SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “HJL”.
Illegal Veggies
A Florida appeals court has upheld Miami Shores, Florida’s veggie garden ban. Last year, a state court ruled that the city had the right to ban vegetable gardens. They believe the vegetable plants are unsightly. Thus, with the single stroke of a pen, the courts have now said that the city is well within it’s rights to ban you from growing your own food while allowing your neighbors to build pools, park boats/jet skis and even put in lawn gnomes. But you can’t have zucchini. The Florida constitution protects people from arbitrary restrictions on their right to use their own property, but the courts so far have been poisoned. Thanks to D.S. for the link.
#LeavePublicSchools
Baltimore schools are some of the most problematic schools there are. An investigative series from a Fox affiliate has been profiling many of the issues including passing students who have never even shown up for a class. One of the latest escapades is that 13 public high schools from around Baltimore (out of a total of 39) had no kids that were proficient in math in 2017. Zero. Nada. Zilch. Not a single student! Reader K.B. notes that you would be hard pressed to find a single high school in all of Asia with the same poor performance.
Why Public Sector Abuses are Rampant
Reader H.L sent in this article showing why abuses of the public sector are so bad. We’ve all heard of the retirement abuses where a police officer will retire with a “disability” which is in reality just normal aging (thus protecting a good portion of his income from taxes). Or perhaps a fighter fighter who contracts cancer and now it’s presumed to be caused by the job enabling the opening of publicly funded benefits. These are nothing new, but now we have a new one. Four Orange county officers who were attending the Las Vegas concert that came under fire did what many others did. They helped out their fellow attendees.
The difference is that even though they attended the concert on their own time and it was out-of-state, they filed workers compensation claims with their home counties to get additional leave and medical benefits. Now Tom Daly (D-Anaheim) has announced he plans to introduce a bill guaranteeing that such cases can’t be refused and it will be retroactive to those who have already been turned down. And we wonder why California is in such bad financial condition.
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To go along with that piece of ridiculous news, we find that California’s economy ranks a measly 37th, behind even Michigan and Ohio. This despite California’s claim that they are the sixth largest economy in the world (larger than France, Canada, Brazil, Russia and Italy). The problem is that those calculations are done by the state’s Department of Finance and does not calculate in the cost of living. There are a myriad of other factors to consider as well, such as the tax burden and the per capita GDP. It’s not a pretty picture for the state.
Source Code of Hacking Tools
Reader D.B. reported that Wikileaks has released the source code of the alleged CIA hacking tools as part of their “Vault 7” leaks. The CIA continues their silence on the authenticity of the intelligence documents, but to my knowledge, Wikileaks has never been wrong when all the facts were learned. Security experts are stating that they do not expect the release of the source code to be a threat, but that the CIA will have to refactor their code and there is a possibility of undiscovered hacks.
Off Grid Survival Property
Our sister site, SurvivalRealty.com has just listed a southern Vermont property that holds promise as a prepper retreat:
“Solar powered energy efficient property with all you’ll ever need. Experience this unique Southern Vermont property in an exceptionally beautiful setting. Mountain views to the south, hiking trails amongst the trees throughout the 30 acres. Winter snowshoeing and cross country skiing and a variety of wild life make this property a fun place to live.”
Paramedic OD
We’ve been hearing about some of the new street drugs that can be absorbed through the skin. Apparently a Fairborn, Ohio paramedic responded to an overdose situation and while driving the patient to the Hospital began exhibiting signs of an overdose himself. His partner noticed and was able to stop the ambulance in the middle of the road and administer Narcan to counteract the OD. Both the patient and the paramedic were then taken to the hospital. The investigation is still ongoing, but carfentanil is suspect. A small quantity of this type of drug absorbed through the skin or inhaled by a human can lead to overdose and death. Thanks to D.S.V. for the link.
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Please send your news tips to HJL. (Either via e-mail of via ourContact form.) These are often especially relevant, because they come from folks who watch news that is important to them. Due to their diligence and focus, we benefit from fresh “on target” news. We often “get the scoop” on news that is most likely ignored (or reported late) by mainstream American news outlets. Thanks!
I’ve been bothered for a while by the way disability claims work. I personally know two people who claimed and got disability, and who likely actually were disabled at the time, but within a few years went back to work but continued to get disability payments. If you’re well enough to work, shouldn’t that end your claim?
MOST of the time it should. I was disabled and drawing disability for almost two years. I used that time to rehab physically and learned new skills that allowed me to earn a living a different way. I secured a job and informed SSA. They allowed for working, while still drawing a check for six months, with option to extend in 3 month increments, up to a year,in case it didn’t work out. The rationale being that it’s better to keep you in the system,than it is to go back through application process. After nine months I was making a good living and haven’t looked back. One of the problems now is Obamacare has made private insurance so high, people can’t afford to leave disability and the cheap Medicare coverage
I know several people who state they are disabled vets and work as police officers. I always wondered how they could claim disability and work as LEO’s.
Part of it comes down to the VA not communicating with other agencies. We actually have Soldiers in the Army Reserve who are receiving VA disability. The VA recoups part of their benefits if they drill for pay (as opposed to simply drilling for retirement points), but they are still building a retirement and in many cases are non-deployable.
Illegal Veggies in FL:
There seems to be a lot of hostility towards home food production in most of the urban, and subdivision areas of FL. Water Management Districts, County Zoning Departments, Deed restrictions, Real Estate Associations, and Home Owners Association covenants can make home gardening difficult, if not impossible. It just depends on your location, suburban and rural areas are better.
In his 2009 novel, “One Second After”, writer William R. Forstchen, the aftermath of a EMP attack causes almost 100% fatalities in FL.
Writer Alan T. Hagan, had a slightly better prognosis for FL in his e-novel, “In the Blink of an Eye”, http://www.timebomb2000.com/vb/showthread.php?59158-Story-In-the-Blink-of-an-Eye.
In “Strategic Relocation: North American Guide to Safe Places”, (3rd Ed.), author Joel M. Skousen gives FL a zero rating. People who have moved to Florida like to be comfortable and are “unprepared for any significant crisis”.
If you want to are wanting to produce veggies at home, it is best to stay away from retirement communities, incorporated areas and any community with a HOA.
You’d be amazed at how much trouble I have had just trying to keep a couple of honey bee hives and a garden…
What is the sourse for the story that Californias economy ranks 37 in the US?
I’m suspecting apples and oranges. The economy, measured by each state should be similiar to the national GDP.,
If the story is conflating tax burden with measurement of the economy it’s two different things .
PS many people in my California neighborhood have ripped up their lawns and planted vegetable gardens . Houses here sell for about $650,000 and almost everyone is fine with artichokes instead of grass.