Monday, February 28, 2011

Frank Buckles

The last U.S. World War One Veteran has died at the age of 110. The day before Frank Buckles died, he spent three hours in the sun on his front porch with his daughter.

I'm glad he got his final day in the sun.

Rest easy.

Link.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Judgment Day, The Rapture, The End Of The World...

Doom On You.


OK, so, The Rapture, according to this website, is supposed to occur on May 21, 2011.

And then on October 21, 2011, the world will be destroyed by fire.

I'm facing the Apocalypse and I don't have enough food stored up! 8-)

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Twilight Zone Zero Tolerance Nonsense...

In some school districts, kids cannot play "cops and robbers" or "cowboys and indians" or apparently "army and aliens."

I wish it was unbelievable. But it is very believable.

"Outdoor Survival: Spending a night in your vehicle"

This is a great article on surviving situations like blizzards while you are in your vehicle. "Outdoor Survival: Spending a night in your vehicle" is a really good primer. The one thing that grabbed me when I read the first part of it was running out of fuel. Let me put this in the most simple terms - every time your vehicle's fuel gauge hits the 1/4 mark, fill it up.

Other than that, there are sometimes issues with snowplows striking vehicles that have been covered by so much snow the snowplow driver doesn't see the stranded vehicle. This is a very real concern and if you have the right gear, you might not even have to spend the night in the vehicle. I am sure the author of the article is writing it for the masses and what he puts forth is excellent advice for most people because most people are more likely to die outside of the vehicle.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Monday, February 21, 2011

The Unlikely Survivors

There have been hundreds of thousands...probably millions...of words written condemning folding knives for survival purposes. But the lockback knives...or knives with no lock at all...draw the most ire.










Knives pictured...

Buck Prince Model #503 (2 of them)

Buck Knight Model #505

Case Trapper

Camillus "Demo" Knife Model #1760

What did we ever do before the Liner Lock, the Frame Lock and other locks like Benchmade's Axis Lock? Well, we whittled are way to snare building success with knives like those pictured above, that's what we did!

We cleaned squirrel, rabbit and various types of squab with them, we cleaned deer with them. Some of us even cleaned some snakes with them. We cleaned and scaled fish with them. Cut cord and rope, did all of these marvelous things that a person in a survival situation would have to do.

To hear people talk now, "surviving" with some pocketknife just started to be viable because of the invention of some new lock on a folding knife or some new wondersteel.

Like the additions of "safeties" on firearms that already have safeties, you can't make a tool idiot-proof. It's not that I don't admire something like a Sebenza (Frame Lock) or the Doug Ritter Benchmades (Axis Lock) because I do. I value them highly as a matter of fact!

But I also value these simple tools...highly.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Survivalism: American Style

You know, being interested in survival methods and gear basically marks you as a nut in the minds of most people. It took September 11, 2001 to really rattle the cage of complacent Americans. Then everything started to settle down again into the same groove and Hurricane Katrina and the levee failures in New Orleans rekindled a lot of the talk of "Emergency Kits" and "Go Bags." Then, just a horrible series of Hurricanes...well...it seemed as though people were finally going to wake up out of their American Idol slumber and get it together...but it only lasts so long.

Gone are the nightly news stories of assembling your "Go Bag" or whatever other metrosexual term they could muster for "BUG OUT BAG" and we are settling down into the old habits again.

Well, some of us are...

Having this mindset and this type of gear is slowly becoming the mark of the lunatic fringe again. Viewed as an insult once again because it now points to someone being prepared for some other eventualities like Wall Street crashing again, etc. Which is oftentimes viewed as a lack of faith in The United States itself.

Then there is the slow burn of "2012" looming on the horizon which has the capability of making the "Y2K" freakout look tame in comparison. I really wonder how badly "2012" is going to ratchet up the fear of every day, ordinary people.

As with "Y2K," I'm not concerned with "2012." I'm slightly concerned with people turning it into some sort of self-fulfilling prophecy through overactive imaginations slamming head-on into their own skittish nature.

ESEE Fire Kit










The first versions of the ESEE Fire Kit used a Misch Metal Rod as the firestarter. I think ESEE now uses a more conventional Ferrocerium Rod. Both are reliable firestarting devices.

The body of this Fire Kit not only serves as a good handle but it's also a storage compartment for a button compass in the end cap and whatever you wish to store in the hollow cavity as well.

In this picture you will see that I am using it for a mini-fishing kit with lures, braided nylon line, steel/nylon leader, snap swivels, split-shot sinkers. three small Eagle Claw Hooks, a treble hook for snagging fish and a single cotton ball to keep everything from rattling in storage and for use as tinder.

You can pack the entire cavity with tinder if that's the way you want to go, you can place money in there, whatever you want within reason.

As with the Advanced E&E Survival Kit below, this item is available from most knife dealers who carry ESEE Cutlery.

I think a 20mm button compass is now included with the newer versions of this tool, but the contents shown in these pictures are not, that is up to you, to come up with your own valued items for survival purposes.

A very tough and simple piece of equipment that will serve you well.

ESEE Advanced E&E Survival Kit

The PSKT Nylon Pouch, closed and open (below).

















In this second picture below, you see in the top row of items, left to right: signal mirror, wire saw, Katadyn Micro-Pur Water Purification Tablets. Then you drop down to the next row of items, left to right: Tornado Whistle, a cluster of items, folding razor, folding saw, combo-tool - spoon and P-38 type can opener and bottle opener, mini - prybar, a polymer universal handcuff key and a 20mm button compass. Moving to the right again there are four pieces of highly compressed cotton tinder in a ring of brass snare wire. After that you see a red plastic sleeve which contains a Fresnel Lens (magnifier) under some loose leaf Rite-in-the-Rain paper and a "golf" pencil.













In the third picture, below, you see another grouping of items. The two items up top, left to right are a fishing kit and a storage baggy with a good amount of Mil-Spec Cord. Dropping down (same picture) you see a ferrocerium rod and a piece of sharpened hacksaw blade on ball chain and one ALOKSAK bag is located directly under it. Moving to the right are the items listed in picture two (directly above) and then under that is a pack of Caffeine GUm and a 2X2 Hemostatic Guaze Pad


















The remaining items in the two pictures below are assorted First Aid items described in the List of Contents.














Direct information from ESEE's Website, list of contents:

Contents contained in a Cordura Nylon PSKT pouch (5.0" x 3.75" x 1.5"). Offered in two configurations: Advanced and Basic.

Advanced Kit Contents:

1 ea. PSKT Pocket Container
1 ea. Pencil
1 ea. Mini Pry Bar
1 ea. Survival Saw Blade w/ Handle
1 ea. Original SAS Wire Saw
1 ea. Surgical Scalpel w/ Handle
1 ea. Button Compass
1 ea. Rescue Whistle
1 ea. P38 Can Opener
1 ea. Signal Mirror w/ Aiming Screen
1 ea. Ranger Fire Starting Flint
1 ea. Tinder Tabs
4 ea. Water Treatment Tablets
1 ea. Fresnel Lens Magnifier / Fire Starter
1 ea. Utility Wire
1 ea. MilSpec Cord
1 ea. AlokSak
1 ea. Personal Survival Fishing Kit
1 ea. Disposable Handcuff Key

1 ea. Mini First Aid Kit

Aspirin Packs
Non-Aspirin Packs
Imodium
Medi-Lyte
Triple Antibiotic Ointment
Band-Aids
SteriStrip Bandage
Lip Balm
Sting Relief
Sun Screen Packet
Insect Repellant Wipes
Alcohol Wipes
2 x 2 gauze w/ Haemostatic Clotting Agent
3/0 Nylon Suture - Reverse Cutting Needle

A lot of knife dealers that stock ESEE Cutlery items will have this kit. You can simply do a Google search and find the best price you can. Remember, this is the Advanced Version of the Kit, the Basic Version has a few less items and costs a little bit less.

The pouch/kit container is available from Best Glide and it is heavy duty, to say the least. There is room to place a small, French Douk-Douk or a Buck Knight or Prince folding knife in the pouch along with other items as well. This kit can be carried in the supplied pouch zip-tied to another pack or alone on your belt, etc.

These pouches were originally intended to hold BCB Survival (Tobacco Tin) Survival Kits.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Garbage Gripper: A New Product I Have Been Using...

You can find them here.

I have been using these at work and at home for about three weeks now and they are as good as new and have retained their strength as well. Only time will tell.

The website and the blister card packaging cites a few other uses such as securing yoga mats and sleeping bags, good idea!

Sure, ParaCord and just any old cord can do these jobs as well. They really work as intended for trash cans but putting two to six of these in your pack, using them along with contractor size/toughness bag liners, you could make a shelter incredibly weather-resistant.

Sure, there are about 873,534 ways to make a lean-to shelter or some variation of the wickiup.

This could be just another tool in your survival kit. If nothing else, your trashcans in your home will thank you.

Thursday, February 17, 2011

The Consumer Price Index...

You can read about it by going to this link.

It's incredibly interesting. Everyone that goes grocery shopping on a weekly basis and actually cashes a PAYCHECK from an EMPLOYER knew three years ago that we were in a recession. Only through constant manipulation of numbers and lying, lying by omission and redefining words could they could arrive at the conclusion that we were not in a recession.

They do the same thing with unemployment numbers.

They do the same thing with "inflation."

And many of us have been suffering under "stagflation" for quite some time now. It's not likely to get better in the short term...and I don't think the long term prospects look too good, either.

Anyway, read the article. Have a nice night.

Monday, February 14, 2011

Learning from the mistakes of others...

The purpose for this blog is to pass on good information that makes people think and, it keeps me sharp. Writing is a discipline and I'm not a very disciplined person at times.

Here is something to keep you sharp. When you hear names like James Kim, Aron Ralston, Timothy Treadwell or Christopher McCandless, do you simply emote like some demented Ing'enue, or do you look at what they did wrong and decide not to do that? Or see a lack of preparation and then decide to prepare?

In some circles, any critique of these people is viewed as "Monday morning quarterbacking" or some other nonsense. Then we come to the chestnut of the idiotic, "It's better to be kind than to be right."

Monday, February 7, 2011

Dorcy Penlight Update

I have located a source for the Dorcy Penlight I wrote about in this blog entry. It is in the tool section at Sears.

If you don't have a Sears close by, I guess you have to stick with the Energizer Penlight. They are equal in brightness but the Dorcy has a protected LED.

The Urban Exploration "Controversy," again...

The real "controversy" is...there is nothing "controversial" about it! People read way too much into some things.

Don't go "draining" (exploring storm drains) because you can get injured or killed in them, OK?

Don't go trespassing to explore old nuthouses and factories because, you can get injured or killed or arrested for doing so, OK?

What originally interested me, when I was much younger and a lot more stupid, was the line of thought of using storm drains as a shelter. An idea I got out of a book.

So, my post below about the Undercity Website stirred up a couple of comments which I have deleted.

I'm not encouraging you to become involved in Urban Exploration anymore than I am encouraging you to be homeless and live in your vehicle or encouraging you to break your arm so you can see what type of emergency firestarter will really work for you. What I am encouraging you to do is read about it and learn from it. Nothing more, nothing less. Some people think that simply by squashing information that certain things are just going to go away. The world doesn't work that way.

Clint Eastwood: The Libertarian

"And I became more of a libertarian – let’s leave everybody alone, quit screwing with everybody and don’t over-regulate. It’s about giving people a chance to live by their own decisions. And today the liberals aren’t really liberal at all because they won’t leave people alone, and a lot of the conservatives have lost their way fiscally. That’s why the UK, America, Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Spain are all in a mess right now."

Attribution.

Thomas Jefferson: Another Point Of View...

A lot of people love Thomas Jefferson, when he agrees with their point of view. When they can quote him and it supports their world view or argument, he is a wonderful "Founding Father." When it comes to his views on limited government or his views on firearms, well, he's just another dirty old dead white guy who owned slaves.

The more liberal among us who cry constantly about the People having the right to "choose," (Pro-"Choice," etc.) when it comes to their sacred cow issues will cite the obscure letter to the Danbury Baptists and build an entire Constitutional line of thought, a doctrine, about the "separation of church and state" and then they will ignore the many quotes of Thomas Jefferson where he believed the right to keep and bear arms was an individual right for American Citizens.

They have been doing this for years, treating the Constitution and the first ten amendments to it, the Bill of Rights, as a buffet table where they can pick and choose what they want and ignore the rest in the desperate hope that what they ignored will quickly be swept into a waiting trash receptacle and silently disposed of.

Not to be outdone, "conservatives" and "libertarians" who claim to be capitalists but really worship at the altar of crony capitalism, they love to quote Thomas Jefferson as well.

Some of Jefferson's thoughts are simply brilliant. Jefferson said enough in this quote to make both sides of the political spectrum roll their eyes or get angry.

"I am not among those who fear the people. They, and not the rich, are our dependence for continued freedom.

And to preserve their independence, we must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt. We must make our election between economy and liberty, or profusion and servitude. If we run into such debts, as that we must be taxed in our meat and in our drink, in our necessaries and our comforts, in our labors and our amusements, for our callings and our creeds, as the people of England are, our people, like them, must come to labor sixteen hours in the twenty-four, give the earnings of fifteen of these to the government for their debts and daily expenses; and the sixteenth being insufficient to afford us bread, we must live, as they now do, on oatmeal and potatoes; have no time to think, no means of calling the mismanagers to account; but be glad to obtain subsistence by hiring ourselves to rivet their chains on the necks of our fellow-sufferers.

Our landholders, too, like theirs, retaining indeed the title and stewardship of estates called theirs, but held really in trust for the treasury, must wander, like theirs, in foreign countries, and be contented with penury, obscurity, exile, and the glory of the nation. This example reads to us the salutary lesson, that private fortunes are destroyed by public as well as by private extravagance. And this is the tendency of all human governments. A departure from principle in one instance becomes a precedent for a second; that second for a third; and so on, till the bulk of the society is reduced to be mere automatons of misery, and to have no sensibilities left but for sinning and suffering.

Then begins, indeed, the bellum omnium in omnia, which some philosophers observing to be so general in this world, have mistaken it for the natural, instead of the abusive state of man. And the fore horse of this frightful team is public debt. Taxation follows that, and in its train wretchedness and oppression." ~Thomas Jefferson, letter to Samuel Kercheval, July 12, 1816.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

"Global Superstorms," huh?

I was reading James Keating's MAAJAK WORLD and found one article linking to this, the original article.

Well, doesn't look like it has much to do with factories and the internal combustion engine and the disguised tax schemes of "Global Warming," so I guess politicians won't really be interested in it very much. That is until they can find a way to fleece us some more because of this.

Look on the bright side though, perhaps the compass won't be such a vital piece of gear in the future.

Magnetic Polar Shifts Causing Massive Global Superstorms.

Escape From Alcatraz: The Real Story

There was some nonsense in the Eastwood movie, but a lot of it was true. Welding using silver dust (from a silver dime) to make a stronger digging tool out of a spoon and a portion of fingernail clipper is one example of nonsense. The most interesting part was the disguises and that part was apparently true.

The Great Escape From Alcatraz.

The Internet "Kill Switch"

Well, I could read even more about it and then regurgitate it back to you with my own spin but I have far better things to do with my time. The important thing for you to know and keep in your mind is the fact that the control freaks are absolutely terrified of "The People."

All you have to do is Google for "Internet Kill Switch" and you will find a lot of information to read.

The Internet is obviously hindering the plans of the authoritarians. It is a thorn in their side.

A Photo Essay On The Great Depression

A most interesting website, to say the least. A Photo Essay On The Great Depression.

Seychelle's Water Filtration Straw












I purchased my first "Survival Water Straw" at a gun show back around 1985 or so. It didn't work very well - it clogged pretty fast and once used, it was done.

Over 25 years later, we have better "straws" now.

In the entry/post below this one, you will see the Seychelle Water Filtration Canteen. They also make a great little water filtration straw. It is very well made!

The advanced model is $16.95, a small price to pay for the peace of mind the unit provides. This is the advanced model which comes with the additional treatment/filtration insert. So, if you want better bottled water or if the tap water you have is objectionable for whatever reason, you can simply use this straw.

For more survival-oriented use, unscrew the end that you would be placing in the questionable source of water and place the additional insert in there and screw the end back on, very simple.

Use of a pre-filter like a Millbank Bag to remove sediment/particulate matter is not required but it will make the filter last a lot longer. This is not a shortcoming of the Seychelle filters, it should be done with any water filtration system.

If you do not have a Millbank Bag, an excellent piece of British Kit, you can make your own out of cotton canvas or use a bandanna or even something like the small cloth bag that sunglasses like Oakley's are supplied with. If you intend on sticking this filter straw directly into a source of water, then you can use a piece of ParaCord or a Ranger Band or rubber band and secure the bandanna or cloth bag to the end of the unit, tightly.

The unit has a threaded cap to keep the mouthpiece from being contaminated, a very nice touch instead of going the cheaper route and simply having it unprotected or using some type of pressure-fit cap.

You can either have your pre-filtered water in a container of known volume so you know how much "life" you have left in your straw or you can use a more primitive method if you intend on obtaining water right from the source. You will have to measure how many "mouthfuls" of water it takes to make a cup of water and then how many cups of water to a gallon then mark the body of the straw with a Sharpie marker or whatever you have available or record that in a notebook or piece of waterproof paper in your survival kit, etc. When you reach 25 gallons, you know the filter has reached its effective life and you can then discard it.

Here is some information from Seychelle's website:

Key Features:

Up to 25-gallon filter life.

Now with BIOSAFE®, removes up to 99.99% of bacteria, virus, contaminants and pollutants found in drinking water including Guardia, Cryptosporidium, and E-Coli Bacteria.

Proven effective against bacteria and virus to six logs reduction (99.9999%).

Waterproof carrying case.

Ideal for everyday use and disaster preparedness.

Ultra light and compact.

Non-toxic BPA free materials.

Tested by Independent laboratories using EPA /ANSI protocols and NSF Standards 42 and 53.

Costs less than bottled water.

Filter Types: Our products come with either a Standard or Advanced filter. The type of filter is indicated by the words Standard (Std.) or Advanced (Adv.) in the product name.

Seychelle Standard Filter The Standard filter is ideal for any in or out-door use; like traveling, hiking, biking, camping, fishing or for emergency purposes. It can be used with any type of water source excluding salt water such as tap or rainwater, rivers, streams or even lakes.

Now with BIOSAFE®, removes up to 99.99% of bacteria, virus, contaminants and pollutants and pollutants found in fresh water supplies including Aesthetics such as chlorine, Sediment and dirt; Biologicals such as Giardia, Cryptosporidium, E-Coli Bacteria; Chemicals (VOC'S) such as DDT, MTBE, Benzene, Chloroforms (THM'S); and Dissolved Solids (Heavy metals) such as Arsenic, Lead, Mercury, Copper, Zinc, Aluminum and Chromium 6.

Seychelle Advanced Filter The Advanced filter is made of the same media as the Standard filter with the addition of EPA approved iodinated resin (EPA Reg #: 35917-2), which has been proven effective in the removal of bacteria and virus to six logs (99.9999%).

BIOSAFE® antimicrobial media has been added to all Seychelle filters. It is safe, non-toxic and non-leaching; EPA, FDA and NSF approved. It acts like a pincushion of molecules that are permanently bonded to the filter that disrupts and ruptures the cell structures of water borne micro-organisms. Its biostatic effect reduces bacteria to 99.99%. BIOSAFE® has an indefinite shelf life.

Money Back Guaranteed for 90 days!
Approx Weight: 0.50 lb. / each
Dimensions (LxWxH): 1.00 x 2.00 x 8.00 in

Friday, February 4, 2011

Seychelle's Water Filtration Canteen

From Seychelle's website:

"In recent years bottled water has come under increased scrutiny because of plastic bottle leaching, and bottled water's high cost per gallon. Millions of barrels of oil used each year to produce and transport bottled water. Billions of empty bottles end up in landfills each year where they may last for 1,000 years. And, the quality of bottled water is not always assured!"

Every point in this statement is FACT, not fiction. It is not up for debate. People don't realize that so many things are made from oil. The amount of plastic that we blaze through, as a society, is absolutely mind-boggling. Hopefully we are recycling a large degree of it but I fear we are not. Further, I fear that it takes even more oil products to recycle it all to the degree that recycling might not be what it is cracked up to be, either.

And, sadly, a lot of bottled water companies are not exactly informing their customer base that sometimes their product is not even as clean as common tap water treated by whatever community you live in.

Seychelle is not only aiming their products at military folks, they are trying to get regular people to use some of their products, like this canteen, every day. They make a good argument. Bottled water is expensive! So, why not purchase a canteen/water bottle with a filtering element on it? When the filter wears out, purchase another one. When you consider that the filter on this canteen will filter up to 100 gallons of water and it only costs $31.99, you only need to take a trip to your local convenience store like 7-11 and price bottled water to see what a deal you are getting for your money.

I first heard about Seychelle when I read this article in Men's Journal on Robert Young Pelton's gear.









As you can see in the picture, Seychelle's Water Filtration System in the form of a Canteen is comparable in size and shape to a standard, U.S.G.I. Canteen.

The other picture shows the filtration module removed from the canteen.

Even if you are not so concerned with the quality of bottled water or your tap water, this is a great piece of emergency survival gear to have standing by in your survival kit.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Undercity.Org

A friend sent me a link to yet another Urban Exploration (UE or UrbEx) Website. Undercity Dot Org is a rather interesting UrbEx Website as UrbEx tends to be.

Almost simultaneously, the censors at EDC Forums edited a member's thread/post linking a video found on that website. The reason cited for the censorship was they don't want to promote illegal activities. Unfortunately, that doesn't make a lot of sense considering they left discussion open regarding the website! For some reason, discussion and commentary on these nefarious "illegal activities" is somehow "okay" but viewing the actual video is not.

After a few exchanges about various acts of censorship, I have given up trying to figure out how people justify their actions when it comes to the exchange of information.

As Paladin Press Owner Peder Lund once told the "journalists" of ABC's program, "20/20," notorious for their hit pieces, "Once you begin censorship, it's impossible to stop censorship."

Here is to the free-flow of ideas. That is what the Internet was supposed to be. Some people wish to turn it into a very rigid structure of control.

"Let us dare to read, think, speak and write." ~ John Adams