American Survival Blog

Via National Terror Alert Response Center this video of  Irwin Redlenr (a doctrinaire leftist but one who knows his field) talking about the threat of an American city being Nuked by terrorists and how you can survive. The meat of the material for us starts around 20:00 in case you want to skip some interesting yet sanctimonious lecturing on the history of nuclear proliferation:

In that vein a reader recommends The U.S. Armed Forces Nuclear, Biological And Chemical Survival Manual as an essential part of any survival library.

And since he may have been in contact with the National Socialist Movement the danger of a terror attack by someone of similar bent may not be over. James Cummings was an overweight, friendless miscreant who was fond of berating his wife Amber in front of contractors hired to work on his home. He presented himself as being so unstable that one contractor who worked for him abandoned the project and never asked for the money he was owed for fear of Cummings’ violent temperament and constant threats. Allegedly, after years of physical and sexual abuse, Amber killed the man in front of their 9-year-old daughter.

That’s when authorities found out what he’d been up to:

BELFAST, Maine — James G. Cummings, who police say was shot to death by his wife two months ago, allegedly had a cache of radioactive materials in his home suitable for building a “dirty bomb.”

According to an FBI field intelligence report from the Washington Regional Threat and Analysis Center posted online by WikiLeaks, an organization that posts leaked documents, an investigation into the case revealed that radioactive materials were removed from Cummings’ home after his shooting death on Dec. 9.

The report posted on the WikiLeaks Web site states that “On 9 December 2008, radiological dispersal device components and literature, and radioactive materials, were discovered at the Maine residence of an identified deceased [person] James Cummings.”

The section referring to Cummings can be read here.

It says that four 1-gallon containers of 35 percent hydrogen peroxide, uranium, thorium, lithium metal, thermite, aluminum powder, beryllium, boron, black iron oxide and magnesium ribbon were found in the home.

Also found was literature on how to build “dirty bombs” and information about cesium-137, strontium-90 and cobalt-60, radioactive materials. The FBI report also stated there was evidence linking James Cummings to white supremacist groups. This would seem to confirm observations by local tradesmen who worked at the Cummings home that he was an ardent admirer of Adolf Hitler and had a collection of Nazi memorabilia around the house, including a prominently displayed flag with swastika. Cummings claimed to have pieces of Hitler’s personal silverware and place settings, painter Mike Robbins said a few days after the shooting.

An application for membership in the National Socialist Movement filled out by Cummings also was found in the residence, according to the report. Cummings’ wife, Amber B. Cummings, 31, told investigators that her husband spoke of “dirty bombs,” according to the report, and mixed chemicals in her kitchen sink. She allegedly told police that Cummings subjected her to years of mental, physical and sexual abuse. She also said that Cummings was “very upset” when Barack Obama was elected president.

The fact that the government hasn’t released this information makes me suspect that they think a larger game is afoot. The fact that his wife didn’t tell anyone about his activity prior to deciding to off him makes me think she was at the very least O.K. with whatever he was planning. But for his degenerate character pushing his wife to the limit, we may have seen a major terror incident on our soil not directly connected to Islam.

I say not directly because the various neo-Nazi groups in America have been quietly aligning themselves with Marxist and Islamist groups for the past few years at least. There are confirmed reports that neo-Nazis were at many of the “pro-Palestine” marches held recently (such as this one in Toronto) and the NSM has woven leftist anti-Zionist talking points into their own platform. Their own website promotes this New York Times Op-Ed by Islamist Rashid Khalidi which is some of the vilest anti-Israel propaganda published by the MSM. Neo-Nazis are not a threat separate from the various domestic terror groups operating in America, but just the frayed edge of a tapestry of violent anti-Americanism that has festered here for too long.

The NSM doesn’t have a Maine chapter leader listed in their state contacts, which could just mean that they edited their site because of this or that Cummings was trying to start a chapter himself. Either way that would mean there are potentially more neo-Nazis out there who knew of his plan and may even be trying to further it themselves.

It might be time to start stocking up on Potassium Iodide and start brushing up on your fallout survival skills if you live in the northeast.

h/t N.T.A.

That the economy is ailing is not in doubt, whether there will be a collapse of some sort is more speculative but as survivalists you should be preparing for financial TEOTWAWKI as if you know it will definitely happen. But what will a complete financial meltdown look like?

No one really knows. I personally have decided to prepare by imagining there will be several months in which my wife and I will be living completely off what we have in the house with no chance of purchasing anything new. This is a worst case scenario that everyone can easily wrap their heads around and make plans accordingly. Food, water and some way to heat the house and cook if you have no power/gas. But even then I’m just guessing.

I read a couple of worst case scenario articles that go more in depth than I can mainly because they are written by people who work in finance so they are more familiar with the esoterica of the market world. The first is alarming titled The End of the U.S. as We Know It: Tracking the Dollar Downward by Paco Alhgren. His predictions are apocalyptic to say the least:

The demise of the dollar is imminent, and there aren’t a whole lot of different scenarios that could play out. I’ve established that the amount of currency in the system — especially once multiplied — is going to result in rising prices and rates. Likewise, the massive amount of existing and future debt is going to demand higher and higher yields. So which one is going to to lead the downward charge? My guess is the Treasury bubble will continue to unwind and this will damage the dollar’s integrity — after which the imminent rise in prices and rates caused by inflationary printing will only be exacerbated. Of course the dollar could start to weaken in anticipation of these rising prices and rates, pushing Treasuries lower.

In the end, however, does it really matter which happens first? I don’t believe the destruction of either the dollar or Treasuries is mutually exclusive — that is to say, they are inextricably dependent on each other and whatever fate holds for one, so goes the other. In my mind it’s far less important to consider how it will happen than it is to think about when it will happen — and perhaps most importantly, what it will to mean to the average citizen.

What we’re talking about here is a massive loss of faith. Since the average person isn’t going to understand the concept of using leverage to short the dollar, the only real way to offset the effects of devaluation is to buy real commodities and goods — in other words, getting rid of cash as quickly as possible. This will work if the pace of the dollar’s slide is kept moderate but if the currency goes into free fall and we experience hyperinflation, it is going to be very difficult to mitigate the effects. That’s when things can become dicey. The only possible bright spot — if you can possibly call it that — is that debtors would see the value of their loans collapsing, relative to the increase in general prices. I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t give me much solace.

[...]

So what will happen next? I keep coming to only one bleak conclusion: the United States will have to default. And that will be the final call for the dollar. Food shortages, rationing, and martial law could become the status quo.

It will undoubtedly seem farfetched to some of you, but I don’t think the United States can survive the failure of its currency — especially considering that the catastrophe will be the direct result of decades of governmental lies and manipulation. The states sent legislators to Washington who have systematically and purposely destroyed our currency. They manufactured an irresponsible Ponzi scheme that created false prosperity, over and over again. I simply don’t think the states in the Union — many of whom asserted their independence at another point in history — will sit still for more of the same.

So why not be realistic? Why not consider the true consequences of the $8.5 trillion in stimulus coming down the pike?

According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis (2005), if Texas were an independent nation, its economy would be the 15th largest on earth — ahead of Australia, Switzerland, Taiwan, Saudi Arabia, and Israel. The state is extremely business friendly; its constitution requires a referendum to implement an income tax — an initiative which has never come close to becoming reality. Texas has the longest contiguous border with Mexico, along with some very large port cities. Beyond all that, Texas sports three of the ten largest cities in the United States.

If that isn’t enough to make you raise your eyebrows, consider this: the economies of New York and California are both larger even than Texas’s. Now, remind me again why these economic blocs would want to remain in a bankrupt union whose currency has failed?

It’s worth while to read his whole article, but his conclusion (while some may say far-fetched) is the real food for thought food for thought. In a country as divided politically as we are now smaller disasters than economic collapse could well set into motion a fracture in our Union couldn’t be resolved. I have argued privately that the left’s desire to put Bush “on trial” would lead to armed conflict here if they ever acted on it. It would  certainly be the line I wouldn’t allow them to cross; to have a banana republic style lynching of a former President would be an outrage no sane person could sit idle for. If we face a real economic collapse would that same tension boil over?

This article Roger Weigand lists some specific expectations he has, which if they come to pass as he predicts will change the landscape of America to something almost unrecognizable:

However, with spring flowers in April we are expecting a quintuple smash of:

1.Wave one of commercial real estate foreclosures and loan failures. Some of the biggest of the big buildings will be foreclosed and those planned but not built will never see daylight. Meanwhile, vacancies skyrocket while budgets are busted with dropping rents. One analyst estimated the New York City Financial district buildings will see 66% occupancies with breakeven budgets being much higher. You will see some major shopping malls shut down.

2.The second wave of residential foreclosures and loan failures arrives dragging down all real estate values both commercial and residential. They will sink like a rock in over-built states and within those regions previously hit the worst. This is related to the next mortgage failure cycle. Some of those formerly upscale, McMansion subdivisions will turn into ghost towns.

3.Wave one of auto loan failures containing billions in bank, credit union and auto finance company loans will smash credit markets. The reaction will be stunning and probably stop most vehicle lending temporarily for weeks paralyzing automakers and those lenders still doing car and truck loans.

4.Wave one of several future waves of credit card failures estimated at $40 billion by bank credit analysts will be an April smash. Normally card failures are in the 1-2% range annually. This larger event opens doors for a historic new number of non-payers and delinquents. This cycle is mostly job loss related but most of it is due to overspending by cardholders.

5.Wave one of the CDS Credit Default Swaps will hit markets like a Tsunami. These failures will be so overpowering, those in charge will be stunned and flabbergasted by the numbers. The figures are so large we cannot even imagine the amounts. One analyst said it was estimated between $500 and $750 Trillion dollars! There is no margin or deposit money on these trades.

All this will mean towns and cities across America will be unable to fund services from tax revenue, waves of migration from the cities will change the political and cultural life of many rural communities and we will be living in a world surrounded by our own ruins as whole sections of once prosperous areas are abandoned and crumble. Think of the urban prairies of Detroit and the lives many eke out there, and imagine that almost all of America looks like that.

Millions of people raised in an era of unprecedented wealth are about to live like their great-grand parents did when wealth was food on the table and a roof over your head, and that transition will not be easy.

There are gloomier predictions out there but there’s little point in dwelling on them since preparation for almost all these scenarios will be the same. Buy long storing edibles and whatever else you will need to be self-sufficient for at least a six month period, and longer if you can. Learn a new trade, begin to learn about growing your own food or at least how to forage  and buy trade items you will be able to barter with.

And needless to say you should be ready to protect yourself and your property as Law Enforcement is pared down by cash strapped cities.

The worst case scenario is we basically live in an environment much like the pioneers of old, where no one was able to make a weekly grocery run or a trip to McDonalds and you had to rely on yourself, your family and your neighbors. If you are ready to live like them, you should do fine.

If not you have a lot of work to do and not much time to do it in.

h/t Refuge

Wilderness Outfitters Archery has a YouTube channel where he uploads all sorts of useful tidbits. Since small game hunting is likely on a lot of people’s minds considering how the economy is going this showing how to process a rabbit into a quick meal with some jerky left over should be of use to many of you:

I was reading the current issue of  The Backwoodsman magazine when I came across an article by David Langerman called The Ultimate Bug Out Gun and How to Feed It in which he makes the not unconvincing argument that his preference for a survival weapon (the flintlock rifle)  has several advantages over modern firearms in a true TEOTWAWKI situation. He has a point in that should we really slide into even Second World status the ability to buy ammunition or even reload modern ammunition using smokeless powder and modern components will be severely curtailed. With that in mind the flintlock mechanism is a low-tech solution that provides anyone who can tinker around with naturally occurring substances (sulfur, charcoal and potassium nitrate) a viable shooting platform they can feed themselves without overly specialized knowledge.

Black powder can be (for the most part) safely made following a recipe easily available on the Internet and lead balls can be fabricated using equipment purchased through many sporting goods catalogs now. The Flintlock rifle certainly has saved the lives of many men and put food on millions of tables over the years, of that I have no doubt. But while David Langerman may be ready for anything with his flintlock does that mean “primitive” weapons are a good idea for the modern survivalist?

Short answer: no. While I encourage everyone to learn some primitive skills there has been an unfortunate mythology surrounding primitive skills that lead people to believe that they are both simpler and better than modern equivalent. This somewhat naive mindset can lead to tragedy when people assume that they can, after reading some books and attending a few primitive living classes, live out their Grizzly Adams fantasy in some unheated cabin in the middle of the woods.

If you are like David Langerman and are familiar with flintlocks and can operate one, fix one when it needs to be repaired, and truly understand how complex and delicate the flintlock is then including one in your survival plan is an excellent idea. But if you are just starting out getting prepared or have only a passing familiarity with muzzle loading in general or flintlocks in particular then my advice is to keep things simple. And flintlock rifles are anything but simple.

Primitive does not equal simple, often primitive technology is more complex and harder to use for the average person. Take starting a fire. The primitive way often involves using devices that take many months to truly master, and even when you’ve become expert at the use of hand bows or flint and steel fire making the techniques are prone to failure.  A light drizzle or errant gust of wind could mean several extra hours of tedious and frustrating work to start a fire, if you can get one going at all.

In my bug out bag I have lighters, matches and film canisters stuffed with Vaseline soaked cotton balls. Primitive? No. But I can light a fire when I need one and as of now I can stock up on all the materials I need. What I can’t do is spend all my waking hours honing primitive skills because I work and so do many of you. Primitive skills take a long period of time to master, and if you’re still (hopefully) a 9-5er with a family your preparedness hours are better spent stocking up on modern equipment and preparing to be self-sufficient than learning ancient skills. There will be plenty of hours in the day for you to perfect your primitive skills after TEOTWAWKI and after you’ve provided food and shelter for your family.

The same goes for the flintlock, but while buying a flint and steel set to mess around with is a small investment the several hundred dollars you drop on a good flintlock is better spent on Ramen, powdered eggs and heirloom tomatoes, all of which you could order from Amazon right now at 1/10th the cost of a flintlock rifle and that’s without the powder and accessories needed to operate one.

A good flintlock rifle runs anywhere between $400 for a sale model in a Cabelas catalog to a couple of grand for a hand made one. A single shot shotgun from N.E.F. or Rossi comes in under $200 and in some cases you can get them for under $100. Best yet the single shot shotgun is one of the most versatile, rugged and reliable firearms there is. Yes ammunition will be scarce to say the least after TEOTWAWKI but it isn’t TEOTWAWKI yet. Ammunition can be stockpiled easily through mail order and the Internet.

But more importantly the single shot shotgun can be mastered faster and maintained easier than any primitive weapons system. I can’t tell you how many people I’ve heard say they broke their flintlock the first time they cleaned it (you need a special spring vice apparently) or how many misfires cost them their buck during muzzle loading season. Learning to properly shoot and maintain a flintlock is a long and arduous process requiring hours of trial and error. The survivalist has no time for this. You need to maximize your time at the range by becoming proficient enough with your firearm that the ammo you have stockpiled will last a lifetime, and the gun itself can be passed down for generations.

In other words, you need to think like the people that traded in their flintlocks in the first place. The flintlock still may have limited use to a limited amount of people (re-enactors who have put in years of practice to master the arm) but most people should use the time and money it takes to master primitive arms to ensure they are prepared to survive. If flintlocks appeal to you and you have the money and time then having one is great, but I’ll stick to my shotguns and Bic lighters and anyone new to preparedness should do the same.