SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. Today, we look at a new rabbit virus.
Are Protests Unsafe? It Depends on Who’s Protesting
Over at Yahoo News, a surprising admission of hypocrisy: Are Protests Unsafe? What Experts Say May Depend on Who’s Protesting What. (A hat tip to Cheri S. for the link.)
Beware: Blumenthal’s Background Check Bill
Just introduced in congress by Senator Richard Blumenthal: S. 4068: A bill to prohibit firearms dealers from selling a firearm prior to the completion of a background check. The full text of the bill has not yet been released. Beware. This is surely a very bad piece of legislation that will expand the terms of the Gun Control Act of 1968. Under this law, once enacted, if the highly automated NICS check cannot be completed for any reason, then it will leave you in legal limbo — unable to take delivery of a gun purchase–possibly even indefinitely. The NICS system is horribly flawed and very poorly executed. This legislation makes the assumption that NICS is some sort of well-oiled machine. It is far from it! A right delayed is a right denied.
LoRa Mesh Communication Gets Practical: Meshtastic
Video from a Swiss communications expert: LoRa Mesh Communication without Infrastructure: The Meshtastic Project (ESP32, BLE, GPS)
The Privacy Risks of Home Security Cameras
Reader C.B. sent this: New research reveals privacy risks of home security cameras. The article begins:
“An international study has used data from a major home Internet Protocol (IP) security camera provider to evaluate potential privacy risks for users.
IP home security cameras are Internet-connected security cameras that can be installed in people’s homes and remotely monitored via the web. These cameras are growing in popularity and the global market is expected to reach $1.3 billion by 2023.
For the study, researchers from the Chinese Academy of Science and Queen Mary University of London tested if an attacker could infer privacy-compromising information about a camera’s owner from simply tracking the uploaded data passively without inspecting any of the video content itself.”
S. 443 Would Re-Define Antique Firearms
Reader G.G. sent us this good legislative news: Below The Radar: S 443 Re-Define “Antique Firearms”. JWR’s Comment: This legislation is long overdue. To continue to leave the “antique” threshold frozen at December 31, 1898 would be ludicrous. Back in 1968 (when I was just 8 years old) the legal definition of “antique” meant a 70-year-old gun. But now it means a 122-year-old gun. Please contact your Senators and ask them to support this legislation! It is currently stalled in committee, but it could have a chance at passage if enough citizens speak up.
Tourist Stranded in P.I. Airport for 100 Days
This news article caught my eye: GROUNDED: Tourist stranded in airport for 100 days due to coronavirus in real-life echo of Tom Hanks film The Terminal.
The New Rabbit Virus Nicknamed ‘Bunny Ebola’
Reader D.S. spotted this: A deadly rabbit virus nicknamed ‘bunny Ebola’ is spreading in the Southwestern US, killing thousands of rabbits. A snipp[et:
“Across seven states in the Southwest, thousands of wild and domestic rabbits are dying from a rare outbreak of a highly contagious disease known as rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV2).
‘We refer to it as ‘bunny Ebola,’ ‘ Amanda Jones, a veterinarian from Killeen, Texas, told The Cut. While the rabbit virus is “not related in any way, shape, or form” to ebola — a virus that causes severe bleeding, organ failure, and death in humans and primates — Jones said RHDV2 ravages rabbit bodies in a similar manner.”
Airborne Coronavirus Can be Spread Farther than 6 feet
A CBS News video, courtesy of Reader A.K.: Scientists say coronavirus can be spread farther than 6 feet in tiny airborne particles.
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You can send your news tips to JWR. (Either via e-mail of via our Contact form.) Thanks!
Re: NICS system
‘The Brady Act’ of 1993 brought us the NICS system. Without the support of Republicans who voted for it (in BOTH houses!) the law would have failed.
It was a repeat of ‘The Gun Control Act of 1968’ that brought us gun registration. Without the support of Republicans who voted for it (in BOTH houses) the law would have failed.
Pastor Chuck Baldwin got it right. If you want Liberty you vote with your feet.
Internet cameras.
Currently, I’m only monitoring a birds nest. Before that, the back yard area for deer movement. I got it knowing it was/is probably hackable.
Certainly food for thought. I’m still looking for a camera system for in home use. Might just need to stay air gapped for something like that.
Some jurisdictions require access to audio/video information related to dispatch of police and/or other emergency personnel. They’re doing this because of the number of false alarms, and the strains false alarms create for the limits of resources. That having been said… As understandable as this is, it’s important to understand fully the risks of inappropriate or illegal access as well.
Remain steady. Be safe. Stay well everyone!
A couple of vaguely related internet questions, no place else to ask:
For the last couple of months or so, when I log on to Survivalblog my Mac OS X version 10.6.8 Safari warns me the certificate is invalid, the site might be a phony and not to log on.
Is the site being messed with? This warning doesn’t come up for any other Website.
Also, what’s happened to ol’ Remus’ Woodpile Report? Issue 631 has been up for weeks. The older back issues show a 404 not found error code.
Did I miss something? His wife recently passed; I hope he’s ok…
That warning is a browser issue. You are running an ancient browser software version. Our certificate has been updated.
Any word on Remus though? I’m also concerned and miss the weekly reports. Praying for him.
I e-mailed Remus two weeks ago. I had no reply.
I did [attempt to contact Remus] too. No reply.
Jim, I notice that you did not address the Woodpile Report question. I am hoping that Ol’ Remus has simply been distracted by other matters.
Theres a comment over at EatonRapidsJoe blog, someone who is alleged to know him says he’s pulled his head in like a snapping turtle, lol.
Given the current climate, I can think of SEVERAL reasons thats a wise thing for him. I too, miss his writings and links, but respect the man and wish him all the best!
@Gene Blister, Idaho
Regarding your comment about your version of Safari and this site’s certificate: I’ve been reading SurvivalBlog since 2006 and have not ever had any problems with it. Software is generally made to be “backward compatible” with previous versions, but the programs might have problems with being “forward compatible” as the software engineers don’t have a foolproof way of knowing what the future standard will be until it arrives. As new problems come up they have to deal with them in new software updates. I’ve written a bunch of programs myself that run fine under DOS but will not run under newer versions of Windows. Some of the same problems exist with very old HTML (old websites with the original web programming) files running on newer browsers, even though as I noted above that they are usually “backward compatible”, but not always. I suspect this may be the issue that you have with your version of Safari.
What browser would you recommend James?
I’d recommend the latest Firefox with the Tor option. See: https://www.wikihow.com/Use-Tor-with-Firefox
Anything computer or wireless is hackable unless gapped. Can’t wait for the day some hacker hits a concert and takes control of the sound system. Board control, and output control is all able to be controlled via wireless. Someone gets in there, and the whole rig could be a very expensive smoking heap.
A takeover could cause the same destruction as what happened to Phantom of the Opera. There, a digital signal processor went into failure during a performance. When it failed, it lost all crossover settings and blasted everything downstream with white noise at +24db. The loss of frequency separation caused the coaxial speaker cones to smash and burn. Result, the left side of the sound system was destroyed at $12,000 in replacement. Current speaker systems could run $250K per side or more.
The day a hacker gets in and screws a major show/s, is the day everyone goes back to analog.
From your post: “Anything computer or wireless is hackable unless gapped.”
Yes… Newer cars are also at risk, and that’s a frightening prospect to be sure.
OnStar already owns your car. “They” can take control of your car at any time. AND there may be other such systems out there.
Exactly. People seem to have no idea how dangerous this could be…
Yeah; and it’s a lose-lose. You can disable Onstar by disconnecting the car’s antenna, but then you lose the radio as well…
Wow, I never thought of this. As a musician and sometimes sound tech I have Always preferred analogue and love the big consoles. Now I have another reason why! Lol
Yeah, any idea what happened to Ol’ Remus?
I get kinda bored sometimes. I ain’t got a signaled camera system but if I could figure out when they are hacking in I’d act a straight fool and make it entertaining LOL
You know like be cleaning my AR in one of the T-Rex costumes while smearing glitter on myself or something. Ya know things that make folks scared to have eye contact with ya LOL
In regards to S-443, knitted a flag to both my senators here in TX who I know will do their best about it. Thats one area if things I don’t have to be concerned about here in the Lonestar.
We hope the appropriate authorities are looking closely at the Marxist money trail…
https://100percentfedup.com/video-convicted-terrorist-sits-on-a-board-tied-to-blm-fundraising-operations/
…and the dangerous nature of the people involved in these organizations. This individual received a commutation of sentence courtesy of Bill Clinton, and from the report, on his last day in office. They are taking advantage of human tragedy (including the loss of life) to advance their political agendas which include totalitarianism and tyranny.
…and this might once have appeared in some form of “News of the Weird”, although now reports like this seem to be “News of the New Normal”.
https://pjmedia.com/columns/stephen-green/2020/07/09/thursdays-insanity-wrap-cancel-culture-comes-for-orwell-biology-is-transphobic-n624434
We are terribly concerned for the future.
Today is my Birthday! July 9th in American history:
https://www.onthisday.com/today/american-history.php
PS: They forgot the Battle of the Wilderness that the movie “Last of the Mohicans” was based on (Battle of Monongahela)
On the bunny ebola virus: I read about this a couple of days ago. It is amazing to me that it’s been around for 35 years and also seems to have originated in China. What is wrong with China? Why is this the first time I’m hearing about this? When does it go cross-species into the wolf, coyote, and carrion bird populations?
Speaking of Odds and Sods: I found this on the way to other things.
SHOCKER: CDC admits COVID-19 ‘positive result’ just means you’ve previously contracted the “common cold”
https://www.intellihub.com/shocker-cdc-admits-covid-19-positive-result-just-means-youve-previously-had-the-common-cold/
from the article and the CDC: “… a positive result means that you have antibodies from an infection with a virus from the same family of viruses (called coronaviruses), such as the one that causes the common cold.”
Proof the tests mean a whole lot of nothing.
Also from Dan Bongino: “You Can Take Your Mask Mandate And Shove It Right Up Your A**”: Dan Bongino Vows To Defy Mask Order
https://dailycaller.com/2020/07/08/dan-bongino-mandatory-mask-order-martin-county/
While I’m at it: Here’s more….
The Miserable Pseudo-Science Behind Face Masks, Social Distancing And Contact Tracing
https://technocracy.news/the-miserable-pseudo-science-behind-face-masks-social-distancing-and-contact-tracing/
Facts about Covid-19 Fully referenced!
https://swprs.org/a-swiss-doctor-on-covid-19/
Insults to Black history by Walter E. Williams
https://www.lewrockwell.com/2020/06/walter-e-williams/insults-to-black-history/
Walter Williams Declaration of Amnasty and Pardon.
http://walterewilliams.com/WalterWilliamsAmnestyProclamation.pdf
Corona – The Simple Truth In Less Than 6 Minutes – Vimeo
https://www.lewrockwell.com/political-theatre/corona-the-simple-truth-in-less-than-6-minutes-vimeo/
Charles K
I think people who decide not to wear a mask in public should be On a list or have it on their drivers license, or some other way to identify themselves as non mask wearers so somebody like myself (an ICU nurse, or any other health care worker) does not have to risk our lives taking care of you. Man up and don’t go to a hospital.
That sounds fine because when you guys go on strike the death rate goes down.
mickey d…
1st Amendment aside, I’m surprised the editor allowed your insult to remain up.
You imply that nurses are the cause of death(s) in hospitals and that most patients are better off when they go on strike. You are no where near the truth.
Nurses preserve more lives by their care than any other job/worker(s) with the exception of maybe farmers. Are there incompetent nurses? yes, of course, but 99% are dedicated care givers who work tirelessly to provide comfort and care whether in initial care, recovery or during a patients final hours or days.
My wife, an RN for 45+ years, (luckily) retired in December 2019 before covid-19 was even mentioned in the front page news (whether real or not) with 30 of those years in the emergency room, from a Level 1 trauma center in the SF bay area to the only hospital in a 100 mile radius in a rural area of the northern Great Lakes caring for everyone from ‘little mickey’ with the sniffles and/or ear infection at 3am to mom, dad or grand pa’s heart attack. To homeless people who haven’t showered in weeks to the cat lady who smells like cat urine and cigarettes, multiple trauma victims to vulgar and combative drunk drivers to innocent victims of gun shot wounds.
Tell me how the death rate goes down when they’re on strike.
I’m curious, what do you do for a living mickey d? Care to elaborate?
Rucksack Rob,
Thank you, I was too mad to reply to Mickey d, afraid I would go to far. People like him have NO Idea what a 12-14 hour shift is like in the ER or ICU. Over the last 30 years for me, most people cannot even imagine what I’ve seen and done. What I do know is I’m an excellent nurse who has always done my best to save lives, and comfort truly traumatized families. I have taken care of every type of person you can imagine, from the homeless to everybody else. The one thing I absolutely know is I make a difference.
Again, I will ask you if you believe you have Covid, stay home, health care workers should not have to risk their lives to take care of people like you who have a complete disregard for anyone but themselves.
Be the man you seem to think you are.
I also wondered what Mickey does for a living.
TXNurse: I’m surprised at you. There was nothing in my post to indicate that I did not wear a mask. I only provided articles to the SB readers that I thought they might find interesting and informative. Here is what I have learned over the last several months.
1) The tests are basically invalid. First, they are only barely 50% accurate, half the tests are either false positive or false negative. Second, the current testing methods only detect that the testee has contracted one of several coronaviruses. The tests are not specific, making them mostly worthless. Should I be quarantined because I might have been exposed to someone who had a coronavirus induced cold? That would be morally repugnant.
2) Locking down healthy people, destroying the economy, because a few people may or may not get what is still, effectively, just a really bad cold or a really bad case of the flu has proven to be devastating to so many millions of people. People die from the common cold and the seasonal flu every freaking year, in the tens of thousands.
3) Deaths in the USA are indeed up, in total. This is not because people have contracted CoVID-19, but because violent crime is way up, suicides are also way up, traffic accidents are going up as people are wearing masks while driving and therefore driving impaired. This last is called CO2 intoxication. This is caused by reduced O2 combined with increased CO2 due to the wearing a mask for too long at a stretch.
4) Literally half of the CoVID related deaths, globally, have been in nursing homes and long term care facilities. In the USA about one-half of those deaths were caused by morally bankrupt State governors who demanded CoVID patients be placed in those facilities where it could spread like wildfire. In Canada it is 81% of the cases. Justin Trudeau made the same, dictatorial, morally repugnant decisions as Gretchen Whitmer and Andrew Cuomo did. These actions were intentional. Look at the cost savings to governments for their willful murder of all those senior citizens. These people should be tried in the Hague for crimes against humanity.
5) We actually have to think about our actions. I have masks in both of my cars, along with hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes. I can’t afford to get sick. That being said, I choose when and where I wear that mask that I keep available, not some petty bureaucrat or some governor with delusions of dictatorial grandeur. If you had read the article about Dan Bongino, you would realize he is only saying the same thing as I just have.
6) The case counts are going up. Are they really? With the poor quality of the tests being used, how do we really know if the actual cases of CoVID-19 are going up? The answer is, we don’t. Yet the failed policies of the last 3 months are being pushed again. These are strictly political decisions, not based on anything scientific, only on the politics of the current election cycle. The only people paying the price for those failed policies are the citizens with the “boot on their necks, forever”.
Finally, to insinuate that those who choose not to wear a mask should have the equivalent of a yellow star to mark their noncompliance is also… questionable. You’re tired, I get it. You work long and stressful hours, I get it. You are in a position to be exposed to very ill people every day, that makes you extremely vulnerable as well. Maybe it’s time for you to take a break, step back and get some perspective.
As a post script, mickey d’s comment was completely uncalled for. Nurses are the backbone of the healthcare system. Without nurses, hospitals fail and people die unnecessarily. You and all your compatriots need to be commended, not criticized.
Charles K
My perspective is intact. Most of those articles you put out there are complete BS. I’be been doing epidemiology research for more than 25 yrs., I have worked as a consultant for Pandemic Planning starting in 2006, I have published reports on this subject several times, given presentations at Supply Chain Conventions, and many webinars…..all based on science.
Are the tests perfect – no, many false negatives, a false positive is very rare. A PCR test is very specific for Covid 19, not just any coronavirus.
If you think deaths are up due to violent crime and not mostly related to Covid, then I don’t know what to say! There have been research studies done on wearing a mask for long periods of time and they do not cause CO2 intoxication, and from a personal perspective having worn PPE’s for long periods of time over 30 years I have never seen this happen to any HCW.
I have been risking my life with many infectious diseases over the years and I’m not tired. Most people are the victim of catching something deadly by accident, and I have seen many horrible deaths. Today we are faced with people being uncaring about their own health and the health of others.
I see many people mistaking inconvenience for oppression.
Mostly I see it as just being selfish.
TX Nurse, You work in a HOSPITAL. You CHOSE that profession. The possibility of picking up something from an incoming patient is, and always has been, there. If it’s isn’t COVID-19, it can just as well be any other infectious disease that walks through that ER door. If you’re that worried about catching COVID-19, maybe you’re in the wrong profession…
As far as the masks are concerned, we’re being forced to wear “face coverings” that do little else but to give us immediate feedback on the garlic in our last meal. They stink, they leak like mad, and impair normal breathing. Try doing construction, warehouse, or other strenuous work with one of those things on. On the other hand YOU have access to masks that will actually make a difference; masks which WE can no longer get ahold of, because they’re being redirected to folks like you. How about putting one on… Heck; who’s to say YOU aren’t the one spreading COVID-19 to the PATIENTS? Unless, of course, you’re saying that even the masks YOU wear do little to no good. The CDC says “Yes” today, and “No” tomorrow, and you wonder why we doubt.
That being said, Mickey d needs to adjust his meds…
Tom MacGyver
Yes I chose my profession, and have always been aware of possibly infecting myself with deadly diseases. My point in all of this is that we all do have freedom of choice, and if you chose to not wear a mask, then you should understand the consequences of YOUR actions. We have enough people infected with Covid out there to take care of who didn’t flaunt “I don’t have to wear a mask” and now are extremely ill and possibly dying. I would rather take care of these people than one of you any day, and would hope your second choice of freedom would just be to stay home and And live or die with your choice. We don’t get to make that choice of whether we have to take care of you or not!
You should try living in FULL PPE’s for about 12 – 14 hours a shift working with several ventilator patients and see how strenuous that feels.
If anybody really believes all HCW‘S now have all the proper PPE’s that they need, you are dreaming……that’s the biggest lie out there.
Solution, don´t eat so much garlic.
They impair breathing, wear real breathing equipment and work for a change.
A gas mask and work with 80 – 100 C hot machines
I consider those that do not wear masks to be a physical threat same as if you have a weapon.
Even a very mild case of CCP can cause enough damage to your lungs that you will never be able to dive again. A healthy lung can withstand about 2 psi before damage begins. That’s the pressure change of 4 feet of water. A scarred lung will barely handle 1 psi. If that occurs, air gets forced into the bloodstream, and will follow to the highest point and form an embolism. If that’s your brain, you’re either dead or a vegetable by the time they get you to a recompression chamber.
You don’t want to catch this!
Regarding the mask issue, I see it simply; if you have something blocking your mouth input/output then you have less chance getting sick. I have to wear a mask anywhere from 4 to 8 hours a day. Yes I don’t care for wearing it. Yes there is relief when I take it off at home. However, I it is a small thing to wear it to protect myself from others and others from myself. People seem to have lost all reasoning on both sides of this issue.
Knuckledraggin has a post from someone that knows about Remus. Gone to be with his wife. RIP Remus. We will miss you wit and wisdom. Remember, “stay away from crowds.” Yes sir.