnered over 22,000 comments on articles since we instituted commenting capability in April of 2017.

Writing Your Prize-Winning SurvivalBlog Article

One of the great things about SurvivalBlog is that it is nearly all staff-written and reader-written. We also carefully select a few articles from other blogs and web sites to re-post as guest posts. But you never see the schlock “contributed” articles that now clog most other blogs. Those are articles and “infographics” that are mostly paid for and provided by companies that are seeking to boost their search engine rankings, or to hawk their products. They are easy to spot, because of their formulaic writing style with no personality. You will also never see a “paid” or “sponsored” review in SurvivalBlog.  All of the book and product reviews that we post have true objectivity.

Since 2005, we’ve been running a nonfiction writing contest, with prizes awarded once every two months. In all, thanks mostly to the contest sponsors, we’ve now awarded more than $700,000 worth of prizes. Many of those prizes are both practical and valuable. I encourage any reader who has not yet submitted an article to do so.  You’ll then be in the running to win some of those prizes.  Keep in mind that this contest is not a game of chance. It all comes down to your skill as a writer–just how well you can relate practical knowledge.

Continue reading“Writing Your Prize-Winning SurvivalBlog Article”

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. The emphasis this week is on “Perps from Out of the Redoubt Correlation” (PORC). See the Montana and Eastern Washington sections.)

Idaho

Twin Falls, Idaho welcomed nearly 3,000 refugees in ten years

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Idaho County Sheriff continues search for two people reported missing on the same day

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Idaho authorities stop search for missing Maryland filmmaker

 

Montana (Perps from Out of the Redoubt Correlation)

 Judge Upholds Missoula Universal Background Check Regulation. Now comes the costly appeal.

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Missoula: Kavanaugh Protesters Plead Guilty to Criminal Trespass

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In a heap of trouble: $50,000 Bond for Man who Led Cops on High Speed Chase into Idaho. JWR’s Comment: This is an example of what I dubbed the “Perps from Out of the Redoubt Correlation” (PORC): Namely, that a disproportionately large number of high profile crime perpetrators arrested in the Redoubt come from outside of the Redoubt. In this case, the perp was from Washington.

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Montana Expands Livestock Disease Vaccination Area

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 “HJL”. Survival is about more than water. Today features a few great articles that make that distinction.

Living Without Electricity

Gulf Power, the power company most affected by Hurricane Michael, is announcing that they hope to have electricity restored to 95% of its customers by October 24th. However, that estimate is only for customers who are affected by system outages. If the power drop into your home has been affected by the storm, you will need to wait longer as you are most likely on the bottom of the priority pile. That’s nearly 14 days without power for most of the population and much longer for some. They have already restored power to some 21,000 customers, but that was the high priority customers and the low hanging fruit (easy to repair). Here’s hoping that those people are depending on commercial power for refrigeration, cooking, or water. Thanks to H.L. for the link.

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People on the other side of America also had to deal with power outages. Pacific Gas & Electric has decided to voluntarily shut off power to tens of thousands of customers due to red-flag wind warnings and the fear of falling trees starting wildfires. Of course, some will remember just a few years ago when the government decided to excuse the power companies poor management of their power lines. The same conditions created some nasty wildfires, but the power companies were not help responsible. perhaps they fear that the largesse of the government won’t extend to them a second time. A hat tip to G.P. for the link.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“The Kavanaugh confirmation hearings instantly devolved into hen house histrionics, mutual mooning and feces flinging. As intended. No news story or commentary was complete without recapping “Our Story Thus Far” in tedious nanodetail and blather about a turning point in American history fully equal to the Battle of Gettysburg. No. It wasn’t. It was a job interview for the Star Chamber. In the end he was hired, after much signaling in Senateese that the Constitution will remain captive in the high court’s cellar, bound and gagged and beaten at intervals.” – Ol’ Remus, in his Yer ‘Ol Woodpile Report blog

Concealing Handguns, by Pat Cascio

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Carrying concealed is no easy task, if don’t do it properly. We’re taking a close look at some clothing and accessories today that aids in concealing your handgun on a daily basis.

Conceal With The Best, Not Necessarily Easiest

I’ve always looked for the best, not necessarily easiest, method of carrying a handgun concealed, as most of the work I’ve done in law enforcement and in private security/private investigations have called for working in “soft clothes” rather than a uniform of any type. I’ve lost track of the number of times over the years I’ve spotted a “concealed” handgun on someone. That telltale bulge under their shirt or jacket, or even spotting the “concealed” handgun, is not good. You don’t want to draw attention to the fact that your are carrying, period!

Letting Everyone See Is Stupid

Long story short, I had a distant cousin who was on the Chicago PD. He never got above the rank of patrolman in his entire career. When he was off-duty, drinking in a bar, he took great delight in taking off his jacket and sitting on his bar stool so everyone could see his little S&W Model 60 .38 Spl snubby tucked in his waistband. That was stupid!

Continue reading“Concealing Handguns, by Pat Cascio”