Arkansas Preppers Network

The Record Heat Waves

2011-07-22T16:04:00.000-05:00

With the record heat waves and drought across the nation, the American Preppers Network hopes that you have been prepared. Disasters of any type can and do happen anywhere, at anytime, and without warning. We are now witnessing and will continue to witness a prime example of how one disaster can cause a chain reaction leading to other disasters. Here are some potential disasters to be aware of as a result of the drought and heat waves.

1) Water shortages. Water is the number 1 most important necessity to survival. The average human can only survive 3 days without water, and even less in a heat wave. I hope you've stored some. If the water system shuts down or does not have enough, you could turn on the tap only to have a few drips. If you run into a situation where there is not enough municipal water supply to your home, start looking for other sources of stored water.

Your hot water tank may have 30 - 50 gallons of water stored.
The top supply tank to your toilette is typically clean water that you can use.
Your plumbing in your house could have a few gallons. Open a higher faucet in your house as in a shower, sink, or upstairs source to relieve pressure, then open a lower outside faucet to retrieve water from your plumbing system.

Don't short change yourself on water! Make sure you have plenty for personal consumption. If you stop sweating, that means you are dehydrated!

Got Water?

2) Heat. Heat poses many risks, including but not limited to:

Heat Stroke. Watch family members closely, especially the elderly, watch for slurred speech and disorientation. When in doubt, call for help. Time lost is brain lost. Never leave pets or children in a vehicle, and keep them out of the direct sun. Drink lots of water.
Fire. Fires are much more common in the heat. Things dry out and become more flammable. Keep dry brush and trash picked up. Do not store fuel in or around your house, and keep well ventilated in a cool area out of the sun. Keep grass cut short, especially if your city is rationing water and not allowing watering of lawns. Do not store any flammables in the direct sun or in your attic.
Vehicle breakdowns. Avoid driving unless it's absolutely necessary, or drive at nite. Check your fluid levels and make sure your oil and coolant are topped off. Bring extra oil and coolant with you in case you need it. DO NOT top off your fuel tank! Make sure your tires are property inflated and not over or under inflated. Bring extra water with you in case you do break down. Drive with the A/C off when going uphill. Watch your vehicles tempature when climbing grades. If your car starts to overheat when going uphill, pull over at a safe location to let it cool. Check to make sure your thermostat is working before you make your trip.

3) Blackouts. The nations grids are maxed out. With everyone using A/C, expect rolling blackouts. If you are in a blackout, you can wrap sleeping bags around your refrigerator or freezer to help insulate it. To conserve power, only use what you absolutely need. Keep lights turned off and keep your A/C set to the warmest temperature that you can safely stand. Do you have a generator? Be prepared to use it. Do you have plenty of non-perishable food stored? If there is an extended blackout, you may need it. Stores and gas stations will be shut down in a blackout. Do you have an emergency battery powered radio and flashlights?

4) Food Prices Expect food prices to increase. Especially meat. Many ranchers are butchering all of there livestock as there is not enough food and water to care for them, this means shortages in the future. Produce crops are drying up. Prices of corn, wheat and other grains will increase. Even produce grown in unaffected areas may increase in price as well due to demand. If the blackouts are too severe, stores, gas stations and truck stops may close down temporarily disrupting the supply chain and preventing food from making it to the stores.

Stay safe during this heat wave and dought. This is a serious and potentially devastating national disaster.

If you have tips, ideas, news, videos or pictures that you wish to share regarding this heat wave you can submit your article to americanprepper@yahoo.com. If your article is chosen we will post it on your states preppers network blog. Top articles will get posted on APN. The top article of the week will win a free flashlantern valued at $49.95 (made in the USA). Articles must be submitted before 7/29.

Feel free to copy and repost this article in it's entirety. Credit source as AmericanPreppersNetwork.com

Here are some free helpful pdf files to download

Fire and Heat Waves
- ARC - Are You Ready - Fire

- ARC - Are You Ready - Heat Wave

- ARC - Are You Ready - Wildfires

- Fact Sheet: Fires

- Fact Sheet: Fire Safe

- WildFires

Water
- ARC - Food and Water in Emergency

- Emergency Disinfection of Drinking Water

- How To Make A Solar Still (Plastic Cover)

- Purification Of Water On A Small Scale

- Simple Solar Still For The Production Of Distilled Water

- Slow Sand Filters

- Water Purification

- Water Treatment

Fire Safety

- Fighting Fire

- Fire Safety

Get More Free Downloads here:
http://preppers.info/Free_Downloads.html

Arkansas: Second Amendment Debate in Fayetteville

2011-04-01T20:45:00.000-05:00

Cam Edwards talks to Dr. Wesley Stites, Professor at the University of Arkansas and Arkansas State Representative Charlie Collins - NRA News - March 31, 2011 - http://www.NRANews.com

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Arkansas Preppers Roll Call - All Preppers Please Check In

2011-03-06T22:59:00.000-06:00

The American Preppers Network is conducting a network-wide roll call. Whether you are a member or not please check in and let us know what you are doing to prepare.

This is a good opportunity to network with other preppers near you.

Arkansas Preppers, to respond to the roll call please follow this link:
http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=240&t=9247

Reply to the Roll Call and let us know what you have been doing to prepare.

If you are not yet a member of the forum you can register here for free:
http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/ucp.php?mode=register

Arkansas Earthquake! Biggest yet!

2011-02-28T09:32:00.000-06:00

Posted by fuzzy

Got 3 good jolts/bumps (4.7) at 11:02pm last night and an aftershock (3.8) at 11:20pm. Had 2 more aftershocks up in the wee hours of the morning, but slept through them. USGS says this one was the largest in over 40 years. Epicenter (Guy, Arkansas) is about 80 miles as a crow flies from here. The Guy area has had hundreds of smaller quakes in the last few weeks. As long as they stay small, we have something to talk about! LOL So, Mother Earth, if you're listening, just small ones, if you please! Nothing like the New Madrid fault quakes of 1811 and 1812, please!

With our preps (what they are) in place, I just laid in the bed and watched the show, didn't last long enough to get up. Preps surely gives a person peace of mind, and a calmness when crazy, mind bending things start to happen.

To respond to this post go here:
http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=205&t=9070

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Marc Faber on Inflation, Stock Markets, Gold, Real Estate and The End Game

2011-02-26T21:27:00.002-06:00

Gloom, Boom & Doom Report publisher Dr. Marc Faber joins Infowars’ Alex Jones to discuss non-traditional investment strategies, global inflation, social response and repercussions, and the phases to expect as the crisis deepens.

(Full interview available below excerpt and commentary)

Faber on Inflation:

I think that inflation or the cost of living increases in the US and elsewhere is much higher than what the government is publishing. And, I think this is having a negative impact on consumption, because obviously the cost of necessities – insurance, taxes, food, energy – is going up very rapidly. My answer to all of this is, the worse the economic conditions will become, the worse the geopolitical conditions will become, the more Mr. Bernanke and his fellow Fed governors will print money.

Consumers in the US are getting broker by the day. As food and energy prices rise, consumers:
Read the rest of this story by following the link below:

http://www.shtfplan.com/marc-faber/marc-faber-on-inflation-stock-markets-gold-real-estate-and-the-end-game_02222011

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What Happens When A Nuke Hits?

2011-01-20T09:21:00.002-06:00

We can all imagine what it would be like when a nuke happens. This link I am providing actually shows the area effected. You drop the size bomb you like, where you like in the U.S. or any where else in the world and see for yourself.

http://carloslabs.com/node/20

Another reason to prepare.

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What's going on in Arkansas?

2011-01-03T09:53:00.001-06:00

by genxdawg

Saw these stories and they made my hair stand up. Officials say the two incidents are not related, but I have to wonder.

2,000 black birds fall from the sky in Beebe, Arkansas
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfwSc-IZpao

100,000+ dead fish found floating in Arkansas River - 125 miles west of Beebe, where 5,000 birds fell dead from sky.
Massive fish kill blankets Arkansas River
http://on.cnn.com/egE1cK

Weird goings on.

To respond to this post follow the link below:

http://www.americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=284&t=7302&sid=bafa99f0a

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Feds target airline pilot for exposing TSA security sham on YouTube

2010-12-27T07:53:00.001-06:00

A Sacramento-based airline pilot is the subject of a federal investigation for exposing what he says are serious flaws in the U.S. Transportation Security Administration's (TSA) airport security protocols. According to ABC News10 in Sacramento, the 50-year-old pilot who requested to remain anonymous says that TSA applies its strict screening protocols to passengers and even flight crews, but ground crews are freely able to access secure areas with a simple card swipe.

"As you can see, airport security is kind of a farce," the pilot explains in his video, as he shows an entrance to a secure area. "It's only smoke and mirrors so you people believe there is actually something going on here."

The pilot has worked for his airline for more than ten years and had been issued a federal handgun to carry with him in the cockpit. But after blowing the whistle on the serious security breaches taking place at the airport, four federal air marshals and two sheriff's deputies shows up at his house to confiscate the weapon, and they also asked him to give up his state-issued concealed weapon carry permit.

On December 6, the pilot also received a letter from the TSA explaining that "an administrative review into your deputation status as a Federal Flight Deck Officer has been initiated," a move that he believes is a warning from the Feds saying not to mess with the system, unless you want to face the consequences.

According to the same ABC News10 report, the pilot's airline asked him to remove the videos from YouTube shortly after he posted them, but portions of the videos captured as part of the ABC News10 report can be viewed at the following link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwLG...

Monday, December 27, 2010 by: Ethan A. Huff, staff writer

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/030844_airline_pilot_TSA.html#ixzz19JiD3qDl

Sources for this story include:

http://www.news10.net/news/article....

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Arkansas Preppers Roll Call

2010-11-27T11:44:00.000-06:00

The Arkansas Preppers Network is conducting a Roll Call on our forum. If you are a prepper please check in.

* Here is a link to the Roll Call:
http://www.americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=240&t=6214

You have to be registered to check in. If you aren't registered please join here:
http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/ucp.php?mode=register

* If you are a HAM Radio Operator check in here:
http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=143&t=6219

* If you are an A.N.T.S. member please check in here:
http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=618&t=6220

Welcome new member

2010-11-03T09:02:00.003-05:00

Welcome our newest member:

EcoHouse

Hello! I have my land in the Ouachita mountains where I will make my stand, but I am stuck in the city for the time being as I homestead a city lot. Been designing and building and experimenting with self-reliant principals for 20 years now. Rabbits and gardens and gray water systems make less trips for me to the grocery store and contacts with local farmers get me the good, nutrient rich stuff as I try to avoid government and big ag-business involvement. I can't wait until I build my own homestead with lots of space around it. Meanwhile, I build for others and help them be as self reliant as possible or go completely off grid. Love the diversity of people and information on this site!

Please welcome our new member by following the link below:
http://www.americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=563&t=6395&p=60037&s

Macnik

Don't know if I'm doing this right or not. This is my FIRST time to ever try anything like this. Just found the site and we're hoping to find more "like minded" people close to us in NC Ar. We're out here on the lake, plenty of hunting and fishing and as long as the water "hasn't gone bad" or guarded we'll have it too. But we are trying to steadily put back other supplies. There is a small group right here where we're at and we are trading ideas and planning to go together to buy bulk food and divide it, hoping for a price break. We're also planning to go together to purchase Big$$ items to all share. So, Hello out there and look forward to seeing what's being said.

Please welcome our new member by following the link below:
http://www.americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=240&t=5734

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I think I'd like a BOL in Arkansas, tell me more...

2010-09-27T20:52:00.006-05:00

APN Member insidethebunker poses a question about Bug Out Locations in Arkansas....

We live in the Louisville KY metro area and by my thinking Northern Arkansas looks "safe" in a SHTF scenario. I've been looking via internet real estate searches at the whole North East quadrant of the state for affordable land. In a bug out situation I feel that the 8 to 10 hours from Louisville down to Arkansas might be reasonable. Also it would be close enough that I could come and spend long weekends prepping some land and a trailer. I like for the land to be something I could buy on contract. It would need a water source, trees and hunting potential. Ideal would be something that butts up against a state or national forest. Land/Lot size could be 3 to 5 acres initially but I would hope I could add to it later. Any thoughts, advice, suggestions?

To respond to this post please respond on our forum by following this link:
http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=240&t=2049

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How to Join The Arkansas Preppers Network

2010-09-14T12:23:00.002-05:00

Come learn survival, preparedness and sustainable living with us!

The Preppers networks are all about volunteering our knowledge and skills with each other. We share ideas, tips and basically network with each other to survive any type of disaster whether natural, man made, or economic. Information that you learn and share with others will help everyone learn how to find "Freedom Through Teaching Others Self Reliance."

Joining the Arkansas Preppers Network is simple, and most of all, it's Free! To join, just follow these few steps.

1) Register to become a member of the American Preppers Network www.AmericanPreppersNetwork.net The registration page is here: http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/ucp.php?mode=register

2) Once you have your account, go to the index page of the forum and do your first post by introducing yourself in the new members area. http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/index.php

3) Once you know how to do posts, visit the Arkansas forum and introduce yourself. The Arkansas forum can be found by scrolling to the lower section of the index page where you will find a list of states, or you can go directly by following this URL: www.ArkansasPreppersNetwork.net

4) After you've visited the Arkansas forum, follow this link to learn how to join the Arkansas Preppers Network group:
http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=564&t=2738

APN's success depends on your contributions. If you would like to donate to our organization by becoming a Gold Member you can join the APN Gold Members club by following this link:
http://www.americanpreppersnetwork.net/page.php?p=apn-gold-membership&sid=5b241e92a767cdfbe7a345c54dd55127
Gold Membership is only $5 per month. For a list of Gold Member benefits go here

Thank you for your support!

Barter Items

2010-04-09T17:11:00.003-05:00

Post by Muzhik from our forum

This is something I've wondered about for decades, ever since I first read "Lucifer's Hammer". While everyone else focuses on food, water, and shelter, what do you pack for those times when you need to exchange something for food, water, or shelter. Here is a list of some of the things that I've either saved or plan to save.

Chocolate. Both the regular-sized candy bars and the miniature packets. (Think of it as the difference between having a gold coin and a bunch of silver quarters.)
Candy, non-chocolate. Stuff like Sugar Babies, Twizzlers, Bit 'o' Honey, and gum.
Whiskey and high-end liqueurs. (You should also have stuff like cheap vodka, since that can be used as an antiseptic in an emergency.)
Razors.
Man's aftershave and cologne....

Read More...

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Cybersecurity Makes Headway

2010-04-02T21:13:00.001-05:00

Last year I wrote an in-depth article on Tri-Lateral and Bilderberg mogul David Rockefeller and his sponsored bill on Cyber security. We are now seeing that tyranny in it's infancy. And while everyone is distracted from Health Care, this bill will take the next step in taking more rights away from Americans. This is how you cook a frog.

Cybersecurity bill (code name: Kill Switch) is making a fast progression. Apply that to the 'Fairness Doctrine' and not many of us will continue to have blogs or websites for that matter. Better get all you can from the Internet while you can. http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-s773/show

Gardening Basics Pt. 1 Layout Strategies

2010-03-28T10:19:00.002-05:00

If you are anything like me you have probably been thinking about gardening since the first frost killed off the last of your summer produce makers. However many people are thinking about gardens these days. Seed supplies are running low and many are dreading the worst of this economic decline. Some even remark how recent legislations in the food industry threaten to cripple our food supplies. Still others just like the taste of really, really great food, fresh from their own little piece of earth.

Either way, you may be thinking about a garden for the first time, or maybe re-planning your garden layout. In the past several years I have just put seeds in the ground wherever I had space. This year I am thinking more strategically about the garden, and as I look at the pile of seeds I have accumulated over the years I am wondering just where the heck I am going to put everything. So I got out the 300' measuring tape, some rope and some stakes to really put forward my plans.

If you are starting from scratch, you will want to survey your area. Look for a place that has full sun most if not all the day. How big you want your garden is strictly up to you, these basics should work for you. The very next thing you want to do is start tilling. Start tilling now! Now before you say, 'Oh wait, I need a tiller' think again. I have roughly 9,000 square feet of gardening area and I till everything with nothing more than a shovel. It's a great work-out, and it get's easier from one year to the next. In fact, I have shovel-tilled my garden for two years now, and this year my soil is so soft I could probably get away with not tilling at all. However I want to turn the earth for one or two more seasons before my heavy mulching plan goes into effect full time. But more about that later.

Shovel-Till: To shovel-till your garden, all you do is stick the spade in the earth and drive it with your foot all the way to the top of the shovel. Lever down on the handle, picking up grass, earth and all, then flip it over on top of itself. This exposes the roots of the grass and pretty much kills it for the most part, leaving the earth part facing up, the grass part facing down. I recommend shovel-tilling for a number of reasons, but the most important to me is that I believe you get a much better depth using the full 6" blade than a 6" depth setting on a tiller. With a shovel you get a TRUE 6" into the earth, however with a tiller, the tiller only reaches about 4" effectively despite what the depth setting is. The reason for this is that on the first pass, the tiller digs up about an inch to two inches of soil and fluffs it. As the dirt gets fluffed up this adds height to the earth-line which means that if it takes 2" of soil and fluffs it to 3" then your second pass is less effectively really only re-fluffing the soil you have already dug up. The reasoning behind my theory is that the first year I gardened I used a tiller. The very next year, I used only a shovel, and found that just below the 3" mark on soil depth I found a strata of earth that the tiller never touched in the previous year. To be fair however, I recommend using a tiller at least the first year, especially if you are just getting started. Makes that first year a bit easier. Otherwise shovel-till repetitively until you have your base gardening dimensions. I recommend a rectangular arrangement for the garden footprint, however many people do a number of different configurations, circles, triangles, squares, and even more complicated geometric patterns. If you go with the rectangle I prefer the garden to run east-west on the long side, and North to South on the short side. There is a reason for this.

East-West Orientation: There is a great deal of conversation behind the east-west orientation and a north-south one. Many believe that a east-west orientation does not allow for maximum sun-exposure for vertical gardening (a concept we will explore in a minute). There are three things that I take issue with on this subject. #1. If anyone has ever been outside in June, July and August here in the south you will find that escaping the sun is very difficult. The sun comes up in the east and sets in the west. Which theoretically means that in a trellised garden some rows will not get much in the way of morning or evening sun, however for about six hours or so between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. everything will be getting hit with full on sun. I do not believe those early morning and late evening intervals are necessary for great food production. In addition, there really is NOT any time of the day where plants are not getting some kind of sun, whether direct or indirect. #2. There is some scientific research on sunlight utilization among garden plants and it appears that once a plant 'sees' some sun it gathers all it needs, then shuts down for several hours as a full day of sun is not necessary for energy production. If plants get all the sun it needs from the morning sun it then shuts down photosynthesis for the remaining day until energy stores are depleted. The metabolic cycle is then fired back up and more sunlight is gathered depending on how much sun the plant needs for energy then shut down again for the evening. #3. Sunlight is crucial for brix levels among sweeter fruits etc. Vineyards and Orchards require HUGE amounts of sun and I have seen these planted extremely close together. Vineyards for example are planted in all sorts of configurations, N-S and E-W without any fear of shading each other out. The one thing where I would accept the argument for N-S to E-W discussion is in the case of rain-forest type areas where cloud cover shields direct sun from plants. Vineyards will hardly make any sugar at all in grapes for Hawaii because there is so much yearly cloud cover. In fact, grapes from Hawaii have to be sprayed with a chemical in order for them to ripen enough for wine. However, here in the states as long as you do not plant your garden in the shade, you should be fine. Finally, and East-West orientation ensures maximum pollination for wind pollinated varieties such as corn.

PermaCulture: You could spend years research and reading up on the ideas of permaculture. However if there is one thing you should take from the idea is that you will want to #1: Create permanent raised beds. This does not mean you have to encase your garden with a smattering of 2X8 boards then fill them with dirt, but rather you just raise the level of the earth itself so that the area your plants grow in is higher than the earth around it. Most of the time the act of tilling itself raises the soil level just enough for you to be able to take advantage of the raised earth idea. Raising the earth creates a dome of earth in your bed that allows excess moisture to drain off so that your root zone doesn't become water-logged. In addition the raised bed also increase marginal surface area so that plants earlier in the year stay warmer in the cool, and cooler in the hot. I create 4' wide gardening zones, in which I can plant densly or not so densely. for example, if I were to garden peas, I could easily plant my peas in three distinct rows in every 4' wide gardening zone. With tomatoes which need a bit more room, I will plant 2 rows 20" apart within that 4' zone. These are permanent growing zones that you will develop and maintain year after year. In relation to these growing zones you will want to put in some kind of permanent paths so you do not ever walk on the growing zones. This ensures your soil stays soft and 'raised'. Every once in a while I have to step into a growing zone, but because I have hardly ever walked on a growing zone in over two years the soil there is very soft and doesn't really need tilling. Heavy mulching will help this as well, but more about heavy mulching later. Lastly, my permanent paths are roughly 24" wide, or two feet. This allows me to get between the growing zone easily enough with a wheel-barrow, while not taking up too much room in the garden.

Summary of Steps: #1: Determine full sun garden location. #2: assign either East-West or North-South orientation. (preferably East-West). #3: start tilling now. #4 begin to determine (at least in your head) the locations of permanent growing zones 4' wide and begin to hill these up in a raised be fashion. #5. Establish or begin to establish permanent paths.

Vertical Gardening: If this is your first garden, then you may be taking a lot of what I am writing about on pure faith. Be sure that you can do research to verify my theories here, much of what I am writing about has been partly as a result of painful learning (practical) combined with theoretical learning. However after several years of trials if there is one thing I have learned is that 'Vertical Gardening' is MUCH, MUCH more superior than any other kind of gardening in existence. There are a lot of reasons for this, but I will give you just a couple. #1: Vertical gardening is MUCH easier on the back and joints. Once your plants have gotten to production stage, pretty much all you do is walk down between the rows picking your pleasure right off the vines. #2. This means a couple of things, a: Choosing the right kinds of plants for your vertical garden, and b: building trellis systems. I am still experimenting with creating the perfect trellis-ing system, however I am closer this year for the perfect set-up in cost and practicality. This will most likely come at a later post, however with regard to 'a: Choosing the right kinds of plants' this is actually easier than you may think. Fortunately for us, most heirloom species grow indeterminately. That is to say, there are no natural growing restrictions. For example, just about all heirloom tomatoes will grow vines of up to nine feet or even more. Trellising these crops keeps fruit off of the ground and rotting, and provides better sun-exposure for the plant in general. In addition, there is more air-flow between plants reducing mold's and fungus diseases to non-existant. I have never had any kind of infestation on vertical vegetables. Cucumbers grow on vines that can be trellised, squash grow on vines that can be trellised, squashes grow on vines that can be trellised, melons grow on vines that can be trellised and beans grow on vines that can be trellised. Just be sure to select 'pole-type' beans. Most good heirloom beans such as Kentucky Wonder, Silverlake and others grow in a pole bean variety. Pole beans are also much more productive beans, the one caveat with pole beans is that you have to be sure to pick them in timely intervals or the pods get stringy. You have to plan a little with vertical gardening however, with regard to shorter plants like leafy-greens, and peppers. Be careful not to plant these within the vertical areas. Plant these according to height from the southernmost rows to North. That is to say, that all of your short leafy greens need to be in the southern-most rows, then your peppers in the next rows, then your eggplants and other taller varieties.

Additional Stuff: Now to be sure we have only covered the very, very basics here. One of the things you will absolutely want to do is document things. Document everything, in later years you will wish like crazy you had. For documentation I highly recommend 'low-tech', and nothing is better than 'Field Notes' brand notebooks. They are small and easy to carry, easy to store. I have nine that I use. I carry one with me at all times, this is my multi-use notebook that I use to jot down notes, ideas, and a myriad of information. I also have several others for different more specialized things. I have a 'gardening' book for just my garden stuff. Other things you may want to do is get a soil test done, but for right now you should be good to go until next posting.

Getting Some Seed Started: Getting some seed started: Check out the Iowa Preppers Network for some great video on seed starting.

Yours Truly on The Prepper Podcast

2010-02-26T17:16:00.003-06:00

Matt at The Prepper Podcast had me on his show, and it is ready for download right here! I hope you all enjoy it.

Thanks, Matt, for the opportunity to be on your show!

The Party Is Over

2010-02-08T15:58:00.002-06:00

After several years of introspection and a great deal of bewilderment, pieces are finally starting to come together and make sense. No, I'm not talking about our economy, however it seems so evident we are perched high atop the precipice. I am talking more about our 'two-party' system and what is going on with it. Ever since Bush Jr.'s last term I had a feeling democrats were going to take the white house. Things just wern't going to well for Jr. Not all his fault, but he's not completely blameless either. But I'm not getting into all that. The real french letter was when I saw the caliber of 'Republicans' the G.O.P. were running for the year. Something strange was happening, then I saw the democratic candidates, and when Barrac began making some serious steam I had to ask myself, what is going on here.

You see the Republicans are having their own problems right now, they cannot figure out who the hell they are, in fact it's quite plain what they are becoming, because they have been trying to position themselves on this line since Bill Clinton. The Republican party wants to be blue-dog democrats. No new there, but you will be surprised to know that the morphology is almost complete, but not because of the work Republicans have done, but more by the work Democrats have done. The real action is taking place over in the Democrats camp. BTW, any democrat over the age of 60 won't be able to see this because they have been a 'party-liner' for FAR too long and they have no idea what is really going on except what CNN tells them. All Hail Anderson!

There is a great split happening among Democrats that is a little strange to see, however when you factor in the history of the world it really isn't strange at all. There is an ever-so-slight cleavage splitting the cell of the Democratic parties into two strong factions and there is one little one. One of those factions is of course the Blue Dogs. Fiscal conservatives but social liberals. Their ideology is based on monetary facts and less on the social perspects. This is where most democrats would place themselves if given a survey, however they do not know this fracture is taking place. This blue-dog sect, are splitting off and slowly morphing into Republicans, or visa-versa. Republicans (who have always been fiscal conservatives) are morphing their social conservatism into something more main stream. So the Blue Dog Democrats and the G.O.P. are actually becoming one single party. So what is happening in true conservatism? Pandemonium, true conservatives can't even identify one another at this point. Some are running under a 'conservative' party instead of republicans, some have joined in with the independent party, and others have joined something called constitution party. To be truthful the true conservatives are fractured and leaderless, unless you count Ron Paul, who has failed time and time again to gain any real steam in the elections because of the two party system.

But what is really happening with Democrats these days? Take a REALLY GOOD look at Pelosie, at Reid, and Obama. What do you see? Can you see it in the policy passed over the last year? Can you see the begging of it, when Bush pushed through the first bail-out? A party is gaining power under the guise of a blend of conservative and liberal ideals, do you know what it is. It has been around for over a millenia we just never thought we would see it on our shores. What do you get when you cross liberal philosophy and ideology on the family and a conservative statism and facism? Earlier last year I thought I had nailed it down to a kind of weird Americanized socialism but I think I am wrong, and what I believe is emerging is far worse than what I envisioned.

What kind of government do you have if THEY tell you what to plant? Obama will be introducing legislation this next year to try and governmentize all farmlands. It will be called the 'safe foods' act, or something very innocuous to sell it to the people.
What kind of government do you have if THEY tell you, you no longer own any of the water bearing parts of your land and that this falls under imminent domain, under the pure ownership of the Federal Government? Do you remember another country doing this in 1915-1917? It's amazing how little we know of genocidal governments in other parts of the world while we look down the barrel of that same government right here. By the way that institution passed in several states in 2008, and is up to be passed in the Federal Government.
What kind of government do you have when it creates a provision to suspend inalienable human rights 'short term' (guess how long short term is?) in order to preserve "peace" (guess who gets to define peace?).
What kind of government do you have when that same government can go back into time and edit or obliterate those same laws it has been elected to protect and serve?
What kind of government do you have when that government becomes an elected government but that the choices are selected from a money pool? In short, how is it that the representatives are buying their way into their upper positions?

I could go on with this. The new democratic party is picking up the laws conservatives have been pushing through regarding statism and militaristic control and using them to push their own agenda. All those homeland security laws and control laws that have been pumped through post 9-11 are going to come home to roost on this very presidency. The next three years are crucial for them, they are a brand new party traveling under an old brand. These 'progressives' are burning the fuel of a pissed off Democratic party that cannot understand how they could not get Bush Jr. out of office the past eight years, but they (to steal a line from a movie) let a clown out of the box. They let the progressives in, to do what they have failed to do for years. Systematically beat Republican candidates. And they beat them quite soundly due to the ineptitude of a faltering republican party, and some extremely brilliant marketing by democrats.

Progressives probably have another six years before the yellow-dog democrats figure out that the republican party is dead and that the Democrat party has become something altogether different. Progressives will continue to fuel themselves with this ignorance until this aging generation of boomers retire or psuedo-retire and become non-essential burdens on the state. The new, and the young will be taking over now, to some degree completely skipping over Generation X because the baby boomers just simply lived longer than we all expected. There are some Gen X'ers bouncing around in their fathers offices, but by and large, the boomers will egress while GenY and Generation 'screw you' steps in. This will be the generation of the 'path of least resistance' and 'I don't care what you do, just leave me alone' groups.

All in all we will need to hang on, because it could be a very bumpy ride.

Snow

2010-02-08T15:34:00.003-06:00

Just Saying.

Prepping: The Art of Simplicity

2010-02-07T12:43:00.002-06:00

We all know kinda how it starts. One day we become fed up with our complicated and socially stressed lives and decide we want to make a change. We want simpler, healthier and happier lives. Seems like all lifestyle changes start out this way. We want things simplified. But this is an ebb-and-flow ideology we all live in.

It may start with the desire to have a garden. What could be simpler than sticking some seeds in the ground, watering them, and waiting for the food they bear? Little do we know that our 'simple' endeavor is about to get complicated. As we dream of saving money, we keep watering the garden until we start getting the bills. Suddenly that bucket of tomatoes that is supposed to save us $2 per pound, had now cost us $3 per pound in water alone, not to mention the time we spend weeding and caring for the plants. What do you get paid? Do you work for free? Then your garden is not free either, the input is your labor and water, and fertilizer, and...... get the point? Now let's factor in disease and plague. Tomato hornworms the size of Buicks appear on your emaciated vines clipping and trimming your plant into one large woody stem. The cost of your tomatoes just went up. By the time the end of the year is over you have spent $5 per pound or more in inputs.

The whole point of prepping is to not just be prepared for some looming catastrophe, but it's a quest of trying to live a pleasurable life with the minimum of inputs. Many of these regard the input of 'money', but we all know what we are striving for. Minimizing complexity. The very act of minimizing complexity in and of itself complicates our lives.

Minimizing complexity in any endeavor requires an in-depth examination of what we currently do with our time. Consider, you decide you want to simplify the heating of your home. So we evaluate how we currently heat our home. We go to the thermostat and turn the dial. What could be more simpler than that? If we want a simple way to heat our homes, don't change a thing, continue to do what we are already doing. What most people mean when they say they want to live simpler lives is that they want to live more FULFILLED lives, which is an altogether different matter. In addition, they want to live more fulfilled lives at a cheaper cost. Simplicity requires money. Nothing is simpler than turning a dial to heat our homes, HOWEVER it also requires the input of capital. Necessity is the mother of invention, which is the point of simplicity. A simpler and faster way to wash clothes was desire, enter the washing machine. You put the clothes in, turn a dial and in about thirty minutes you have clean clothes. Washing clothes manually is anything BUT simple. It requires water gathering, a soap product, and a helluva lot of elbow grease, and of course time.

Extricating ones-self from the 'grid' is anything but simple. So let us be honest with ourselves, when we say we want to live simply what we really mean to say is that we want to live without the aid of some, most, or all of the mechanization that has seemed to have taken the humanity out of our lives. To live a simpler life what we really need to do is go to college, get high-paying jobs (HA!), that way all of our needs are provided at the touch of our finger-tips. This kind of life requires money, which requires a job, which requires us to spend a great deal of time away from our homes, which has an adverse affect on our families, which leads to a great deal of dysfunction, which leads to improperly raised and trained children, and on, and on and on.

So let's say we have all agreed that instead of simplicity what we really want is more fulfilled lives. Great, we have properly identified what it is we truly want out of life. Now we have to evaluate every system that takes fulfillment out of our lives and see how we want to change those things. For example, the television. We can all agree that taking television out of our lives would greatly add to our ability to enjoy our families and our homes. But we havn't really thought this through. When you have a semi-large family like mine, (five kids) we have to realize what it is we are really taking away from our homes. The T.V. is a great babysitter. It keeps kids quiet (sort of) and provides us with an outlet to not have to interact with one another. Interaction takes time, patience, and effort. Watching T.V. takes no effort at all. So when you take T.V. out of the equation what you are in effect doing is adding a layer of complication to your life because now you need to expend effort.

Now I know there are people who will say, "Yes, but you can make family events out of T.V. watching." Indeed you can, my point is not to point out the evils of T.V. watching, but rather to say that T.V. watching reduces complexity but in the long run robs us of our ability to live more fulfilled lives. A fulfilled life requires work, effort, and didactic commitment. It requires us to create a build family cultures and traditions. Every system we take offline adds to this complexity a little more at a time, until we find ourselves unable to keep up with a 40-hour per week job, while at the same time adding the fullest of live experiences. At the end of the day we are too exhausted to make meaningful changes to our lives that add to our fulfillment. So, we pick up the remote and click through the channels to find something that will simplify our lives a bit before going off to bed so we can do it all over again tomorrow.

So what am I trying to say with all of this meandering and introspective back-peddling?

Having a job will NOT add fulfillment to your life from a socio-familial perspective. In fact, ANYTHING that takes one away from the home does not add to this strata.

Living simpler lives does not add fulfillment to ones socio-familial existence. Simpler lives require money and a LACK of effort, not the addition of it.

Living simpler lives does not increase our happiness, enhance our socio-familial connections, culture or tradition. It just helps us escape from our duties and REAL jobs which is to create good and beneficial family traditions. Creating a family culture is by it's very nature a fulfilling endeavor that requires effort and a level of complexity.

So in this, am I 'anti-job'? Very good question, let's examine that the next time as we explore this topic of fulfillment. Enjoy your Sunday.

Terms and Acronyms

2010-02-07T09:21:00.002-06:00

Ever wonder what OPSEC means? How about TSHTF? Here is a great page full of terminology:
Terminology

Do Your Own Research

2010-02-06T14:05:00.002-06:00

If you are watching the news for your....uhhhhh so called 'news' then you are most likely months if not years behind on what is actually going on in the world. That is because news organizations do not really report the news, they report on what they think their mass audience wants to know about and we (as a people) are so lazy and so narcissistic that the news reflects that very sentiment. They report on lazy narcissistic information that in the long run, isn't news-worthy at all.

Case in point, last year Greece was in serious social upheaval. Many were wounded and the rebellious pretty much burned Greece to the ground. Our 'national/world' news carried the story for about a day, or two, despite the fact that the incursion ran on for WEEKS. HOWEVER, if one famous child-molesting pop-star dies, we spend WEEKS on the topic, and millions of dollars on the advertisement of this fact.

Enter the economy, trends forecasters and specialists can say for months (and indeed they did) but no attention is paid to them, they are laughed at, but one small hiccup in the markets and suddenly the news is plastered with these 'naysayers'. Despite the fact that this information is months old, the news agencies play it as if it were yesterday, as if to say, "Whoa, what happened? We had no idea."

Do the math folks. If we dump trillions of dollars into the 'economy' and we print more to cover it, then we borrow from social security and all the other makeshift protections and the market STILL doesn't improve, what does that tell you? Don't listen to all these news agencies that pull small straws from the rubble and yell, "Look Green Shoots! We are back!". The news is simply reporting what we kind of knew all along.

Celts Top Ten Part II

2010-02-05T17:35:00.001-06:00

11. Vegetable oil (for cooking): Basically what this boils down to is ‘fat’, what will you do for fat. Fat makes just about everything much better tasting. There are a number of ways to obtain fat, however when prepping for a WCS you want to store a few gallons of this until your own measures kick in. This reflects a concept I am working on and will share in the future, however for now let’s just say you need a few gallons of some kind of storable fat. You can get fat by storing Crisco or it’s cheaper companion ‘lard’ easy enough from any grocer. It keeps forever and does a great job. Vegetable oil is a bit more expensive because there requires more inputs to create it, but if you are very health conscious this may be a way you are more comfortable with. Now, we need to address something right now, in a WCS you are going to be expending a LOT of calories, so getting too many carbs should not be a concern, but getting to few can and will be. In a WCS you won’t be sitting on your butt going through your stockpile. You are going to need to snap into action day #1. So go ahead, have that extra piece of cake, or that extra slab of bacon. Fat can come from other sources as well. whenever you cook bacon that grease in the bottom of the pan is fat. Strain it and store it. It will keep forever in frozen state. Same goes for beef tallow, whenever you cook down ground beef there is that clear stuff, that is fat. Start saving it now. Olive oil is not necessary however it will become a heck of a luxury and I can see the price tag on this stuff going very, very high. So if you are thinking smart you should be thinking ‘barter!’. Indeed, get a few gallons of this as well, if you don’t barter with it, you can always use it.

12. Charcoal & Lighter fluid: This is one of those non-essential items that people who don’t know what they are doing go for. However, Charcoal can actually help in a pinch if your firewood is wet. Simply throw some charcoal in your fireplace and you can stretch your heat out and save some of your firewood in the process. Other than that, if you are short on space you can forgo this. Let me add by saying any self-respecting man should be able to start a fire with a lighter and some dry kindling. If you cannot then spend next season watching the show ‘Survivor’ or start practicing in a number of climates. Even wet wood if sliced thin enough will ignite.

13. Water containers: Easy enough, simply save the one-gallon containers of your empty plastic milk jugs. Now, these do not keep very well in the elements, so do not let them stay out in the sun, UV breaks down the plastic. I personally go for 55-gallon plastic barrels. You can obtain these at many coops that also sell burn barrels. I personally do not worry about getting ‘food-grade’ barrels, they are all pretty much mamde out of the same stuff. In addition, keep on hand some clear plastic containers. Fill these with water and you can anti-bac them by placing them on a hot tin roof in direct sunlight.
14. Mini Heater head (Propane): If you need places for spot heat this could come in handy, however I find it one of those items that is in the ‘can live without’ category. While having one may be beneficial for other projects I don’t really classify this as a survival item.

15. Grain Grinder (Non-electric): YOU BETCHA. In fact ANY manual tools would be nice to have in WCS. However, I don’t believe it’s helpful to buy one that is more than $100. There are a lot of predators out there who take advantage of preppers. Anyone charging $300+ for a manual grain grinder is just taking advantage of you. You can get cheap grain grinders for about $30.

16. Propane Cylinders: Another bomb in your basement. This is a short-term survival item that you can easily live without if you have a fireplace or gas stove. I would invest in decent grill that you can cook on with plain wood.

17. Michael Hyatt’s Y2K Survival Guide: This list was supposed to be a ‘the first things to disappear from the stores’, I don’t see how this will be one of those things. It might be a useful book to have, however I would focust my energies to gardening and knowledge enhancing activities.

18. Mantles: Aladdin, Coleman, etc.: See ‘Lighting’ from yesterday.

19. Baby Supplies: Diapers/formula/ointments/aspirin, etc: YESIREE BOB! But you better invest in some time with cloth diapers, making your own ointments and formula. Aspirin is a MUST, you can barter with pain-killer also.

20. Washboards, Mop Bucket w/wringer (for Laundry): A large bucket and a stick can suffice. You can make a manual clothes washer with a 55-gallon barrell. Washboards.....well only if you really want to wear the hell out of your clothes. Todays clothes are made for comfort not wear, they won’t last long on a washboard.

And that’s the second ‘top ten’. Stay tuned for the next ten. We have 80 more to go.

Celt's Top Ten

2010-02-04T17:14:00.002-06:00

Today I ran into a site that had a listing of the top 100 things to disappear when TSHTF. I am going to post ten at a time, and give my synopsis. The list is not in order of prominence, just a top 100 so bear that in mind as we take this little trip.

1. Generators: Generators can be a God-send or a target for disaster. As a prepper, it would be nice to have one in any emergency, but so far we are used to little ones, like electricity going out for a couple of days when we get a bad ice-storm or something similar. If you are living out in the boonies, no problem however lets evaluate the caveats of owning one in a metropolitan area. For one they are loud, loud, loud. I have a neighbor a little over a hundred yards away and I can hear it while I am inside my house all day and all night, despite the fact his generator is behind his. Does this matter? It sure does, because in a WCS (Worst Case Scenario) bandits will be drawn to them like flies to sh... well you get the point. In addition, generators are expensive, require gas, need maintenance and will eventually over time be useless. My advice, forget them, they are way too big of a liability in WCS. Now, if you have one or need one for short term uses they can be very handy, but if you have roving bands of bad guys consider them strategically.

2. Water Filters/Purifiers: Yes, this is a big deal, water is probably going to be your most precious commodity in a WCS. Many people buy bottled water, and/or have some kind of filtration, such as a refillable Brita, etc. However, if you know HOW to build your own filters this shouldn't be much of a problem. Burn some natural wood (not 2x4s from your local lumber company) and sift the coals for the black chunks, grind these up into dust and you have one of the best filters even by store standards. Will filter any kind of water. There are more water strategies, but lack of a water filter shouldn't provide to much of a problem.

3. Portable Toilets: Three words, 'five-gallon-bucket'. Nuff said?

4. Seasoned Firewood: It's amazing where you can acquire wood for heat or cooking or whatever. Remember that without a chainsaw, wood-cutting is extremely time-consuming and labor intensive. Which is why in literature you will read about people 'gathering' firewood not 'cutting' firewood. That is because when you gather, you go out into the woods and pick up the dead fallen wood on the ground, and there is TONS of it. Every year storms blow over HUGE trees, leaving lots and lots of usable firewood on the ground to be used. It's not as pretty when stacked as cut firewood, but if you are smart, this shouldn't be much of a problem either. If you live in an urban area, you are bound to have some areas of wooded plots where you can gather, and in a WSC you shouldn't be in an urban area to begin with, however if you are stuck behind enemy lines, you might have to loot for wood in other houses in the form of furniture, tables and chairs.

5. Lamp Oil, Wicks, Lamps: When do you use lamps? When it's dark. What is the easiest thing to see in the dark? Light. Use light very, very sparingly at night in a WSC so you don't draw attention to your home. People have better night vision than they think. To get your eyes adjusted, when it gets dark, go to a closet, and close the door. It's very dark in there. Stay in there for about five minutes or so, then come out, it will seem like your house is quasi-lit and you can move about quite easily. You may not be able to read a book, but I recommend sleeping at night instead of prowling around the house, you will need your energy for food gathering and wood gathering the next day anyway.

6. Coleman Fuel: See #5 for lighting. But for a cook source eventually this will be depleted rather quickly, do you really want to stockpile gallons and gallons of a volatile substance? I sure don't, I feel much safer building a fire-pit in my living room than a hundred gallons of highly flammable fuel in my basement.

7. Guns, Ammunition, Pepper Spray, Knives, Clubs, Bats & Slingshots: Ya, ya, ya. This one always comes up. In my estimation, I really don't see why everyone automatically leaps to the idea they will need to shoot people. In WCS, you may be able to hold off one or two people with a weapon, but you can bet your booty that eventually (sooner than you might think) gangsters become organized as they begin setting up their little black markets. Owning a gun could be a liability. I place ownership of these items as a priority: A VERY nice axe, hatchet and hand-saw. I recommend Gransfors Bruks for a quality cutting tool. Not for home protection, but for survival. A really nice knife like the 'Helle' knives should be a priority, again not for home defense. Some pepper spray might be nice in rare personal confrontations when people get in close to rob you. People who take advantage of others do not want confrontations and will try the easiest way possible to take your belongings without a confrontation, second if they do try to take your stuff they will rob you out on the road, houses have too many potential problems to raid with occupants still in them. Any weapon should be viewed as a food gathering resource, not a people-killing unit.

8. Hand-Can openers & hand egg beaters, whisks: These are handy but I can open a can of beans pretty dang fast, even without a can-opener, but these may be kinda nice small barter items. Don't stockpile a gross though.

9. Honey/Syrups/white, brown sugars: I would stockpile a TON of this stuff. Sweetners can be worth a GOLD mine as a barter item in a WCS. Now you can make your own sweetners by keeping bees or growing stevia, however white sugar could be worth it's weight in gold in WCS. Add to this salt, peppers and other herbs and spices.

10. Rice - Beans - Wheat: Rice and beans are the easiest items to stockpile, and they keep forever if kept dry. Wheat is good to, but if you buy a 50# pound sack of wheat from a coop, be sure to re-package it using dry ice in a container that is bug-proof, and trust me, bugs are in there when you pick it up. Eventually these bugs are going to hatch out and start devouring your wheat and by the time you open the sack you will see nothing but wheat dust. This can also be a nice barter item as well, just remember to have some of this packaged up in easily transportable containers. Break down #50 sacks into #5 packable containers, so if you need to leave your residence quickly, you can throw a couple of these in your 'go-bag' and give you a few days of sustenance before you start having problems.

So that's the first ten of the top 100 things to disappear when TSHTF event.

Rome Burns, Nero Fiddles

2010-02-03T08:56:00.003-06:00

I know there is a ton of media out there, but these are some current items that you absolutely must watch.

A Long Absence and a New Year

2010-01-29T10:12:00.000-06:00

Heirloom Gardens

I have been away from the blog for quite some time, in fact I have been away from all my blogs for some time. The life of a prepper is generally busy, busy, busy, especially if you have a regular 40-hr/wk job on top of it all. Winter, which is usually my 'slowing-down' period that I use for reading, family and woodworking has been filled with a fury of activities and engagements. As many of you already know, I am a technology coordinator at a public school here in Arkansas. On top of that position, I have taken on a second position at the University of Arkansas as an adjunct professor. With that in mind couple it with all the wood-gathering I have had to do to keep the family warm this winter and watching the socio-economic and political spheres erode into a morass of idiocy and borderline comedy. It is rough watching the fabric of a once-great civilization deteriorate into oblivion slowly. I shut down most all my Internet activities, including my successful web-site and blog 'Wildcraft'. But it's almost gardening time which has revived my innate desire to write about it all.

Hybrid Seeds Are Marching

Going into my fifth year of gardening I have watched my favorite seed catalogs deteriorate as well. Territorial Seed, offers very little for the open-pollinated gardener these days, and I have been hard-pressed identifying seeds that were not hybridized this year, despite the fact their catalog seems bigger than ever. I know they have a subsidiary catalog that is more 'heirloom friendly' but even that one is full of un-sustainable hybrids. Seeds of Change which has always been 'hybrid-free' is now sporting hybrid varieties, and I believe it won't take long before it's completely over-run. 'Tomato Growers', 'Totally Tomatos' and 'Johnny's Selected Seeds' are almost all hybrid these days as well. I understand offering a wide selection but there is hardly anything worth buying in these catalogs that I cannot get from my new all-time favorite seed catalog now, and believe you me I have cross-referenced the catalogs extensively to see if there was anything I could do without since I am a seed junky.

Make Way For Baker Creek

Yes my new best friend in the seed business is Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, and even though they are a California company, they have some good old-fashioned down home heirloom seeds. In fact they have a HUGE selection this year. They have begun traveling the globe in search of national seeds from other countries that are mainstays, but we may not have heard about here stateside, and for that I am immensely grateful. They are offering two very interesting tomato varieties from Iraq that I can't wait to try along with all my old favorites. Their chile selection is growing as well. Old time squashes and new varieties of cucumbers and a firecracker splash of colors in their flower section is more than just a little tempting. I will most likely be purchasing all of my seed from Baker Creek this year. Along with my yearly journey to Blossom Berry Nurseries for apple and assorted fruit trees. Fruit trees is one thing that California will never be able to do correctly due to it's oppressive state government, so if at all possible, buy all your trees locally. Most catalogs are WAY too expensive anyway. I never pay more than $10 for a fruit tree. Well, hardly ever.

It's Never Too Early

People laugh at me for getting excited about gardening while there is still snow on the ground, but interestingly enough, there is time enough for starts all year long if you are familiar with your varieties. For example, right now is a great time to start your cabbages, onions, leeks, shallots, and kale. The kale will start producing very soon, but onions leeks, and shallots need a bit more time to get mature, so get em' started now. In addition your peas (provided you live in a southern climate zone 7 and 8) can be direct sown now if you can work the ground. Never work a clay soil while it's wet however, or you will have red concrete by July. If you are using a tilling rake however, you can loosen the soil even while damp. You will want to start your peppers inside here in another week or so. Heirloom peppers take a bit longer to start pumping out fruit so you want something of a jump on them so you can have them in the ground by mid-April. I will use artificial lighting at first, but eventually I will move them out into a raised hot frame so they can grow a bit slower with full sun. Cooler temperatures will help them put on stronger root systems even if it looks like the green is taking forever to develop. Once in the garden they will TAKE OFF. As will the tomatoes, but wait till late February-early March before you start them off as they tend to grow a bit faster than peppers. If you go with Golden Marconi chiles, you will get massive abundant harvests. I grew them last year, even crowded them WAY too much, but they pumped out so many chiles I had to dehydrate several pounds worth. My favorite pepper was a new one last year as well, the Mulato Isleno, currently not offered by Baker Creek, but I hope to grow enough of them this year to maybe start sending them seed for cultivation. Black Cherry tomatos', Giant German, and a few new varities will be gracing the garden this year. I have been known for growing many different types (last year I grew seven varieties of tomatos) but this year I am going to branch out as it doesn't take long to fill a 9,000 square foot garden. I am going to go more vertical this year as well to pack more growing room in. I started going vertical last year and it was GREAT! So I am taking the vertical concept to the next level this year. I am also hoping to double my garden space this year, if God permits, but 18,000 square feet is a whole-lotta dirt. I plan to double or triple my orchard size as well. I have trees spaced all over the place, so I will be looking to find a better way to do the orchard instead of haphazardly place around the yard. If you havn't gotten your seed catalog from Baker Creek Heirloom you need to request one NOW, they run out of them quite fast.

Prepping

I am roughing out an idea for prepping, that takes the prepping ideology and explains it into layers. I know many of us just kind fly-by-the-seat-of-our-pants with regard to prepping. We look at our stock-piles and know we are getting low and to replenish, but I want to take the next step in prepping and make it a family culture and tradition here at our endeavors, so be looking for that.

Gratitude and Thanks

I was recently interviewed by Matt and I want to express my thanks to him for having me on the show. It re-invigorated my ideas about prepping and allowed me to re-connect to why I volunteered here at APN in the first place. When I first under-took the role for APN, I had in mind a very short-termed romance to help out the Preppers Network and provide a place for Arkansans to see prepping in our unique climate. However, it looks like my goals are being steered in new directions, and my tenure here will be a bit longer than I had originally planned.

Getting Hit Hard

As this post is already longer than I intended, I have to mention that in the early stages of our countries recession, Arkansas seemed completely un-phased. We are a 'do-it-yourself' agrarian culture with mostly blue-collard jobs. We had no corporate fat to trim among our ranks, however this year I have been seeing many lay-offs and actual small town businesses folding. Main Street is not vacant, but it's really starting to hit here now, and I suspect as this second wave of foreclosures and real-estate problems start to hit we will be seeing a lot more penniless people. Let us not forget that prepping is more about thriving than surviving, and in order to thrive we need to do it together. Lone wolf survivalists are not the answer to our countries problem although they may be very handy. No bunkers for my family, we plan on being a part of our own culturally significant tradition in society for all eternity. God bless.

KAIT8 Generator Article

2010-01-27T10:21:00.000-06:00

KAIT 8 out of Jonesboro did a pretty decent article on generators. You can find it here. I am glad to see any mainstream coverage of information that can help people be better prepared for emergency situations.

The Prepper Podcast interviews Robert Mullins!

2010-01-26T14:29:00.000-06:00

Robert Mullins from the Arkansas Preppers Network was interviewed on The Prepper Podcast this week. You can listen to it here.

Lessons from Haiti

2010-01-18T10:28:00.000-06:00

There are many lessons to be learned from the disaster in Haiti, and these deserve to be repeated ad nauseum.

* Most people are NOT prepared for a major disaster. This is true whether it be in Haiti, where most people are poor, or in America, where most people are rich (compared to the rest of the world). A perfect example of this is New Orleans during Katrina. People responded the same there as they are in Haiti.

* Basic preparations would prepare you for even a major catastrophe like an earthquake. What is it that most people need in this situation? Water, Food, Shelter, Clothing. If everyone in Haiti had 30 days of extra food and water stored, alternative shelter such as tents or a bug-out location, and a couple of extra sets of clothing, the survivors of this disaster would be living a lot more comfortably. Granted, not very comfortably, but much better. What does this mean? Get started NOW! Even if you can only buy a day or two of extra food per trip to the grocery store, do it. Every day of extra food you have will be one day less of hunger that you will face, or one day less of handouts you will have to beg for.

* Do not keep all of your eggs in one basket. Even if you had all of these preparations, do not keep them all in one location. Spread them out around your house. Bury some. Give some to a relative in another part of town or another town entirely. If all of your preparations were in one part of the house, and that part of the house collapses, you will have a hell of a time getting to them.

* Eat what you store and store what you eat. Wheat berries, etc, although an excellent source of long term food storage, is not the best option for a situation like this. Being able to open a quick can spam and cook it over a fire with a can of corn is a much better and more expedient option. I would have at least 90 days of foods that you normally eat stored and scheduled to rotate on a regular basis. This is a pain in the butt when you are starting out, but once you get it going it becomes second nature.

I hope this helps motive you to get started NOW if you haven't already!

To Pretect and Serve - The role of police in Arkansas.

2010-01-15T11:10:00.000-06:00

This is a great article on the role of police in society in Arkansas.

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-33857-Fort-Smith-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2010m1d14-To-protect-and-serve

The Prepper Podcast

2010-01-11T10:29:00.000-06:00

The Prepper Podcast has 19 podcasts available for download, and I would suggest listening to them all. They each have excellent information in them.

I would also suggest subscribing to The Survival Podcast by Jack Spirko. Another great podcast for preppers. He has over 350 podcasts up and he does this 5 days a week. Great stuff in here!

New Survival Magazine

2010-01-09T12:03:00.000-06:00

Ron Hood has a new survival magazine coming out in February. Four issues cost $24.00. He will have many different contributors in each issue, like Jack Spirko from The Survival Podcast and others. The magazine will be called Survival.com Magazine.

"The Hood's new quarterly magazine deals with all aspects of wilderness and urban survival. Fun to read, this full glossy magazine will help you in all emergencies. Filled with content by some of the world's leading authorities, you will come away with those special skills that can help you face the challenges of this world."

We need to help make this magazine a success! Subscribe today!

Book Review - "Lights Out" by Halffast

2009-12-28T10:50:00.000-06:00

"Lights Out" by Halffast is a free online book that you can download in .pdf format or can read all on the web at http://www.survivalmonkey.com/Lights%20Out.htm.

For a free book, I must say that this is well worth the purchase price. This book was apparently written by someone who knows a little bit about writing, as the book was written very well, and the story itself was very interesting and very possible.

The protagonist, Mark Turner, is a very resourceful individual, but he has never been a prepper. When an EMP attack across most of America puts the "Lights Out" completely, he has to make a major shift in the way he and his family live. The book begins right away with the EMP, and follows Mark, his family, and his friends through the tough process of survival.

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in prepping and the survivalist lifestyle. It is a little difficult to read on the computer, so, if you have a printer and lots of ink, I would recommend printing it out. An even better solution, if you have a Kindle, is to upgrade the software on your Kindle to the latest revision, which allows you to read .pdf files on it.

Book Review - "Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse"

2009-12-21T12:37:00.000-06:00

I purchased "Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse" for my Kindle. It cost me $9.99. Unfortunately, that was $10 too much.

If you want an inventory of purchases you can make for TEOTWAWKI, then you might find this book interesting. The first few chapters of this book are nothing more than an inventory list and background information on characters we have not even met yet.

The story line is fairly decent, but the writing is horrendous. I can't remember the last time I read a book so horribly organized and written. It was very difficult to finish reading it, and by the end I was exhausted. It seems to have a whole section missing from the middle, because it jumps from one group of things happening to something entirely different for the "grand finale" ending.

I would save your money on this one, folks.

Statement of Congressman Ron Paul Introducing the Free Competition in Currency Act

2009-12-21T12:26:00.000-06:00

This is long, but well worth the read. - Rodger

Statement of Congressman Ron Paul
United States House of Representatives
Statement Introducing the Free Competition in Currency Act
December 9, 2009

Madame Speaker, I rise to introduce the Free Competition in Currency Act of 2009. Currency, or money, is what allows civilization to flourish. In the absence of money, barter is the name of the game; if the farmer needs shoes, he must trade his eggs and milk to the cobbler and hope that the cobbler needs eggs and milk. Money makes the transaction process far easier. Rather than having to search for someone with reciprocal wants, the farmer can exchange his milk and eggs for an agreed-upon medium of exchange with which he can then purchase shoes.

This medium of exchange should satisfy certain properties: it should be durable, that is to say, it does not wear out easily; it should be portable, that is, easily carried; it should be divisible into units usable for every-day transactions; it should be recognizable and uniform, so that one unit of money has the same properties as every other unit; it should be scarce, in the economic sense, so that the extant supply does not satisfy the wants of everyone demanding it; it should be stable, so that the value of its purchasing power does not fluctuate wildly; and it should be reproducible, so that enough units of money can be created to satisfy the needs of exchange.

Over millennia of human history, gold and silver have been the two metals that have most often satisfied these conditions, survived the market process, and gained the trust of billions of people. Gold and silver are difficult to counterfeit, a property which ensures they will always be accepted in commerce. It is precisely for this reason that gold and silver are anathema to governments. A supply of gold and silver that is limited in supply by nature cannot be inflated, and thus serves as a check on the growth of government. Without the ability to inflate the currency, governments find themselves constrained in their actions, unable to carry on wars of aggression or to appease their overtaxed citizens with bread and circuses.

At this country's founding, there was no government controlled national currency. While the Constitution established the Congressional power of minting coins, it was not until 1792 that the US Mint was formally established. In the meantime, Americans made do with foreign silver and gold coins. Even after the Mint's operations got underway, foreign coins continued to circulate within the United States, and did so for several decades.

On the desk in my office I have a sign that says: “Don't steal – the government hates competition.” Indeed, any power a government arrogates to itself, it is loathe to give back to the people. Just as we have gone from a constitutionally-instituted national defense consisting of a limited army and navy bolstered by militias and letters of marque and reprisal, we have moved from a system of competing currencies to a government-instituted banking cartel that monopolizes the issuance of currency. In order to reintroduce a system of competing currencies, there are three steps that must be taken to produce a legal climate favorable to competition.

The first step consists of eliminating legal tender laws. Article I Section 10 of the Constitution forbids the States from making anything but gold and silver a legal tender in payment of debts. States are not required to enact legal tender laws, but should they choose to, the only acceptable legal tender is gold and silver, the two precious metals that individuals throughout history and across cultures have used as currency. However, there is nothing in the Constitution that grants the Congress the power to enact legal tender laws. We, the Congress, have the power to coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin, but not to declare a legal tender. Yet, there is a section of US Code, 31 USC 5103, that purports to establish US coins and currency, including Federal Reserve notes, as legal tender.

Historically, legal tender laws have been used by governments to force their citizens to accept debased and devalued currency. Gresham's Law describes this phenomenon, which can be summed up in one phrase: bad money drives out good money. An emperor, a king, or a dictator might mint coins with half an ounce of gold and force merchants, under pain of death, to accept them as though they contained one ounce of gold. Each ounce of the king's gold could now be minted into two coins instead of one, so the king now had twice as much “money” to spend on building castles and raising armies. As these legally overvalued coins circulated, the coins containing the full ounce of gold would be pulled out of circulation and hoarded. We saw this same phenomenon happen in the mid-1960s when the US government began to mint subsidiary coinage out of copper and nickel rather than silver. The copper and nickel coins were legally overvalued, the silver coins undervalued in relation, and silver coins vanished from circulation.

These actions also give rise to the most pernicious effects of inflation. Most of the merchants and peasants who received this devalued currency felt the full effects of inflation, the rise in prices and the lowered standard of living, before they received any of the new currency. By the time they received the new currency, prices had long since doubled, and the new currency they received would give them no benefit.

In the absence of legal tender laws, Gresham's Law no longer holds. If people are free to reject debased currency, and instead demand sound money, sound money will gradually return to use in society. Merchants would have been free to reject the king's coin and accept only coins containing full metal weight.

The second step to reestablishing competing currencies is to eliminate laws that prohibit the operation of private mints. One private enterprise which attempted to popularize the use of precious metal coins was Liberty Services, the creators of the Liberty Dollar. Evidently the government felt threatened, as Liberty Dollars had all their precious metal coins seized by the FBI and Secret Service in November of 2007. Of course, not all of these coins were owned by Liberty Services, as many were held in trust as backing for silver and gold certificates which Liberty Services issued. None of this matters, of course, to the government, which hates competition. The responsibility to protect contracts is of no interest to the government.

The sections of US Code which Liberty Services is accused of violating are erroneously considered to be anti-counterfeiting statutes, when in fact their purpose was to shut down private mints that had been operating in California. California was awash in gold in the aftermath of the 1849 gold rush, yet had no US Mint to mint coinage. There was not enough foreign coinage circulating in California either, so private mints stepped into the breach to provide their own coins. As was to become the case in other industries during the Progressive era, the private mints were eventually accused of circulating debased (substandard) coinage, and with the supposed aim of providing government-sanctioned regulation and a government guarantee of purity, the 1864 Coinage Act was passed, which banned private mints from producing their own coins for circulation as currency.

The final step to ensuring competing currencies is to eliminate capital gains and sales taxes on gold and silver coins. Under current federal law, coins are considered collectibles, and are liable for capital gains taxes. Short-term capital gains rates are at income tax levels, up to 35 percent, while long-term capital gains taxes are assessed at the collectibles rate of 28 percent. Furthermore, these taxes actually tax monetary debasement. As the dollar weakens, the nominal dollar value of gold increases. The purchasing power of gold may remain relatively constant, but as the nominal dollar value increases, the federal government considers this an increase in wealth, and taxes accordingly. Thus, the more the dollar is debased, the more capital gains taxes must be paid on holdings of gold and other precious metals.

Just as pernicious are the sales and use taxes which are assessed on gold and silver at the state level in many states. Imagine having to pay sales tax at the bank every time you change a $10 bill for a roll of quarters to do laundry. Inflation is a pernicious tax on the value of money, but even the official numbers, which are massaged downwards, are only on the order of 4% per year. Sales taxes in many states can take away 8% or more on every single transaction in which consumers wish to convert their Federal Reserve Notes into gold or silver.

In conclusion, Madame Speaker, allowing for competing currencies will allow market participants to choose a currency that suits their needs, rather than the needs of the government. The prospect of American citizens turning away from the dollar towards alternate currencies will provide the necessary impetus to the US government to regain control of the dollar and halt its downward spiral. Restoring soundness to the dollar will remove the government's ability and incentive to inflate the currency, and keep us from launching unconstitutional wars that burden our economy to excess. With a sound currency, everyone is better off, not just those who control the monetary system. I urge my colleagues to consider the redevelopment of a system of competing currencies and cosponsor the Free Competition in Currency Act.

Book Review - Making the Best of Basics by James Talmage Stevens

2009-12-03T10:29:00.000-06:00

A couple of weeks ago, I purchased and read the latest edition (11th) of the book Making the Best of Basics: Family Preparedness Handbook by James Talmage Stevens so I thought I would give a review of this book for you guys. This book is the best selling prepper book ever, and with good reason. It is chock full of information that you need.

The first edition of this book came out in 1974 and was well written then. Now in it's 11th edition, it has 250 more pages than before.

The book is a steal at $34.95. It comes with online access to a very good 90 minute video from Jim Phillips and, if you order during the holidays, your copy of the book will be personally autographed by James Talmage Stevens!

I could not endorse this book any stronger. Do yourself a favor and purchase this book.

Survival Summary

2009-11-24T13:43:00.000-06:00

I found a very well put-together survival summary. This is an excellent document and will help anyone get their prepping information more organized and streamlined. I plan to use this format to create my own soon.

http://survivalsummary.wordpress.com/

New Guy!

2009-11-24T13:35:00.000-06:00

Hello everyone. I'm a new contributor to the Arkansas Preppers Network blog! I would like to thank Robert for allowing me to add my two cents to this blog every once in a while.

A little bit about me:

I'm 33 years old, married, with two small boys (3.5 and 1.5 years old). I live in Marion, AR right smack in the middle of a neighborhood. Many years ago (mid-90's), I was a prepper, but that didn't last long. I have lately felt the need to begin again to prepare my family for the worst. Since I'm in the middle of the suburbs, I hope that my experiences in prepping will help some of you that do not have the luxury of a few acres in the sticks.

My goal is to add a post to this blog a couple of times a week. Please feel free to comment or to email me directly if you have some information you would like me to talk about, or if you would like some further clarification on things I am discussing in the posts.

Thanks!

Rodger

Christ Matthews is a Racist

2009-11-19T17:51:00.000-06:00

A little reverse-racism is good for the soul. How did this guy get to be white?

Coming Back Soon

2009-09-28T23:14:00.001-05:00

The last post I put up here was in July. I know this has been a long time, however I will be back soon to post more regularly. I have added a second job to my already overwhelming schedule. I have been teaching some college classes at the University and this fall and it has seriously put me WAAAYY behind on all my Internet related activities.

Some good stuff coming, as soon as I can get some time scraped together to put it all into something readable. My apologies to all for the wait.

Get Over Your Partisan Politics: REDUX

2009-07-23T21:19:00.000-05:00

I just read over Matthiasj's blog on the titled topic here and as well as AP's response, so I thought, 'What the hell, this looks like something fun.' Not that I am as widely read of the aforementioned prepper brothers but I can throw in my two cents, plus I havn't stirred up any trouble lately so it's probably my turn.

Without quoting any statistics, and only a brief understanding of what matthiasj wrote I have to admit he is exactly 100% correct. Now, to be honest I don't know matthiasj at all, nor do I know what his political background is. I have assumptions based upon what he wrote, but they are only assumptions so I will refrain from posting those specifically. But again, judging from what he wrote, on it's face, it is correct. Republicans and Democrats are the same coin. Some might say they are different sides of the same coin, but I don't know if I would go that far, in fact being an active voter over the last 22 years (I admit to being a republican in times past) I have noticed that there is next to NO difference in their policies. This year I did not vote. Too bad, suck it up, I am still an American, I am still very interested in my country, and I am highly engaged in how these parties affect our great country. The problem is this, they are BOTH THE SAME PARTY! They may behave a bit differently in their rhetoric, but once you realize it's the same mish-mashed bull-sh**, and you step aside from what matthiasj calls 'your partisan politics' you begin to realize this.

Now we can play the blame game all day long. It's Obama's fault, it's Bushes fault, it's (fill in most hated politician here) fault. The real answer to this is 'YOU'RE RIGHT! It's all of their faults. In fact, I am going to 'one-up' all of these and blame Lincoln. Lincoln was a stinking federalist and it was based on his efforts that a new era in American history began. Federalism and power to the federal government. Before Lincoln, states could make their own choices about how to govern themselves, and every election since his has been about one thing, and one thing only. POWER. Both parties don't want to 'make a difference' both parties don't want to 'make real change', but both parties DO want to be re-elected, and both parties DO want the power of the peoples vote. And like all the other lemmings and sheeple we give it to them every four years. We line up like idiots with paper in hand marking the only two options the dictators want us to believe we have. So I decided option 'C' would work for me. Screw it, I'm tired of voting for the lesser of two evils. Not one republican I have ever voted for made any REAL change. Oh, sure there was a policy there, and a policy here, but just as soon as an opposing party came into power those policies were repealed. Gun rights, animal rights, environmentalism, whatever. Anytime something actually got changed it was a short term thing that was rolled back in the very next election. Until now.

Like it or hate it, the recent Mr. Bush started us down a spiral of tyranny. Granted, it all started back with Lincoln, and over time our rights have been actively stripped from us ever since and handed over to a 'mommy-government' but if any one really wants to point fingers they should point in the mirror. This sh**-hole is OUR fault. As homeland security and the development of 'Norcom', and a variety of other tyranny's began to make their descent we idle-ly stood by and watched it happen in front of our eyes. We bitch and moan about how none of our representatives are reading the bills they are voting on, but have any of US read them? Did anyone read the whole 'Homeland Security Act' and it's various bastard brothers? I did. That is when I decided to just simply not vote.

What gets under my skin are the mannequins and lunatics who stupidly recite this piss-poor mantra, 'If you don't vote you can't complain.'. What pure and utter idiocy. Proves the point that we Americans are just plain dumb. Just what sort of logic would indicate that 'complaining' is based on a requisite of 'voting'? If someone gave you the choice of vanilla ice-cream and vanilla ice-cream, and you voted for neither, then complained about the lack of flavors, would this dumb statement, 'well if you don't choose one, you can't complain.' hold up? Seriously now, we have a choice of vanilla candidate A or vanilla candidate B (no disparaging intended to our 4% black president) which would you vote for? How about NONE OF THE ABOVE!

The real point here is that Obama is just simply taking the precedence from Bush and taking it to it's ultimate conclusion at a faster pace than another candidate may have. It doesn't make any of it right. It sure as hell doesn't justify the stimulus, or the banker takeover of America. Nor does it justify Obama's heavy handed immoral law-making tendencies. It Bush's actions (as jacked up as they were) do not justify Obama and his reign of tyranny. But to be completely fair the entire governmental system is flat out screwed up beyond repair. This statement usually gets me a 'You mean you don't think it's fixable?' to which I normally respond, 'Nope.' and here is why.

To fix our current broken political system a president and congress must go into office and fire a whole shi*-load of folks, and NOBODY likes getting fired. You start cutting peoples little pet programs and guess who doesn't get re-elected. You think ANY elected president is going to go into office with the idea that he is going to see how many constituents he can piss off in any given day? You damn right he isn't. Now, at this point I need to throw a bone to the Ron Paul crowd because it seems that Ron Paul is genuinely interested in firing a whole bunch of loosers at the capital. I only hope he means what he says. Kill the IRS, cut fat heavy government back to the quick and give the states back their rights. It is the ONLY way any of us are going to be free. As Benjamin Franklin said, "He who sacrifices a liberty in order to achieve a little security deserve neither liberty OR safety." Thomas Pain said, ""Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom, must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it." and it is fatiguing supporting real freedom. The problem was that Americans got tired of being involved and now we are pissed because we simply were not paying attention. Thomas Jefferson said, "When the people fear their government there is TYRANNY. When the government fears the people there is LIBERTY." Does anyone think the government fears the people when they brazenly pass what has been passed over the last 5-6 years? Seriously now?

So who's fault is all of this mess? Ours, for not believing in anything but some dumb two-party system that is obviously in bed together in private but fight like cats and dogs whenever there is a camera around. Trying to get us all to believe that there is some kind of war going on between the candidates. It is in this spirit that I believe matthiasj was discussing when he posted his blog. Let's stop this endless justifying the political parties. Stop thinking like a sheep and start thinking like a human. You may disagree with what I said here, and that is 'ok', but at least be man (or woman) enough to post your credentials instead of hiding like a coward behind 'anonymous'.

As far as censorship and all that is concerned with regard to what AP has recently began looking at, I don't censor my comments even when people disagree with me. And it is perfectly OK to disagree with me, as long as you have half a brain while you're doing it. Hell, you might teach me something and I'll recant my entire post, I'm big enough, (seriously, I eat a lot, I'm big enough for a couple of folks.) to admit when I am wrong for sure. But don't go off on some dumb rant then hide behind 'anonymous'. Once someone posts 'anonymous' you automatically are questionable in character. I had a couple of ladies just recently disagree strongly with something I strongly believe in. I didn't delete their disagreement, and while we still disagree I still have the utmost respect for them, and enjoy the fact that they too, still read my posts, despite the fact that we disagree passionately on that one issue. It's part of what is so great about this country. But if we pass that dumb new 'hate crime' act, none of us will be able to enjoy the freedom of disagreement. No one will be able to voice their opinions. Let's be honest with our selves, we were much better off before Lincoln and his 'War between the states'. Civil war my ass.

Life and Death

2009-06-25T22:59:00.000-05:00

It's amazing to me that the death of a child-molester trumps news of a nation on the brink of revolution and civil war.

Somewhere, someone who had a life of meaning an purpose died and nobody gave a damn.

Hidden Information

2009-06-16T22:32:00.001-05:00

Here is a bit of news not getting much coverage. Did you know there was a meeting in Russia on Monday and Tuesday? Did you know that many of the worlds leaders were invited EXCEPT the United States? Did you know that central to the meeting was the topic of replacing the Dollar as the worlds reserve currency? Well it happened.

Results are still unclear pertaining to the meeting but here are some EXTREMELY important links surrounding the topic. This will inevitably spell out the end of the 'American Dream' as faulty as it was. (it only happens when you are asleep, hence 'dream'.

Topic 1
Topic 2
Topic 3
Topic 4

The U.S. Takes Freedoms from Iranians

2009-06-16T22:18:00.000-05:00

The U.S. plays nanny state by threatening Twitter to refuse some services to Iranians who are disputing the recent rigged election.

Nothing like a little destruction of Freedom of Speech. Sounds like something our stupid leaders would do.

Read the full story here.

An Arkansas Jihadist

2009-06-09T22:22:00.000-05:00

Rough Week

2009-06-06T21:50:00.000-05:00

Rough week. Turkeys went down the road looking for forage. Had to find them and bring them home. Neighbors dog got into the back yard and killed 7 chickens. One month away from laying too. School district was busy with end of year activities, trying to find how to spend millions of stimulus money is harder than one might think. Took a trip to the family for training and tux rental, brother is getting married.....whewww.

Finally back home and spent a peaceful evening weeding the garden and trying to bring water-starved potatoes back to life. I hate being away from home for two days!

Cops Out Of Control

2009-06-02T00:05:00.000-05:00

Now cops are 'taser-ing' 70-year old women. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!

Black Listed News

Tired of Our Government

2009-05-31T21:52:00.000-05:00

This is so good from American Prepper, I just had to re-post.

No Tears for the Doc

2009-05-31T17:01:00.000-05:00

I may offend someone with this, but as a long-time believer that ALL life is sacred, from the deer to the polar bears, I just can't shed any tears for this one, in fact a small part of me is relieved. Talk about irony.

Sentiment Escalating

2009-05-30T20:42:00.001-05:00

I cannot believe the number of videos that are popping up everywhere today. It's a bit suspicous if you ask me. I'm not even having to work to find this stuff, it's just popping up on all the blogs and news cites.

The previous few videos I have posted have not been from anti-government, or anarchists sites, they have been from mainstream media sources. Here is another that popped up in an Australian news site.

Something is underway folks.

Military Begins to Wake Up

2009-05-30T17:49:00.000-05:00

Looks like there is some military finally starting to see the light. Good to know that there is some common sense leaking through.

The Obama Plan: Get Your Khaki Uniforms Now

2009-05-30T16:28:00.000-05:00

More Cops

2009-05-30T15:24:00.000-05:00

This is getting ridiculous. Is it just me, or are cops completely out of control!!??

I must add at this point that Arkansas cops ROCK! The best cops in all of the U.S.A.

Stealing Water

2009-05-30T13:07:00.001-05:00

This legislation has been in process for some time. The support for this increases all the time. Soon, you will yield any water-bearing area under the sole ownership of the Federal government.

This will even affect any water collection you initiate off of your roof.

The Monsanto Truth

2009-05-30T12:20:00.000-05:00

It's two hours long, but seriously watch this thing. If anyone has a list of Monsanto related foods and companies that resell Monsanto foods, let me know so we can stop buying their products. This will kill our future generations.

Told You About Those Cops

2009-05-29T00:43:00.000-05:00

I told you about those Oklahoma cops.

Latest Post

2009-05-19T23:10:00.001-05:00

I have a new post over at my BlackDog blog. I would copy/paste here, but there is something about doing that, that just seems a bit improper.

Nanotech Comes to Arkansas

2009-05-19T23:07:00.001-05:00

Nanotech industry is building it's first manufacturing facility in Springdale. While I am sure this provides a lot of jobs to people who wouldn't otherwise have one, I am a bit reticent of nanotech.

Busy, Busy, Busy

2009-05-05T13:15:00.000-05:00

My blogging overall is starting to decline a bit. This isn't due to the 'blog-fade' phenomenon but rather to the '9,000 square foot garden' phenomenon. We have had a full week of heavy rain down here in Arkansas which is seriously put me behind. I easily have about a month of work to do, and being behind a full week is NOT a good thing at all.

I will post as I come across the highlights.

Again, Hooray for Texas

2009-04-30T00:28:00.000-05:00

If only Arkansas would do the same. If the legislation passes all guns that were manufactured in Texas, while possessed in Texas would be protected from any Federal institution or regulation. Full story here. It's almost time to move. ;)

Fairness Doctrine in 90 Days!

2009-04-30T00:11:00.000-05:00

This just in. In 90 days boards will convene to begin monitoring and censoring talk-radio shows. Next stop is the internet and possibly this blog. What next, burning books? So long Barnes and Noble, it was fleeting but a romance like no other. Full Story Here!

Survival Reality: Building Communities

2009-04-29T23:49:00.000-05:00

"Those guy guys, you know, those guys with skills.....Yeah. You send them into the wilderness with a pocket knife and a Q-tip and they build you a shopping mall. You can't do that?" --Six Days and Seven Nights

If only it were that easy. We discussed building communities in a previous post a bit, and how having a slightly unstable group of heavily armed friends can mean quite a bit in surviving the aftermath of a collapse. Granted, you want to be very sure they have a very strong sense of loyalty to you and/or your group. Your best bet is to search out and befriend ex-police, but I would personally be sure to have a few Marines in there, preferably ones that have had successful tours of duty in Iran, Iraq, or Afghanistan. I wouldn't necessarily go for those involved in Pakistan, because most of those were un-manned drones that did the fighting, so they would scarcely be considered war-hardened.

1. Start stockpiling a favored ammunition for such folks. SKS ammunition pretty much fit a plethora of calibers, and of course you can't go wrong stocking up on some 9MM's and so forth. Gang's that turn into 'Mafias' in post collapse situations tend to move beyond the frail limitations of handguns to rifle-type weapons.
2. If you are NOT the aforementioned 'heavily-armed person with moral flexibility' then you will want to become valuable so you don't get 'voted off the island'. Learn a skill, this is the most crucial aspect of prepping. Fishing, cooking, food preservation, gardening, triage, medical skills, brewing, etc, etc etc are all very good to have. You want to have some community based skills, that is to say, skills that help build communities. Just for the record, the broadly defined 'Teaching' is not a skill. I have had people say to me, "Oh I have a skill, I'm a teacher! That's a community building skill right?" No, it's a state supported job function that that is mindlessly protected regardless of the applicant. The reason why a person has a 'teaching' job is because they were forced to jump through a lot of legislative, industry-protecting hoops, but it is most definitely NOT a community building skill, it's infrastructure employment. I am not saying that 'Teaching' is a un-necessary part of our society, I am just saying that it doesn't make you invaluable as a person in a post-collapse situation.
3. Have something other than just 'stuff'. Stuff can be taken away from you. You HAVE to have skills. You know there is so much to 'prepping' than stockpiling a bunch of stuff. What I find altogether flooring is that preppers generally tend to be something of an anathema to society. They tend to be not just outside the crowd but anti-crowd. They are not just non-materialistic but anti-materialism. But you wave a catastrophe in front of them and a good portion start buying STUFF and cram it into a basement. Buying and stockpiling up stuff is only effective to get you over the hump. That is to say, your stock pile is only good for the first few months of a catastrophe, if you do not have a plan outside of six months you will most likely be toast. It is amazing to me how many of us tend to forget that. There is worry and concern and an attempt to try and store 12 months worth of water. Folks, it's easy as this, after six months if you do not have a long-term solution to water, you are going to be very, very thirsty. If you don't have some inputs into your food supply after six months, you will be very, very hungry. And if you sit around blowing through your buffer (stockpile) the least of your worries is 'Did I collect enough stuff?'.

I have said this before and I will say it again, preppers are not just survivors, they are thrivers. They are the quint-essential human race, scratching and clawing for solutions to situations that cause the weakest among us to drop to the floor paralyzed by worry and indecision. A prepper might carry buckets of water between the creek and their house but you know dang well, they are keeping their eyes open for some PVC pipe and a hand-pump. The true prepper knows he/she cannot do it all, and that it requires a community to thrive and become multi-generational. The temporariness of our culture must go, or we too will go the way of the dinosaur. But it doesn't take a catastrophe to accomplish that, all it requires is enough apathy to simply not care anymore about our children and their children, and the children after that. Thusly, the generations are squandered and wasted away till there is nothing left but the gangs and the politico's trying to control them. It's time that right-thinking people take control of their own lives and stop waiting for momma state to bail out GM.

Money Up In Smoke

2009-04-28T23:47:00.000-05:00

That little stunt yesterday with Air Force One and the fighters cost you $60,000 per hour! Good to know that the recession is now over huh? Story Here.

Arkansas Sovereignty

2009-04-28T22:53:00.000-05:00

ATTENTION ARKANSAS PREPPERS!!! Arkansas is beginning a 10th amendment initiative. Also known as 'State Sovereignty' initiatives. You can bet this did not come from Beebe so click on the link and sign the petition!

SIGN THE PETITION!

Survival Reality: Gun Ownership

2009-04-25T21:41:00.001-05:00

This will be a really short one. Again, I feel the need to iterate that I am NOT anti-gun. I am a huge believer in the Second Amendment, however I want to take a very practical look at what we as preppers focus on, pre-, mid-, and post collapse. To be very clear there are many forms of collapse. Economic collapse, militaristic collapse, social collapse, etc, etc. What we United States citizens are looking at right now is a complete collapse due to the effect that every system is built right on top of another, so we will see a kind of domino effect that will continue into the next several years.

I just recently listened to a dissertation of a Russian gentleman who has been giving some talks on collapses and how to be deal with them. And he should know, because not only was he an eye-witness of it in his own nation, but was a participant in the upheaval that followed the complete meltdown of the Russian empire. It is indeed unfortunate that as United States citizens we tend to distance ourselves from such travesty and scarcely remember that there was real collapse going on in Russian when it happened. In fact, there have been very serious things happening in other countries but we don't really pay much attention to them. Out of sight, out of mind, which is EXACTLY what happened during the most brutal ethnic cleansing of an era in Rwanda. We have not idea what it is like to look down the street littered with the bodies of some 800,000 Tutsi's slain at the edge of a machete. (for a little enlightment check out the movie 'Hotel Rwanda' with Don Cheadle.)

The Russian speaker that I listened too, talked of many things and at the end of the 'presentation' there was a discussion time where gun ownership was brought up. He mentioned that owning a couple of firearms is helpful, but that handguns are pretty much pointless and a waste of time. His advice was to surround yourself with a community of heavily armed and slightly, mentally unbalanced people. This of course brought laughter from the crowd, but he could not have been more serious. Most people do not really consider the ramifications of social collapse. As collapse is occupying people begin to orient themselves in a number of 'people-groups' based upon their local norms. Of course, those that are slightly opportunistic with a somewhat moral flexibility tend to group up as well. Black markets begin to spring up as goods and services become rarer and these 'opportunistic' types begin to organize and run these black markets. Some of these groups become quite large. This is how a 'Mafia' is born, or at the very best, 'gangs'. These gangs, (who ARE heavily armed) tend to stretch out into the communities to see how far their influence can hold sway. Protection monies, tributes, favors, abound and the honest worker still trying to survive may begin to feel the pinch from such thugs.

These 'gangs' are not completely devoid of reason, and they know better than to approach you in a heavily populated place. They will approach you as you are riding your bike home from your place of work, or from the market. They approach you in groups of 5-6 people depending if they know you are armed, and most likely they are armed much more adequately than you are. This is the scenario in which ALL gangs have operated since the beginning of time, so it shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who may be gently caressing the knurled handle of their Glock 9MM. How many can you take down? How many can you take down and still live through the experience. How many will they send next time? It is at this point that the 'Community' building comes into play.

If you have read my blog in the past you already know THE MOST IMPORTANT thing in a collapse situation is to form communities. The community is the most powerful force you can associate yourself with, AND if your community has at it's disposal a few slightly unstable individuals, armed to the teeth, then it becomes a bit more difficult to be a victim. How you attract such folks will be addressed in my next posting.

Survival Reality: Gold Ownership

2009-04-23T22:59:00.000-05:00

I started to really investigate survivalism as a hobby some years ago, only we called it 'getting off the grid'. Then a little later I came to understand it as 'perma-culture' then as time when on it was called 'Christian Agrarianism'. Now it's called prepping, but however or whatever it's called the the message is the same, learning to live with minimal impact. That is to say, learn how to live well with as few inputs as possible, but I call it just plain smart with or without a social/economic collapse. I would be trying to do this regardless of the economy. But now that the economy is collapsing and will eventually collapse to the social level it has shed some new light on how to actually prepare for the event, and I am here to tell you that most of what you are seeing people do and hearing of is incorrect or a complete lie. I would like to cover a couple of them here.

1. Gold. Anyone who puts their faith and trust in gold is a complete moron. Now if you have put everything into gold, please do not take offense. I personally know of some people who are putting literally EVERYTHING into the ownership of gold. Having a little is helpful. Maybe $1,000 to $10,000 will be good. Here is the upside of gold ownership. If you buy $1,000 worth of gold now, (roughly one ounce) then as the economy sours and the dollar drops to crap levels, one ounce could possbily be worth $10,000. It is possible that if you are deeply in debt and you have $10,000 in gold, when the dollar falls you could quite literally pay off all your debts. This is good, however beyond that there are more problems than solutions.

First of all, when the dollar goes to crap people will stop using them and go to some other form of medium, but they will NOT go to gold. Gold is not a very good exchange medium at all in the United States because no one has it, and in a depresion/collapse no one will want it. Gold only has value in a society that values it, and there is very little evidence it is valued in the United States beyond the people who are hording it. Secondly if it does come into prominence as a commodity it will be the first thing that becomes illegal as an exchange medium and there will be laws passed to ensure this. If you doubt it, we have already done it once during the depression. One of FDR's measures was to outlaw the use of gold as a trade medium and the ownership of it completely. Now if you happened to have gold the government would declare an amnesty for you as long as you turned it in, which you did not get a fair market rate. Has anyone taken a look to see what the government values gold at right now? If the government made gold illegal this minute and offered a buy-back program for it you would get exactly $42.222 per ounce. Yup that's right. For your $1,000 investment you would get back exactly $42.222.
After gold becomes illegal the only way to get your investment out of it is to trade it in back alleys and in black market in which you still will not get fair value for it. You won't buy a car with it, but you might be able to get a liter or two of gas per ounce. You won't be able to buy a house with it, but perhaps you might be able to rent a room. You won't be able to buy a farm with it, but you might be able to get a meal for it. You see gold is over-inflated right now,,just like the dollar and when the dollar crashes then the price-to-product ratio will begin to even out just as it was in pre-industrialism. You may be able to buy a hunting rifle with 12 ounces of gold, or an ounce or two of gold (basically $20) will buy you a meal, a bath, and a few stiff drinks at the local pub-house. People today in the United States do not realize we have a 'price-to-product' problem but it's easy to see. Buy a pound of coffee for near $10 and if you go a few hours to the south of the United States you can buy a 20-lb bag for the same price. In fact all over the world you can see these comparisons. The 'Fair Trade' organization realizes this and instead of having a middle man rape you on price they let the endogenous cultures do it, and you still pay the same $10. After all, you are a fat American slob and can afford it.
The next problem with gold is being able to hold onto it. Once it gets around that you buy goods and services on the black market using gold exclusively as a trade medium news travels fast. And if gold actually retains any inherent value you will be a target. You will either be a target for people who want to take your gold, or you will be a target for people who will turn your butt in to the government for some kind of thing in trade.
The problems with gold are really quite innumerable, but study a little on Russia's collapse a few years ago and see what happened to MOST gold-owners. Some lived happy lives, but most did not. As the collapse begins to pick up speed the localization of communities heighten and you really get to know your neighbors well. News of your gold ownership will spread like wildfire through the community. In short the only people who stockpile gold are people who think they can 'buy' their way out of the depression. The only people to really buy their way out of the depression last time were people who had; 1. an enormous amount of wealth. (what would translate as 'billionaire' status today) and 2. an enormous amount of influence. Your average gold hoarder has neither.

So what is a good thing to invest in? Well, spices for one. Spices require shipment and as fuel becomes more exorbitant the cost of spices will sky-rocket. If you can grow your own herbs great, but spices come from specialized climates. Things like Cinnamon, Salt, Pepper, Chocolate and Coffee and real Tea. Wars have been fought over these things in the past because they cannot be easily duplicated and are one-of-a-kind. Much more rare than gold. If any eco-sphere comes under duress, the entire Cinnamon industry can topple and become priceless. Stockpiling these things can mean you wield a certain amount of power when going to market to trade. Another great thing to invest in would be spirits and alcohols. Not necessarily beers because that is easily duplicated, but good rum, vodka, and whiskey cannot really be duplicated. Buying $40 of rum per pay-check could mean the difference between living and starving when the collapse is in full-swing. You can look at ANY country that has collapsed and alcohol ALWAYS becomes priceless.

Stockpiling these things helps you to integrate and build communities which will be crucial post-collapse. The best way to win friends and influence people is a gift of a priceless bottle of rum, or a Cuban cigar, or a pound of salt. But gold just means you were once rich and instead of participating with the community you are looking to take advantage of it with your pretty yellow metal. A few thousand dollars worth of gold can be advantageous, but you want to be sure to break them down into smaller denominations. You can buy 1/4 ounce pieces, which are much easier to trade as a medium of exchange, plus does not have the appearance of ostentatious elite-ism.

A Closer Look at the Second Amendment

2009-04-20T22:17:00.000-05:00

I believe there should be some things to address as this is getting closer and closer to coming under fire. Just to be clear a government CANNOT GIVE you ANY RIGHTS. Period. God does. Whether a person believes in God or not is irrelevant, EVERY person, man, woman and child is given in-alienable rights as well as the right to defend and protect those rights. Now let's look at this a little closer.

1. Why does God give that right? Every person has the right to protect him/her -self, period. This is more a conversation about weapons than it is about guns. Guns however were the easily accessible cutting edge technology with regard to self-protection in the day. If you wanted a cannon to protect yourself and your family, you were free to do so. However, this argument brings up a problem. What about WMD's or Biological weapons. To this the answer is an affirmative 'NO'. The weapons that are employable are in relation to guns alone, and while the term 'guns' can be something of a gray area by definition, we can use the 'reasonable man' theory and eliminate the idea that this did not preclude the afore mentioned 'mass destruction' devices. The idea of a gun is for protection alone, not for a full scale assault.

2. What if I am an Atheist? Well, that does not preclude you from your rights. You can choose to NOT exercise your right, but no body of man-made laws can take that right away, because it is not given by the devices of men but of a higher power. Nor, can you as an atheist take those rights away from others.

3. Can't the government repeal the second amendment? Yes, they can but that does not take away your right to defend your property, your life and your family with a weapon. Regardless of what government does to our constitution, these rights are still in place. The ONLY thing the constitution does is say, "We (the government) acknowledge your rights and will not interfere with them." But they cannot take away your rights, since they could not GIVE you those rights. Any more than they can give you the right to breathe, or get married or fall in love. Those rights are transcendant above any law as is the right to defend your family with whatever means possible.

4. Defend your family from what? You see, for a while now people were under the impression that gun ownership ensured the right to hunt, when nothing could be further from the truth. The founding fathers did not ensure gun-ownership so you could participate in a sport, or they would have introduced the rights to own footballs. The right to own a gun is for defensive reasons from marauders, intruders, robbers, etc, etc. This includes ANYBODY who wishes to take away your rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Any person invading the home of another for any reason should expect the possibility of getting shot, and the reason why we have so many victims is because 1. Nobody owns and is trained to use a gun. and 2. Our current criminal system favors the criminal instead of the victim. No one has the right to enter your home without permission, and this includes the favorite 'Just Cause' abuse. The 'Just Cause' provision was intended to protect you, however our criminal system uses it as a means to tyrannize our people.

5. What about the British, they can't own guns. As regarding their government, it is illegal to own a gun, however making gun ownership illegal does not take away your rights. Here is the deal, if you BELIEVE that water is not wet does it make it 'not so'? Nope, it's irrelevant as to what you believe about water, water is water, however, when dealing with things like 'rights' we go beyond what is 'believed' so belief is not a requisite. It is irrelevant what you believe about my right to own a gun, however when you invade my house you CAN expect to be met with the full force of my resolve when protecting my life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. The founding forefathers understood this and made the provision, this right is not predicated on technological innovation. The fact that guns have 'evolved' is irrelevant. Naturally, gun ownership has certain reasonable limits. For example, if I say you have the right to pursue happiness, and killing someone makes you happy does this mean you have the right to kill someone. Absolutely not. Your rights should naturally not interfere with someone elses rights. HOWEVER, anyone who tries to 'waive' the right of another should expect to have THEIR rights waived as well. For example, if someone invades your home, they have technically 'waived' your right, thereby waiving their OWN rights. If you rob a store, you have 'waived' your rights to freedom, and should expect the store owners to meet this action with the force of their resolve to KEEP you from 'waiving' their rights.

Our government 'waives' the rights of others all the time, we just don't do anything about it. They invade other countries without cause. Iran did not bomb the trade centers, Osama did. Neither did Afghanistan, but Obama is bombing them. Our own nation will continue to take away our rights, and it seems that there is not a political party that will take up our cause. The republicans have failed us in the last term, and the democrats are failing us in this one. Homeland Security, the Patriot Act, TARP, the Stimulus, the Omnibus, etc, etc the list is endless, let alone all the tiny little laws they keep passing to make it harder and harder for you to pursue your right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

I know this puts me in the category of 'dangerous' in the eyes of the government, and the government is seeking ways to silence people like me daily. There are provisions out there that if passed will allow Obama to take away the freedom of speech, take away our use of the Internet at will, take away our right to exist in peace and to peacefully assemble. There is an all out assault on our people to educate their children in the way people wish, there is even some legislation that is being pushed through that FORCES young people to work for the state. Why not, they are forced to be in school, why not be forced to work, that way we can tax them and fuel our monster-government.

Bush tripled the size of the government in 8 years and Obama is going to double that. Which means, basically we will have 6 times the government than we had a mere 10 years ago. How does this work? Well you take guns from people who are pissed, and then you can pass whatever laws you want without fear of recompense. Which is EXACTLY how China rolled over students in Tienanmen square. You know there is something wrong with a country when the people's only recourse is to dowse themselves with gasoline and set themselves on fire.

Now we talk a bit about belief. Do I have the right to BELIEVE what I have just said? Yes. But our government doesn't believe so, and since my beliefs contrast the government beliefs this makes me a dangerous person in their eyes. Hence the building of FEMA re-education camps. These camps are a fact, and anyone keeping up with the news knows this. It isn't a 'theory' but it is indeed a conspiracy. A conspiracy to control you and to make everyone in the world a homogeneous, gray blob of goo where everyone is exactly alike. Subservient, Submissive, and Subverted. If this were not the goal then why take away God-given rights? If this were not the goal then why the homogeneity in public school curriculum? They appeal to something they call 'standards' then they take out anything related to God period. Not just take out remarks about God, but take out God and insert other religions. If they just took out 'religion' period that can be understood, but then they substitute this gap with their own making.

Banning guns is not simply taking everyone's guns away from them. Banning guns is the government making a statement that you DO NOT HAVE THE RIGHT to protect/defend yourself. This is less about gun ownership than it is about making sheep out of us all.

I do not own a handgun, and don't see myself owning one in the foreseeable future. It is my right to forgo this right of gun ownership. However I do NOT have the right to take that away from another, barring their intrusion into my pursuit of life, liberty and happiness, in which I will get a big stick and take their gun away from them. ;)

What Are We Really

2009-04-17T00:33:00.000-05:00

I am taking some liberties today and posting a topic that I find particularly important for preppers. I posted this over on my BlackDog site today, but I felt it warranted some addition attention.

One note of explanation, I tend to identify with Conservative Christian ideals, however I try to be careful to not play to this in many of my posts. If you do not identify with those aforementioned ideals I beg your pardon, however you should not find the post particularly offensive or ostracizing.

Here is the post in it's entirety.

This post will NOT win me many points with my more conservative colleagues. In fact, many may even be enraged at my mental meanderings today, however I think there is something that needs to be seriously addressed and examined. Outside of the hype and propaganda bandied about by the news media sources, and political rhetoric which in the end means absolutely nothing, there is in fact something that we who bend a bit more toward the right-side of the aisle need to be vigilant and watchful over, and that is neo-nationalism.

Wow! I could not have picked a more ambiguous and meaningless word than neo-nationalism, in fact the word may as well mean nothing at all unless of course you are a student of history with particular note to the war we had with Hitler. Understanding not just the monster that Nazi Germany became but how it began is not just needful, it is absolutely sequential. Because you could not have had the monster without the child from whence it first came, and Nazi Germany was birthed out of neo-nationalism.

Many of you are right now wondering where in the world I am going with this, some of you know exactly where I am headed and are shaking your heads from side to side in disapproval, but before you tune me out completely as some leftist, please consider my words in the following paragraphs carefully and listen just as closely to what I am NOT saying, as well as what I AM.

As we define ourselves so we too also behave. If we identify with the left, we often take on ALL of their clothing, when all we really appreciated was the shirt. If we identify with the right we take on their entire menu when all we really enjoyed was the chicken fried steak, and as members of this totalitarian way of thinking the media often plays on this and heightens the anxiety to levels of paranoia and of rampant mindlessness. As children of this new century and this new age with which we find ourselves thrust upon, we should be extremely careful of this kind of thinking. The left defends Clinton with the ferocity of a lion, the right defends Bush with the strength of Atlas and we have fallen into the trap of what is known as the 'left-right paradigm'. Even if we identify with 'Republican' ideals we need to be very careful about what we choose to make our own in terms of policy as well as procedure. The ends NEVER justifies the means.

I can use the above introduction for a number of topics, but today I want to address more specifically the ideas and thoughts surrounding our current issues with Mexico and the violence thereof. The question of illegal immigration is a hot-topic today along with our other current issues, however illegal immigration is far from being the chronic ailment it is being made out to be. More specifically we as Christians should definitely know better, however I come across Christians who plead the blood right up to the point of national sovereignty, which is where it seems to suddenly vanish. There are many problems with our great nation right now, many that I could address, however our nations treatment of the Mexican people is not only criminal in the higher courts of conscience but an out-right march toward a Nazi driven America.

It is true that there is a border war of sorts waging even now to our south, and that the media is hell-bent on pushing the blame off on guns, and drugs and whatever other ills they want us to believe, but this is not the case. Any people who have been vilified enough will eventually rise up, and history proves that over and over again. After the first world war Germany was utterly decimated. Ripped in half with their economy utterly lying in ruins the German people became a destitute nation with nothing to which to cling. Looking for solutions and answers they came in the form of a man who preached a neo-nationalistic doctrine. German pride and pride for the 'Father-land' became the mantra, but this soon got out of hand as this man began to weave into existence a scape-goat as such onto which was placed all of Germanies frustration, hatred, and despair. A whole race of people was made to be blamed for all of the ills and troubles and turmoil, and I fear that too has come to our shores.

As our economy gasps for air, and the markets flounder it is easy to look to the easiest targets and instead of blaming ourselves and our government for the mess we are currently in, it is all too easy to look to our brown-skinned neighbors and place the mark upon their foreheads and begin a campaign of holocaust proportions. Sheriff Joe Arpaio who calls himself the 'Toughest Sheriff in America' is just such a disgustingly blatant representative of all that is ugly with the Republican right. Known for his forcing of prisoners to wear pink underwear and performing racial profiling and anti-Mexican immigrant sweeps of the county, this sheriff is not only a blight and a gross representative of Conservative thought, he is a profiteer and a horrible representative of the human race. It is my fear that Christians would identify with this piece of human effluence, this human toilet who parades undocumented immigrants around in shackles wearing only pink underwear in front of a collective of armed guards and television cameras. Not only is this pile of garbage proud of his tactics but he shamelessly advertises it. If this wasn't warning enough, the county with which he operates has had to pay out some $43 million in wrongful death suits. Does that sound like success to you?

The media will continue to play out this little dance of Mexican ostracization, and will continue to create an environment with which many will have a hard time combating with regard to their own thoughts and fears, but as a people of Christ particularly we absolutely must NOT give in to the idea that the Mexican people are at all responsible for any problems we currently find ourselves in. Neo-nationalism while on it's face seems to be good leads us down a path of irresponsibility and will turn us all into human sewers like Sheriff Joe. All I am asking is that we, or more specifically, that you be careful that we do not let our minds be clouded by the left-right paradigm. To be moral, and responsible citizens in a country who's political leaders have gone astray.

Spreading Bird Flu

2009-04-13T23:28:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure how to take this..but I thought it warranted fast action. Take a listen and decide for yourself.

There is a reason stuff like this is leaked,,,,I wonder if it's a front for something more serious?

Hand-Guns, and Concealed Carry

2009-04-10T22:56:00.000-05:00

I have been hearing a lot about gun-buying and an enormous amount of people grabbing their concealed to carry liscenses. I don't have either, and for a good reason. Chiefly, because to get a hand-gun of any worth you need to spend about $1,000 unless you get something a bit off-color from a pawn shop. I wouldn't chance it, you don't know where it's been. I personally wouldn't own a gun that I discovered later was used at Columbine or some other Creme Fatale.

I have absolutely NO problem with people owning guns, not at all. I believe it to be an American right for sure, upheld by the constitution. But, I personally have not seriously considered owning one. When I did briefly consider it, I weighed $1,000 worth of killing machine to $1,000 worth of survival gear, such as axes, stove, etc, etc. I don't see the value.

You see, it's not enough to just own the gun, the primary aspect of owning a gun, is being able to use it effectively which means professional courses. Sure you could go to the shooting range every weekend and fire off rounds at a target, but I honestly cannot see this as training for going up against another human being who is also most likely armed. You will need REAL training. This adds to the upfront cost of owning the gun.

Another issue is Concealed Carry liscenes. There are a TON of places you CANNOT carry that gun even WITH a liscense, and for me I just seriously don't see the point. You can see the laws concerning where you CANNOT carry a gun at this site. Concealed carry does a couple of things that I think are 'minuses' to ownership. First of all you get logged into a database. Any law can simply look you up and know where you live, where you work, where you play, etc, etc. I believe this to be a privacy issue. If it is a feral government taking control of an area, they will know exactly who to put down first, and I seriously don't think they will ask any questions first. In addition, if the laws in this country change, they way people THINK they are going to change, you can bet that the first thing they repeal will be concealed carry. Another issue with Concealed Carry, is the fact that cops pulling you over know that you carry. Now I have heard two different sides of this issue. Firstly, that cops respect and like an armed public. They appreciate the fact that this person went to training and subjected themselves to be put on a gun-owning master list. Not ANYONE can get a Concealed Carry lisense. While I admit to 'hearing' this rumor, actual experience that I hear from concealed carrier is quite the opposite. I hear that most concealed carriers take a lot of crap from law enforcement, if they are pulled over for even a traffic violation. In fact, one guy I know personally says he has 'caught grief' ANY TIME he is pulled over, and at times he is pulled over for 'no reason', to which he ascribes his concealed carry lisence.

If I were to buy a handgun, I first of all, would not tell a soul. Secondly, I would not get a concealed carry lisense, and thirdly I would be careful where I took it, and when I had it. It is commonplace for Oklahoma cops to pull people over, get them out of their car and frisk them for something as small as a minor traffic violation. One of the first questions you are asked is 'Do you have any weapons in the car?'. On one occasion, I was pulled over for going 40mph in a 35mph zone. I was late for work at a steel manufacturing plant and did not want to get docked, but a law is a law. The officer asked me to get out of my truck and asked, 'Do you have any weapons in the truck?', to which I responded 'No.'. In fact I did not have what I CONSIDERED a weapon, which was my first mistake. You see, when you work in a factory you carry a knife or two for odd jobs. Cutting plastic, removing heavy gage staples from wooden boxes, etc, etc. On my hip was a Gerber folding knife with a three inch blade. Which classifies as a weapon, (the law is not leanient on the ignorant) In addition, it was covered by the sweater I was wearing, which classifies the knife as a CONCEALED WEAPON. As the officer began his pat-down of me for going five miles over the speed limit, he found the 'weapon'. His immediate response was to jump back fiercly, grab his gun from his holster and screamed at me to get down on the ground. "YOU SAID YOU HAD NO WEAPONS! WHAT DO YOU CALL THIS!!!??" he screamed. "Ummm, a knife?" "WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH THAT?!!!" "ummm, take it to work?" "WHAT DO YOU DO AT WORK THAT IS NECESSARY FOR YOU TO CARRY A WEAPON LIKE THAT?!!!" I could feel the tension in his voice, and I personally have never felt the measurable amount of fear I had at that moment, which includes the time I was assaulted by a gang in Ohio. "Ummm" I responded weakly, "I cut Avis strap, and boxes, and......" My voice trailed off. "ON YOUR STOMACH, NOW!!!!" He kept screaming at me for some five minutes, but it felt like an eternity. He said he was going back to his squad car and for me not to move a muscle or he would shoot me. After another 60 seconds or so, the entire area was swarmed by squad cars. Police bailed out of their vehicles as if they had captured a drug-running member of Al Queda (or however you spell it) While the arresting officer searched my vehicle. Under the seat of my car he found a couple of box knives, that again, were used at work. This only heightened his excitement. "WHAT ARE THESE????!!!!" he kept screaming, 'Umm box knives???'. At this point I couldn't see much because my nose was pressed firmly against the asphalt. Traffic had built up quite a bit at this point, and there was something of an audience, which embarrassed me immensly. "OH YAH!? WHAT DO YOU PLAN TO DO WITH THOSE???!!!" "ummmm open boxes???" I wasn't being a smart-butt, I was so stricken with fear that I was going to get shot for having a concealed weapon on my hip, and an armament of concealed weapons under the seat of my truck I honestly did not know how to respond to all the screaming and the guns, and the heat. "Open boxes!?" I said a bit louder, I wasn't sure he had heard me, but all of the cops heard me and they all began to laugh. Apparantly, this cop had gone a little batty, and since this was a rural town EVERYBODY was packing some kind of heat, so the fact that this guy had pulled me over and had me on the ground for a utility knife had all of the other cops laughing their heads off, I just didn't know cause I couldn't see.

Finally, one of the other officers told the arresting officer to get in his car and get out of there, and told me to go to work. To which I asked for a note. ;)

If you carry a concealed weapon, you better have a lisence for it, AND you better be ready to take a little heat for it WITHOUT LOOSING YOUR COOL, and I am dead serious about this. If you get harrased by an officer for having said lisense, you are going to have to just take it. Nothing you say or do works to your favor in this situation EVER!

I had this conversation with a friend of mine, and my views made him a little angry, I had to re-iterate the fact that I am not against gun ownership at all. "Well, it sure sounds like you are!" he replied. My point is that if you arm yourself, you need to be trained, and you need to go into it with your eyes wide open, gun ownership complicates your life, and in a rare instance it may save it. "Well, fine then, be a sheep and un-armed!" My friend said. To which I replied, "I said I don't own a hand-gun, I didn't say I was un-armed." ;)

God bless folks!

Where there is Hope,,,,,,,

2009-04-10T09:55:00.000-05:00

Obama's new world order is quicky making paupers of us all. That is not a biased sentiment, but is a rather common one across lines. Apparently the only thing Obama has been successful in bipartisan measure is making sure EVERYBODY hates his economic decisions. While the news likes to try and point to Geithner, Bernanke, and Pelosi, the fact of the matter is that the final authorization to push through such oppresive measures lie at the leader of the nation itself. When I say 'leader' I mean the president. Bush started the mess and Obama is making it worse. How is that for bi-partisanship?

In a recent article at Global Research, there are some very interesting things we can glean from Icelands problems. If you rememeber Iceland is completely bankrupt and owes a whole lot of money to a whole lot of nations. Those nations, (America is one of them) are demanding that Iceland begin whole-saling it's sovereign lands along with their resources to it's debtors to pay for it's debt. On the face it makes sense, but when you really think about it, what we are talking about is the absolute and final destruction of a country. Iceland will be split up into various nation-states owned by it's debtors. America will get a slice, along with the others, and Iceland will simply be no more. I know what I would say if I were Iceland, and it wouldn't be, 'Come get my country!'.

The news article goes on to a couple of items that I would like to discuss briefly here.

"Permanent debt bondage "is as deadly as outright military" defeat. Loss of livelihoods and assets leave people vulnerable to sickness, despair, and early deaths, much like what happened to post-Soviet Russia under Washington-imposed "shock therapy:"

-- 80% of farmers went bankrupt;

-- around 70,000 state factories closed;

-- unemployment became epidemic;

-- a permanent underclass was created;

-- poverty rose from two million in 1989 to 74 million by the mid-1990s, and in half the cases it was desperate;

-- alcoholism and drug abuse soared;

-- so did HIV/AIDS 20-fold;

-- suicides also and violent crime four-fold; and

-- the population declined by 700,000 a year; by 2007 it was 10% lower than in 1989 because of sharply reduced life expectancies."

It doesn't have to be like this. While we preppers are often mis-aligned with doomsdayers and the hopeless, and un-happy destruction gurus, we look forward to the future and how best to survive and thrive. In fact we are the real upper crust of optimism. And that is the problem with knee-jerk media. We get filmed squirrelling away hundreds of pounds of food, ammo and water in under-ground bunkers and are accused of being dooms-dayers. Nothing is farther from the truth.

You see, to be a prepper, you not only have to look at reality on it's face and make a realistic and truthful determination about it's value, but you have to be forward looking. Preppers are more about what happens AFTER a catstrophe rather than what happens DURING the catastrophe. Preppers are problem solvers, and constantly figuring out how to best survive (put calamity here) and thrive. How to protect their families and ensure the survival of their species and their progeny. We are the ultimate optimists. It is unfortunate that 'optimism' has been equated with a 'polyanna' like vacuous stare where polyanna sits while the meteors rain down and says to herself, "I might die, but what a pretty, pretty light show." That is most assuredly NOT optimism. Not a reality based optimism anyway.

Preppers want to survive, they want to live, and they want to live well, and are doing everything in their power to ensure that desire. So, as a prepper there are a couple of things we need to remember.

1. It's going to get bad, bad, bad, but we don't have to let it consume us. Just keep doing your work and making it better.
2. Don't listen to the people who say 'you are consumed' if anything let their negative effects spur you on to greater heights. Just don't talk to them about 'the end of days' anymore. It's pointless. When they ask you questions about your preparations, be vague and indecisive. Let them figure it out for themselves, chances are you are not going to convince them anyway.
3. Remember there are much more things involved with preparing than squirreling away tons and tons of food, weapons, and gear. The most important part of preparing is knowledge. Gather and accumulate a library of information that tell you HOW TO DO THINGS. This is very important, if not the MOST important preparing activity.
4. Put the knowledge to use. Nothing is gained from an immense library if you do not understand how to execute the plans. Don't simply read about growing your own food, learn how to do it. It takes a good five years to fully understand your gardening cycles and if you aren't learning the hard way now, it will be much worse learning the hard way in the middle of a real crisis. No book can inform you about your areas season cycles and the nuances there-of. Growing apple trees here in Arkansas is VASTLY different from growing the same apple tree in Canada. What works here may not (and probably will not) work in Vancouver. Get your feet wet NOW.
5. Make your preparing activites fun and enjoyable. Make a game of it in the circles you run in. Try to see who can get the best price on beans for the week, find the best resources online and compete with your fellow preparers, and try to enjoy every aspect of it. I just recently built a chicken coop and while there were some frustrations, it was a fun project and I think about ways to make it better all the time. Let your activities spur you on to excellence.
6. Join a network of preppers. Many times you can get knowledge for free by simply joining a brotherhood of preppers and knowing what to expect next. Communities and socialization is extremely important. Man is a social creature and doesn't do very well in a vacuum of isolation, make sure to run in circles that help you not harm you. An EXCELLENT place to hang out and aggregate a powerhouse of knowledge is at the Forums of the American Preppers Network. I highly recommend it.

Prepping is a way to not be a victim, and that is what we all want. To not be statistic on the evening news.

Important UPDATE for all preppers!!

2009-04-07T20:24:00.000-05:00

We need to get more organized. Please visit American Preppers Network for just a moment.
Thanks, Tom
p.s. the moderator of this site has my permission to remove this short post as soon as he/she feels everyone has gotten this message. It's not normally my practice to post on other prepper sites, but we need to get more organized and I'm beginning to get overwhelmed with work to do, we need more help.

Selling Fear

2009-04-01T23:16:00.000-05:00

As the crisis continues to get heavier and heavier you really need to be mindful of what you are buying, especially seed-wise.

Just as with anything you really want to know what you are buying and why you are buying it. Almost overnight, companies offering seed vaults have been springing up like crazy. Unfortunately these folks are merely trying to capitalize on fear, and you can tell because fear surrounds their product offerings.

Now you may think that as a prepper, I myself capitalize on fear, but while I report on truly fearful things, I never encourage fear to be a decision maker of such. Yes, you should be wary of the times, and yes you should plan like all that you rely on will disappear, (electricity, food, etc, etc.) but preparedness is more about taking the fear OUT of the equation rather than capitalization of it.

As I sit here holding my B.A. in Marketing, I can tell you that companies bang this primal drum of fear to separate you from your earnings, and you have to be careful with your purchases, and be sure you are buying for content and not out of shear un-adulterated fear. I say all this because I want to really drive home a certain point about survival gardening. Naturally, you want heirloom vegetables. Heirlooms are vegetables that grow 'true to form'. What this means is that if you grow a squash, eat it and save the seed back to plant next year you will get the exact same squash. But with hybrids, this is not the case. With hybrids the seed genome is seriously unstable and one out of a thousand will grow true to form. BUT, heirloom seeds are not so rare that you have to resort to crazy seed banks to get them.

You can get your heirloom seeds quite easily locally. Many stores carry seeds, all of your home centers, and big-box retailers carry them. Read the seed packets carefully, and make sure the packet is devoid of the word 'hybrid'. If 'hybrid' is missing from the packet you can be reasonably sure that the plant seeds from this years crop will grow 'true-to-form'. The seed doesn't have to have the word 'HEIRLOOM' stamped on it to be viable true seed.

Another reason I bring this up is because of this site. Heirloom Organics. Suffice it to say I am not at all impressed with their site and find them relatively misleading on their offerings. Very few of their seeds are actually named, and you do NOT know what you are getting. There are a few seeds named, such as 'Waltham Butternut' squash and several others. But all the squash seeds they sell are easily and readily available and common. Do you realize how many seeds ONE squash produces? From one fruit you can get enough seed to plant a hundred square feet of garden space. Save back the seed from 10 fruits and you can plant an acre. All of their other seeds remain relatively un-named. The site is spiffy and pretty, and there are cool looking links, but the content is vacant and vacuous. This is a BIG RED flag, and it basically says they are more interested in selling 'kits' (I hate kits because they lie a lot!) than making sure you are informed.

So, how do you get up to speed fast on knowledge? Well, I recommend starting by buying and reading 'Country Wisdom & Know How'. This is possibly the most robust book on homesteading and preparing to take care of yourself if it all comes down. The book is inexpensive, and $20-$30 of knowledge is WAAAAYYY more valuable than a $249 seed vault filled with 'mystery seed'. Watch out for these predators, because they will be coming out of the woodwork, more and more as time goes by.

One more thing you will want to check out is the Path to Freedom folks and their blog 'Little Homestead in the City'. I have been reading them for a year and it will take you a good month to surf their entire site, it is seriously VAST! As a 'plus', all the information is free and there is tons of it. How to build raised beds, what to grow, how to grow it, basically anything you could ever hope for. This free resource is MUCH more valuable than a $249 dollar can of mystery seeds.

Lets make good decisions folks, because the future doesn't rely on a can of seeds, it relies on wise, discerning people. Don't let 'em get ya!

Obama Conspiracy

2009-04-01T00:40:00.000-05:00

I had to post this, saw it over at the South Dakota preppers group. I'm posting this thing everywhere!

Common Sense Prepping

2009-03-19T21:46:00.000-05:00

Now that you have started many of your prepping activities, there are some things you need to be aware of. Number one, and probably the most important is to BEWARE! Seriously, watch out. Caveat Emptor, and all that wonderful stuff. As the economy goes to crap, you are going to see every flim-flam man and woman come out of the woodwork and predate on innocent but less informed people. Secondarily, but just as important is to make good decisions. Be frugal, but honest with your purchases. I am not saying to have to buy the cheapest of the cheap but seriously evaluate a tools purpose, function and use. Here are some examples.

1. Lanterns. There are some really, REALLY nice lanterns out there on the market. I have owned several in my lifetime and can attest to the quality and usability. BUT, spending over $100 for a light producing piece of equipment is seriously not worth it. While I agree that the quality is there, and the effectiveness and usefullness is there, what you are paying for is a oil/kerosene generated flashlight. How much is a flash light? You can easily buy, half a dozen lanters for the price of one of these monsters. And lets face it, if you are ever in a position to where you NEED the lantern, chances are you are not going to use it all night, but just for a couple of hours till you go to bed.

2. Grinders/Mills. Are mills a good idea? Yes. Are there some good ones out there? Absolutely. Should you spend $500-$700 for one. HECK NO! Now, don't get me wrong, there are some nice mills available, but $500 for a hand-operated grain mill is just a bit excessive and in my opinion borders on the 'predator' status. I don't care how much care and attention went into it, $500 is just a bit much for something that requires your work to operate. What does it produce? Nothing. Just a processed food product that is limited to a handfull of foods. Corns, wheats, etc, etc.

So what do you splurge on? Well, you splurge on things the produce a resource, not on things that consume resources. Now, there is a little play here. For example. Spending $100 on the worlds best shovel is actually a decent decision, especially if you have the worlds worst soil. You need the shovel to last and the shovel helps you in the production of a resource. That resource being FOOD! Does a mill make food? No. Does a lantern make food or help in the food production process? No. Can it dig a well, compost your kitchen scraps, or lay eggs? NOPE. So guess what? $500 can better be served in other pursuits.

Now, if you have plenty of money, and plenty of fod stored up, then fine, $500 for a mill is 'ok'. But if you are still trying to get your bearings in this world of preparing, you do not need to dump a boat load of cash into a tool that grinds something you do not have, and may have difficulty accessing in the future. When push comes to shove, my money is on the shovel.

What about $250 for a dehydrator? That is actually a great purchase. Why? because a good dehydrator will help you in the preserving of your most valuable resource. Your FOOD! An expensive lantern can't do that, a food grinder can't do that, etc, etc. You need to focus on productivity. Anything that helps you produce a resource or preserve a resource is a good thing to splurge on.

$100 for a rain barrel? NOPE, you can get the same thing from most agricultural stores if you look around, and you can get them for about $10 a piece. Many of them are food-grade or can be cleaned well enough to be food-grade. I purchase these plastic barrels that were used to ship industrial grade ammonia and bleach. I wash these out very well, let them sit a couple of days, and wash them again. I have one of these barrels breading EM-1, which is a bacterial/yeast cocktail I use in my composting. Bacterias and yeasts are very susceptible to chlorine and ammonia, and they produce in the barrels quite happily. If the yeasts can tolerate it, then I know I can.

$20 for a pound of organically raised wheat, or $12 for a fifty pound sack of feed lot wheat? I say, give me the fifty! Organic is important and all, but when we are talking about surviving, I don't need to survive like movie star, I need to provide sustenance for my family. Give me the fifty!

$1,000 for a wood burning stove? You betcha. Even though this is designed to consume resources, it is vastly important to be warm in the winter, and to cook your food. This is a good decision. Now, what about $5,000 wood stove. NOPE. You don't need to burn wood in style, you need to burn wood for the resource of heat. Sure, the $5,000 may be better on the wood consumption side, but we need to make that money stretch as much as possible.

$5.00 for food grade 5-gallon buckets? Nope. You can get free ones from WalMart or your public school system. Every summer when the kids are let out, the janitorial staff have to strip and wax the floors in every building. This amounts to a LOT of buckets. They will give them to you to haul off, and be happy to do so. Just make sure to clean them well. I got twenty some odd buckets this way, cleaned them, and brewed my EM-1 microbial cocktail in them just fine.

So when engaging in your prepper activities, calm down the emotions that say, 'BUY! BUY! BUY!' and use your common sense. If something SEEMS like it's expensive, it probably is. AND, if you have to be 'educated' on value, chances are the product doesn't have any. You should never have to be 'talked' into understanding the value of something, it should be intrinsic, the reason why people have to spend an enormous amount of time convincing you of an items value, means that there are lower cost alternatives out there, you just have to look for them, or do a little research.

Good Luck and Happy Prepping!

Beat the System

2009-03-15T11:14:00.000-05:00

As many of you know, I inherited this blog as a guest blogger until another Arkansas resident picked up the blog for themselves. If you are an Arkansas blogger and would like to own this blog, feel free to write me or American Prepper and you can start blogging here and eventually own it. WHAT AN OPPORTUNITY!

But I digress. The point of the matter is that I never really paid much attention to the adspace. As an itinerant blogger, (boy that's a new one!) I work for the Preppers network, so I just view it as I would any job. I wouldn't go into a WalMart as an employee and start moving around the produce. Well maybe I would if I was feeling particularly saucy! But you get the point. I was looking over the ads and found this one on something called Photoblocker (Phantom Plate). Man that stuff looks absolutely amazing. I can't say it's the real deal because I have never tried the stuff, but it sure looks promising, if what they say is true.

You know to be a prepper you sort of have to have some built-in paranoia' or as they say in the proverb 'Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean you're not being watched!'. Along with that is a complete and utter distrust of 'The Man'. Now, to be fair, I love my local police. Love 'em. Why do I love them? Because we have a great little arrangement. I try not to be a screw-up, and they try to not pull me over for everything under the sun. Ahhh, the joys of a small town, where everybody knows everybody.

In my last blog on preparing, I discussed about preparing while living in a suburban area. Now, I pitch the ideas of rural living and small towns. If you don't have one, GET ONE(small town that is)! It will keep you from needing Phantom Plate. Because I don't take interstates at all if I can avoid them, I rarely ever cross paths with highway patrol or their invasive cameras. But even if I did cross their paths, the Arkansas highway patrol as well as most local cops are pretty nice people. Good folks all of them. It's one of the reasons why I love this state. I am sure there are a ton of horror stories out there on Arkansas cops, but in all my experiences the police have been nice, cordial people who would pull you over to see if you had any insights on the greatest producing fishing holes. Again, the joys of living in a small town. These days when a cop is behind me, I don't get that jittery feeling in my chest. Not so in my previous residence.

Oklahoma is a great state with the worlds worst law enforcement officials. Probably among the most corrupt in the United States. These people will pull you over for coughing out of your window. If you can at all avoid it, do NOT travel through Oklahoma. Now don't get me wrong, I love the state as a hole,,,,oops I mean whole. My family is there, many of my friends are there, but if you so much as have a bug on your windshield, you are going to get pulled over. If you have a bit of mud on one of the letters/numbers on your liscense plate you are going to get pulled over. If the light over your plate is out (even in the daytime) you are going to get pulled over. If you have a 'Hook em' Horns' liscense plate, or any other Texas paraphenalia decorating your vehicle, you are going to get pulled over. If your tires look a bit underpressure you will be pulled over. I say this not in jest, but in real-world experience. While on a trip from my folks house over Christmas holidays (I was coming back to Arkansas) one of my running lights (a running light is not an actual useful light, but the small little amber ones below your real lights) went out on the van. I was on the Interstate, and was literally pulled over four times in a 60-minute stretch of highway. The first cop was a well meaning black man, who issued me a warning. He was actually a very nice gentleman, and could see that I had a car full of kids who did not want to see their daddy handcuffed, (which they actually do in Oklahoma for minor violations) Not fifteen minutes later I was pulled over by another highway patrol, and upon presenting him with my 'Warning' from the previous cop, he sneered and let me go. Apparantly if you have a 'Warning', cops will avoid writing you a ticket. Another fifteen minutes, another cop. Twenty minutes later, ANOTHER cop!

Now all this rant has a purpose, and it has a 'prepper' mentality as well. (yes I do have a point) This goes for ANY day, and not just in the day of collapse. When traveling through a state you are unfamiliar with, try these preppers guidelines.

Try to avoid the interstate. Highway travel is longer, but MUCH more scenic, and you get to see things you wouldn't otherwise see. If you see a guy selling lawn ornaments in his front yard, pull over and buy that pink flamingo you have your heart set on. It stimulates their local economy and makes you a true cosmopolitan. (citizen of the world)
Avoid breaking the minutest of laws. If the speed limit says 65 mph, set your cruise to 65 mph. Not 70 mph and not 60 mph. You would be amazed how many people are pulled over for traveling at five miles BELOW the speed limit. In fact, between the hours of 12:00am and 3:00 am (do not be on the road at this time anywhere!) most people are pulled over for going BELOW the speed limit. It appears that drunks (who are on the roads between 12 and 3 in the morning) drive below the speed limit to give the appearance of sobriety. Oklahoma is horrible about pulling folks over at this time. If you are on the road between 12:00 and 3:00 you WILL be pulled over in Oklahoma.
Know how to read people. If you are pulled over, be able to distinguish a nice cop who is only doing his job from a 'Billy Bad A**'. Billy wants to nail you, and will look for ANY reason to give you the hammer. The nice guys, will just want to get it over with. I personally don't give the Billies the time of day. They ask me questions, and I answer them shortly. I am not saying this is the best way to go, but I have a real problem with looking down in subjection to these idiots who are SUPPOSED to be protecting me. 'Where are you going?' Me: "I don't see how that is pertinent to my being pulled over.". 'Are you here for the holidays?' Me: 'Possibly'. Usually this level of resistance is a 'red-flag', but I can't help myself. If you want to avoid a ticket don't do what I do. If you want to make a point of standing on your rights, this is precisely what you want to do. But again, you could get hauled away in handcuffs for having a light out. Especially in Oklahoma.

The short of it is, when in another state, be a sheep. Someone innocuous, someone benign, someone who has a car full of family and all you want to do is get home and open presents.

Safe travels!

Arkansas Legislature

2009-03-15T02:11:00.000-05:00

For my Arkansas brethren, there is a strange little bill making it's way through the house right now. HB 1339 passed through the house and it's on it's way to the senate portion. I am not sure what I think of this bill, but I am sure to dislike in that it enforces Arkansas support to elect the president by popular vote instead of a representational one. In other words, we will have a bona-fide democracy rather than a constitutional republic. A democracy is a dangerous thing, and we can be sure to expect bad things from this.

But, if it makes you feel any better, one of the pieces of this legislation is to bring state minimum wages up to par with Federal ones. The basic gist of the legislation is that if enough states join together in passing similar legislations then it will effectively wipe out the electoral college. Blah, blah, blah, people are pissed that Bush won over Gore in 2000, blah, blah blah, then they passed a whole battery of bills dealing with drunk driving, and intoxication.
More info on the story here.
Read the bill here.

Lot's of junk going on out there, stay tuned.

Step 1: Develop a Strategy pt. 2

2009-03-14T21:07:00.000-05:00

Now that I have you thinking in terms of social-paradigms, it's time to jerk the rug out from under your feet. You won't be able to help everyone. There will be people you will not have the ability to help depending on your situation and that is what your next task is. In fact it is really the very first 'to-do' in preparing for a crisis. Since it seems the whole world is focused on an economic crisis, that is the one I will be addressing here.

First of all, just to be clear, if we have a complete economic meltdown, suffice it to say we will have a social meltdown along with it. What does that mean? Well, for one you can count on food costs going through the roof, if there is any food available at all. Hopefully we can count on the electrical grid and the water supply, but those are things you will want to take into consideration. But the first real step in preparing is to evaluate your present location from a geographic mindset. I personally am in a rural area, but I realize that I am among the lucky few. Many of you are living and working in larger cities, possibly suburban areas and commuting. If this is the case, you are going to be very, very wary. Here are some things to consider.

Dig In or Bug Out? This will be fundamentally the ONE question that sets all other activities into motion, you can have a combination of the two, ex. Dig in for a little while then bug out, etc. but once you make this decision, by all practical means you're committed at this point. Now, hopefully you have relatives or extremely close friends that live somewhat rural and do not mind you moving in. This is of course all based on the severity of the disaster. If a hurricane is heading to your city and you opt to 'dig in' you need to get very serious. Of course if it's a hurricane, more than likely you have no time so bugging out is the best option.

I'm going to deal with 'dig in' first, and in a suburban setting. You're first order of business is to take a serious evaluation of your neighborhood and social setting. Look around, get to know your neighbors, see what kinds of people they are, and when I say neighbors I am not saying the guy living just next door, or the single mom raising two boys across the street, I mean take a serious evaluatory look at the kinds of people who live around you. As you go further from your house, your investigation can diminish slightly, but a street over you need to know what their yards look like and what that tells you about the people living there. Manicured yards mean office workers and people who quite possibly do not know much about surviving, which can be good to some degree. Violent crime doesn't frequent manicured lawns much. Nor will they in the future. Are you surrounded by home-owners or renters. Is the majority of your neighborhood under the mortgage gun? Does your neighbor garden, or feed birds, perhaps they fly-fish for recreation, or other pursuits that could mean they have something of a survival nature. If you live in a neighborhood that is frequented by those black-and-white cars with the lights on top, I highly recommend you to NOT take the 'dig-in' option unless you have absolutely no choice. But you really need to know where you stand.

Once you have made the decision to dig-in and have an idea of who is around you, you will need to sit down and have a meaningful chat with your significant other. This is a primary hurdle to cross. You need to have a very clear idea on what both of you decide. This involves your family and while it is not necessary to discuss this with children under the age of 15 or so, you definitely need to let your significant other understand what it is you want to accomplish. Without going into the ebb-and-flow of familial relationships, let's just leave it at the fact that you both need to have a consensus.

The next list item on the agenda is pretty crucial as well. 'Keep it to yourself!'. Once you start preparing for crisis, you need to keep it discreet. Your neighbors do not need to know that you are storing enough food to feed Napoleans army, and in the long run it will be better off for you if they didn't. I heard a postulate once, 'If you can't shut up,,,,don't drink. If you don't drink, shut up.' or something like that.

The next list item is to 'start small'. Do NOT run out and order a truckload of wheat and have a hired team of movers carry it into your basement. Simply buy a 5 lb sack of rice everytime you go to the store. Or a 5 lb bag of beans. Buy a few extra canned or dried goods. Rotel is fairly in-expensive. Spend $20 on just that one day and bring it home and tuck it away. But start bringing this stuff home. You will be amazed at how little time it takes to accumulate this stuff.

Start gardening. Rip up your entire backyard and start gardening. Your neighbors will have raised eyebrows about this crazy new hobby of yours, but in their minds they will think it's just a hobby. And if some well-meaning kidders next door lean over the fence and say 'Preparing for Armageddon?' (they will usually chuckly when saying this, but take them seriously cause they are.) just laugh and say, something to the effect of 'I am trying to get more excercise and we need to start eating healthier.' or something along that tac. Which is not a lie, you really do want those things.

Before you get to gardening, you need to realize how much food you are going to need to support yourself and whomever else you are thinking you may need to help. Neighbors, friends, family, etc. There is a basic food calculator over at 'Providential Living' that can give you a nice over-view of what you need. The one over at 'Simply Living Smart' however is the be-all, end-all of food calculators. I find their information extremely useful, but their store, like so many in the 'survival' tradition is very over-priced. I am not trying to besmirch their work, but the agrarian world is extremely glutted with quite a few economic predators. The great thing about Providential Living and Simply Living Smart is the fact that they offer their informaton free of charge for the most part. Which lines up quite nicely with my own philosophy and social contract.

Knowledge is one of the resources that can't spoil, mildew or be taken away from you so get all you can. Books are a nice wealth of this info for what you cannot commit to memory and there are TONS of books out there on the subject. But there are also TONS of websites out there that can help as well. One book I highly recommend is 'Country Wisdom & Know How'. This book can be somewhat applied in the Suburban level, but is much easier to pursue in a rural setting. The other resource I would recommend is 'Path To Freedom'. The site is a bit difficult to navigate, but there is so much information there you will be extremely busy makin plans. Literally, these people 'the Dervaes' have written the book on urban homesteading. You will get so much information from this site you will literally be overwhelmed. Whatever it is you decide to do, be sure to read that site and visit their blog page, Little Homestead in the City. The subscribe to the blog via your feed-reader, and read it always. They have recipes on what they eat, which is very helpful because it can give you an idea on how to eat the foods you grow, which is a big part of doing this. We have to learn how to eat all over again.

Check out the sites, I will be back with part three soon.

Step 1: Develop a Strategy pt. 1

2009-03-07T10:07:00.000-06:00

As in previous posts I discussed Maslow and his hierarchy of needs. Here is the hierarchy in the form that many of us learned in college.

And here is the hierarchy in a Venn diagram.

No matter how it's drawn you get the idea. I personally take some issue with the collegiate compartmentalization of such a diagram but with reference to the bottom end of the triangle, this is the zone that most preparedness sites deal with. Food, water, shelter, etc, etc. The problem with looking at preparedness in this fashion is that when the needs is broken down in this form, we get the idea, or at least it is somewhat perceived that we can deal with the human animal in such a way that we can separate these little blocks out and just deal with that one simple array. But the human animal is much more than a smattering of listed components. It is the full spectrum that encompasses the human being. As a marketing person, it is true that you can gear your message for your product toward ONE of these areas, but as a person of preparedness this is relatively impossible. Which is what makes TRUE preparedness so difficult.

In one of my recent blog postings over on BlackDog I discuss the reasons behind the true nature of the fallout in the marketplace today. Lest we make the mistake the politicians and wealth-gurus make and focus on just one aspect of the economy we must take into account the entirety of preparedness and survival. I am a huge believer that human contact and relationships are in some ways MUCH more important than food, water and shelter to some degree.

The top two places of the triangle, 'Self-Actualization' and 'Esteem' I deal with quite easily. First of all I believe Esteem is NOT something that comes from outside the person. I don't believe that others impart this esteem to you as a human being. Now it is true that while growing up, your environment and conditions will help shape this esteem, but once into adult-hood if you are still relying on these outside forces to direct you in how you percieve yourself, then you are in an emotional sense, still a child. An adult needs no such impartation of prime directives to guide how he/she feels about him/herself. As a 'Prepper' I am going to assume at this point that you already have a great deal of self-actualization. Why would I assume this? Because if you are a 'Prepper' you are by nature 'Pro-active' and are forward looking. This takes an enormous amount of self-mobilization and directives from those around you at this point are quite irrelevant. While you may look to others for advice on 'How do best do things' you are not looking to others for a 'reason' to be prepared. So for now, lets throw out the top two chunks of the triangle.

The next three areas of the triangle are 'Love and Belonging', 'Safety', and 'Physiological'. Most survival sites deal with the last two, which are very important. But your strategies need to include the bottom THREE of the triangle, and the very first thing you should consider are the friends, family members and neighbors you may need to work with to make your preparedness plans work.

To many people use the excuse 'I have my family to think of' to justify their selfishness and their cowardice. One of the best movies to exemplify this is the movie 'Hotel Rwanda', where Don Cheadles refused to hide behind his family and instead went back into the fray to help people. There may come a time when you will need to be a Don Cheadle, and ignore the lie and make a difference. This was evident in the people who hid Jews in Germany, and many other stories of desperate times. This will be the case in the not-to-distant future. And to be perfectly blunt, the American people are anything but un-selfish. When TSHF, I fear that chaos will reign because NO ONE is thinking about ANYBODY but themselves. All you have to do is watch a little T.V. to know this is true. So whatever your strategy becomes you must be sure to think of others first, and what will be required of you to make an impact. What if your neighbor is an ailing grandmother, who cannot take care of herself, what would you do? What if your mother-in-law lives in another state and has no friends or family to help her? What if a co-worker slips and falls in the eye of a hurricane, and is trapped beneath something, still alive, still breathing? Or even simpler still, what if the food stores of our nation dissappear and you have a stash of food, but your neighbor is literally starving to death? Will you hide behind 'My family comes first.'?

These are tough questions to be sure, and the fact that I am asking them of you may indeed be pissing you off! But right-or-wrong, these questions touch a nerve for ALL of us. I have a wife and five children, it would be easy for me to use them as an excuse to be anything but heroic. I only hope that given the opportunity, I can conduct myself as a decent human being.

Bank Runs March 2009

2009-03-01T14:55:00.000-06:00

I am not sure if anyone caught this today, but this morning around 8:30am Fox came on with an story with regard to the Federal (Reserve I assume) saying that they have become unconfident in being able to secure, depositors accounts in the banks they belong. Apparently there is some data out there, that says banks will be crashing and burning in excess over the next year. The thing is that your money may not be guaranteed by the government. The Fed is enacting some legislation that will increase the fees it charges to the banks in an attempt to get their hands on some 25 billion or so dollars to try and offset the heavy losses on the part of consumers (You and Me).

Now, not to be alarmist, but if that means what I think it means, this next week could get a little hairy at the banks as far as people getting access to their money. I am not sure what to expect from all this, but be wary folks. If there is a run on the banks this week, we could be in for some serious trouble.

Not ten minutes after the story was aired, a reporter came on saying "Now!!!! Don't worry! Your money is safe! Your money is safe!". I personally don't trust spin-doctors.

I have been searching the internet for a bit to see what anyone was saying about this, but there is very little to go on. I'll keep my ears to my sources and fill you in as things progress throughout the day.

Maslows Hierarchy of Needs Part 1

2009-02-28T00:09:00.000-06:00

While pursuing my undergraduate degree in Marketing it seemed that every semester I was in a marketing class that hammered Maslows Hierarchy of Needs. I got so sick of the Hierarchy that at one time I asked my guidance counselor, "Is this another Maslows class? I am really getting tired of it." Without going into great detail about the paradigm, the hierachy of needs basically overviews the internal and external needs of the human animal in order to maintain a happy growth cycle. This is embraced by marketing, because if your product does not meet and/or fulfill one of these needs it it most likely that it isn't going to sell very well. Needs such as the need to be fed, the need for social interaction and approval, the need to have shelter, the need for comfort, warmth, etc, etc. Marketing breaks these down, and breaks them down and still breaks them down until they fit every facet of good marketing strata. While the hierarchy is somewhat fitting to survival and preparation, we can abandoned some of the materialist parts of the hierarchy to take a better look at the human animal.

The democrats under the leadership of Andrew Jackson embraced a concept known as the 'Manifest Destiny' which fueled the Western Expansion and the 'God given' mandate to colonize up to the Oregon territories, and while deeply trenched in the religion of the day, Western Expansion was anything but Christian at it's heart. But that is a story for another day. The real point is that the government (federally based) gave large tracts of land to settlers to tame and grow into the wild western regions beyond Appalachia and Tennessee. People do not realize that there was extreme strife among the colonies during this time and great legends like Davy Crocket, Daniel Boone, and several others lost faith in the American Dream and went to another country to find freedom. They went to Texas. But that also is another story for another time. As 'Americans' travelled westward they displaced indegenous people all in the name of their new faith, the Manifest Destiny. Many of these were among the displaced themselves, immigrants trying to hack out a living on Americas eastern shores. Tightly crammed in hovels they too wanted to seize their part of the American Dream so they journeyed west under Manifest Destiny's very large banner.

Unfortunately these new settlers knew nothing about Maslows hierarchy or the need for social interaction. Often, the new settlers would build their homes right smack dab in the middle of their very large government granted land. The point of this was so that when they awoke in the morning, they could stand out on their front porch, and everything their eyes would see belonged to them. The sense of ownership was very valuable to these new peoples. In the quest for this feeling of ownership, they had inadvertantly secluded themselves from other families, and settlers deep in the holdings of their land tracts. No law could reach them, and no one could touch them, purely laws unto themselves they squatted on land that was doled out to them.

Jackson dispersed reporters to travel west several years later to see and report on how the Western Expansion was going. Reporters that came back gave eyewitness reports of haunted children, and wild men with far-away eyes that had trouble relating and talking to these reporters. Women hid in the cabins, fearful of these 'reporters' and man had come to live not to much higher than the animals they hunted. Distant and foreboding, Jackson knew this was not the base of a happy and healthy nation, so it was then agreed that the Western Expansion have a certain agreement tied to it. In order to accept government granted land, you must agree to build your house on the corners of the lot-holdings along with other settlers, thereby creating a community rather than the murky dwellings of man left to himself. Once this was established the Western Expansion took on a new power and a new identity and the taming of the west was underway.

It is with this in mind that we as preppers, sustainability enthusiasts, and permaculture folks understand that no man is an island unto himself, and that man needs the interaction of a core familial struture if he is going to not just exist, but thrive and pass down the multi-generational torch. As we prepare, build, craft and create it is important to bear in mind that we may have friends and families that are nowhere near preparing for what is to come. I have these people in my life as well. When problems begin to arise there is a good chance that people we are close to will need a fallout shelter from the socio-economic storm that we are currently bracing ourselves for. In your preparations consider this deeply, but do not let this frustrate you as it could quite easily. Knowing that others may rely on you give you an extra sense of purpose and purpose is good. There will be hard work, and there will be times of chaffing, but count it all pleasurable for a man/woman without a purpose is like those haunted people, buried under the weight of isolation, paranoid and fearful and definitely not living strongly, healthily or happily.

So bear the burden of that un-prepared mother-in-law, father-in-law, friend or relative with a whole heart and know that even though they rely on you heavily, they need not be needless weight, for it is their social interaction that will keep you sane even in the darkest of times. Chances are you will need their help anyway. It is much easier to feed and extra mouth if you know that you can get your crops out sooner, or that chicken house built quicker, or that deer butchered sooner. Enjoy the warmth of the fire as your children play about your feet, and the people you are closest to are in the living room with you, reading and engaging in healthy dialogue, reminding you that all is 'OK' with the world, even if you live in the middle of a socio-economic maelstrom.

If you were to categorize these posts I would offer that my first post is Survival Skill #1: Don't loose your head. In reference to this post Survival Skill #2: Be sure you are a part of a community and not a lone wolf. Lone wolfs usually die quietly, alone, and with no-one to remember them fondly. What a miserable and selfish life the Lone Wolf has.

Nosce te Ipcum: Know Thyself

2009-02-25T20:22:00.000-06:00

So what are you preparing for? A hurricane? A tornado? A terror attack? Socio-economic collapse? Or the perihelion(or should I say peri-galactic?) event predicted by the Mayans due to hit December 21st, 2012? You will go to this preparedness site, that preparedness site. You will see any number of suggestions as to how to get started. Many will tell you to start buying guns, or that a water purifyer should be the first thing you should aspire to get. Others will tell you to start gardening, or purchasing huge amounts of food and store it. Still others will tell you to start investing in skills and learning how to do things. All of these are good, and just. It is my opinion that people should know about a great many disciplines to avoid becoming 'soft' in the head. However many fail the very first, and most important thing. That thing is to simply know yourself.

While this may seem and appear a bit metaphysical, or too 'self-esteemish' I grant you that it is still extremely vital particular in a real-world worst-event scenario. Knowing yourself will keep you from falling off the edge into 'paranoid-conspiracy theory'. Many get started on the self-sufficiency path only to find themselves wild-eyed, chasing shadows in the dark equipped with an aluminium foil hat and copper mesh in the attic to shield themselves from the satellites. Not that it isn't a good idea, but the point of preparedness is to not just survive, but thrive.

It is important that even in the midst of crisis to keep your head, put everything in proper context and to deal with events calmly and rationally. In addition to this, it is important to take a break from preparedness reading once in a while, or you will find yourself becoming consumed. Probably the best way to articulate this concept is the movie "The Edge".

Anthony Hopkins is no survivalist, nor is he a preparation expert, but one thing that AH had that his two travelling companions did NOT have was a firm belief in who he was and what he could demand of himself. It is this kind of resolve that keeps you from loosing your head in times of stress. It is this kind of resolve that will keep you from falling off the deep end into a McVeigh-lian anarchical delusion. Nosce te Ipcum is more than just a latin phrase, it is an inner strength. Knowing who you are is more important than 1,000 pounds of wheat in your basement. More important than a water filter, and much more important than whoever is in office, pushing the buttons and pulling the strings.

Disclaimer

2009-02-25T16:31:00.000-06:00

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