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.

Social Unrest

Many of our readers took notice when we posted the link to Arizona’s John Brown Gun Club. The irony was in the “fake” rifles that many carried as an open-carry protest. Today, SurvivalBlog reader B.B. updated us on their progress. Apparently, they were offended at being caught carrying toys under the guise of open-carry, so this time they posted a video of their range practice. I know they are trying to show how mean and tough they are, but it’s hard not to laugh. They really seem to want to pick a fight though.

Reader P.S. sent in this link from All Outdoor on dangerous gangs when the SHTF. I tend to agree with the author. I know that there are alot of quality officers out there, but I also know that ethics are already out the window and we are just barely managing to stay civilized. When pushed over the brink, the uniform is a symbol of power. It’s not even that they are bad people (though they may be). If you dehumanize the target, they think they are doing the right thing.

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The Editors’ Quote Of The Day

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“The world is now witnessing the final stage of pre-war preparations. The communists have always planned to use North Korea as a trip wire for war with the West. As the current tensions escalate, military experts believe that war could begin on the Korean peninsula before summer. Russia and China have also begun full scale mobilizations, and experts in Europe are now warning that a world war could come as soon as fall.

Donald Trump has warned that ‘North Korea is looking for trouble’, insisting that if China does not decide to help the US ‘will solve the problem without them.’ The US President made this extraordinary statement on Twitter, his warnings backed up by sending a US carrier battle group to the area.

The general public in the West assumes the United States is a lone super power and therefore can act unilaterally without serious consequence. The thought that US forces might be defeated by the communist nations is dismissed as absurd. Unfortunately, this confidence in American military supremacy is no longer based upon reality, and rather now relies upon hubris alone. The belief that the US remains the world’s lone superpower is seriously misplaced as the balance of military power has shifted dramatically over the last fifteen years only no one bothered to inform the American public. The US no longer holds a clear upper hand in today’s conventional or nuclear battlefield.” – Benjamin Baruch, in an April, 2017 essay titled: The March to World War III

Experiencing Anaphylaxis, by Breathing Better Now

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This year, I dealt with anaphylaxis and it really clarified some issues with our prepping. Though I have been a prepper most of my life, I didn’t realize that was what I was until eight years ago. Most of the prepping that I did was food storage. I did it for stewardship not prepping for the apocalypse. I would buy supplies in large quantities when they were at “rock bottom”, once-a-year sale prices. Each time an item we used would be on sale, I would buy as many as I could afford and use before the expiration date. My wakeup call was the 2008 presidential election. I still remember sitting in disbelief at the outturn of the vote. Confused, concerned, and motivated, I did not see much hope for the future of my country or my children. After a few weeks of shock, I decided to take action.

A local group

I started researching all things prepping. I convinced my husband that we should attend a local group’s weekly meetings. He went along because he loves me and my quirky ways. Each week they had a different speaker. Most of them were very good resources. We not only attended the meetings but became so involved that when one of the people we met had a prepper expo, we volunteered to help because we wanted it to be a success.

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Economics & Investing

 

Here are the latest items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks to watch, investing opportunities, hedges, and the precious metals markets, all from the quirky “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR:

Stocks:

Should we embrace the froth or dump the currently over-bought American stocks? Prudence dictates the latter. Therefore hedge into tangibles like silver, folks.

Commodities Economics:

Because of higher crude prices and the first approved shipments to Asia, the Bakken shale oil producing region as well as the adjoining oil fields in Alberta seem to be bouncing back from their recent slump. (That slump can be directly traced to a secret agreement between the Obama Administration and the Saudi monarchy.  Hence there was a glut in oil production and consequently a collapse in global crude oil prices.)

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Notes for Tuesday – May 02, 2017

On May 2, 1945, the Soviet Union announced the fall of Berlin and the Allies announced the surrender of Nazi troops in Italy and parts of Austria.

Also, today is  Iyar 5th (May 2nd in 2017), The Independence day of Israel.

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Seed for Security is having a sale where all eight collections are now 20% off. Plan ahead – plant a garden-learn how to save seeds or store fresh seeds for future gardens.

April in Precious Metals by Steven Cochran of Gainesville Coins

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Welcome to SurvivalBlog’s Precious Metals Month in Review. Each month we take a look at “the month that was” in precious metals. We cover the price action of gold and examine the “what” and “why” behind those numbers.

What Did Gold Do in April?

Gold prices started April steady, after gaining 8.1% in the first three months of this year. This changed on the 4th, when gold rallied after North Korea launched a missile into the Sea of Japan. President Trump ordered a cruise missile strike boosing Gold. The Syrian airfield is thought to have been the staging point for a poison gas attack on civilians. The resulting safe haven demand saw gold gain $30 an ounce in three days.  Gold made runs closing above $1,290 multiple times. However, it was unable to sustain more than momentary breaks above this important level. Even so, spot gold stayed above $1,280 an ounce until the French Presidential elections on the 23rd. The centrist candidate won the first round. That began a slide in gold prices to end near where it started the month.

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Letter Re: Karatbars

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Hugh, I love your site and read it almost daily. I was wondering if you know anything about Karatbars? One of my coworker’s pastor is promoting them. The ones he has shown me look like gold leaf on a business type card. Is this worth looking at, in your opinion? It’s European Euros currency exchange from what I see. Thanks for your time and input.

HJL’s Comment

Karatbars is nothing more than a multi-level marketing scheme. As I write this, you can purchase 1 troy ounce of gold from APMEX for $1294.49. Karatbars is selling 1 troy ounce of gold for $2090 if you buy in bulk (100gm for $6270) or $2262 if bought by the 1gm bar. You can get better pricing by buying into the multi-level marketing, but they are still way over-priced. In addition, their product is an “unknown”, as there currently isn’t any convenient way to verify authenticity if TEOTWAWKI happens. I would stick with standard products in standard denominations. If gold is too pricey, look to silver in the smaller denominations. I wouldn’t touch Karatbars with a “10-foot pole”.

For information on trading in precious metals, you might consider this article on SurvivalBlog: Trading in Precious Metals, by Kestrel

Economics and Investing:

U.S. Shale Rebound Hobbled By Higher Drilling Costs. While the U.S. oil majors are seeing earnings improve in the first quarter of 2017, breakeven prices are on the rise and could limit profitability of E&P’s

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What The Gold Futures Curve Could Be Telling Us

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Build Your Own Home DIY Without a Bank Loan: “Avoid Regulation, Crime and Floods”

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Gold Manipulation And $1.2 Quadrillion In Derivatives

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

Odds ‘n Sods:

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Good-bye to cabin life: U.S. government tells owners in U.P. to leave – S.R.

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Gun Control Fail: Baltimore Mayor Asks FBI to Stem Rising Murder Rate – H.L.

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The Pentagon may send up to 5,000 more troops to Afghanistan “The Pentagon is considering sending between 3,000 to 5,000 additional troops to Afghanistan to advise Afghan military and police units fighting the Taliban, as well as an unspecified number of special operations forces to fight ISIS and al-Qaida militants along the Pakistani border.” – T.P.

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Spokane’s own End Times prepper turns inventions into profit – Level 3A bullet resistant clothing. – H.L.

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Trump Leaves Open Possibility of Military Action Against North Korea