FN PS90 PDW, by Pat Cascio

I first read about one back in the early 1990s and then again in 2005, when the civilian-legal version was released. Several years ago, I actually saw one and handled it in my local gun shop. Recently, my local gun shop got another one in. I hesitated because of the cost, and two weeks later a trade was worked out; I got it.

I actually fired this caliber in a converted AR-15, and I liked it, but it offered nothing in an AR-sized gun. Long-time SurvivalBlog reader, Mike C., and good friend in Eugene, OR got one along with the pistol in the same caliber, and he taunted me about getting one. It was unrelenting, until I got one for myself.

What am I talking about? It’s the FN P90 select-fire and the FN PS90 civilian-legal semiauto only carbine. The FN P90 was released in 1990, as a personal defense weapon (PDW) to replace handguns for behind the line military troops. However, it rapidly caught on, and military and law enforcement all over the world were issuing the very compact P90. The P90 is, as mentioned, a select-fire weapon in 5.7x28mm, and the PS90 is the semiauto-only version for us civilians in the USA.

The 5.7x28mm round was meant to be a replacement for 9mm handguns, again for behind the line troops. However, many law enforcement and military units found the 5.7x28mm round perfectly acceptable for offensive applications as well. Many Special Forces military units use the P90 for hostage rescue operations, as does our own U.S. Secret Service. That’s what they are carrying in those briefcases that some agents carry. The P90 was even used in the first Gulf War to great success.

When you look at a 5.7x28mm round, next to a 5.56mm round, it looks like the smaller brother; it is in a way. It fires the same .224 sized caliber bullet, albeit a lighter bullet. The most common bullet is a 40gr version, where the most popular 5.56mm bullet is either a 55-gr or 62-gr round, traveling faster. The 5.7x28mm 40-gr bullet is traveling a little over 2,000 FPS from the PS90, where the 5.56 bullets are moving about 1,000 FPS faster. However, speed isn’t everything, as many believe. There are several factors to make a bullet perform to a desired end. I’ll share more on this later.

The FN PS90 is a bullpup design with the actual firing group behind the trigger. The 16” Bbl doesn’t appear to be that long, because most of it is behind the trigger. The total overall length of the PS90 Carbine is only 26.23 inches. It’s very compact compared to a military M4. The gun only weighs a little more than six pounds empty. It fires from a closed bolt and is blow-back in operation; it’s very reliable. The barrel has a muzzle brake, not a flash suppressor, however it does reduce muzzle flash a little bit. The trigger is a sliding proposition, like that on the grand ol’ 1911. The safety is ambidextrous as well as the magazine release. The trigger guard is enlarged for use with gloves as well as the unique way you have to hold the gun to fire it. The charging handle is also ambidextrous as well, which is a super cool feature!

There have been several iterations of the PS90 over the years. My version came with the holographic sight in the handle that has the very poor white outline cross-hairs, which are very difficult to see in bright light and slow to pick up. I replaced it with a SightMark Ultra Shot Reflex red dot sight. I had to purchase the FN-made M1913 USG rail in order to mount the red dot. FN is a bit crazy on the price– $150.00, but no one else makes it. There is also a built-in sight in the mount. It is just about totally useless, if you ask me. It’s too hard to see and too slow to pick up. The “carry handle”, for lack of a better word, that the M1913 rail fits into actually has very crude but useful “iron” sights built into it. There is one on either side, and they’re good enough for close-in ranges should the optics fail.

At last count, more than 40 countries were issuing the P90 and the PS90 to their police and military units. The gun is very compact in either version and ideal for close combat work, especially inside of buildings, where a larger weapon might slow you down or be cumbersome. I can readily see the outstanding benefits of the P90 or PS90 as a PDW (Personal Defense Weapon), because it is so compact. The gun can take a 10-, 30-, or 50-round magazine that sits on top of the gun just under the sights. The 5.7x28mm round in the 40-gr bullet weight has proven itself as a stopper. It’s much better than the 9mm round is, and there is less chance of ricochet or over-penetration. Extensive testing has been done by military and law enforcement agencies around the world on this. The PS90, with a 50-rd magazine, loaded with the FN 40-gr V-Max bullet might just be the ultimate Zombie-killing weapon in the world in my humble opinion.

There is very little recoil to speak of in the PS90 and very little in the FN Five-seven handgun chambered in 5.7 that my friend, Mike C., allowed me to shoot. Okay, he actually demanded I shoot it and kept loading magazine after magazine for me. I’ve had several people out shooting my PS90, and after they fired a few round every one of them stopped shooting, turned around with the biggest smile on their faces, and said, “I didn’t expect this…”, meaning the low-recoil and the massive fire-power not to mention the absolute fun factor and outstanding accuracy, too.

Federal Ammunition manufactures a 40-gr FMJ found in 5.7x28mm. However, the velocity is much, much lower than that of the FN 40-gr V-Max polymer-tipped round. It’s about 400 FPS slower. I don’t see the benefit of the Federal round. The price is very close to that of the V-Max round, so I prefer to practice with the round I’m going to use– the V-Max. In my gun trade to get the PS90, the gun came with 900 rounds of ammo and two magazines– one 30-rd and one 50-rd magazine. MidwayUSA has the 50-rd genuine FN mags for sale for $21.99, which is a bargain.

FN sells a tactical thigh magazine pouch that holds two PS90 magazines, but FN is insane. They want $240 for it. You can find similar set-ups on the ‘net for under $50. I took my Blackhawk Products tactical assault vest, which has six pockets on it for 30-rd AR magazines, and had my wife sewed on an added piece of Velcro on the closure flap so that it grabs a little bit more on the matching Velcro on the pocket. Now, the PS90 magazines fit nicely. We are talking six of the 50-rd magazines on-hand and one more in the carbine. That’s serious fire power there. Plus, with the added much lighter weight of the 5.7x28mm ammo, you aren’t carrying all that much weight at all. As I get older, I think I’m getting smarter; I don’t want to carry any more weight than I have to.

FN claims the 5.7x28mm round with 40-gr bullets has an “effective” range of 200 meters. I think that might be a little optimistic. I haven’t done any serious testing for penetration, and you need penetration to stop an attacker, but I’m thinking 150 yards might be more realistic in the stopping department. Much combat takes place at 100 yards or less. This round and gun aren’t designed for long-range work, so don’t get one if you think that. This is a great urban weapon. Again, it is a PDW and would make an outstanding home defense weapon and a great house-clearing weapon as well. Of course, we in the USA can’t get the armor piercing ammo that many military and law enforcement units use on a regular basis, designed to penetrate soft body armor. Still, the 40-gr V-Max bullet will sure get the job done, and it does, according to my research.

The P90 and PS90 also ejects empty brass from under the gun into a nice little pile at your feet. This is great if you reload. There is even an ejection port cover that you can keep closed ala the AR15 to keep dirt out of the action. The trigger pull is a bit different, because it is a bullpup design. The trigger is up front and the hammer is in the back of the stock, so there is a linkage that connects the trigger to the hammer. The trigger pull on my PS90 is about 7-lbs; however, it doesn’t feel that heavy when actually firing the weapon. I love the ambidextrous safety. It is in the bottom of the trigger guard and is easy to put on and disengage as well. The charging handle is located on either side of the gun above the trigger guard, and it doesn’t take much effort to chamber a round; it’s a very short stroke.

Blackhawk Products sells a neat little strap that was designed to go around the stock at the rear of the gun and into a slit. Attach it and you can then snap-on a single-point sling.

I have a few thoughts on the polymer magazines. They are easy to load. Also, you slide the round down and back and then when you slide the next round in the round below, it rotates around 90-degrees and you continue until the magazine is loaded and you can see the loaded rounds in the magazine. I have had zero malfunctions at all. The rounds simply rotate from the magazine into the chamber with ease. That’s nice, very, very nice. The magazine just slides into the gun and snaps in place, very securely. The ambidextrous magazine release is easy to operate as well.

Disassembly of the PS90 takes all of about 10 seconds. Yes, you read that right– 10 seconds. The gun breaks down into several components/sub-assemblies and goes back together just about as fast, too. I like it a lot! Thus far, I’ve put more than 1,000 rds through the PS90 with no malfunctions of any type, and I haven’t cleaned the gun. It is remarkably clean after all that shooting.

When my lovely wife got the chance to fire the PS90, I got “that” smile when she turned around. “That” smile is “I want it”, and she was informed that this was my gun, and we were not “sharing” it, as she often says when she lays claim to one of my firearms. The funny thing is, when she gets one of my guns, I don’t know where the “sharing” part comes it. It is her gun!

Now for the bad news, the FN PS90 retails for $1,449, so it’s not cheap. Then again, it is an FN, which is one of the world’s finest weapons makers, and the PS90, even though it has been out for more than 11 years, is still a bit difficult to find, new or used. When guys or girls buy one, they tend to hold onto them, which is very understandable.

As to accuracy, I’m getting one-inch groups, if I do my part out to 50 yards. It’s a little difficult to get very small groups with a red dot sight on any gun. The FN 40-gr V-Max polymer tipped bullet is super-accurate and very consistent, when it comes to performance. I did a little bit of testing by shooting into water-filled gallon milk jugs, and the spectacular eruption of the bullets when they hit the water-filled jugs is something to see; the milk jugs explode, the bullets expand, and some break apart in the second jug of water. I have no doubts these bullets will get the job done, stopping a violent attack. As mentioned earlier, many police departments in the U.S. and around the world have conducted their own testing and are satisfied with the performance of the little 5.7x28mm round, and that’s what is important. The U.S. Secret Service wouldn’t use this round if it wasn’t effective.

If faced with the Golden Hoard or a Zombie Apocalypse, my PS90 would absolutely be my first choice in a weapon. It’s fast to fire, has very little to no recoil, is accurate, and has 50 rds of ammo on tap. What’s not to like here? My friend, Mike C., said to make sure I let everyone know he goaded me into getting this gun; he shamed me for at least six months until I found one. Okay, Mike, thanks!

A side note: 5.7x28mm ammo is a little difficult to find, and once again Mike C. turned me on to Palmetto State Armory . No one, and I mean no one, comes close to their prices on this ammo. My only complaint is that they are slow to ship, but many places are selling the FN 40-gr V-Max ammo for twice the amount of money that Palmetto is selling it for. Just order well in advance of when you want some ammo from them.

– Senior Product Review Editor, Pat Cascio

Recipe of the Week: Pumpkin Cake, by C.S.

Ingredients:

  • 4 eggs (room temp.)
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 2 tsp. cloves
  • 2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
  • 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 cup oil
  • 1 can (1 lb.) pumpkin

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Sift together dry ingredients.
  3. In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs and sugar at high speed until light and fluffy.
  4. Then beat in oil and pumpkin at low speed.
  5. Add dry ingredients; mix until combined.
  6. Pour into an ungreased 9” tube pan.
  7. Bake about 1 hour.
  8. Cool, then remove from pan. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream.

o o o

Do you have a favorite recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? Please send it via e-mail. Thanks!

Letter Re: Firestarters

HJL,

I’ve read with interest and amusement the recent firestarting articles (https://survivalblog.com/letter-re-easy-fire-starting-article/ ) and wanted to add my 2¢.

For everyday firestarting in the wood stove at home, I use egg cartons dipped in melted bacon fat. We have bacon once a week and save the drippings in a big plastic coffee container. (I also cook with bacon fat, but that’s another story!) Once a month or so I carefully melt that fat in Mr. Microwave until it’s clear-ish. Then I dip the egg carton egg “cups” into the container and put them in an open gallon Ziploc to cool. (Yes, I have laying hens, but some of them are slackers and so we also buy a dozen eggs a week for cooking and for the Dogs of Doom. Hence the surplus egg cartons!)

The bacon grease penetrates the cardboard nicely. They start quickly with a long-reach lighter, and they burn furiously for several minutes, which is plenty long enough to get my kindling and small wood going before adding the bigger wood. I’ve been doing this for years. (Funny story: When I first started using these one of our dogs couldn’t resist the bacon odor and pulled one out. She chewed it up a little on the living room floor until she decided it wasn’t actually bacon. Then she unpacked about a fourth of the Ziploc bag looking for where the bacon was! After that, she’s given up on trying to eat the firestarters.)

My go-to firestarter for my BOB, though, is the tried-and-true petroleum gel and cotton. At first I used to take a half hour to hand-smear the gel into the cotton, but that was very messy and slow. Now I (carefully!) slowly melt the entire 13-ounce blob of gel in a pot on the stovetop, and when it’s liquid I add 200 large cottonballs and use a wood spoon to push them into the melted gel. I fluff them around, turn them over, and push them down again until every single cottonball is soaked. To be sure, I usually pull out half a dozen of them at random and squeeze them one at a time between my fingertips. I’ve always gotten a drop of liquid petroleum gel, which tells me they’re good and saturated.

These cotton ball firestarters are easier to separate out for use than the ones I massaged petroleum gel into and start in an instant. They’ll burn for a minute or two and are good at catching a firesteel spark. I carry LOTS of these firestarters in my BOB, since dry tinder is hard to come by in the field, especially in rainy/snowy/extra cold weather. I can usually find kindling that will burn, but tinder is harder to find or make unless I bring my own. I consider these firestarters to be one of the key elements in my primary bugout pack. – ShepherdFarmerGeek

Economics and Investing:

Here it comes, just as JWR predicted: Fed to raise rates as Trump economy looms.

o o o

From the desk of Mike Williamson, SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large: Black market cash in India – There are so many ways around this.

o o o

Bitcoin Users Who Evade Taxes Are Sought by the I.R.S. – H.L.

o o o

Venezuela Orders Largest Bills Turned in Ahead of New Bank Notes – G.P.

o o o

SurvivalBlog and its editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for details.

Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

With the Bushes, Obamas, Clintons and Fellow Travelers foremost in mind, the words of Oliver Cromwell from 1653 are taken to heart:

“It is high time to put an end to your sitting in this place, which you have dishonored by your contempt of all virtue and defiled by your practice of every vice … In the name of God, go!”

A Different Look At House Keeping and Preparing for Guests, by Sarah Latimer

Ladies, when you are out in your front yard watering and some indistinguishable person sitting behind dark windows of an SUV or truck drives by and gives a little honk and waves, what is your automatic reaction? Do you smile and wave back? If you live in a fairly safe community, you probably do. I may not wave back, but I usually look up with a smile to see who it is, and I may wave if my hands are free. Often, we never know who it is we waved at, unless at some later time we find out. We were just being friendly and expecting that the honk came from a friend or acquaintance being neighborly.

If you think back to when you were growing up, when you were in school, or when starting out in your work/career, you may recall someone who became somewhat of a mentor or role model to you. You knew them, and because of their older age, greater experience, and/or success you gave them a position of authority and great respect in your life. You always wanted to present the best of yourself to them. The mere thought of them motivated you toward excellence, and this may still be the case. These people are good to have in our lives, as long as we keep perspective that they are still human and not gods to be worshiped. (Everyone puts on their pants the same way.) There simply are those who inspire us, whether it is in career, relationships, homemaking, community service, faith, survival preparedness, or whatever. Now think about who fits this description in your life, before I take you on another tangent. Who is it that inspires you to present yourself/your work the best?

Now, imagine that you are in your old, bleached sweats or whatever you consider your grubbie clothes, whether that is jeans and a flannel shirt or a raggedy dress. You are doing one of those ugly projects inside the house that you hope no one catches you doing. (You know what I mean.) It could be cleaning out a big closet that requires hauling everything out into the open to go through boxes and so forth. It could be doing a messy project indoors that might better be performed outside if it weren’t bitter cold outdoors, or it could be simply returning from vacation and dumping several week’s worth of laundry, including underwear and socks, in the living room to be sorted and folded. You are doing this “messy” project that has cluttered up your living area when the doorbell rings. You open the door, expecting a delivery, only to find that it is this esteemed person who inspires you. Oh, no! Not only are you in your grubbies, but your hair is in a pony tail or under a bandana, and you have on no makeup. You don’t even have a good place for your special guest to sit down because you have things strewn across the furniture. You are ill-prepared for this guest!

In this kind of situation, we may make excuses, may try to talk to them at the door if their visit is brief, and may then scramble to grab things up to make a seat for them if they have come to talk awhile. We feel small and tiny. We feel insecure and off guard. We are not our usual poised selves. It’s a crisis. Depending upon the guest, we may get to a point where we can laugh about it, but we just hate finding ourselves in this embarassing situation. We don’t want our dirty laundry, literally, exposed to the people we most want to impress. However, it is what it is, and we must live with it.

My point here is that we just never know who is going to drive by or show up at our door and when they will come. We don’t know if they will be gracious or cruel either. So, though it is important that we keep our homes in order and prepared for guests, I want to make an even more important point that parallels this concept; we’ll discuss it further momentarily. I think most women understand the concept of keeping the living room ready for guests or in a condition that it can quickly be picked up for guests. I personally don’t think that a home is supposed to be sterile and continuously perfect. We live in our homes, so mine is not perfect…not ever. There is never a time that I can say it is completely and totally dust free. There will always be some dust hidden in some corner, behind some books, and under some things. There just will. However, I will do what I can to make sure welcomed guests feel comfortable and, well, welcomed. God wants us to be hospitable, and Jesus modeled this repeatedly by caring for the practical needs of those He encountered. He was practically the opposite of a plague. Instead of infecting everyone who toughed Him; He healed everyone.

Abraham welcomed the sojourners who would receive him and his message. Jesus welcomed those who would receive Him also, and He fed those who were hungry. We should be ready to welcome those who come to our door who are aligned with us, too, and to provide some comfort to them. From a business perspective, most of us have read about and/or been in some kind of training promoting the benefits of networking, so we know that building good relationships is to our advantage and we work at being hospitable to accomplish these benefits, too.

I keep some sweet breads in the freezer for surprise guests, and I always have coffee and tea ready to be prepared. It was my mother’s tradition to keep some banana or cranberry bread in the freezer, so I do too. Anytime someone drops by, I can quickly microwave some bread and have a nice treat ready in a matter of a few minutes. People appreciate a cup of coffee or tea and some sweet bread while we visit about the business, whether professional or personal, they have to discuss. This level of hospitality has always been considered good manners, in the way I was raised, yet I know this isn’t the way that everyone operates today. There was a time before I had a household of children/grandchildren when I went so far as to keep an “essentials basket” in the guest bathroom for overnight visitors who may have forgotten their toothbrush or razor or such. It was just part of my trying to make sure that anyone visiting had whatever they needed to be comfortable as best as I was able to provide it. I ask if guests have dietary restrictions in advance and plan meals to accommodate these restrictions. I let them know that they are important!

Many people don’t answer the door when someone unexpectedly knocks. There are good reasons to be cautious about who we let into our homes. It requires discernment to know who is friend and who is foe. Up until now, I’ve been speaking about courtesy to those we know well and can trust to be safe, but not everyone is trustworthy in our home and with our family.

While you may want your welcomed guests to feel comfortable in your home and you may work to be ready for their arrival and to make their stay a pleasant one, it is equally important that you be just as prepared for unwelcomed “guests”, ladies. This is not our usual mindset, as it is generally our role to ensure that our home is comfortable and hospitable. However, it is important to the safety and comfort of our home– ourselves and our family– that we get a defensive mindset as well.

We need to remember that our house is a building, but a home is built of people. From a biblical perspective, as your husband’s wife you are his home. You are to be his safe, welcoming place, and you are to make a place for him to feel comfortable. Without you, he will not have the encouragement he needs to be the success he is. We are our husband’s emotional fuel. We believe in them and love them. We care for them and are great supporters, allowing them be the head of our home. Of course, our husbands have even larger responsibilities to us, as their wives. They are to sacrifice their selfish desires to care for us and provide a home and provisions for us as well as protect us. It really is a team effort with some differences in roles and some that overlap a bit. It is a oneness, with each part longing for the other. I truly hope that you know this kind of marriage, if you are married! It is God’s plan. So, when you are thinking about housekeeping, remember to take care of the home, too. Take care of the people, because the building and possessions can be replaced when the people cannot! The people within your home deserve a greater level of protection than your property.

What do you think was the mindset of Teresa Stauffer Foster strolling through an Hawaiian garden on a Sunday morning 75 years ago when a pilot flew overhead and waved at her? She thought he was being friendly, so she waved back. This was just moments before this pilot and others pilots with him dropped bombs and fired upon ships anchored in Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, killing more than 2,400. Theresa and the whole base were caught off guard by the Japanese.

We often hear about the men of Pearl Harbor, but there were plenty of women who were on the base doing their part also. Most were serving as nurses. They were young and single, as only single women were allowed to be nurses in the military at that time. It was a difficult position. Some women were on ships during the attack and continued to do their duty, rescuing and caring for the men who were injured. They had to have fortitude. I read how some pulled out their lipstick to mark who was believed to be treatable and who were not. It was a hard call to make, but it had to be done. They had to be strong and deal with what was in front of them. They had training, but they had not anticipated having to apply that training in such mass on American soil! The home was not guarded as well as it could have been! Fortunately, they did have training and jumped into action quickly and with conviction. I am impressed with what they accomplished and the job they did with strength, carrying on afterward, too. We must never forget the sacrifices that were made that day and in the subsequent battles of WWII! I’ve tearfully stood beside the sunken U.S.S. Arizona and said a prayer for the 1,177 souls who lost their lives aboard that ship 75 years ago and for their families.

So, ladies, if your husband is trying to talk with you about OPSEC (operational security) and defensive measures and you are resisting, maybe you should stop and listen again so that your home is just as prepared for uninvited, destructive guests as it is for beneficial guests. Just this past month, I have had multiple friends who have experienced unexpected tragedy, some which could have been avoided had they applied good OPSEC. I am sure that when you are out of your home in an urban street environment you are aware and on guard, but even when we are on our own property and in our home we should also be on guard and aware. We need to have our home in order and have plans in place in the event that either a welcomed person of dignity shows up or a very unwelcomed criminal shows up. We need to partner with our husbands in this area. Even if it is uncomfortable for you to think about firing a gun, consider learning. Like using any tool, it requires practice. Get the knowledge and practice. Your husband’s life and your children’s lives may depend upon your ability to defend them, and it may rest on your shoulders alone if your husband is injured. Your husband may need you standing beside him, too, if you face multiple intruders!

Every member of the family needs to have a role in preparing for guests of any kind. Most families with children have their children doing age-appropriate chores to help care for the home and property. This is a team approach and teaches responsibility and cooperation. When company is coming, children can pick up their toys and help clean. Should there be unwelcomed intruders with ill intentions, children need to have advanced instruction on what their job should be, too. This should be rehearsed so that when it is time to deal with a challenging scenario, the children will know what to do and will follow instruction readily. This keeps them and you safe. Just as we talk about fire safety and evacuation and we rehearse our plans, we should also talk about and rehearse schenarios for home invasion, teaching children when to hide, evacuate, and possibly shoot, too. Develop a family plan and work together, not to build fear but to be prepared. We have fire extinguishers in case of fire, and we should have weapons in case of attack. You don’t spit on a kitchen fire to put it out, and you don’t defend yourself from an armed intruder with a badminton racket. Be prepared to use a variety of weapons, including pistols and rifles.

It’s terribly embarrassing to have a house out of order when friendly guests arrive, but it could have a deadly consequence to not have a house in order for unfriendly, violent intruders. The friendly driveby “honk” may not always be friendly; they may be casing your place for invasion. Plan and prepare for either situation. Work out a plan. Learn to shoot, get concealed carry training, carry a knife, and be strong to stand by your man and protect your family in every way possible! It’s an important part of good house- and home-keeping!

Letter Re: Silver/Swiss Francs/Gold

Hi, sir!

I just listened to an interview Mr. James gave on the XX2 Spotlight Report and wanted to ask either you or he a question. I have been following the economy for quite some time and now, as Mr. Trump prepares to enter office (if he actually gets in!), I am getting nervous about the banks. I heard Mr. James mention silver and swiss francs but not gold, and then he mentioned paypal. I have none of the above! I have no idea HOW to buy silver, gold, et cetera, and an investor I met in passing the other day told me to go to a pawn shop. What do I do there? Do I just walk in and buy a coin?

I have a lot of food and water stored, and actually I have quite a bit of cash; I just don’t want the value of my currency to fall, which it probably will, so I want to have some buying power. Any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated. – N.T.

JWR’s Comment: Some pawn shop owners are notorious for both under-paying when they take in precious metals and over-pricing them when they sell them. Be sure to compare prices with at least two local coin shops before you buy.

In my estimation, silver is presently much preferable over gold for three reasons:

  1. It is more appropriate for barter, since gold is too compact a form of wealth. (As I explain this in Chapter 16 of my novel Patriots.)
  2. Silver is currently undervalued and will likely gain in (relative) value versus gold, in coming years.
  3. Gold was confiscated from the citizenry by our government in the 1930s, and they conceivably could do the same again, in the event of a major monetary and budget crisis. Silver was left untouched.

If you are buying locally, then you might as well pay in CASH, to minimize the paper trail of your purchases. For barter, the best coins to buy are U.S. 90% silver pre-1965 mint date dimes and quarters. You should buy worn coins (often called “Junk Silver” coins), to get them at the lowest premium. There is no need to buy numismatic grade silver coins; if you do, then you will pay too much.

Odds ‘n Sods:

Naked Capitalism Threatens Lawsuit Against Washington Post Over “Fake News” Story; Obama Starts Russia Witch Hunt

o o o

Betsy DeVos at Trump Michigan Rally: Time to ‘Finally Put an End to Federal Common Core’ – H.L.

o o o

Nationalism vs Globalism – B.B.

o o o

Orange Coast College Student Threatened With Expulsion After Recording Professor’s Anti-Trump Tirade – C.S.

o o o

Augmented reality app lets you scan people’s FACES and reveal everything about them

Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

“Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile! Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee. Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.” John 1:47-49 (KJV)

Notes for Saturday – December 10, 2016

Trying to stock up on fish antibiotics? Camping Survival has created a coupon code “fish10”, which will get you 10% off of all these antibiotics until December 31st, 2016.

o o o

SafeCastle is currently having a sale on Lindon Farms products with up to 50% off. The sale ends December 15th.

o o o

Today, we present another entry for Round 68 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $15,000 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 that is good for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,195 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 with a hammer forged, chrome-lined barrel 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, which can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools and a compact carry capability in a hard case or 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Gun Mag Warehouse is providing 20 Magpul PMAG 30-rd Magazines (a value of $300) and a Gun Mag Warehouse T-Shirt; (an equivalent prize will be awarded for residents in states with magazine restrictions),
  6. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  7. The Ark Institute is donating a non-GMO, non-hybrid vegetable seed package (enough for two families of four) plus seed storage materials, a CD-ROM of Geri Guidetti’s book “Build Your Ark! How to Prepare for Self Reliance in Uncertain Times”, and two bottles of Potassium Iodate (a $325 retail value),
  8. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  9. Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Second Prize:

  1. A Tactical Self-Contained 2-Series Solar Power Generator system from Always Empowered. This compact starter power system is packaged in a wheeled O.D. green EMP-shielded Pelican hard case (a $2,400 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. A pre-selected assortment of military surplus gear from CJL Enterprize (a $300 value),
  8. An infrared sensor/imaging camouflage shelter from Snakebite Tactical in Eureka, Montana (A $350+ value),
  9. RepackBox is providing a $300 gift certificate to their site, and
  10. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Third Prize:

  1. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A custom made Sage Grouse model utility/field knife from custom knife-maker Jon Kelly Designs, of Eureka, Montana,
  3. 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,
  4. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  5. A Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
  6. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  7. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances,
  8. Montie Gear is donating a Y-Shot Slingshot and a $125 Montie gear Gift certificate.,
  9. 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), and
  10. Fifteen LifeStraws from SafeCastle (a $300 value).
  11. A $250 gift certificate to Tober’s Traditions, makers of all natural (organic if possible) personal care products, such as soap, tooth powder, deodorant, sunscreen, lotion, and more.

Round 68 ends on January 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.

How To Talk Politics, Preserve Unity, And Focus On Preparedness, by C.B.

Being American once meant surviving through extraordinary difficulty and thriving in the cradle of extraordinary promise. Beating the odds stood as a badge of honor worn proudly along with the red, white, and blue. Today, the need for mental toughness hasn’t diminished, but the payoff for perseverance is hardly the same. The gauntlet is a heavy burden to bear. Between unemployment, underemployment, increasing taxes, Constitutional mutiny, civil unrest, deteriorating returns on educational investment, family unit destruction, and an elite few staging the destiny of the entire planet, the citizenry has grown restless with washed up political promises.

In the age of perversion, inversion, and distortion of truth, actions have consequences, inaction has dire consequences, and words have catastrophic consequences. It’s hard completely dismissing the verbal vitriol being flung around with reckless abandon and the hypersensitivity of others to what should otherwise be well-disposed observation. Do we even recognize our country anymore?

The challenges confronting the American people are igniting passion and underscoring the collective loss of intestinal fortitude that once made us exceptional as a nation.

If we were to agree on one thing, it might be that the current geopolitical winds and social unrest couldn’t precipitate any finer of an opportunity for our own unraveling. The mix of toxic social, economic, and existential ingredients are beyond what any natural born American has likely experienced. On the event horizon we bare witness to rhetoric on immeasurable dangers that are hard to quantify, leaving the public dubious about the shadowy motives behind the leaders pushing the narratives. These dangers include threats of climate disasters, economic peril, and nuclear war. Did we mention the food, fuel, medical, and water shortages?

How do we preserve our most valuable relationships among family and friends? How do we ensure those we care about most are sufficiently prepared, despite a growing internal divide between the informed and the uninformed within our own circles?

American statesman Daniel Webster once said, “Wisdom begins at the end.” Does it have to?

We can parse the facts until (insert your idiom here about wasting time), but the debate is over. Edmond Mbiaka once ruminated, “The problem with a lot of people is that they procrastinate as if tomorrow doesn’t have some tasks of its own.”

Isn’t it that, the obvious is only obvious when it’s happening to someone else? America is in trouble, and the time to prepare is now! When massive things are in motion, the little ones get hurt, which is especially true if the little ones are who’s driving the movement. It’s clear from watching recent political events that movements within our republic are underway. It’s also evident that money and global interests from outside are funding a third and more insidious political objective.

We’re watching the rebirth of classical liberty. An uprising, driven by disgust for elected and appointed bureaucratic looters bent on concealing their crimes behind the power vested in them from the American public– financial, political, and military power that was largely built on the hard work, sacrifice, and backs of our ancestors. We are fighting for our liberty, but that doesn’t mean the pain on the other side of the battle won’t be significant, win or lose. We have to be ready to sustain ourselves for both. Many of us still seek simple prosperity. But is that even possible when our instincts tell us to substitute preparation for prosperity and preservation for righteous preeminence? The state of the union has left hard working Americans asking bitter questions. There’s plenty of unanswered questions and plenty of blame to spread around. Why are hard working people carrying the rest of the country at a nearly 1:2 ratio based on working age people? Should we blame the people, the politicians, or the elite?

There’s as much conjecture as fact and more opinions than the latter two elements combined. Preservation begins with acknowledging some important details about our current political circus:

  • The vitriol of the recent election has been tantamount to civil war without the weapons.
  • Why lose friends or family over something that is not in your control?
  • Avoid being a keyboard warrior on social media.
  • The controllers are using divide and conquer; they’re balkanizing America.

Is preparation really necessary? How are we so sure disaster is imminent? The answers expand well beyond the scope of this article, but important historical insights can help ensure we’re asking the right questions.

America is in the last of seven major stages seen with the rise and fall of all great nations, according to Sir John Glubb, author of The Fate of Empires and Search For Survival:’

  1. The Age of Pioneers
  2. The Age of Conquests
  3. The Age of Commerce
  4. The Age of Affluence
  5. The Age of Intellect
  6. The Age of Decadence – America has arrived and this stage includes: Defensiveness, pessimism, materialism, frivolity, influx of foreigners, the welfare state and a weakening of religion, which are all due to excessive wealth and power for too long, selfishness, love of money and the loss of a sense of duty.

Many of the empires including ancient Assyria, Greece, the Roman Republic, Arabia, Mameluke, Ottomon Spanish, Romanov Russia and Britain, lasted approximately 250 years. Others lasted just over 200 years.

In the year 1787, Alexander Tyler, a Scottish history professor at The University of Edinborough, expanded on “The Fall of The Athenian Republic.” Tyler explained that “a democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship.”

Alexander Tyler differed from Sir John Glubb in his progression of a great civilization but not by much:

  • From bondage to spiritual faith. Equivalent: Europeans broke away from British rule.
  • From spiritual faith to great courage. Equivalent: We had the American Revolution.
  • From courage to liberty. Equivalent: We declared our independence and crafted the Constitution.
  • From liberty to abundance. Equivalent: Start of the Industrial Revolution
  • From abundance to complacency. Equivalent: Period following WWII
  • From complacency to apathy. Equivalent: Period of Woodstock through the 1980’s
  • From apathy to dependence. Equivalent: 1990’s – present and continuing
  • From dependence back into bondage. Equivalent: Actively happening with destruction of U.S. Constitution, social welfare dependence, and credit debt

Additional harbingers that America is on the brink of a catastrophe include:

  • In the first six months of this year, foreign central banks sold (dumped) a record of $192 billion of U.S. Treasury bonds. (U.S. Debt used to operate the government) –Source: CNN Money
  • Investors are moving toward precious metals because paper isn’t safer these days.
  • The U.S. dollar depends almost entirely on petroleum to prop up its own value. Crude is trading at or below $50 a barrel, which is not only unsafe, but unsustainable
  • Nations are increasingly trading currencies outside of the dollar. Consider the Gold Trade Note now traded by the BRICS nations.
  • Deutsche Bank, one of the world’s largest banks, is close to complete failure holding a whopping $75 Trillion in derivatives, the very cause of Lehman Brothers failure. Just for perspective, the U.S. banking system was bailed out with a mere $13 Trillion.
  • Russia has moved ships into the Baltic and is headed toward the Mediterranean Sea with eight nuclear-armed ships to prepare for war with the United States.

No wonder the citizenry is on edge. If you’ve been feeling like things just weren’t right, you’re correct. The list we provide here is just the tip of the iceberg.

Preparation begins with a reality check. We live in a time of giants, and it’s going to demand guts, the guts to confront the persistent evil devouring our common struggle with the falchion of tyranny. However, being a giant isn’t measured only in how we fight large-scale battles. We’ll depend more on our communities and our networks to sustain ourselves during difficult times. How we handle friends and family today, who don’t share our political views, will largely determine the outcome tomorrow.

Q: Where do we go from here? How do we begin to solve our differences?

A: Consider sticking with the Constitution and the tenants of time-tested faith by focusing on a Higher Power to guide your reason. Despite the spread of online lies, our Founding Fathers based the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence on Ancient Israel and their belief in God. There is nowhere in our Constitution that you’ll find the words “separation of church and state.” Those were words written by Thomas Jefferson in a letter he wrote in 1802. Of course, you can find quotes from John Adams and others about the church, but you’ll find many more with talk about belief in God. Any argument against God is for the sake of argument rather than a legitimate constitutional basis for destroying religious freedom.

Q: What about the U.S. Supreme Court?

A: Its only job was and is to ensure that new laws are consistent with the Constitution. Robust arguments persist online about the Founding Fathers intentions. Were they against God and people of faith in government? As many thrust themselves into their newfound fame on social media and use it to attack the system we’ve known, by substituting of their own version of reality, patriotic Americans are left with the proverbial head-scratch. We’re forced to ask how many times we need to revisit the law of the land that was settled just over 225 years ago.

Q: How do we make room for everyone at the table when the lines are already drawn?

A: Consider treating others how we expect to be treated and respecting their God given rights– those same rights that progressives argue originated from Godless men and thus can be taken away. Don’t forget the part of the Declaration of Independence that says “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights.”

When someone’s attacking your faith by calling it a fairy tale or myth, just remember believing that everything is random and somehow worked out this way has no scientific basis with any substantiated evidence. Guess what that’s called? A fairy tale!

Q: How do we have discussions with relatives and friends that are adversarial? Knowing how their positions are formed, helps tolerate their intolerance. Modern progressive logic is built on three major tenants:

1. Insisting that what’s wrong is right.

2. Believing the truth is lie and a lie is the truth.

3. That stereotype labels used by the Main Stream Media are facts and constantly using them as reason enough to avoid further discussion.

A: Take the George Patton approach: “Lead me, follow me, or get out of my way.” Remember, the debate is over and even progressives will admit that the outlook isn’t good, even if they disagree on the solutions.

I recommend following five critical preparedness tips:

  • Extend the olive branch before you eat the olives.
  • Understand, it’s never wrong to do the right thing. Live it, teach it, and encourage it in others.
  • Correct critical shortfalls and come together. Which skills are missing in your community? Learning brings us together and instills pride in what we provide.
  • Lead by example. Never attack those you care about in front of others. Show restraint until you’re in private.
  • Set priorities and stick to them to ensure survival. When we’re hungry, thirsty, and short on supplies following a major systemic failure, it won’t matter who won the argument.

Letter Re: Manoline

Hugh,

For larger volumes: A Deli Slicer. This is one with a rotating blade with adjustable depth. I don’t know about the above, because I got mine from a second hand store, and it’s an old one built like a tank. It helps for freeze-drying as well as dehydrating. The problem with Mandolin slicers is the pressure or movement for some things to slice and limited capacity, and I even have one with a ceramic blade. The deli slicers make short work of large blocks of food. – T.Z.