PGP for Preppers- Part 2, by Groundhog Gravy

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We should be especially careful when communicating electronically: it’s little more than trivial for a government, a corporation, or even a couple of well-equipped criminals to intercept phone calls, emails, or text messages. This article explains how to use simple, secure tools that do only encryption and do it right. These are based upon a tool that is significantly better than the name suggests, Pretty Good Privacy (PGP), and offers excellent communications security for preppers. Part 1 covered PGP and how it is used. Now, we are continuing.

Setting an Expiration Date

Now that you have created a key, there are a couple things you may want to do with it. First, you might want to set an expiration date, so that if you happen to lose your private key, you don’t have a zombie public key floating around valid literally forever. I’d set a date about a year in the future; you can easily extend the expiration date if need be. To do this:

  • Open the Key Manager window by choosing Keyring Manager from the Windows menu of GPA,
  • Select your new key from the list,
  • From the Keys menu, select Edit private key,
  • Choose a new date and click “OK”, and
  • Enter your passphrase.

Continue reading“PGP for Preppers- Part 2, by Groundhog Gravy”

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”. Big Brother is back with a vengeance today.

YouTube Attacks

We’ve almost grown accustomed to YouTube automatically shutting down channels that deal with firearms, but the attacks in the past have mostly been targeted at individuals or smaller operations. This Saturday, they attacked industry giant Brownell’s. When YouTube announced changes to their user agreement in regards to firearms, Brownell’s spent an enormous about of time to edit and alter their offerings so that they would be in compliance. That apparently didn’t matter. Today, if you attempt to navigate to https://youtube.com/brownellsinc you are greeted by the message “This account has been terminated for violating YouTube’s Community Guidelines.” marking the first time we know of that they have gone after a major player.

Home-Built Mortars

It’s been a few years since we’ve heard much news coming out of Nicaragua, but that seems to be changing. The country has seen a significant uptick in unrest since about April 18th and at least 135 deaths have been linked to this political unrest this year. Opponents of the Ortega government have been deploying homemade mortar rounds from homemade launchers in the face of government fire. Though not as deadly as the commercially built rounds, the homemade ones are in demand and sell for about $12 USD for a dozen. The man interviewed builds the launchers and the rounds, but remains anonymous. Note that it is illegal to own weapons in this country. The only force allowed to own weapons is using them on their own citizens. Thanks to G.P. for the link.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” – Hebrews 3:12-13 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Saturday – June 09, 2018

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On June 9, 1954, Army counsel Joseph N. Welch confronted Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy during the Senate-Army Hearings over McCarthy’s attack on a member of Welch’s law firm, Frederick G. Fisher. Said Welch: “Have you no sense of decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?” Of course, years later, when the relevent documents had been declassified, we find that McCarthy’s concerns were pretty much right on.

o o o

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

This has been another entry for Round 77 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. Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value), and
  8. 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 transferable certificate for a two-day Ultimate Bug Out Course from Florida Firearms Training (a $400 value),
  5. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  6. A $200 gift certificate good towards any books published by PrepperPress.com,
  7. RepackBox is providing a $300 gift certificate to their site.

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, 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).

Round 77 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.

PGP for Preppers- Part 1, by Groundhog Gravy

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Introduction

We all have a need for private communication. Whether it’s details of our preparations that we want to share with others in a group, discussing tactics, carrying on trade, or any of a hundred other matters, we should be concerned about keeping our communication private. We should be especially careful when communicating electronically: it’s little more than trivial for a government, a corporation, or even a couple of well-equipped criminals to intercept phone calls, emails, or text messages. We can use encryption, which transforms data into a form that can only be read with a secret key, to help preserve our privacy.

Providers That Purport To Keep Emails Private

There are plenty of e-mail providers that purport to keep your emails private, e.g. Hushmail, ProtonMail, and SCRYPTmail. There are also encrypted messaging providers, like Signal and Telegram. I don’t trust them, and neither should you. Take Hushmail, for example. They claim to store only encrypted e-mails, which not even their own employees can read. However, they have released decrypted e-mail data to authorities pursuant to a Canadian court order, and their revised terms of service suggest they will continue doing so. The others have similar problems, having servers in troubling jurisdictions or having weak or subpoena-vulnerable storage of encryption keys. You simply can’t know what’s happening to your data once it’s on someone else’s server.

Encryption Failures in the News

Even lately, encryption failures have been in the news. The EFail exploit, based on how many email clients implement PGP encryption, and a similar flaw was discovered in Signal and Telegram, both which reveal the clear text of what you meant to keep secret.

Continue reading“PGP for Preppers- Part 1, by Groundhog Gravy”

Editors’ Prepping Progress

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To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make long-term and short-term plans. Steadily, we work on meeting our prepping goals. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities. They also often share their planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, property improvements, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year. We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in the Comments. Let’s keep busy and be ready!

JWR

Dear SurvivalBlog Readers:

This week I concentrated on writing, but I still found time for some firewood cutting and hauling. On Wednesday, I pruned up some-low-hanging limbs on a half dozen trees on one our horse trails. And I pitched in on pitching some manure.Yesterday, I hauled some sand to mix in to one of Lily’s garden beds.

Next week I plan to drop another large dead standing tree and begin hauling, crosscutting, and splitting firewood, in earnest. The local First Cutting of hay should be available soon. So I can add hay hauling to my “to do” list.  Oh, and I made repair to one of our quad trailers. Work is never done on a ranch. Aside for the inevitable machinery entropy, I find it all quite satisfying.

It appears that we’ll be getting some rain showers today and tomorrow. That is good news, since the soil in our pastures was starting to look dry.

Continue reading“Editors’ Prepping Progress”

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”.

Impressive Homemade Machine Tool

Reader W.T. sent in this impressive article and video on a home built machine tool that is accurate and capable of most small to medium machining tasks with this comment:

“As you know, I love machining, so I’m always interested simple ways to do precision work. Here’s a simple machining center that can be made in the home shop. The basic “frame” for this machine is a 4 cylinder engine block. The inventor certainly has a creative eye to see the resources that surround him. Even in a post-SHTF world, we will have the building blocks for some impressive machinery.”

Weaponizing Hardware Store Goods

One of our favorite YouTube channels is JoergSprave’s Slingshot channel. Back in 2015, Paramount Pictures released the zombie apocalypse movie “Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse” and Joerg was asked to do some promotion for it. The premise is that several young scouts get trapped in a hardware store and use everyday items to create weapons. Kind of like McGuyver used too. In any case, Joerg again shows that some pretty devastating weaponry can be made from things people don’t usually see as weapons. Thanks to M.S. for the link.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.

And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.

And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever. – Daniel 12:1-3 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Friday – June 08, 2018

On June 8th, 1776, Canadian Governor Sir Guy Carleton defeated American Patriot forces under John Sullivan. After taking heavy losses and the loss of General Richard Montgomery at Quebec, the Patriots were pursued by Governor Carleton. Halfway between Quebec and Montreal, at the Trois-Rivieres, the Patriots turned to fight. The Redcoats and German mercenaries killed 25, wounded 140, and captured 236, but Carleton allowed the rest of the 2,500-man force to complete their retreat. This battle changed the priorities of the Patriots, and Colonel Benedict Arnold wrote, “Let us quit and secure our own country before it is too late.”

o o o

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

This has been another entry for Round 77 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. Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value), and
  8. 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 transferable certificate for a two-day Ultimate Bug Out Course from Florida Firearms Training (a $400 value),
  5. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  6. A $200 gift certificate good towards any books published by PrepperPress.com,
  7. RepackBox is providing a $300 gift certificate to their site.

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, 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).

Round 77 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.

The Rules of Engagement: Meet PTSD- Part 2, by Autistic Prepper

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Illness Triggers

High fevers can also trigger flashbacks. During a bad bout of flu, H’s temperature soared to 105 degrees, and he went back to the hospital where he was treated for peritonitis after being shot. Sometimes medical treatment in Vietnam had to be improvised. H was placed in a tub of ice, which burned like fire but did lower his temperature. Now, in the present, he looked at me with beseeching eyes and begged me not to put him in the ice. I promised I wouldn’t.

Hyper-Vigilance: Once Learned, Never Forgotten

Hyper-vigilance, or hyper-alertness, is also common. People who have been through hell are sure it still lies in wait for them. H always sits with his back to the wall. To me this has become normal, and when we’re out I automatically give him a corner seat where he can view the door.

He learned from combat that everything can be dangerous. The VC put crushed glass in popsicles. They also attached explosives to youngsters and set them in the street, knowing the Americans wouldn’t run over a child. When the American picked up the child, the explosion killed them both.

H knows danger is always there. That may be why he won’t open presents. I have to give them to him unwrapped.

Silence is Not Golden

H hears the slightest sound and cannot rest until he has identified the source. A helicopter overhead will send him to the door to verify its location. He can tell what type of copter it is by its sound.

At the same time, he cannot tolerate silence and immediately turns on the TV when he goes to his room. I asked about this once, and he explained that when the jungle got quiet, that meant danger.

Continue reading“The Rules of Engagement: Meet PTSD- Part 2, by Autistic Prepper”

Economics & Investing For Preppers

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Here are the latest 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 the expected Social Security shortfall. (See the Economy and Finance section.)

Precious Metals:

Turkey Uses Gold Bullion To Stabilise Its Currency And Economy

 

Forex:

FOREX-Euro snaps 6-week losing streak as Italy concerns wane; data eyed

o  o  o

I noticed that in terms of stability versus the US Dollar, the Thai Baht seems to have been managed well for the past few years. In contrast, some of its neighboring countries have had far less currency stability. Needless to say, currency trading stability generally equates to commodity trading stability and good exporting relationships.

 

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Whereas, Slavery, throughout its entire existence in the United States is none other than a most barbarous, unprovoked, and unjustifiable War of one portion of its citizens upon another portion; the only conditions of which are perpetual imprisonment, and hopeless servitude or absolute extermination; in utter disregard and violation of those eternal and self-evident truths set forth in our Declaration of Independence.” – John Brown

Preparedness Notes for Thursday – June 07, 2018

On June 7th, 1776, Richard Henry Lee of Virginia proposed to the Continental Congress a resolution calling for a Declaration of Independence.

June 7th, 1967 is also the day of Jerusalem’s redemption from foreign governments in the Six Day War, placing it back under Israeli sovereign control after having been occupied for over 2500 years. This was in accord with the UN General Assembly’s vote in 1948.

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

This has been another entry for Round 77 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. Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value), and
  8. 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 transferable certificate for a two-day Ultimate Bug Out Course from Florida Firearms Training (a $400 value),
  5. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  6. A $200 gift certificate good towards any books published by PrepperPress.com,
  7. RepackBox is providing a $300 gift certificate to their site.

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, 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).

Round 77 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.

The Rules of Engagement: Meet PTSD- Part 1, by Autistic Prepper

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PTSD is an acronym thrown around quite a bit. Principally, this mental diagnosis term of posttraumatic stress disorder was assigned beginning in the early 1980s, primarily to those who had experienced traumatic events, such as war. Let’s meet PTSD and talk about the rules of engagement surrounding it and those who carry its burden.

Why I Wrote An Article

A while back I wrote an article about adult autism, an issue I’d never seen addressed in prepping literature. A perceptive reader wondered what the condition had to do with prepping. It is relevant for two reasons. First, it’s a reminder that autistic children become autistic adults. Second, it’s to remind us that all kinds of people will be present in a post-apocalyptic situation.

Some of the survivors will be what society calls “normal”, while others will be a bit different. Autism is one difference. Another difference, commonly found in the military veterans who will be so valuable in a survival situation, is PTSD. Most survival groups will be eager to have veterans, but most won’t be prepared to deal with the psychological impact war has made on the veterans’ minds and behavior.

Meet H

Meet H, my husband and the all-round smartest man I’ve ever met. He can almost keep up with me. By any criteria, he’s someone you’d want in your survival group. He can take apart and put together any gun. He’s an expert with explosives and once defused a WWII mine in our den. It’s not just theory that he knows but the action and strategies of war, and he can keep his head when others are doing a Linda Blair imitation.

He’s the best shot I’ve ever seen. Like most Southern men, he’s been shooting since childhood. What Grandad didn’t teach him, Carlos Hathcock did. Yes, my man is the ideal member of any survival group. But he comes with baggage those around him must never forget: he has severe PTSD.

Continue reading“The Rules of Engagement: Meet PTSD- Part 1, by Autistic Prepper”

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”. Another no-log VPN is busted again for doing what they say they don’t!

Graduation Gift

The 8th grade graduation give given to Philly middle-school students is raising eyebrows. As these students prepared to join the ranks of American high-schoolers, they discovered that their “welcome to high school gifts” was a bullet resistant shield that can be slipped into their backpacks like a book. Parents and guardians told the news outlet covering the event that the gift might be considered extreme, but was necessary. Of course, the shields were provided by a maker of bullet-resistant backpacks, probably as a publicity stunt and it’s pretty obvious that the kids were less than thrilled with the gift. I used to wonder why there was even such a thing as an 8th-grade graduation till I became a teacher. Then I realized that this was probably the last graduation that many of these students would ever see – Not because of bullets, but because they would drop out. Thanks to S.M. for the link.

Civil War Era Wound

Mike Williamson, SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large, sent in this link showing the X-rays of a bullet wound created by a replica of a Civil War era projectile. The .58 caliber minié ball struck the arm of an individual who was hunting, but slipped and fell while carrying the loaded firearm. The wound is devastating and judging by the number of titanium screws and plate along with modern medicine, the wound would have required amputation of the arm if it occurred during the civil war. To the victims credit, he applied the tourniquet himself and walked out of the area he was hunting in to get help. Note that this link is on Facebook.

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