Learning From Our Fire Drill, by A.F.

On a January evening earlier this year, I walked around the corner from our kitchen towards the bathroom and smelled smoke. My wife had just returned home from a meeting and I had spent most of the afternoon juicing frozen plums saved from last fall. I ask my wife if there was a wood smoke smell outside when she came in expecting her to confirm that a neighbor either had a fire pit going or that there was a brush pile burning nearby. When she said that she had not noticed smoke while walking into the house, I stepped out to check for myself. Nothing outside smelled of smoke.

I came back in and returned to the short hallway where the whiff had been and smelled smoke again. Asking her to join me to sense if she also smelled smoke, I received confirmation when she agreed that there was a faint smell. In the immediate area there is a HVAC return duct on the ceiling and slightly ahead in the bathroom there is a supply register overhead. My next step was to grab the kitchen step stool and smell for smoke closer to the ceiling (we have nine-foot ceilings). There was no odor near the bathroom supply register but there was around the return grill.Continue reading“Learning From Our Fire Drill, by A.F.”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is 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. In today’s column, more about AI and the anti-AI backlash.

Iran War: Global Fertilizer Shortages Looming

Reader A.T. send this BBC news piece: Billions of meals at risk due to Iran war, says fertiliser boss.

Don’t Trust Clankers: AI Agents Are Dangerously Helpful

From cryptocurrency expert Jameson Lopp: Don’t Trust Clankers: AI Agents Are Dangerously Helpful. Here is an excerpt:

“AI coding agents are designed to complete the assigned task. When one approach fails, they may try another. By default they don’t have a concept of security boundaries – in this case you can see that they don’t distinguish between “try a different API endpoint” and “steal browser cookies to bypass authentication.”

This isn’t about one specific tool – it applies to any AI agent with unrestricted access. If an agent can run commands on your machine, it may be able to access your browser data, SSH keys, cloud credentials, and more.”

Top AI Companies to Work with Pentagon on Secret Data

The statist-leftist Washington Post reports: Top AI companies agree to work with Pentagon on secret data. JWR’s Comment:  AI used for autonomous weapons. What could possibly go wrong?

Resistance: A Populist Backlash is Building Against AI

At MIT Technology Review: Resistance — A populist backlash is building against AI.Continue reading“The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods”

The Editors’ Quote Of The Day:

“Taxing is much like plucking a goose. It is the art of getting the greatest number of feathers with the least amount of hissing.” – Republican Presidential candidate Robert Dole, as quoted by The Wall Street Journal, 16 December, 1983.

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — May 6, 2026

On May 6, 1837, US blacksmith John Deere made the first steel plough, in Grand Detour, Illinois.

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May 6, 1851: Linus Yale Jr. patented the Yale cylinder lock.

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You may already own a SIEGE Stove or a SIEGE Belt from SIEGE Survival. (One of our loyal advertisers.)  I just heard that they’ve added the excellent American-made Fire-Fast firestarters to their product line. (At the SIEGE website, click on “Ferro Rod Fire Steels”.) You can see one of these being tested after four days of submersion, in a YouTube video. Tom Christianson will soon be reviewing one of the jumbo-size “Trekker” Fire-Fast firestarters from SIEGE Survival.  Every bugout bag should have a quality firestarter! – JWR

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Today’s feature article is not part of the writing contest, because it is partly self-promotional.

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We need more entries for Round 124 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $984,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 124 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. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

Get Out: Escaping The Blue Hives – Part 2, by Single Farmer

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.)

For now, the best thing to do for many is to “Get Out” escaping blue hives and get on productive land. I have been advocating that people move to lightly populated food producing rural areas in conservative states. I live in one and I am trying to increase the number of freedom loving people over here. There is safety in numbers.

I realize how difficult it is to accomplish all of this. Whenever I talk with people who would like to live on a farm, the number one reason I hear is that people cannot afford it. I am currently working on a large article series to help people to survive this new economic paradigm where jobs are disappearing and expenses keep on rising because of inflation. It is not getting better out there for regular hard-working folks. I do wish that I could report positive news, but I know many businessmen around the country who are being suffocated by the high prices for raw materials and demand destruction that occurs as people pull back from spending on finished goods as the costs of everyday mandatory expenses rises.Continue reading“Get Out: Escaping The Blue Hives – Part 2, by Single Farmer”

SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets

Our weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters. This week:  Some good news and bad news, on gun legislation.

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Some great news: House Appropriations 2027 Funding Bill Ends Suppressor, Short Barrel Rifle Registration. JWR’s Comment:  Be sure to contact both your U.S. congressman and your state’s two U.S. Senators, to insist on their support for this important legislation!  Please phone them and e-mail them!

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Freshly Minted ATF Director Robert Cekada and the “New Era of Reform”.

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Virginia’s New Gun Laws: What Gun Owners Need to Know in 2026.

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Reader Tom H. in Montana sent this: We can’t let RI’s ‘assault weapons’ ban become the US gun seizure blueprint.

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Concealed Carry Crime Stats 2026: The Impact of Open Carry on Crime in the U.S..

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets”

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — May 5, 2026

On May 5,1865, the first US train robbery occured at North Bend, Ohio.

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May 5, 1893: The Panic of 1893 caused a large crash on the New York Stock Exchange.

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This is also the birthday of Pat Frank (1908-1964). This was the pen name of newspaper journalist Harry Hart Frank. His 1959 novel Alas, Babylon is a survivalist classic. His personal life was marred by alcoholism, but his writing is admired and still surprisingly popular. (Alas, Babylon is still in print, after 67 years!) As an homage to Pat Frank, one of the settings in my novel Expatriates is Mt. Dora, Florida, which was fictionalized by Pat Frank as Fort Repose in Alas, Babylon.

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Today is the birthday of Michael Bane. He is a television host, author, firearms trainer, off-grid prepper, and host of the longest-running firearms podcast—MB.TV – On the Radio. His recent podcast episode—“The Monsters Rise” —deals with the assassination attempt against President Trump and how the Left turns conservatives into targets by what Bane has dubbed: “chumming for monsters.” All of Bane’s content can be found at michaelbane.tv.

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I just noticed that we’re about to surpass the milestone of 42,000 archived SurvivalBlog articles, columns, and quotes. Please spread the word about SurvivalBlog with your friends and co-workers, and mention that the archives are free and fully searchable. (Even though we’ve been posting daily since 2005, there are still a lot of folks who haven’t yet heard of or seen SurvivalBlog.) Also, please mention SurvivalBlog to any businesses that deal in preparedness-related merchandise or services.  We need a few more advertisers and writing contest prize sponsors. Thanks! – JWR

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Today’s feature article is not part of the writing contest, because it is partly self-promotional.

Get Out: Escaping The Blue Hives – Part 1, by Single Farmer

Author’s Introductory Note: Please help to spread this message by e-mailing links to this article including to people who are not regular SurvivalBlog readers. With more migration of conservatives to red states, you could help to turn the tide and restore our country to its greatness.

Some article titles tell you immediately what you need to know and this is one of them. Even if you now live in the safest, most conservative area there are lessons contained within this article because you are very connected to every rotting liberal area in the country. You may think to yourself: “I am not in one of these liberal cesspools full of homeless zombies wading through a sea of hypodermic needles.” However, each of us is unfortunately connected to them as surely as an untreated festering infected cut even on your toe could lead to sepsis and your untimely death. Remember that most of my writings are a “Gedankenexperiment,” not a form of advice, but an extended thought experiment.

The first step is to understand the liberal hive mind where there is a collective “groupthink”. Liberals are amazing in their ability to conform and they often can quickly and in near unison change their pins, ribbons, or flags of loyalty depending on whatever is currently fashionable with members of their tribe. I have heard many times from knowledgeable observers that it only takes one issue for liberals to become unified over and traditional minded conservative people often divide over one issue when they often have almost everything else in common. Even today among Americans born in this country, the majority are still traditionally minded, but convincing a majority to see what is happening is a herculean task.

If you study various biological processes, you will see that nature often acts to preserve itself. You may remember from my last discussion about bees where the female worker bees will push the male drones out before winter as food supplies are prioritized and once the mating season is over the males are superfluous to the point of being a drain on the survival of the hive. The liberal hive mind does not prioritize the survival of the species: it is actually a parasite that eventually destroys its host and all of society with it. Think of a picture of a normal functioning beehive and then think of a “blue hive” where the workers are completely unproductive to the point of being counterproductive and are identified by bright blue bodies. My apologies to the productive blue orchard bees (Osmia lignaria) for this analogy, but I did emphasize “bright” meaning that the idea in biology of aposematism where bright colors often signifies danger in nature. If you have ever been out in the wilds of major urban jungles, you will see some individuals with unnatural bright colored hair and often maintaining a distance from these individuals is beneficial.Continue reading“Get Out: Escaping The Blue Hives – Part 1, by Single Farmer”

SurvivalBlog’s American Redoubt Media of the Week

This weekly column features media 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.

American Redoubt Links

Send Your Media Links

Please send your links to media from the American Redoubt region to JWR. Any photos that are posted or re-posted must be uncopyrighted. You can do so either via e-mail or via our Contact form.

The Editors’ Quote Of The Day:

“Requirements for an ID are not voter suppression – they are just commonsense steps to ensure people don’t vote if they are ineligible, don’t vote using false identities and don’t vote more than once.” – The Late Charlie Kirk

Preparedness Notes for Monday — May 4, 2026

On May 4, 1415, reformers John Wycliffe and Jan Hus were condemned as heretics at the Council of Constance. Pictured is Jan Hus at the Council of Constance, in an 1883 painting by Václav Brožík. Hus had traveled to Constance with the promise of safe passage by both Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund and the Pope. But after he arrived the Pope and the cardinals soon ordered him to be thrown into prison. On July 6, 1415, after a ghastly stay fettered in prison and two trials, he was offered either recanting or death, and he chose a martyr’s death. He was burned alive at the stake. This inspired the later Hussite Revolution in Bohemia, led by General Jan Žižka.

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May 4th is now informally known as “Star Wars Day”, because of a silly play on words: “May The Fourth Be With You.”

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May 4, 1943: A patent for helicopter controls was obtained by Igor Sikorsky. Sikorsky invented fixed-winged and multi-engined aircraft, transoceanic flying boats and helicopters.

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Today we are starting a two-week-long sale in all of our percussion revolvers at Elk Creek Company, with deep discounts. This sale will end on Monday, May 18th, 2026. Please note that there are cartridge conversion cylinders available for many of these guns — particularly the Ruger Old Army revolvers and the Pietta and Uberti brand clones of the Remington Model 1858. This provides a great opportunity to acquire un-papered handguns in many “Blue” states.  (Be sure to consult your state and local laws before ordering.)

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Today’s feature article is by our own Tom Christianson.

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We are in great need of entries for Round 124 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $984,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 124 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. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

DA Targets Knock Down Targets, by Thomas Christianson

DA Targets produces an innovative line of polymer, self-healing, reactive targets. They have silhouette targets. They have gong targets. And they have knock down targets, too.

Like other reactive targets, knock down targets make an excellent training aid. The marksman doesn’t need to wait to inspect a target following a series of shots in order to find out how well he is shooting. Instead, the target reacts immediately, providing instant feedback about the effectiveness of each shot. This provides more accurate and powerful reinforcement of marksmanship skills. It is also a lot more fun.

One of DA Targets’ most innovative options is a color-change technology. The heat of the bullet passing through the target changes the color of the target at the point of impact. That makes it easy for the marksman to see exactly where his shots have struck. After a couple of minutes, the residual heat of the strike dissipates, and the color fades to the natural background color of the target, making the target ready for reuse.Continue reading“DA Targets Knock Down Targets, by Thomas Christianson”

Recipe of the Week: 

The following recipe for Dandelion Flower Pancake Fritters is from Avalanche Lily.

Note: Be sure that you harvest only from dandelion patches that have not been sprayed with any herbicides, fungicides, or pesticides.

Ingredients
  • 2 cups Dandelion flowers
  • 1 medium onion, chopped. Fresh or dried chives can also be used.
  • 2 to 3 cloves of garlic (to suit your taste)
  • 1 to 2 teaspoons of salt (to suit your taste)
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 Tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar
  • 1 cup of milk. (I use sheep milk.)
  • 2.5 cups all-purpose flour. (I use home-ground Einkorn flour.)
  • 2 eggs — Optional, If you want the nutrition and lift.  (Because of my diet I don’t make this with eggs.)
  • 1 to 2 Tablespoons of olive oil, or butter, or tallow, or lard. I use sheep tallow or olive oil.
  • Optional: Bacon bits.  Next time I make this, I plan to cook beef bacon and add it to the mixture.
Directions
  1. Pick two cups of dandelion flower heads.  Fill bowl with water and put in a tablespoon of salt.  Mix in until it dissolves.  Put the flower heads in the salt water to soak for fifteen or so minutes to kill any  small critters in the flowers.  Rinse well afterwards under cold running water.  I refill the bowl with the flower heads multiple times to rinse out any little bugs.
  2. While soaking the flower heads chop onions and garlic into small pieces.
  3. In another bowl, mix flour, salt, baking soda, vinegar, milk, and eggs into a batter, add the garlic and onions and flower heads and fold them into the batter.
  4. Put a large cast iron skillet on the stove.  Turn on the burner on low and heat the skillet.  Add the fat and melt it.
  5. I add the whole mixture to the pan to make a large “pancake”.  I put a lid on it and slow-cook until it is able to be flipped whole.  I then flip it and replace the lid and watch it until I deem it done.
SERVING

Serve with any kind of cheese.

STORAGE

Left overs can be put in the refrigerator. Eat within three days.

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Do you have a well-tested recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? In this weekly recipe column, we place emphasis on recipes that use long-term storage foods, recipes for wild game, dutch oven recipes, slow cooker recipes, and any recipes that use home garden produce. If you have any favorite recipes, then please send them via e-mail. Thanks!

SurvivalBlog Graphic of the Week

Today’s graphic: 70% of Canada’s population lives in these three regions. “Around 300,000 km² from 9,984,670 km² of total area of Canada, but 70% of population lives here…” (Graphic courtesy of Reddit.)

The thumbnail below is click-expandable.

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Please send your graphics or graphics links to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) Any graphics that you send must either be your own creation or uncopyrighted.