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 the economic contribution of the Columbia River Basin. Combined, the dams in the region provide more than 40% of U.S. hydroelectric generation.

Idaho (Columbia River Basin)

One of the nation’s furthest-inland seaports west of the Mississippi River is the city of Lewiston, Idaho. It is Idaho’s only seaport. Located at the confluence of the Snake River and Clearwater River, and connecting to the mighty Columbia River, Lewiston is considered a secondary seaport city. It can be reached by seagoing barges, but most of the barge traffic is river or coastal barges that carry wood chips, wood pulp, and grain down to Portland, Oregon. There, this cargo is typically trans-shipped into large seaworthy cargo vessels.

According to Wikipedia: “Lewiston’s main industries are agriculture, paper and timber products production at the mill owned and operated by the Clearwater Paper Corporation (until December 2008, a part of the Potlatch Corporation), and light manufacturing.”  Wikipedia also notes:  “Ammunition maker CCI, and Speer Bullet (both now brands of Vista Outdoor) are headquartered in Lewiston and Howell Munitions & Technology has a plant in the city as well.”

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Redoubt News reports: Trespass Bill Protects Property Rights In Idaho

 

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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”. China is reacting to Animal Farm this week.

Animal Farm

All books are equal, but some or more equal than others. President Xi Jinping, who is very nearly dictator for life in Communist China has ordered the banning of any online post that referred to George Orwell’s dystopian novel Animal Farm and the letter “N”. We can only assume that the letter is being used as a form of dissent, but it sure will be hard to write sentences without this letter. Note that this is not the first decree suppressing free speech in China, the word “lifelong” and “disagree” have also been banned.

Gun Control

Mike Williamson, SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large posted an article over on his site that looks at some issues of gun control. Gun control artificially raises the price on the guns that it targets. Contrary to what gun control idiots enthusiasts think, it doesn’t stop the guns from circulating. Restrict the gun enough and you simply drive it to the underground black market. Despite being poised to make money from any gun control law passed, he’d vote to eliminate all of them in a heartbeat. It’s an interesting perspective and one that those pushing the laws have obviously not thought through.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“The whole object of science is to synthesize, and so simplify; and did we but know the uttermost of a subject we could make it singularly clear.” – Percival Lawrence Lowell (March 13, 1855 – November 12, 1916) was an American businessman, author, mathematician, and astronomer who speculated that there were canals on Mars

Preparedness Notes for Monday – March 26, 2018

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March 26th marks the anniversary of the historic peace agreement ending three decades of hostilities between Egypt and Israel and the establishing of diplomatic and commercial ties between them. Less than two years earlier, Sadat had traveled to Jerusalem to seek permanent peace. Most of the Arab world was outraged, but Despite criticism from Egypt’s regional allies, they pursued peace. While the efforts earned both Egypt’s Sadat and Israel’s Begin a joint Nobel Prize for Peace in 1978, Egypt was expelled from the Arab League and in 1981, Sadat was assassinated by Arab extremists.

Ruger/CRKT All Cylinders, by Pat Cascio

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We’re taking a look at the collaboration between custom knife maker Bill Harsey, Ruger firearms, and Columbia River Knife & Tool (CRKT) today. And this one is a real winner.

Col. Rex Applegate and Custom Knife Maker Bill Harsey

I worked full-time for the late Col. Rex Applegate for three years, and he was not only my friend but my mentor as well. He taught me a lot about knife and gun fighting as well as military infantry tactics. It was more than I ever learned in the military. Applegate had his Applegate/Fairbairn double-edge fighting knife made by Oregon’s own custom knife maker, Bill Harsey. Unfortunately, I never crossed paths with Harsey in all the years I worked for Applegate, when Harsey delivered a batch of his knives.

Bill Harsey designs and makes knives, especially folders, that I dearly love. The man is talented, and he doesn’t live all that far from me. One of these days, I’ll have to pay him a visit and tour his operation.

CRKT Knives Made For Ruger

CRKT has a separate catalog from their regular line-up. It is loaded with Ruger knives, all made by CRKT for Ruger, and the line-up is very extensive. You can request catalogs from Ruger or CRKT to see all of the products.

Continue reading“Ruger/CRKT All Cylinders, by Pat Cascio”

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 Bitcoin, and its alternatives.

Precious Metals:

The proverbial Elephant in the Room is the silver-to-gold price ratio. When I last checked, it was an insane 81-to-1. That doesn’t match market fundamentals, industrial usage and recovery fundamentals, and certainly not Earth’s crust scarcity fundamentals. To me, this seriously out-of-whack ratio can only indicate a major economic recession or depression is ahead. This is because silver is more of an industrial metal, while gold is still seen as an inflation hedge.

If we start to see the silver-to-gold price ratio narrow before a recession then that is a huge red flashing light that says: World War III. And if we see the silver-to-gold price ratio narrow in the midst of a recession then that would signal either war or an incipient economic recovery.  OBTW, speaking of price ratios, seeing spot platinum priced far below the spot price of gold is another indicator of a recession in the near future. “Good Times” economically are indicated by platinum selling about 20% over the price of gold.

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Video: The Most Gold & Silver You’ve Ever Seen? Mike Maloney

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Take a look at this piece by Jeff Clark at GoldSilver.com: The Potential Big Surprise for 2018, and What It Means for Gold

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“If a person is too dangerous to have a gun, that person is dangerous enough to arrest or commit. Taking people’s guns on the say-so of a jilted lover or crazy neighbor isn’t a slippery slope, it’s a cliff.

I’ve often thought the NRA should move from Fairfax, one of the richest cities in the country—median family income is deep into six figures—and a leftist suburb of Washington DC. When the NRA endorses yet another cockamamie law like this, I have to wonder who’s influencing who.

Remember, the phrase ‘common sense gun law’ so beloved of anti-gun activists was first deployed by the NRA to help promote the Gun Control Act of 1968. This odious phrase has been thrown in our faces for fifty years now.” – Ol’ Remus in his weekly Yer Ol’ Woodpile Report blog

Preparedness Notes for Sunday – March 25, 2018

March 25th National Medal of Honor day is officially observed on March 25th of each year.

On March 25 1944 RAF Flight Sergeant Nicholas Alkemade survived a jump from a Lancaster bomber from 18,000 feet over Germany without a parachute. His fall was broken by pine trees and soft snow, and he suffered only a sprained leg.

This is the birthday of English film director David Lean, (of Doctor Zhivago fame), born in Croydon, England in 1908.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today features another entry for Round 75 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 Trekker IV™ Four-Person Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $250 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 75 ends on March 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.

A Few Hard-Learned Lessons- Part 2, by Grey Woman

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I am continuing to share some of my hard-learned lessons as a single woman who moved out into the country. My story and lessons that follow, provided in no particular order, might save you money, time, injury, and humiliation as you make this journey towards self-sufficiency and preparedness. Yesterday, the lessons were on chainsaw, firewood, and wood stoves.

Bears, Birds and Bullets

One part of moving out of the suburbs and into “the country” that I was really excited about was being more in touch with nature, especially birds. I have always loved watching wild birds and hearing them sing and saw this as an opportunity to create a “wild bird friendly” environment in my yard, complete with multiple birdhouses and bird feeders to encourage them to hang around.

In addition, when I moved, I brought my suburban “back yard chicken” experience with me and was sure that I was ready for a real flock. I had visions of a cute coop that looked like a miniature of my house and happy hens scratching in the yard. I enjoyed watching the deer in the meadows at dusk and was charmed the first time a flock of wild turkeys moseyed up my driveway looking like a bunch of grumpy old men in dusty overcoats.

Continue reading“A Few Hard-Learned Lessons- Part 2, by Grey Woman”

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”. Facebook employees are panicking? What’s so bad about that?

Rural Hospitals Gone

Small rural hospitals across the nation are filing for bankruptcy because they can’t stay afloat in today’s healthcare environment. This means that many small towns don’t have access to local hospitals and emergency crews must transport to the nearest hospital which can be up to an hour away in some cases. The rates of local hospital closures is the highest seen in the last few decades.

I know my town is a victim of this. It had it’s own hospital for nearly 100 years, but starting about 25 years ago, began to struggle. The city run hospital closed and two private entities have tried to run a hospital in that time and both have failed. The county is now trying to raise taxes to run one, but the tax base is so fractious, they’ve been fighting for nearly 10 years just to break ground. The closest ER is over 45 minutes away. Thanks to G.P. for the link.

Free-Range Parenting

It’s a sad day when you can’t teach your children to be independent because of state social services or nosy neighbors, but that is where our litigious society has brought us. Reader H.L. sent in this article on how the State of Utah has actually passed a law to allow parents to do what they should be doing – Let your kids grow up. While the law is a step in the right direction, it does spell specific situations out and since no specific age is given, it may have room for parents to still be prosecuted if things go wrong. By the way, if you live in an area where it is actually dangerous to let your kids be self-reliant, perhaps you should consider moving to a more family friendly area.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.” – Romans 8:12-17 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Saturday – March 24, 2018

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March 24th is the birthday of Dr. Art Robinson, who was born in 1942.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today features another entry for Round 75 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 Trekker IV™ Four-Person Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $250 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 75 ends on March 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.

A Few Hard-Learned Lessons- Part 1, by Grey Woman

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I assure you that all of the following lessons are ones I have learned the hard way. I am sure that for those of you who grew up with a self-sufficient lifestyle or have been doing this for a while or even just possess a tiny bit more common sense than I do, this will be a good laugh. These are embarrassing but all 100% true.

Feel free to chuckle, guffaw, head slap, ridicule, or otherwise enjoy my complete and utter loss of pride. I can take it, and I certainly deserve it. Sometimes even I wonder how I have lived this long.

For the rest of you, particularly women, who may be just starting out prepping in the country on your own and trying to shed your urban or suburban shell, read on. My story and lessons that follow, provided in no particular order, might save you money, time, injury, and humiliation as you make this journey towards self-sufficiency and preparedness.

Chainsaws – A Lesson-Rich Piece of Equipment!

A few years ago, before I even really started prepping seriously, my father suffered a decline in health; when I was helping him move some heavier things out of his garage, he offered me his old chainsaw. For free, I received a quality 24” chainsaw, and, knowing my dad, one that was meticulously maintained.

I knew just what I was going to use it for right away. I had a mid-sized tree that was close to my house and not in good shape. I had been somewhat concerned that it would fall on the house in heavy winds, and I knew it needed to come down. Now I could take care of it all by myself and without hiring someone or going out and buying a chainsaw!

Lesson #1 : A 24” Chainsaw is Really Heavy

It’s so heavy that, frankly, I am lucky I did not lose a leg trying to wield it. There is nothing wrong with stepping down to a 14” or 16” chainsaw if you are not a large, strong person (or even if you are). It is also very worth spending the money to buy a tool you can physically handle. It does not make you a wimp to admit it. You may have to be a bit more creative with a smaller chain saw, but you will be infinitely more productive and have a much better chance of keeping your extremities.

Continue reading“A Few Hard-Learned Lessons- Part 1, by Grey Woman”

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! This week’s emphasis is on the arrival of Spring

JWR

Dear SurvivalBlog Readers,
Spring has arrived! This past week saw milder temperatures here at the Rawles Ranch. It is good to see the snow receding! But there is a bit of snow in the forecast for this weekend. Thankfully, it is not expected to stick.

For the last few days we’ve been in manure hauling mode. This has been our first chance this year to be able to get the manure out of the barnyard and have a place to haul it.  This is also the first chance we’ve had to get our bicycles out and have enough gravel on which to ride them.

To hedge against a possible near-term decline in the cryptocurrency market I have substantially pared down our Bitcoin holdings over the past couple of weeks. With direct Bitcoin transfers, I bought a few more 80% AR-15 and AR-10 billet receiver blanks from Defense Distributed. I also bought some full capacity magazines and some 1-ounce silver rounds from two of my favorite mailorder firms.

Avalanche Lily Reports:

Our garden preps are continuing well. Many of our sprouts will soon be ready to be moved to the greenhouse or transplanting.

Please continue to post comments about your own preps.

Thanks, – Jim Rawles and Avalanche Lily, Rawles

Continue reading“Editors’ Prepping Progress”