Updates From Friends

Ek Commando Knives

I was chatting with an old family friend the other day.  Bob Buerlein is the owner and president of Ek Commando Knives.  Ek started in WWII and their handmade knives have been carried in every engagement since.  Today Bob sent me his latest President's Club newsletter which revealed that he is releasing a very limited edition Historical Edition Model 1, a copy of the original Model 1, sheath and box that John Ek made for the troops of the greatest generation.  He's only making 300 of these and the knife itself is going for a VERY reasonable $289.  Display case and sheath are extra, but still reasonable.  This is a really good looking knife, and it's design is combat proven.  If you are in the market for a fighting knife, check out the Ek HE1, or one of the other great designs.

The Berkey Guy

The Berkey Guy, Jeff Gleason, was the first sponsor of If It Hits The Fan.  He just completed a complete redesign of his website at http://www.directive21.com/ that makes it much more user friendly.  He doesn't just have Berkey Water Filter Systems, he has long term storage foods, seed vaults, and other great (and sometimes hard to find) survival needs.  I've been using our Big Berkey for all of our drinking water since our well went a little funky a few weeks ago and will keep it in use from here on out.  Check out Jeff's new site design and if you don't have a Berkey, consider ordering one from him.

FloodSax

I shot a video product review this afternoon of the FloodSax sandbag replacement.  This is a cool product that has lots of potential.  I'll get it edited and posted to the YouTube channel soon.

Boot Reviews

Got the new Boy's Life magazine today and they have a good article on a review of several different brands of hiking boots.  The information is pretty good... the reader comments after the reviews were obviously written by young teen boys.  If you are in the market for new hiking boots, give this article a looksee.

Updates From The Homestead

What Have I Done To Prep Lately?

The Garden - Well, my greenhouse experiment didn't go as well as I had hoped.  None of my peppers sprouted.  I did get 17 tomato plants to come up, though.  The Gorilla Tape that I used to attach all the plastic sheeting on the greenhouse ended up not sticking too great.  The stuff is amazing if you wrap it, but simply holding a flat piece of plastic to another one or to a PVC pipe just didn't last.  Part of the roof collapsed, so I ended up cutting away part of the plastic roof so that rain and partial direct sunlight could hit the plants to help harden them.  I'll get the 17 plants in the garden box this week.  The soil is nicely prepped with some fresh topsoil and kitchen waste compost.

Project BOV Jeep - I replaced a couple of hoses and clamps in the engine, got most of my exterior lights working (still need to fix the brake and backup lights), put on a new fan belt, and ordered new dash lamp "thingamabobs" (that's the technical term for them).  I'm putting together a small emergency kit to mount in the rear of it.

Workshop Storage - I had let my shelves and cabinets in the shop get a little disorganized, so I spend some quality time out there reorganizing and straightening up in there.  I can now easily put my hands on items ranging from holsters to tools to toiletries to canned goods.

Pantry - We've been adding to our food stores on a regular and gradual basis.  Rotation, FIFO, eat what your store, store what you eat, copy canning... it is always ongoing

Weapons - I've got my eye on a Colt Trooper MkIII .357 revolver that a guy I know is looking to get rid of.  Also, my wife took a skeet shooting lesson and was not only pretty good, but really enjoyed it.  We'll be looking for a new shotgun for her soon.

There is always something going on and work to be done.


News You Can Use

This month's Women's Health magazine (I read Survival Mom over vacation this week... do I need to be concerned?) has a quick blurb about the numbers used on produce labels.  If it has five digits, starting with an 8, it was genetically modified.  If it has four digits, it was grown conventionally.  If it has five digits, starting with a 9, it was grown organically.  Actually, thanks to my wife for noticing this and passing it on.

Book Review: Survival Mom by Lisa Bedford

Are You A Survival Mom?

Lisa Bedford was kind enough to have her publisher send me a copy of her new book, Survival Mom, to review.  Who is Lisa Bedford?  A couple of years ago, she was a blogger, plugging along on http://www.thesurvivalmom.com/.  A guest appearance on Glenn Beck's Fox News show got her a huge boost.  Last year she was on the pilot episode of Doomsday Preppers, and is one of the few folks they've featured who did not come across as a loon.  Now, she has her first book out, Survival Mom, from  Harper Collins Publishers.

Now, obviously, I am not her target demographic, but I figured I'd give it a shot.  The short review: This is a great book!

Here's some more detail...

Lisa did a great job writing this book.  It's easy to read without being aimed at the lowest common denominator.  Her sense of humor and her personality come through in her writing, and she gets some very serious points across as well.  The information that she presents is accurate, well reasoned, and thorough.  I really like the many charts and checklists that she includes, and I appreciated the many sayings and quotes that she gathered to use as margin notes.

The book is named Survival Mom for a reason.  It is very clearly aimed at women in general and mothers in particular.  The prepper guys out there who are trying to get their wives on board should give them a copy.  A single mom or a prepper wife whose husband is not on board will also benefit.  If you are trying to encourage a family member to prep, this is the book you should give or recommend to them.  It would also make a good wedding or baby shower gift.  The book has tons of information for the novice prepper, but also plenty that an experienced prepper can learn from.

These are my views as a male experienced prepper.  To try and get a better perspective on the book, I'm going to ask a couple non-prepping moms to read it and write reviews for you as well.

Small, But Loud

Small Watch Dogs

When we think about a dog for a retreat location or for home security, thoughts turn to German Shepherds, Rhodesian Ridgebacks, or, like my neighbors a few lots down, Anatolian Shepherd Dogs.  All of these are large, protective, fierce looking and loud.  They also eat a lot, need to be well trained and disciplined, and can be intimidating to guests.

There are other, smaller options.  The Lhasa Apso is one such breed.  The Lhasa Apso originated in Tibet, and was developed as a household sentinel for Tibetan nobility and Buddhist monks.  The first Lhasa Apsos in the US were given as a gift in 1933 from the 13th Dalai Lama.  Among the many fans of the breed have been Bob & Delores Hope, Elizabeth Taylor, and your's truly.

Our dog, Louis (pronounced Louie), is nearly nine years old, yet still has a lot of puppy activity in him.  As is typical of the breed, he is very loyal and loving to us, very sociable with welcome guests, and very alert and territorial.  If someone pulls in our driveway, he lets us know it.  If we are out back, and someone drives down the neighbor's driveway past our yard, he will run and bark along the fence until they are long gone.  He also defends our airspace from crows and vultures, keeps rabbits and squirrels out of the garden, and will monitor the undersink cabinet for hours on end if he detects a mouse under there.  He has even adopted the practice of conducting a scan of the backyard perimeter from the porch as the last thing he does before going to bed each night.  If we try to go to bed without him doing it, he is very antsy and will not let me go to sleep until I get out of bed and he herds me down the hall and I open the back door for him to make his check.

If you want a pet that can function as a watchdog, without the trouble and feeding expenses of a large, traditional one, check out the Lhasa Apso.

Louis says Lhasa Apsos rule!

Dream Prepping

Can You Survive On The Beach?

We just got back from a relaxing short vacation in Duck, on the Outer Banks of North Carolina.  We typically spend a few days there each spring, and as I sit on the beach, watching the dolphins and pelicans while I enjoy a cigar, my thoughts sometimes wander to what it would be like to use a place like Duck as a BOL or permanent retreat.

I'm sure that many of us have dreamt of hitting the lotto jackpot and buying 1,000 acre spread in the mountains of Montana with a bunker, several years of food, small livestock, and a completely off-grid 5,000 square foot log cabin... but what other options are there for the lottery millionaire survivalist?

If you are not familiar with the Outer Banks, they are the barrier islands blocking the North Carolina coastline from the ravages of tides, waves and even hurricanes.  Among the islands and communities are Roanoke (where "the Lost Colony" was before disappearing, Ocracoke (where Blackbeard based his pirate operations), Hatteras (home of one of the iconic East Coast lighthouses), Nags Head (where the Wright brothers first achieved powered flight), Duck (former home of a munitions impact area) and Corolla (known for wild horses descended from those left behind by shipwrecked Spanish treasure hunters in the 17th century). 

So, would it work?  First the negatives: small lot size, no ground fresh water, limited wildlife, extremely crowded during "the season," and very susceptible to hurricanes and tropical weather systems.  But let's take a look at how it could work if you had a giant jackpot at your disposal.  I'll use Duck as the location.


First, access: After crossing from the mainland on the Rt. 158 bridge to Southern Shores, you take a left and head up highway 12.  It is the only way to go north through Duck, into Corolla and it ends at a beach access point where there are no roads for the last few miles of NC beach to the Virgina border.  There a person would find a very inhospitable state park facility with a beach/desert/wilderness.  Essentially, other than by boat, there is only one way in and one way out of Duck.  It is between a couple hundred yards and about a half mile wide from the Atlantic beach to the sound shore.  Were a SHTF scenario happen, it would be a simple matter to barricade the highway and only allow in those who own property. A "neighborhood watch" of sorts could be established for a coastal boat patrol.  At the Army Corps of Engineers facility on the impact area, they have a very long pier and a very tall watch tower.

I'd construct an elevated home on the beach front.  The dune system is well established and provides good protection.  I'd have the home engineered to be much more durable than the typical beach house, with concrete pillars, hardyplank siding, steel framing, and shatter-resistant windows covered by roll-down steel hurricane shutters.  The roofs there usually have a number of angles and profiles.  I'd use that as a fresh water collection source during rain, feeding to a cistern for use when municipal water sources fail.  The roof itself would be covered in solar panels and a small wind turbine would combine to be the primary power source (I'd stay grid tied, but have battery power storage).  I'd naturally include a safe room, along with storage for weapons, equipment and food.

You'd think that a coastal island would not be suitable for growing food, but you'd be surprised.  The area is surprisingly covered in brush and trees, and many restaurants have their own gardens.  I think you'd have to really build up the soil, and incorporate huglekultur methods, but food production could definitely be done at least on a limited or supplemental level.  With proper shelter, you could also raise rabbits and chickens.  For food gathering, fish from either the sound or the ocean are likely, along with crabs, seabirds, and small mammals like squirrels and opossum being abundant.  We even saw a white tail deer doe in the brush on the leeward side of the beach dunes at the resort where we stayed.  The wildlife is evidence that fresh water can be harvested or contained.  The wild horses of Coralla get their water mostly from the plants they eat, but are also known to use their hooves to dig holes 2-4 feet deep which then fill with fresh water during rains.  Of course, with the large amount of wood, a small population for a relatively short (6 months or so) duration event, could do desalination from a still.

Speaking of population, the year-round residential population of Duck is about 500.  During "the season" that grows to about 20,000 transients.  If SHTF in the summer, most of these people would leave for home.  During the winter, the residents would most likely be prepared for a longer time than an average person on the mainland simply because so many stores and restaurants are closed and folks need to plan ahead.

If you had the money to build the right kind of home, I think that a place in Duck (or a similarly remote beach location like Key West, Hilton Head, Chincoteague, etc... could be a viable full-time retreat location for many events other than a hurricane.  It would be ideal for a pandemic situation with a long quarantine (either ordered or self-imposed).

Coke Is It

More Than A Tasty Soft Drink?

Have you ever seen that email that goes around periodically talking about all the cleaning miracles that Coke can do?  It claims that police always carry Coke in the trunk to clean up blood on the highway after a wreck.

I always kind of took these with a grain of salt, figuring they were more urban legend than effective cleaning solution.  I've known and worked with thousands of police officers over the years and have never known one to carry Coke in the patrol car for anything more than refreshment.

Today I had to put a new battery in my wife's car.  It had been starting sluggishly for the past few days, and last time that happened a couple years ago, the battery completely died in a Wal Mart parking lot (talk about convenient.  Today, I went ahead and bought a new battery before it died.  Opening the hood, I saw that the terminals and clamps were horribly corroded.  I looked on the internet and saw baking soda and water, scrubbed with a toothbrush, to be suggested, so that is what I planned to do.  I saw a few that suggested Coke to clean them, but the suggestions came across as being from people who had received the aforementioned email.

We stopped at my in-laws' house so I could change the battery out while my wife visited her mother.  When I asked for a plastic cup to mix up my baking soda and water, my MIL said to pour Coke on and it would clean right up.  I was skeptical, but I had half a Diet Coke in the car that had gotten warm, so I figured I'd go ahead and try it. 

It instantly foamed up and dissolved the corrosion, leaving the terminals and clamps nearly new looking.  A squirt with the hose and all the Coke was gone and they were spotless.

I still doubt the whole Coke dissolves blood on the pavement thing, but for cleaning up acidic battery corrosion, it is just the ticket.  Super fast, super easy, and a good "tool" to have on standby.  However, Coke will not dissolve teeth, nails or T-bone steaks overnight.

Urban Driving Survival

Getting Around Dodge


When we talk of driving, we often think of SHTF... getting to the BOL after the main roads are blocked... driving cross country outrunning the tornado... driving through the wilderness in a Jeep... but what about just getting safely through heavy traffic in an urban area?  That's what many of us do on a regular basis.

As a commuter, it is easy to slip into normalcy bias.  The same route to work, the same people at the bus stops, the same stop lights.  It can all change in a split second... Just ask Reginald Denny.

I've got a few ideas to keep in mind to help you not fall into the slumber of normalcy bias.

• Keep your rig ready
• keep your maintenance up to date
• check oil, tire pressure, essential fluids, belts and hoses regularly - at least once a month
• keep your washer fluid topped off and your windshield wipers effective
• ensure lights, brakes and steering are all working as they should
• stay fueled up
• don't let your gas get below a half tank
• fuel up strategically and tactically
• plan your fuel stops and known and busy locations
• fill up during daylight if possible
• angle your vehicle to minimize your exposure while pumping
• Maintain an escape route
• on multi-lane roads, stay to the outside if there is a wide sidewalk or inside if there is a wide median or the road is undivided
• keep plenty of room between you and the car in front of you - don't allow yourself to get boxed in
• at stop lights, try to time it so you are at the front of the line - if you can't be at the front, then leave enough room in front of you and to the side to escape - using the sidewalk or a quick U-turn if needed
• Be situationally aware
• Watch out for wreck set ups
• pedestrians hovering close to a curb may be planning to jump out in front of your car
• beat up cars at stop lights may jerk forward slightly hoping for you to rear end them
• a bump from behind may be a set up for a robbery or car jacking
• if a crowd is in the street turn around - attempting to go through them will result in you being attacked - you will not be justified using your car as a weapon until it is too late to use it as a weapon - it is unbelievable how easy a mob can stop a car
• Know where you are and multiple ways to get where you want to be

These are just some basic reminders of ways to be prepared and stay safer while driving in an urban environment.  I base the information on my experience.  I've driven close to 750,000 miles, been endorsed as a driver training teacher, completed tactical and pursuit driving in the police academy, been trained in escape and evasive driving techniques by U.S. State Dept. instructors, and took emergency vehicle operators course (EVOC) for the rescue squad.

Tin Foil Hat Time... Or Is It?

I try to stay away from the conspiracy theories and black helicopters on here.  It's not that I don't lend any credence toward them, it is just that there are far better places to get that info.  Today, a couple of things popped up that got me thinking and I wanted to share them in case you missed them.


Un-Civil War

Alex Jones put this up today, along with a lot of other folks.  DHS Informant Says Government is Preparing for Massive Civil War.  Essentially, the writer's source has proven reliability and is in place to know such things.  He says that DHS believes that civil unrest and even war is on the horizon.  Look at the recent 450 million rounds of ammo that they recently contracted for and the urban military exercises going on in Florida.  I've seen military exercises in urban areas before, but always publicised ahead of time, on vacant buildings, and the police were only there for traffic control.  In this case, it was a joint exercise with the local PD and people in the area were surprised by it at 1 a.m.  Why is the military training with the police?  Military use in civilian law enforcement is outlawed under Posse Commitatus.


Prepping for the Wealthy

One of my oldest and closest friends is an ex-pat living in New Zealand.  He sent me this column from the ZeroHedge website that is primarily aimed at savvy investors on the world markets.  The author offers up a prepping plan for those with more money than time and outlines a way to spend $25,000 that will get a person equipped and trained (and training is a key activity that most "prep this way" lists often neglect.  If a respected investment website is pushing this information, then SHTF is definitely on the radar for those with money.


Don't Forget...

to enter the guest writing contest!  We've got about $60 worth of prizes lined up just waiting for great guest posts!

Here's To Health

Flossing

We all know that dental health is crucial component of overall good health, and in a long-term SHTF situation, it can be the difference between thriving and misery.

I've been going to the dentist for over 40 years.  In my 20s and early 30s I probably didn't go nearly as often as I should have, but never had troubles with cavities and such.  A few years ago, I had to get my gum lines scraped...  it took four visits and was pretty painful.  There was too much space between my gums and my teeth.  I changed dentists last year.  The new dentist was still a little concerned about the gum lines.  I honestly told him that I probably flossed a few times a month.

That's when I learned something.  All my life, I've been under the impression that flossing was to get food out from between the teeth and to "toughen up" the gums.  Turns out that is not the case.  The purpose of flossing is to scrape bacteria from between the teeth so that the gums will adhere to the teeth like they are supposed to.  I've probably been to 7-8 dentists over my lifetime, and I've never heard that before my current dentist.  Well, after he told me that, I've been diligent about my flossing.  I went back earlier this week, and almost all of my gum line gaps were where they were supposed to be.  A few were slightly deeper than normal, but still an improvement over my last visit.  Flossing works.  I'd really encourage folks to include plenty of floss in their prep storage, and the free samples from the dentist's office are good additions to the barter larder.


Eyeballs

I try to make a habit of wearing eye protection whenever I am out working in the yard, and always when I am shooting.  My wife is going this week for a shotgun lesson at the local trap field.  She wears prescription glasses, which are OK for yard work and plinking out back, but she wanted some real shooting glasses for her lesson.  We first went to Green Top Sporting Goods, the area's best gun and fishing store and a local landmark (it even appeared in one of Patricia Cornwall's Dr. Kay Scarpetta novels).  They had several varieties of shooting glasses, but none that would fit over her glasses.  We did pick up 20 gauge club rounds with the help of George, a salesman that I used to work with years ago.

Next, we went around the corner to the Bass Pro Shops where they had a larger variety of shooting glasses, but none that would go over glasses.  We finally went to Home Depot and found some safety glasses specifically designed to go over glasses, but they are clear and not very attractive.  But they will do for her class.

Amazon actually has a pretty good selection of shooting glasses that go over glasses and look pretty decent.  Even if you are like me, and normally wear contact lenses, you ought to pick up a pair or two of over-glasses safety glasses... just in case.

Prepper Ponderings Redux

Garfield

Did you catch this in today's funny papers?  Seems like even cartoon cats are fans of survival television.  Do you think he prefers Cody or Dave?

 


Bee Biz

Remember a couple years ago all the talk about colony collapse disorder causing bees to die by the billions around the country?  It looks like they are making a slow comeback.  I found an article today from various small papers in western Virginia that talks about the increase in bee keepers in the Shenandoah Valley lately.  In 2001, Virginia produced 468,000 pounds of honey.  In 2011 it was 160,000 pounds.  The average price has gone from $1.73/pound to $4/pound.

While a lot of beekeepers got out of the business with the collapse disorder, the increased prices have brought new people in.  Valley Bee Supply opened last August and business is booming, with about half of their customers are new to bee keeping.

If you have access to local honey, buying it helps farmers, keeps money local, can be great for easing allergies, and it tastes delicious!


Survival Mom

I just got a review copy of Lisa Bedford's new book, Survival Mom.  While I am not the demographic at which it is aimed, I'm going to read it, then recruit a nearby mother to give it a try, then compare our assessments.  Lisa has done a ton to get moms into being prepared for their families, and I'm really looking forward to reading her work.

Prepper Ponderings

World Weirdness

Does it seem like there is a lot of weird and disturbing news going on out there lately?  A Socialist elected president of France...  a 14-year-old girl stabbing to death her 4-year-old niece...  Nazis elected to the Greek parliament...  Chinese counterfeit pills containing human baby flesh...  whole families either disappearing or being murdered... 

"If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs..." Rudyard Kipling


Local Preparedness Efforts

I stopped at the Ashland, Va. police department building this afternoon to say hi to a couple of old friends.  While I was waiting for them in the lobby, I perused the brochure rack.  Mixed in among the "wear a bike helmet" and domestic abuse pamphlets, I found the APD brochure about emergency preparedness.  It's good, basic information, but one thing I particularly like is this statement:

Look Out For Your Neighbors

The best time to plan for an emergency is well before the crisis strikes.  In that light, get to know your neighbors so you can help one another in times of need.

You don't often see that push for community from "the authorities."  Kudos to APD!

Epic Failure to Prep

Have you ever heard of The Lost Colony?  It is the longest running play in America and tells the story of the settlement on Roanoke Island, North Carolina who completely disappeared between 1588 and 1590, leaving the word CROATOAN carved in a tree as their only sign.  The play was where Andy Griffith got his first paid acting gig (way before he was Sheriff Andy Taylor).  There have been countless theories of what happened to the settlers, ranging from Indian massacre to going crazy and fleeing to complete integration with an inland tribe.

An article today on Fox News discusses a new discovery of some very old evidence.  An ancient map in the British Museum has been discovered to have a small patch covering a hand-drawn fort about 50 miles inland from Roanoke Island that has never been reported.  It gives new leads for researchers to possibly one day determine what happened.

For those who think that when SHTF, they will go off to the wilderness and live off the land, they should read the stories of the early European settlers who came over with a year or two of provisions on the ship, but then had crop failures, disease, and attack. 



Another Contest Prize Added

Deadline Extension

Between work, school, and a short vacation, I need a little help in May. Here's where you can come in... Do you have something that you think others would be interested in? Would you be willing to write it up for us?

How did you get involved in prepping? Did you have a survival situation on a camping trip or in a dark, urban alley? Have you gotten a new gun recently and want to tell everyone how great (or not so great) it is? What about a skill that you have that other people should know about?

Some more ideas - A canning how-to, a review of a great survival book you just read, how you dealt with medical needs overseas, what you learned about hunting or gardening, a hidden gun or food cabinet you built... the ideas are endless, but they need to get written and sent in.

Here are the rules:

Write a guest post on some survival topic of 750 or more words - it must be your own work and not posted or published anywhere else

Email it to me here before May 31

Here's the contest:

I'll post the entries starting in mid-May

I'll choose a winner - that person will win an If It Hits The Fan T-shirt, an If It Hits The Fan paracord wristband, a copy of Joel Salatin's Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal, a Bend-A-Bottle roll up water bottle, an emergency space blanket, a Magpul 30-rnd E-mag for your AR varient or H&K416 - (the list keeps growing!) - perhaps a couple more items that might develop between now and then

That's all there is to it! Send in those entries!

News Notes

Get The Flock Out

Thanks to reader VT Paladin for sending me this article from the UK Telegraph.  Seems that in Italy, many young men are abandoning hopes of finding white collar or professional jobs in their areas of training and education and are pursuing jobs as shepherds.  The article noted that they are bringing new ideas and practices to the ancient tradition that are starting to result in better quality meat, mild and wool from the sheep.

Kind of makes me think of the movie, The Wooly Boys, starring Kris Kristopherson, Peter Fonda and Keith Carradine.  Long story, short, Fonda and Kristopherson are sheep ranchers in North Dakota, and they bring Peter's grandson out from inner-city Chicago where he was a computer nerd kid and he learns that there is much more to life than a mouse and a keyboard.



Gold Bubble Coming?

From Moneynews comes this interview with a financial guru who supposedly has called a number of recent events pretty accurately.  He sees some sort of "trigger event" in the coming year that will push gold to an amazing $10,000 per ounce, followed by a huge sell off and a plummeting to $50 an ounce.  Now would be a great time to have Doc's Delorean... go back to 2001 and buy a big pile of gold at $300 an ounce, then sell it for $10,000, then bank the profit and reinvest the initial amount at $50.  This is NOT financial advice... although if you do have access to a time machine, please shoot me an email...


Civilized People Don't Buy Gold?

Are you familiar with Berkshire-Hathaway?  It is Warren Buffett's company with a stock price of $122,000 a share (?!?!?!).  Buffett's #2 guy recently discussed gold with CNBC.  According to him, if you are buying gold, you are must be either a savage or a Jew.  Read his own words:

"Gold is a great thing to sew into your garments if you’re a Jewish family in Vienna in 1939," the Berkshire vice chairman said, "but I think civilized people don’t buy gold, they invest in productive businesses."

I'm sorry, I try not to use foul language on here, but to quote Schoolmarm Johnson in Blazing Saddles, this guy is, "the leading asshole in the state."

I'm surprised he bothered to speak to a cable news station.  After all, nobody watches TV except we little people, the peons.  Maybe the great Charles Munger would toss me a shiny new quarter if I would throw myself into a mud puddle so he doesn't soil his bespoke shoes.

Raw Milk Preventing Allergies?

In this article from Yahoo News of Canada, researchers looked at rates of allergies in Amish children compared to Swiss farm children and Swiss non-farm children.  Apparently the Swiss have a long history of being less susceptible to allergies and researchers wanted to see if that applied to the Amish in America as well since they descended from Swiss.  What they found is that Amish farm kids are way less likely to develop allergies.  The researchers did not identify a reason, but a couple of their theories included, increased activity and exposure to animals and crops, less processed foods, and more raw milk rather than pasteurized. 

Wait a minute... Raw milk is evil and will cause all of us to die horrible, painful deaths.  That's what the federal government (funded by big Ag.) wants us to believe.  Yet right here are indicators that it could contribute to fewer allergies in children.  With the way that kids today are hypersensitive to foods and anything other than a sterile environment, and the drastic increases in the numbers and severity of childhood asthma, you'd think someone might want to find out if something as simple as raw milk would help reduce it.  But that just wouldn't be profitable to big Pharma or big Ag.

Guest Post Contest

Time is running out!  Don't miss entering the If It Hits The Fan guest post contest.  Entries must be emailed by May 7th.

Guest Writer Contest

More Prizes Added

Between work, school, and a short vacation, I need a little help in May. Here's where you can come in... Do you have something that you think others would be interested in? Would you be willing to write it up for us?

How did you get involved in prepping? Did you have a survival situation on a camping trip or in a dark, urban alley? Have you gotten a new gun recently and want to tell everyone how great (or not so great) it is? What about a skill that you have that other people should know about?

Some more ideas - A canning how-to, a review of a great survival book you just read, how you dealt with medical needs overseas, what you learned about hunting or gardening, a hidden gun or food cabinet you built... the ideas are endless, but they need to get written and sent in.

Here are the rules:

Write a guest post on some survival topic of 750 or more words - it must be your own work and not posted or published anywhere else

Email it to me here no later than May 7th

Here's the contest:

I'll post the entries over the rest of May

I'll choose a winner - that person will win an If It Hits The Fan T-shirt, an If It Hits The Fan paracord wristband and a copy of Joel Salatin's Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal, a Bend-A-Bottle roll up water bottle, an emergency space blanket - (the list keeps growing!) -  perhaps a couple more items that might develop between now and then

That's all there is to it! Send in those entries!


The New Issue of Survivalist Magazine Is In

I got my latest issue in the mail today.  I've just skimmed it, but it looks to be another good one.  Christopher Nyerges has a nice prepping 101 article.  He was a regular writer to the old American Survival Guide that I was a big fan of in the 80s and 90s.  Dr. Bones has a good one on wound treatment.  Chance Sanders, who was one of my instructors at Dave Canterbury's Pathfinder School, has two articles.  One is on a new method of accurizing rifles from TTI (this TTI seems to be in North Carolina and not related to TTI in Ashland, Va. where Trapper made some amazing ARs and 1911s) and one on go bags.

If you don't already subscribe to Survivalist Magazine and want to, please use the link in the upper right corner of this blog.  I'll get a small commission if you do.

Prepping Pays Off

Snakes In The Wires

About 10:30 last night, we were in the bed, lights off, fans circulating, my CPAP humming along, when... nothing.  We lost power.  First thing, I go to the wall phone in the kitchen where we always have the number to the power company posted.  I call and report the outage.  I gave it a few minutes to see if it was something that would come back on quick, but nothing.

Here's where being prepped came in handy.  On went the headlamp.  I went out back and uncovered the smaller generator.  I had used it last weekend to power my leaf blower, so I had got a can of gas out of the shed and filled it up.  I fired it up with one pull of the cord, plugged it in, and about a minute later we had power to the house.  I flipped the breakers to power the refrigerator, well pump, our bedroom and our bathroom.  Fans are going again, my CPAP is humming along, and sleep is good.

The power came back on at 12:45 and I went out and shut down the generator, turned on the rest of the breakers and went back to sleep.

If we did not have a generator set up and ready to go, neither one of us would have gotten any sleep.  No CPAP and no fans going make for an unbearable night at the homestead.

So why did I title this Snakes in the Wires?  On the radio news this morning, it turns out that two different transformers, one on the east side of town and one on the west, had snakes crawl in to them and short them out.  Over 40,000 lost power.  Bet they all wish they had generators ready to go.

Monthly Tasks

I realized a couple days ago that I have been neglecting to post monthly reminders of chores and tasks.  If you are a newer reader, I used to put these up on the first of each month, not just as a reminder to my readers, but also as a reminder to my self.  If you have any suggestions to add to the list, please let me know.

It's the first of the month, have you...

Test run your generator?
Rotated you gasoline stores?
Tested your smoke and/or carbon monoxide detectors?
Checked your household and vehicle fire extinguishers?
Given your dog his heart worm pill and flea/tick treatment?
Changed your HVAC filters?
Test run all your small engine equipment?
Checked your tires, belts, hoses and filters on your vehicles?


Water Woes

Last week my wife noticed that the water in the house was smelling kind of "swampy."  I broke out our Big Berkey water filter system that I bought some time ago from my very first sponsor, The Berkey Guy.  The Berkey works really great.  If you don't have one, I'd really suggest everyone should.  Whether on city water and a malfunction in the treatment causes a "boil water" order, on a well that goes funky, or in a grid down situation and you have to cart in water from a nearby farm pond, the Berkey is effective, efficient, and much more inexpensive than bottled water on a per ounce basis.  When you put it together the first time, be sure you tighten the inside nut on the spigot.  If it is a little loose, you'll end up with a big puddle on the floor overnight... trust me on that one.

Anyway, I called the local extension service and asked for advice on getting my water tested.  They referred me to a lab in a nearby county.  I went Friday and picked up the sterile vial.  Sunday night I followed the detailed instructions to ensure no cross-contamination and collected 100ml of tap water.  Monday I dropped it off and today I got the results...  We have coliform bacteria at a higher level than the health department allows.  We do not have e. coli so in reality, our water is still pretty safe, it just won't pass an inspection.  We've probably had the coliform for years and just never knew it.

Our next step is to shock the well with bleach.   We'll need to run the bleached water through all of the faucets until the flow smells of bleach, then turn them off.   The bleached water then sits in the pipes and faucets for 12 hours before we can run them again.

When I took the sample for the lab it cost $50.  Searching today I found a test to buy for $20.90, including shipping from Amazon.  Near as I can tell, it is the same test that the lab did.  I ordered one using Amazon commissions earned from readers using my Amazon links to make any purchases - Thanks!  Simply from a time standpoint, we won't be able to do the shocking until weekend after this coming one.  I'll share details after we do it.

NFA for SHTF, Part 4

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

This is NOT legal advice. If you mess around with National Firearms Act weapons and do something that you should not do, you will very likely go to prison. Seek competent legal advice.


Destructive Devices
Destructive Devices is an interesting category.  Did you know you can legally own a hand grenade or a live artillery shell?  You just need to go through the red tape and pay the $200 transfer tax.  Of course, you only get to use something like that once.  Then it is literally $200 up in smoke.  Maybe if I win that MegaMillions jackpot...
 
Destructive Devices also covers things like rifles over .50 caliber that are not deemed for "sporting use" by the BATF.  For instance, the .577 Tyrannosaurus (look it up on YouTube - it's a hoot watching folks shoot it) is deemed sporting purpose.  The Swiss Lahti 20mm rifle from WWII, which was legally imported and sold in this country over the counter until 1968, is not and is considered a DD.  As I understand it, the 40mm grenade launcher made famous as the "bloop tube" in Vietnam or as the M203 when attached under a M16 has a rifled barrel and is a DD (not to mention each exploding grenade is one as well).  However, the exact same thing, except 37mm with a smooth barrel is not a destructive device, and you can shoot solid "training" rounds or projectiles filled with smoke or marking agents that don't explode and there is no DD restrictions.
 
Back in the late 80s, there was a 12 gauge shotgun called the Street Sweeper or the Striker imported from South Africa.  It had a revolving 12 round cylinder and a folding stock.  It was hugely cumbersome and not very practical... especially when you can add a magazine extension tube to a Remington 870 and have nearly the same firepower capabilities.  But, it got a bad reputation from the cocaine wars in Miami and so BATF declared it to be a DD.  Right here in Virginia, it is actually the only individual weapon that is completely illegal to own.
 
There have been rumors lately that BATF is contemplating adding other types of "riot" shotguns to the DD list, including anything with a pistol grip.  I think those rumors have pretty much faded away as of right now.
 
 
NFA for SHTF - Useful or Not?
 
So, should a prepper drop the coin for an NFA weapon? 
For a machine gun, I really can't see it.  They are SO ridiculously expensive thanks to Hughes, and they eat a ton of ammo.  If the Hughes amendment is ever done away with and you can get a select fire M4 for just a little more than a semiauto one (plus $200), then there might be an argument in favor of it.

I think suppressors have an awful lot of practical use.  They can be used for pest control, shooting in the backyard (where legal) without bothering the neighbors, and protecting your hearing.  I understand that in some places, they are legal for hunting, even.  A good suppressor can be had for about $350 for a .22 or $750 - $1,250 for a centerfire pistol or rifle (plus $200).  I'd say that if you can do it where you live (although legal under federal law, not all states allow them) that might be a good thing to have if you have some spare money and no debt.

A SBR/SBS can also be very useful, especially if you get it as an AOW and it only has a $5 transfer tax.  Moving up to a $200 tax SBR, there is a lot of argument to be made for a Ruger Charger with a shoulderstock and bipod (threaded for a suppressor even?) or a shoulderstock on a Glock... again if you have the extra money.

Another AOW that might be of use is a vertical foreend grip for something like an AR15 pistol or a "Krinkov" AK47 pistol.  It can make them very controllable.  Only $5 (plus all the red tape) or pay $200 to make it a SBR and stick a folding stock on it.

I don't see much practical use for going to the trouble and expense of a Destructive Device, but they sure could be a lot of fun if you have the money and it doesn't hit the fan.

In closing the National Firearms Act of 1934 was a backdoor attempt to tax certain guns out of existence.  The owners of NFA weapons are few in relation to owners of standard weapons, and they are overall a wealthier group with more disposable income and more reason to be vocal about attempts to further restrict NFA weapons among "civilians."  They can have their place in a prepper's arsenal, but I really think they should be considered only after other preps are complete and the prepper has no debt.  Of course, if SHTF and the UN blue-helmets are kicking in doors and hauling patriots off to the reeducation camps, then I'd imagine the BATF would not exist and anything you might pick up as a "war trophy" would be fair game...

For more information on NFA weapons, visit the BATF website, consult an attorney experienced in the subject, or read one of these books:

NFA for SHTF, Part 3

Part 1

Part 2

This is NOT legal advice. If you mess around with National Firearms Act weapons and do something that you should not do, you will very likely go to prison. Seek competent legal advice.


Any Other Weapons

Any Other Weapon is the BATF designation for anything that does not fit Machine Gun, SBR/SBS, Destructive Device, Suppressor, or regular firearms.  They use it as a catch all and add things to it.

I mentioned the wallet holster for the Beretta .25 autos.  At one time, they sold these in any gun shop.  It was leather, had an open top for the slide to function, a finger hole for the trigger, and screwed to the grip frame.  At some point in the 90s IIRC, they decided that since it attached to the gun and disguised it, it was NFA regulated and a person needed to go through all the red tape and pay the $5 transfer tax.  AOWs also include a pistol with a foregrip - added to the definition sometime in the last few years.  Say you have one of those AR15 pistols and you put a rail on the fore end.  If you add optics or lights to the rail, no problem.  Add a foregrip to it and you are a felon without going through the AOW process.  Some historical guns such as the H&R Handi Gun are also AOW.  That was a pistol gripped .22/.410 over/under with a 10" barrel made in the teens and 20s that folks carried on nature hikes or in their Model Ts.  Disguised guns such as cane guns, pen guns and flashlight guns are AOWs.
 


Suppressors

I discussed suppressors (BATF calls them silencers) a couple weeks ago when I reviewed the Silencerco Sparrow for my Ruger .22/45 pistol.  You'd think that they would be AOW with a $5 tax, but they are considered firearms by BATF and need the $200 tax.  Prior to 1934, you could literally walk into your neighborhood hardware store and pick one up for $5 or $6.  In much of Europe, the use of a suppressor is favored or even required at public shooting ranges, and they can still be bought over the counter.  People from the city move out to the country and then complain about the noise of gun fire.  Any long time shooter probably has some hearing loss because people didn't use to be as cautious about hearing protection as they are now.  Imagine how much nicer it would be for shooters and their neighbors if suppressors were still easily available. 

Come back tomorrow for Destructive Devices and suggestions for NFA weapons for SHTF situations.

NFA For SHTF, Part 2

Yesterday's Post - Part 1

This is NOT legal advice. If you mess around with National Firearms Act weapons and do something that you should not do, you will very likely go to prison. Seek competent legal advice.



Let's take a look at some specific NFA weapons from the various categories.

Machine Guns

If you were reading Soldier of Fortune, Guns and Ammo, Guns, or any other gun magazine in the early 80s, you remember the huge variety of beautifully engraved and gold-plated limited edition guns being sold by the American Historical Foundation.  They ranged from Buffalo Bill commemorative cap & ball Colts to M14s, M16s and Thompsons commemorating various wars and military units.  Here's an example of a Thompson carbine commemorating the Korean War.
It is being offered for about $1,900 at CollecterFirearms.com.  Back when it came out, it was about $900 if I recall correctly.  A buyer could also order it in full auto for about $1,500.  Because of Hughes, it would be about $30,000... if you can find one.  A commerative Colt AR15 was about $800 from AHF.  In full auto, it was about $1,300.  You can't get a new one now, but your local police department can buy a tricked out M4 in select fire for just a few bucks more than a semi-auto one.

SBR/SBS

Short barreled rifles and shotguns can be either a $5 Any Other Weapon transfer tax or a $200 transfer tax.  It depends on if it was made originally from the factory as an SBR/SBS ($5) or if it was made that way from a standard rifle or shotgun.  I recently saw a brand new Mossberg 500 with a pistol grip and 14" barrel on a dealer site for about $595 + $5 AOW transfer tax.  I've seen some really cool Ruger Chargers (factory built as pistols using the same action as a 10/22) that have been turned into SBRs with a $200 tax, a shoulder stock and a bipod.  If you remember the Steve McQueen show, Wanted - Dead or Alive, you remember the Winchester 1892 lever action rifle with a short barrel and a pistol grip that he carried in a low slung holster.  A few years ago, a custom shop started making them as SBRs needing the $200 transfer tax.  Then someone at Taurus got the idea to build it as a pistol from the get go and there is no transfer tax at all.  See how ridiculous this law is?  Make it as a pistol from the start, and it is not NFA.  Make it as a rifle and cut down the barrel and stock to the same length as the pistol, and it is NFA with a $200 tax.  Make it as a SBR from the factory, looking and functioning the same as the pistol, and it is a $5 tax.  Oh, and our neighbors to the north, Canada, with their oppressive gun laws?  A shotgun can have a 16" barrel instead of our 18" limit.  Purely arbitrary.

My blood pressure is going up, so more about suppressors, destructive devices, and AOWs tomorrow.

NFA For SHTF, Part 1

Full Auto, Suppressed, Short, AOW...?

This is NOT legal advice.  If you mess around with National Firearms Act weapons and do something that you should not do, you will very likely go to prison.  Seek competent legal advice.

What is the NFA?  Back in 1934, Prohibition had ended.  Several hundred federal "revenuer" agents were going to be fired because there were no longer any laws for them to enforce.  Congress passed the National Firearms Act, supposedly to stop "gangster" violence... that had primarily come about from Prohibition...  yeah, that's government logic for you.

They knew they couldn't ban guns because of that pesky 2nd Amendment to the Constitution.  The plan was to take a bunch of "gangster" guns and make them available only with a tangle of red tape and an obscenely high tax.  The original plan was to include pistols and revolvers, but they quickly figured out that that might start a revolution.  Prior to the NFA, a person could mail order a Thompson submachinegun from Sears for $125.  He could walk into the neighborhood hardware store and buy a suppressor for about $6.  If he wanted to keep a Model 97 Winchester 12 gauge pump gun in his dresser drawer, he could cut the barrel off to 12 inches and cut the stock off to leave a pistol grip so it would fit.  After NFA a person could still buy or make these things, but it was a lot more difficult and expensive.  First, you had to find a licensed dealer.  Next, complete the application that consists (now - I don't know about the 1934 version) of the signature of your local chief law enforcement officer (county sheriff, town police chief, etc.)-not permission, fingerprints, photographs, and an extensive background check.  On top of all that, a $200 tax.  Yep, a $200 tax on a $6 suppressor or a $15 shotgun.

Congress passed the law, and the revenuers became gun law enforcers.  Prior to Dept. of Homeland Security, from 1934 until that time, the NFA was enforced as tax law, by tax agents.

NFA regulated machine guns or full automatic weapons, suppressors or silencers, short barrel shotguns (>18"), short barrel rifles (initially >18", currently >16") and "Any Other Weapons" which are palm pistols, disguised guns, cane guns, smoothbore revolvers, and other interesting styles.  "Destructive Devices" such as rifles over .50 caliber, grenades, mortar rounds were added later.  Recent additions to AOW include the leather wallet holster for the Beretta .25 auto pistol that screwed to the grip panel, and pistols with vertical foregrips.

From 1934 through the 70s, the NFA industry just kind of moseyed along, with a relatively small amount of people going through the process.  When I was in high school, a person could buy a Thompson submachine gun for about $1,500.  The early 80s saw a growth in full autos with a  ton of new machine guns like the American 180 (a .22lr machine gun with a 177 round horizontal drum magazine on top) and readily available auto seers to convert your AR15 or 10/22 to select fire.

In 1986, the McClure-Volkmer Gun Owners Protection Act passed congress.  This law cleaned up some problems with the Gun Control Act of 1968.  A biggie was the elimination of a requirement that ammo sales had to be recorded in a book and ammo signed for.  It also ensured that you could travel with your legally owned gun from one legal area to another legal area, even if you passed through an area where your gun was illegal.  The problem was that the GOPA was attacked in the middle of the night at the last minute by the Hughes Amendment (look it up on YouTube - I get very angry watching the abuse that just a small handful of congressmen forced upon us with their illegal and immoral actions).  Hughes essentially made it so that no new machineguns could be registered under NFA for civilian ownership.  Between the passing of the bill and it being signed into law, the number of registered machineguns grew from about 100,000 (that is all that had been registered since 1934) to over 250,000 in just a couple of months.  Manufacturers went to three shifts and hired more secretaries to get the paperwork processed in time.  Since the number of civilian-legal machine guns was frozen at that time, their prices have skyrocketed.  It is not uncommon for that $1,500 Thompson to sell for $25,000 now.  A MAC-10 that sold new in 1985 for about $500 is now about $3,500.  And not a lick of crime has been stopped by it.

As I type this, I think it is going into a multi-part series.  I've pretty much covered the history.  Tomorrow I'll discuss some more on the weapons, then next will be a look at how or if such weapons might play a role in your prepping battery.

A Celebration for Us

Happy National Severe Weather Awareness Week!

I often talk about looking for ways to encourage non-preppers to get on board with the program.  Well, here's another one...

This week is National Severe Weather Awareness Week from FEMA and NOAA.  If you have family or friends that you want to encourage, you might mention this week as a side note to a conversation, then ask if they do anything to get ready for emergencies.

Here's the press release:

Severe Weather Awareness Week
Know Your Risk, Take Action, Be A Force Of Nature

Release Date: April 23, 2012
Release Number: R3-12-05

PHILADELPHIA, PA - As the nation marks the first anniversary of one of the largest tornado outbreaks in U.S. history, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Federal Emergency Management Agency are teaming up this week to prepare the public and help save lives from severe weather.

The two agencies encourage the public nationwide and in FEMA Region III, to "know your risk, take action, and be a force of nature" by taking proactive preparedness measures and inspiring others to do the same. While the type and severity of threats vary across the 10 FEMA Regions, the need to be prepared is universal.

Last April, tornadoes raked the central and southern United States, spawning more than 300 tornadoes and claiming hundreds of lives. That devastating, historic outbreak was only one of many weather-related tragedies in 2011, which now holds the record for the greatest number of multi-billion dollar weather disasters in the nation's history.

In late August, 2011 strong hurricane activity in FEMA Region III produced devastating storms such as Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee. These two storms rocked communities due to widespread inland flooding, left their lingering and residual effects resulting one of the Region’s largest long term recovery missions.

Additionally, and almost simultaneously, FEMA Region III felt the impact of a multi-state earthquake that is still producing aftershock events still being felt in some areas. The earthquake reminded everyone that severe weather is unpredictable and that we must plan for every type of weather event.

"Severe weather can happen at any time and often with little or no notice." said FEMA Regional Administrator MaryAnn Tierney. "We can’t control where and when severe weather will hit but we can control how prepared we are as individuals and communities. By taking the time during Severe Weather Awareness Week to know your community’s risk, and plan accordingly, you are taking the first steps toward empowering yourself to become your own emergency manager," added Tierney.

To "be a force of nature," FEMA and NOAA encourage citizens to prepare for extreme weather by following these guidelines:

•Know your risk: The first step to becoming weather-ready is to understand the type of hazardous weather that can affect where you live and work, and how the weather could impact you and your family. Check the weather forecast regularly and sign up for alerts from your local emergency management officials. Severe weather comes in many forms and your shelter plan should include all types of local hazards.

•Take action: Pledge to develop an emergency plan based on your local weather hazards and practice how and where to take shelter. Create or refresh an emergency kit for needed food, supplies and medication. Post your plan where visitors can see it. Learn what you can do to strengthen your home or business against severe weather. Obtain a NOAA Weather Radio. Download FEMA's mobile app so you can access important safety tips on what to do before and during severe weather. Understand the weather warning system and become a certified storm spotter through the National Weather Service.

•Be a force of nature: Once you have taken action, tell your family, friends, school staff and co-workers about how they can prepare. Share the resources and alert systems you discovered with your social media network. Studies show individuals need to receive messages a number of ways before acting - and you can be one of those sources. When you go to shelter during a warning, send a text, tweet or post a status update so your friends and family know. You might just save their lives, too. For more information on how you can participate, visit www.ready.gov/severeweather

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards. Follow FEMA Region III on Twitter @FEMARegion3

###

I like their three bullet points, even if "be a force of nature" is a little hokey.  But it's good advice and a great way to introduce prepping to others in a non-threatening, non-scary, non-crazy way.  I also like that they recommend what I think is one of the most useful prepper tools that a person can have, a NOAA Weather Alert Radio.

More Learning

InfraGard Training

I got this from the Norfolk, Va. InfraGard chapter announcing some free citizen training opportunities for folks in the southeast Virginia region.  If these look interesting and you are not in this area, call your local FBI area office and ask for the InfraGard coordinator.  Explain this program to the agent and ask if it is being offered in your area.  Disclaimer: Contrary to what Jesse Ventura would have you believe, InfraGard members are not deputized with shoot to kill authorization during martial law.

Greetings,



The Norfolk InfraGard and the FBI are conducting a public service campaign called Aware Prepare Plan. This campaign runs from May 2012 to September 2012, and is designed to educate the community on a variety of topics included in four “models” also known as seminars. An entire model contains several presentations which will be presented in a time span of three hours (6PM – 9PM). For the next five months, the Norfolk FBI and InfraGard will be hosting these seminars in various locations throughout Hampton Roads.


The goal of this campaign is to provide information on current threats and trends to members of our community. People who attend these seminars will learn how to avoid scams, prevent criminal activity, and report information to the FBI. Please mark your calendar and plan to attend one or more of these seminars. Please take a moment to view our website for other upcoming events. http://www.infragard-norfolk.org/

The four models are


1. Model #1- CI Model (Identity Theft, Safety and Security Travels, Financially Motivated Crimes, and Elicitation)


2. Model #2 –Terrorism Model (Counterterrorism, WMD, PATRIOT Act)


3. Model #3 Fraud Model (Health Care Fraud, Mortgage Fraud, Internet Scams, Computer and Software Safety)


4. Model #4 Parental Awareness Model (Innocent Images, Sexting, Cyber Bullying, and Gangs)


Campaign Schedule


1. PARENTAL AWARENESS, May 8th at Paul D. Camp College Campus, 100 N College Drive, Franklin


2. PARENTAL AWARENESS, May 22nd at Newport News Police Dept. 9710 Jefferson Avenue, Newport News


3. COUNTERINTELLIGENCE (CI), June 5th at Virginia Beach Resort Hotel, 2800 Shore Drive, Virginia Beach


4. COUNTERINTELLIGENCE (CI), June 26th at Hampton Library, 4207 Victoria Boulevard, Hampton


5. FRAUD, July 12th at Virginia Beach Law Enforcement Training Academy, 411 Integrity Way, Virginia Beach


6. FRAUD, July 26th at James City County Human Services, 5249 Olde Towne Road, Williamsburg


7. TERRORISM, August 9th at Central Library, 4100 Virginia Beach Boulevard, Virginia Beach


8. PARENTAL AWARENESS, August 30th at Tidewater Community College, Room A-101, 1070 University Boulevard, Portsmouth


** A seminar will also be hosted on the Eastern Shore of Virgina (date TBA)**


Constitution 101

You may have heard of this on Rush Limbaugh. It is a free, 10-week college course on the U.S. Constitution from Hillsdale College.  Learning is a lifelong adventure, and this is a great topic.

Prepper Ponderings

Where's The (Grass Fed) Beef?
It is tougher than you would think to find and buy grass fed beef.  Getting it direct from the farm is best and most cost effective, but not always convenient.  Around here, we've got a Whole Foods, and a local favorite, Ellwood Thompson's.  You'd think that it would be a no-brainer to walk in and find grass fed beef (or pastured pork and poultry for that matter), but it is not that easy.

Lots of beef has a label that says "vegetarian feed" or some such nonsense.  Since cows are herbivores, you'd think that vegetarian would be the standard expectation.  Makes you wonder about the beef that does not say, "vegetarian feed."  Ground up chickens, pulverized cow bones, chicken feathers and manure to bulk up the grains... yuck.  Of course, "vegetarian" is not much better.  Cows are not designed to eat grains.  They are designed to eat grass and clover and hay.  Feeding cows grains makes them fat and affects the acidity of their stomachs, making e coli more virulent.  "Cage free" chickens and "never crated" pigs are just as misleading.


Bank of Amerika

This story is making the rounds today, so you may have already seen it.  McMillan Firearms has done their banking with BoA for 11 years.  This week, they were told that BoA no longer wants their business because they have turned more to firearms manufacturing than accessories.  McMillan is on the hunt for a new bank that values guns and gun owners.  They are implementing a policy of not accepting credit cards from BoA accounts.  Kind of like when Kalifornia banned .50 caliber rifles so Barrett refused to sell their fantastic rifles to law enforcement agencies in Kalifornia.  I salute companies that stand up rather than lie down and take it.


Boy's Life

I've been taking my nephew to Tiger Cub Scouts this school year.  As a part of that, I subscribed to the official Scout magazine, Boy's Life.  I hadn't actually received any yet, but a couple days ago I got three month's worth all at one time.  It's full of goofy jokes and cartoons, but also has some great stories and suggestions for prepping, survival stories and Scout heroism awards. 

Community Resources For Preppers

Disaster Survivor Day

Back in January I wrote a report on the county preparedness seminar that I went to.  If you are in the Central Virginia area, there is another Disaster Survivor Day seminar coming up on May 5th from 9 a.m. to noon.  It will happen in 13 different localities, all at the same time, and each tailored for the different environments and needs for the individual areas.  They will put it on in Charles City County, Chesterfield County, City of Colonial Heights, Goochland County, Hanover County, Henrico County, City of Hopewell, Louisa County, New Kent County, City of Petersburg, Powhatan County, the east end and the west end of the City of Richmond.  Each registered household will receive a free "Survivor Backpack."  If the backpack is like the one I received in February, it is a good start to a BOB or 72 hour kit for the car.  For more information or to register, visit www.SurvivorDay.com.  If you are not in this area, send the link to your local office of emergency management and ask if they have any plans for something similar.


Dried Food Classes

I'm assuming they mean dehydrated food classes, but anyway...

"Free classes on basics, benefits of dried foods are Thursday, May 10th, 7-9 p.m. at Memorial UM Church, 11000 Courthouse Rd., Charles City, and Saturday, May 12th, 10 a.m. to 12 noon at New Kent Extension Office, 11809 New Kent Highway.  To reserve spot, call (804) 652-4743"

I'll probably attend one of these to try and learn some techniques to get more out of my Excalibur dehydrator.  Check with your local extension office for a similar class in your area.


Bella Medical Ministries

I adopted BELLA as a cause a couple months ago.  They do some amazing work in disaster areas such as Haiti, Joplin, and other locations.  And they are preppers, too.  On today's episode of The Survival Podcast, Jack Spirko did an hour+ interview with BELLA's founder, Brandon Shelton.  I'd really encourage you to take the time to listen to the interview and learn about their activities and how you can help.


Guest Writer Contest

Between work, school, and a short vacation, I need a little help in May. Here's where you can come in... Do you have something that you think others would be interested in? Would you be willing to write it up for us?

How did you get involved in prepping? Did you have a survival situation on a camping trip or in a dark, urban alley? Have you gotten a new gun recently and want to tell everyone how great (or not so great) it is? What about a skill that you have that other people should know about?

Here are the rules:

Write a guest post on some survival topic of 750 or more words - it must be your own work and not posted or published anywhere else.

Email it to me here no later than May 7th.

Here's the contest:

I'll post the entries over the rest of May.

I'll choose a winner - that person will win an If It Hits The Fan T-shirt, an If It Hits The Fan paracord wristband and a copy of Joel Salatin's Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal - perhaps a couple more items that might develop between now and then.

That's all there is to it! Send in those entries!

Deadly Domestic Violence

Pieces of Paper Don't Work

This is a tough post to write.  Early this morning, a acquaintance, her 1-year-old daughter, and her grandmother were brutally murdered by her estranged husband who then committed suicide by cop.

Several months ago, I gave her some advice and suggestions on making her home more secure and raising her situational awareness.  Just this past Friday I ran into her and asked how she was.  She was very upbeat and said things were going well.  She did everything right.  She had him arrested.  She kicked him out of the house.  She got an emergency protective order and then had it expanded to a permanent restraining order.  She had a relative staying with her.  She made sure the neighbors and her coworkers knew what was going on, what he looked like, and what he drove.  She had the locks changed.  She filed legal separation.  She went to court yesterday and got full custody of the child.  There is only one way to stop a determined attacker.  Unfortunately, it appears she either did not have it or did not use it.

If someone in your life becomes a domestic violence victim, please do everything you can to help them.  Convince them that the spouse will not change with just one more chance.  Encourage them to be proactive, suspicious and untrusting of the spouse.  A gun needs to become a part of their life to help ensure that they can defend against an attack.  They can't depend on a restraining order.  They can't wait for the police to respond if the spouse is kicking in the door.  Also remember that domestic violence is not always man on woman.

A family was destroyed today and a lot of people lost a good friend.  A woman lost her mother, daughter and grandchild.  Four police officers were forced to kill a man who needed to die.

The Tax Man Cometh

Blech - Tax Day

OK, time for one of my deviations into political matters.  I hate taxes.  I understand that some are needed, but so much of what we pay are either intended to punish us or to reward someone else.

Suppose I find a dollar bill on the sidewalk.  I take it to a restaurant in the city where I work.  I can only buy something for 91 cents because the state has a 4.5% sales tax and the city has a 4.5% meal tax.  The owner gets my 91 cents.  He pays about 30 cents in taxes and pockets 61 cents.  He carries the 61 cents to my wife's boss and pays it toward his bill there.  My wife's boss pays about 20 cents in taxes, leaving him 41 cents.  He pays my wife the 41 cents in her paycheck.  She pays about 14 cents in taxes and brings home 27 cents.  In only three transactions, by dollar is reduced by 75%.

I know that my calculations are extremely rough and don't take into account for expenses, and corporate tax rate, but the principle is there.  We are being nickeled and dimed to death by taxes.  Federal income tax, state income tax, SSI tax, car licensing tax, federal fuel tax, state fuel tax, state and local sales tax, SCHIP cigar tax, meals tax, firearms excise tax, dog license tax, telephone/cable/cell phone tax... all of these are taxes I've had to pay over the past year.

The best thing I can say is, take every legal deduction you can.  Reduce your tax footprint however you can.  Minimize your federal and state income withholdings - a refund sucks.  It just means you gave the government too much money over the year and they used it interest-free.  If you get a $2,400 refund, that means you could have kept $200 extra each month... wouldn't that come in handy?

Guest Writer Contest

Between work, school, and a short vacation, I need a little help in May. Here's where you can come in... Do you have something that you think others would be interested in? Would you be willing to write it up for us?

How did you get involved in prepping? Did you have a survival situation on a camping trip or in a dark, urban alley? Have you gotten a new gun recently and want to tell everyone how great (or not so great) it is? What about a skill that you have that other people should know about?

Here are the rules:

Write a guest post on some survival topic of 750 or more words - it must be your own work and not posted or published anywhere else

Email it to me here no later than May 7th

Here's the contest:

I'll post the entries over the rest of May

I'll choose a winner - that person will win an If It Hits The Fan T-shirt, an If It Hits The Fan paracord wristband and a copy of Joel Salatin's Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal - perhaps a couple more items that might develop between now and then

That's all there is to it! Send in those entries!

It's A Blackout

300 AAC Blackout

The 300 AAC Blackout is a hot new round originated by Advanced Armament Corporation and Remington to give supersonic .30 caliber rounds a home in an AR platform using standard AR uppers, lowers and even magazines.  They take the 5.56 case, trim the neck down to take a .30 caliber bullet, and it works like a champ.

A friend in the industry first told me about the 300 AAC Blackout a couple weeks ago.  I was over at his house the other evening and he showed me a box of Remington rounds and loaded them up in a MagPul E-Mag.  I was hopeful that he had the rifle to go with it, but he has it due in any day.  I hope to get a full review of the rifle and the round soon.  We could be one of the first blogs to have a first-hand report on it.


Guest Writer Contest?

Between work, school, and a short vacation, I need a little help in May.  Here's where you can come in...  Do you have something that you think others would be interested in?  Would you be willing to write it up for us?

How did you get involved in prepping?  Did you have a survival situation on a camping trip or in a dark, urban alley?  Have you gotten a new gun recently and want to tell everyone how great (or not so great) it is?  What about a skill that you have that other people should know about?

Here's the rules:

• Write a guest post on some survival topic of 750 or more words - it must be your own work and not posted or published anywhere else
• Email it to me here no later than May 7th

Here's the contest:

• I'll post the entries over the rest of May
• I'll choose a winner - that person will win an If It Hits The Fan T-shirt and an If It Hits The Fan paracord wristband - perhaps a couple more items that might develop between now and then

That's all there is to it!  Send in those entries!

Two Quick Thoughts

Chickens

The only thing better than raising chickens is having great neighbors who raise chickens!  We've been chicken sitters this weekend for our neighbors and have welcomed the eggs, as well as enjoyed the personalities of the birds when I come to let them out in the morning or put them up at night.  Lots of fun!


Craftsman Plastic Rake

About nine years ago when we bought this place, I picked up a 30" plastic leaf rake from Sears for probably about $10 or so.  It breaks every couple of years, but with the Craftsman Forever Warranty, I just carry it on in to Sears and they hand me a new one.  Today I picked up my 4th or 5th one.  Best $10 I ever spent.  Of course, I have several metal rakes for after SHTF and Sears is where all the zombies hole up during the day.

Urban Gardening

The Community Garden

One of my alternative routes home takes me past the city community gardens. I stopped by today to take a closer look. The city has established the garden area for residents to have a 18x40 garden plot for only $20.

When I passed by this afternoon, there was an elderly couple, a family with three small children and a father with his two young teenage sons. It seems like a great use of open land at minimal cost to the city taxpayers.

Welcome

The Rules

A Man, Outstanding In His Field

Make Your Voice Heard

The First Amendment

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Have you ever signed a petition?  Maybe in high school to allow short pants... perhaps to get a neighbor on the ballot for town council?  Did you know that there is an online petition program for the White House?

I came across the White House Petition page today through my other interest in fine cigars.  There is currently a petition there to ensure the FDA does not take charge of cigars and associate them with the same oppressive regulations as cigarettes.  Anyway, while I was there, I checked on the other 44 petitions that folks had started.  A couple of them dealt with issues of liberty and freedom.
Support Mandatory Labeling of Genetically Engineered Foods (GMO)
Require States to Reform Zoning Codes to Allow Tiny Home Structures Under 1,000 Square Feet
Require Genetically Modified Foods to be Labeled as Such

There are more than a few dealing with the legalization of marijuana, and even a couple dealing with UFO's.  It's a pretty interesting page.  I doubt the petitions are paid any attention, but it is a way to exercise your rights and make your voice heard.  It is somewhat of a pain to register the first time, but after that you can sign as many petitions as float your boat with just a click of the mouse.

News Notes

Quakes!

I was greeted this morning with news of a pair of massive quakes off the coast of Indonesia.  I get home and find that there were good size quakes this afternoon on the Pacific coast of Mexico and just off the coast of Oregon.  A geologist from the USGS said that these quakes were not related to the ones in Indonesia... "Nothing to see here, you lookeeloos, move along."


Jet Crash

Most folks heard about the Navy FA-18 crashing into the apartment complex in Virginia Beach the other day.  That is the type of SHTF that a person really never expects.  Some might say you can't plan for something like that, but in the overall scheme of things, planning and prepping for natural gas leak explosion, tornado, house fire, earthquake damage... all pretty much have the need for some off site larder and a bug out plan.  Here's some local coverage of the crash and the investigation so far.


Women's Survival

A reader (Thanks, Shanna) sent me the link to this article from SHTF School.  It is the amazing story of one woman's survival in the Balkans war of the early 90s.  It is truly amazing what people can endure.


Terror In The Name Of Progress

I posted to Facebook a link to a main stream media article about this horrific incident when it happened a week or two ago.  Chance Sanders (author of several recent articles in Survival Magazine, maker of a forthcoming urban survival video guide, and one of my Pathfinder School instructors) posted that his father in-law was actually driving past the scene when the explosion happened.  Now, I don't know a whole lot about Agenda 21.  But I think I need to learn more.  Some say it is only extremist nonsense that has people upset about it, others that it is an internationalist program to destroy American sovereignty and property rights at the local level.  If anyone knows about it, I'd love to get a guest post from you.