Round 67 Non-Fiction Writing Contest Winners Announced!

First prize goes to L.M. for “Purchasing Power: Past, Present, Future- Part 1”, “Part2”, “Part 3”, “Part 4”, and “Part 5” which was posted on November 8th through November 12th, 2016. The following prizes were awarded:

  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 $1,700 value),
  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 goes to Z.M. for “How To Find Food in Your Own Backyard” which was posted on October 4th, 2016. The following prizes were awarded:

  1. 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,
  2. A gift certificate for any two or three-day class from Max Velocity Tactical (a $600 value),
  3. A transferable certificate for a two-day Ultimate Bug Out Course from Florida Firearms Training (a $400 value),
  4. A Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 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 goes to A. Smith for “A Life Submerged: The Gray Man Existence” which was posted on October 16th, 2016. The following prizes were awarded:

  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. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances,
  7. Montie Gear is donating a Y-Shot Slingshot and a $125 Montie gear Gift certificate.,
  8. 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
  9. Fifteen LifeStraws from SafeCastle (a $300 value).

Honorable mention prizes ($30 Amazon.com gift certificates via e-mail) have been awarded to the writers of these fine articles:

November in Precious Metals, by Steven Cochran of Gainesville Coins

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

What Did Gold Do in November? Gold was riding high to start the month, but after Donald Trump’s thrashing of Hillary Clinton in the Presidential election, investors bailed from safe havens like gold and bonds to join the party in stocks. By November 3rd, gold was trading above $1,300 an ounce.

Factors Affecting Gold This Month

There was one overriding factor affecting every single market in November:

TRUMP

Everyone knows about all the politics involved in November’s Presidential election, so we will skip right to the economic news. The Friday before the election saw gold rack up its fourth weekly gain in a row, while stocks hit their longest losing streak in 36 years.

The safe haven demand for gold by investors afraid of a Trump win totally disappeared the day before the election, as the FBI closed their probe into Clinton’s email server. Spot gold closed $22.80 lower at $1,281.20– the largest one-day drop in five weeks.

That FBI probe may have helped Trump, though when it was all said and done, he really didn’t need any extra help. The night of the election, as more states went to Trump, the markets panicked. Stocks crashed, and gold shot up $60 higher to hit a 3-year high of $1,338 an ounce. But as the night continued and more states voted for Trump, the markets reversed themselves. Trump’s landslide victory meant that there would be no questioning the election results, and the markets want certainty above all else.

Trump’s promise of tax breaks, reversing Dodd-Frank regulations on banks, and a huge spending program to replace the nation’s crumbling infrastructure gave stocks plenty to cheer about. Stocks hit back to back all-time highs, as everyone wanted in on the party.

These plans caused inflation forecasts to shoot higher, and investors bailed out of the low-yield bonds that they were holding. This caused the biggest bond crash in years. Inflation expectations also sent the U.S. dollar shooting skyward to its highest point since March 2003.

The irrational exuberance in the stock market and stronger dollar gave a one-two punch to gold, driving prices below $1,200 an ounce at one point. This led to some profit taking by speculators, which helped gold build a floor at that level.

Stocks may be in for a rude awakening. Trump’s tax breaks and huge deficit spending plans will certainly be opposed by Tea Party Republicans in Congress. The fight will be even sharper when debt ceiling negotiations are added to the mix. Congress suspended the debt ceiling in late 2015, because they thought it would hurt their reelection changes. That debt limit will become active again on March 16, 2017, and the U.S. government will already be above it.

Speaking of Tea Party Republicans, they are going to need support from the public to help “drain the swamp”. Some Republican lawmakers met behind closed doors after the election to make secret plans to bring back “earmarks” in Congressional spending measures. Otherwise known as “porkbarrel politics”, the measure was squashed by Speaker Paul Ryan, but he will face a strong push, when Congress meets again, from those Representatives that want their pork for their districts.

On the Retail Front

American Silver Eagle sales recovered somewhat in November, at just over three million coins. However, much lower sales seen over the summer has meant that any chance of yet another record year has vanished. Year to date Silver Eagle sales were just over 37.4 million by the end of November. U.S. Gold Eagles and Gold Buffaloes saw 145,000 troy ounces in sales for the month, bringing the year-to-date total to 1.13 million ounces.

North of the border, The Royal Canadian Mint released their sales numbers for the second quarter. In the 13 weeks ending July 2, gold coin sales were 53% higher from the same time last year, at 251,400 ounces. Silver bullion coin sales were 24% higher, at 8.4 million ounces.

You might remember Bernard Von Nothaus from his unsuccessful fight with the government over his Liberty Dollar silver rounds. This time it’s Wells Fargo Bank giving him grief. Nothaus began making silver and gold Trump Dollars shortly after the real estate mogul began his run for the White House. Demand was so great that Wells Fargo suspended his account due to the number of orders he was taking, bringing his work to a halt

Market Buzz

While the Trump Administration axing Dodd-Frank is a given no matter who becomes Treasury Secretary, one prominent name on that list is John Allison. The former CEO of BB&T Bank and a writer at the Cato Institute, Allison is a fierce proponent of deregulation and the free market, and he is also known for his desire to end the Fed. If that doesn’t make him sound “sound money” enough for you, he’s also been quoted as saying we should probably return to the Gold Standard.

Allison isn’t a lone voice in the matter, as Dr. Judy Shelton– an economist who advocates sound money policy– is on Trump’s Economic Advisory Team. Dr. Shelton used her work in studying the Soviet banking system in the 1990s to predict that the USSR would collapse, two years before it did so. Among other things, she champions an idea that was earlier put forth by Alan Greenspan: issuing gold-convertible bonds as a way to reintroduce gold into the international financial system.

Former Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan has emerged as an unlikely ally in Trump’s efforts to repeal the Dodd-Frank Act, which regulates banks in an effort to prevent another Too Big To Fail banking crisis. All is not rosy for banks under Greenspan’s plans, however. He wants to hike the capital requirements for banks to as high as 30%. In the same talk, he forecasts that long-term interest rates as high as 5% were on the way.

John Mauldin warns that you should probably buy some gold as insurance against these five risks that face a Trump Administration.

Will Trump take the fall for an impending recession that started before he took office? Jeff Thomas at International Man thinks so, as he recounts how the Democrats used the press to turn President Herbert Hoover into Public Enemy #1, way back in 1929.

Some Wall St analysts are worried that the massive infrastructure program that Trump has promised could be too much of a good thing and overheat the economy. With the stock market taking off before Trump even moves in at the White House, concerns that the Fed may already be behind the curve on inflation are growing.

Is gambling with derivatives by the Too Big To Fail banks going to blow up again and take the world economy with it? After reading this and looking at these charts, you’ll probably want to minimize your exposure to the global banking system even more. With the higher inflation that will result from Trump’s infrastructure program and the expulsion of illegal aliens, $300 trillion of derivatives that the Big Banks hold will suddenly have to be honored. The American public will not stand for another Wall St bailout, which means stockholders, bondholders, and depositors of a failed bank will end up getting “bailed in” and their money used to save the bank.

Jim Rickards warns that the next global financial crisis will be far worse than 2008. He notes, “The next crisis will be the third since 1998. In 1998, Wall Street bailed out a hedge fund. In 2008, central banks were forced to bail out Wall Street. In 2018, if not sooner, who’s going to bail out the central banks?”

The IMF, Rickards says, who will force the world’s central banks to accept the IMF Special Drawing Rights as the new world currency, while the G20 group of nations becomes the de facto world government.

Depending on the triggering event of societal upheaval, you may decide to take bugging out to the extreme by relocating to a different country. Your options will be limited, unless you have a passport issued by a second country. Nick Giambruno at International Man explains the easiest ways to gain dual citizenship and have that second passport ready if you need it.

More proof that banks don’t take safeguarding your accounts: Hackers stole money out of 20,000 bank accounts at Tesco Bank in Britain. Tesco refuses to say how much money was stolen, but several posts to social media tell of $500 and more missing from individual accounts.

Looking Ahead

Europe has a very good chance of catching fire starting in December, thanks to populist movements that have gained support after Donald Trump’s victory. Two important votes will occur on December 4th.

First, a referendum in Italy to amend the Constitution to reduce gridlock looks to be headed for defeat. If it fails, Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has promised to resign. The populist and euroskeptic Five-Star Movement is the odds-on favorite to win control of the government, much like the Republicans captured both houses of Congress and the White House. Five-Star could pull Italy out of the euro common currency or even follow Britain out of the EU completely. As an example of how crazy this election is, the “establishment” party wants to shake up the do-nothing Parliament, while the “anti-establishment” parties are fighting for all those extra Senators to keep their jobs.

Also on December 4th, Presidential elections in Austria will pit Norbert Hofer, leader of the far right Freedom Party, against a coalition of establishment parties backing economist Alexander Van Der Bellen. Hofer promises to enact immigration restrictions even stronger than those proposed by Trump during the U.S. Presidential campaign in order to deal with the hundreds of thousands of Muslim refugees that have flooded Austria.

In a case that kind of proves Hofr’s point, Norway was forced to release a radical Islamist cleric when Italy suddenly withdrew its extradition request. Mullah Krekar has been repeatedly arrested for making death threats and urging other radical Muslims to commit criminal acts.

On the other hand, the “Merkel Red Carpet” for immigrants in Germany has been rolled up, as real Syrian refugees complain that the mosques in Germany are more extremist than the ones back in Syria. German police simultaneously raided 190 mosques, homes, and offices on November 15th, looking for militants belonging to the “True Religion” extremist organization. At the same time, the German government outlawed the group for recruiting for ISIS.

Letter Re: Dakota Access Pipeline

As a resident of North Dakota and having to hear about this every day, the facts are:

  1. The pipeline is in a corridor with another older line that goes under the water (90 feet below the riverbed);
  2. The water intake for the reservation is a moot point. The old intake at Ft. Yates will be replaced on 1/1/17 with an intake another 70 miles away from the crossing;
  3. The Standing Rock tribe was asked for input on the pipeline at least six times, and they never bothered to show up;
  4. During the design of the line, it was rerouted in over 100 places to void water concerns;
  5. Over 80% of the arrests are non-Native American and not from North Dakota; and
  6. The entire route of the pipeline was walked by environmental and archaeological personnel and checked for problem areas.

Those are the main facts. Now for my opinions:

Warren Buffet owns Burlington Northern RR that carries the majority of the oil from the Bakken. He is a great buddy with Obama, ergo no pipeline (Dakota Access or Keystone).

Standing Rock is upset because they will not receive any money for it running through their lands; not one foot of the pipeline is on reservation land.

I hope this helps clear some thing up – R.B.

Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader GJM wrote in about this video review of the Black Aces Firearm: “…this smaller-sized but strong and utilitarian little pup– small enough to be snuggled in one arm; big enough to growl convincingly…so joyously ready to go and so eager to protect and to please…”

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Huge solar storm which could WIPE OUT modern technology expected by 2020

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I had an abortion at Planned Parenthood — and I’m not ashamed. This statement pretty much sums up the world view of the Progressive Left, “I didn’t have an abortion because I was raped, or because my life was in danger, or because the fetus was the product of incest. I had an abortion because I had recreational sex, got unintentionally pregnant, and wasn’t ready or willing to be a mother.” (Translation: “It’s not my fault that I am a self-indulgent egotistical lazy ignorant immoral slob.”) – P.M.

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From Reader DMS regarding the severe fires in the news: “My our prayers go out to the tornado and wildfire victims. Please send what support and assistance you can to these families! This is also a good example here for those who prepare. Do not keep all your eggs in one basket but in multiple baskets over a good distance. It would be devastating to lose all your weapons and preps over one fire or tornado. Multiple caches is a MUST! Again, help these current victims as much as you can. As JWR says, “Give ’til it hurts.”

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Americans Bought Enough Guns on Black Friday to Arm the Marine Corps “According to the FBI spokesman Stephen Fischer, Black Friday shattered the single-day record for gun sales– with 185,713 background checks processed in a 24 hour period. Fischer told Business Insider that nearly 400 more transactions were processed on Black Friday than in 2015.”

Notes for Wednesday – November 30, 2016

Please pray for the families in Gatlinburg and the other areas in the path of the current wildfires.

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Today, we present another entry for Round 67 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First 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 $1,700 value),
  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 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,
  2. A gift certificate for any two or three-day class from Max Velocity Tactical (a $600 value),
  3. A transferable certificate for a two-day Ultimate Bug Out Course from Florida Firearms Training (a $400 value),
  4. A Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 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. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances,
  7. Montie Gear is donating a Y-Shot Slingshot and a $125 Montie gear Gift certificate.,
  8. 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
  9. Fifteen LifeStraws from SafeCastle (a $300 value).

Round 67 ends on November 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry for Round 68. 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 Non-Survivalist Survivalist, by L.F.

I enjoy a end-of-the-world movie just as well as the next guy and similarly to most of the “next guys”. I have no specific skills that any survivalist would find useful, such as making a fire with sticks, creating bio-diesel for fuel, or the ability to go stalk game to put on the supper table. I can shoot a gun, skin a squirrel, and fish. That is the extent of my quantifiable skill set. However, as a non-survivalist survivalist, I feel like I have many intangibles as far as ability to learn and am on the upside. I’ve learned over the past year how to operate a tractor, how to administer medicine intravenously to livestock, and how to change a radiator out on a car. Can I do any of these things now without assistance? Yes, but not very good. If you had your own survival group, I am not a first round draft pick. I’m probably not even a second through fifth round pick. Many other people interested in being a survivalist fall into this category. Did you know that Tom Brady was drafted in the 6th round? I feel like I am, and that many others, can be the Tom Brady of after the SHTF. I feel as though many people have qualities that are not necessarily quantified to survive individually and to help larger groups of people in an impeding disaster. However, some people have the ability to learn quickly, problem solve, negotiate, and are able to “keep peace” amongst others.

These non-quantifiable skills will be invaluable if a SHTF scenario takes place. For example, who wouldn’t want to have a quick-learner at their disposal? (I fall mostly into this category.) A person with the ability to learn a variety of useful skills in a short period of time would probably earn their keep. This person may not be able to perform as well as the expert, but within a few hours or days a person with this ability will find themselves invaluable to a group. Wouldn’t it be better for a group of survivors to have a person that is a functional replacement, as far as the ability to do a task for another person, after only minimal time investment by the expert of the group? What are the consequences of a group whose only trained medic, food preparer, or hunter dies or becomes injured? With a person that can easily be trained or taught to do these things, their loss would not seem as significant or devastating to the group.

How about a problem-solver? Individuals who are able to think outside the box will be worth their weight in gold during these rough times. People who can create machines or modify equipment and who have the ability to problem solve should not be taken lightly for hard-core survivalist. I am reminded of that scene in Apollo 13 where a group of scientist have to create an oxygen scrubber with only a limited supply of materials. A group of problem-solvers created a machine with limited materials and delivered very specific directions on how to create the machine to astronauts thousands of miles away via radio transmission. Sound like a problem that may arise between coordinating survival groups without easy access to each other? Doing a lot with few supplies will be a useful skill when new materials aren’t readily available or even being produced.

Ahh, let’s talk about the ability to negotiate. I sound like Donald Trump now; however, bartering will be one of the only few ways to acquire new items “morally” (without stealing or killing other people). I am talking about someone that will not rip people off during negotiation but will take advantage of people’s needs and wants in a society where not all items are readily available. This person would have the ability to make deals that would be mutually beneficial to both sides but just a little bit more beneficial to your group or party. Having a person that is a successful negotiator would give your group confidence in dealing with other groups, and it would give you the confidence that you will always have a leg-up when bartering. Could Steve from the used car lot be an valuable person, even though he doesn’t have much survival knowledge? Yes, if he has that intangible skill of always coming out on the good end of a deal. What about Martin from the Co-op? Definitely. His knowledge of products is good, and he’s probably pretty successful in the business area.

Lastly, a person that is able to moderate arguments within a group or outside of a group with success and empathy will be priceless. People who have this skill to moderate arguments without becoming involved in them themselves are a rare breed. In dealing with disputes during a time where law and order are probably non-existent or exist on a limited basis, a person that has a calming influence on people and that can diffuse a situation almost immediately, improve a groups quality of life and even save lives during tense negotiations or meetings. What would happen if hot-tempered Joe Survival met a few guys passing through their territory that were also hot-tempered? This situation could lead to multiple deaths or a feud between two groups of survivalists whose best interest would be to work together. This interaction might be a positive one if you have the right person meeting the other group. What if you have a split in your group about duties or the division of food within the group? A person who can see both sides of the argument and is trusted by the individuals of the group to make good decisions could probably solve both of these situations with little conflict and to a satisfactory resolution.

These unquantifiable traits are typically seen in survival movies accompanied by individuals who also have skill sets that are useful in a survival situation. When given a choice between the two, who would you like on your survival squad—Shane Walsh from ”The Walking Dead or Viggo Mortensen’s character from “The Road”? Many people automatically would declare Shane. Shane had many traits that would be useful in a survival situation—able to teach gun safety, makes tough decisions, loves his “family” dearly; but, he is a sociopath, almost kills his best friend, and is an overall bad person. In the movie “The Road”, Viggo Mortensen seems to have a few skills, but mostly he has survived by scavenging materials that he has found and wills himself to live because of his son. In my opinion, Viggo is the better survival mate even with additionally taking in his young son because of his intangibles. He has somehow provided for his son in a world of nothing, and his son still has a somewhat positive outlook about the future. Could Viggo have started eating people and robbing people to provide for his son? Yes, he very easily could have. Did he? No. Did it cross his mind? As a father, it most definitely did. He displayed traits that cannot be taught or learned, because they’re unquantifiable.

Many different personalities and people with unquantified social abilities will be invaluable during times of crisis. Now don’t get me wrong; a number of these individuals (probably me included) will die within the first few months because of their lack of preparedness. However, the people who have these traits and have survived for over a year in a hostile environment probably have proven their worth more than once. Plus, after a year of surviving on their own, they probably have acquired one or two useful skills on top of their intangible traits. These are people who have learned to survive and have used their intangible skills to maintain some sort of life after the SHTF.

Many survivalists focus on measurable items. How much food do I have stocked? How many bullets do I have? How much gas do I have? The non-survivalist survivalist asks different questions. How can help the group? How can I solve the food shortage problem? How can we be more efficient? What can I learn today? They know they are not as prepared as Joe Survival down in the hollow with 10 years worth of food stored. So, they will focus on how they can make themselves useful to people they are around. Is it worth Joe Survival to take in Nick No-supplies if Nick has some of these intangible qualities? If Joe Survival has never negotiated a contract, if he has a bad temper and is not a “people person”, if he is overwhelmed with all of his responsibilities, then it might just be worth it to take in another mouth to feed. I have always heard, “Never judge a book by its cover”. When the SHTF, just because an individual may be more prepared than you or me, it doesn’t mean that they will not have a use for individuals with great social skills and leadership qualities.

Letter Re: Safe Deposit Boxes

My mother was visiting me when she saw the post man deliver a certified mail gold coin delivery. She immediately said, “You should get a safe deposit box.” I tried to explain several things to her: 1) The Patriot Act from almost 14 or 15 years ago gives the federal government the legal right to open any safe deposit box and seize the contents, 2) FDR explained the rationale behind his 1933 bank holiday in the first fireside chat where the government seized precious metals, so “yes” it has happened here before, and 3) (here’s where my argument gets iffy.) Our impending financial collapse is a mathematical certainty. Once you raise interest rates on trillions of dollars of debt, the government will collapse on itself and the banks will bail themselves in, effectively helping themselves to your money. However, I can’t find the specific legislation that has been passed about that, if there’s any.

All she keeps saying is “It can’t happen here”, but she says it in a way like she can’t even entertain the idea.

HJL’s Comment: What your mother is expressing is called the “normalcy bias”. It’s basically a mental state people enter when facing disaster and the assumption is made that since the disaster has not happened before it won’t happen now, despite what the factual indicators are. You might call it “willful optimism”. One of the most egregious cases of this was in Nazi Germany, when the Jews (and others) were persecuted heavily. Because the gas chamber scenario was so horrifying, many believed that it could not happen to them; yet, it did. They held on to this belief all the way to the gas chamber itself.

In the case of banking issues, it has happened before here. People just tend to ignore that fact. If your mother will entertain reading this level of detail, here’s a good article entitled “Dodd-Frank Kills: How the U.S. Joined the International Bail-in Regime”. It might help her realize that it not only can happen here, it has been set up to happen here.

Economics and Investing:

Greece Is Not India? Hellenic Banks Plan “Tax On Cash Withdrawals” To Combat Black Economy – DSV

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Peak Silver & Continued Supply Deficits Warn Of Future Higher Prices

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Venezuela Braces for Runaway Inflation As Merchants Weigh “Mountains of Cash” Instead Of Counting It – G.P.

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Why It’s Important to Define Money Correctly

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

JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:

Books:

Rodale’s Basic Organic Gardening: A Beginner’s Guide to Starting a Healthy Garden

Gunsmithing the AR-15, The Bench Manual, by Patrick Sweeney

Movies:

God’s Not Dead

Mary Poppins: 50th Anniversary Edition

Television:

Mossad 101 (In Hebrew, with English subtitles. Caution: Has some coarse language and immoral situations.) Available on Netflix.

Person of Interest (Aired for five seasons.) Available on Netflix and also on DVD, from Amazon.com.

Instructional Videos:

Living Off the Grid is Harder Than You Think

How To Butcher A Whole Loin Of Venison (Scott Rea)

Magazines:

Backwoods Home

Concealed Carry

Blogs:

The Survival Mom

Survival Cache

Podcasts:

The Courageous Life (a former Marine and his wife describe their back-to-the-land life in north Idaho.)

The Art of Manliness

Odds ‘n Sods:

California the New Redoubt of Secessionism?

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Dreams do come true… ENTIRE ROLL OF SILVER!!! | COIN ROLL HUNTING DREAM. (Skip forward to the 8-minute mark, if you don’t have time to watch the whole 18-minute video.)

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WorldNetDaily reports: What do they know? Mega-rich preparing for disaster

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How are teachers, school districts, and even the public at large supposed to deal with this? 85 languages spoken in Buffalo schools as ‘New Americans’ enter classrooms – Pat Cascio

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Home invasion and lessons learned. Grab a cup of coffee and read the first three postings. – P.S.

Notes for Tuesday – November 29, 2016

Today is the birthday of Clive Staples (“C.S.”) Lewis, who was born in 1898 and died 22 November 1963.

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The recent news about the death of former dictator Fidel Castro came as no surprise, since he had been in failing health for several years and his public appearances had become few and far between. Whenever I hear of the death of a totalitarian dictator, it always seems more fitting when they die at the hands of those that they’ve oppressed—as did Benito Mussolini, Nicolae Ceau?escu, and Muammar Gaddafi. Rightfully, brutal dictators should never die peacefully of geriatric diseases. They deserve only tall trees and short ropes! – JWR