TSA’s John Pistole to Congressional Commitee: “We Don’t Answer to You or Anyone”

Posted by Ed Corcoran News No Responses »

Nov 302012

TSA claims Congress has no jurisdiction over it; refuses to attend hearings

When officials who head up a federal agency created and funded by Congress no longer feel obligated to appear before the congressional committee charged with overseeing the function of that agency, a situation of genuine tyranny exists.

Enter John Pistole, the Obama Administration’s head of the notorious Transportation Security Agency. He is not only refusing to appear before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, but he’s even gone so far as to declare that said congressional committee possesses “no jurisdiction over the TSA.”

That’s more than just arrogance; that’s a dangerous precedent to set.

We don’t answer to you or anyone

According to the committee’s website, Pistole was requested to appear before the panel’s subcommittee on Aviation Nov. 28, to provide testimony at a hearing titled, “How Best to Improve Our Nation’s Airport Passenger Security System Through Common Sense Solutions.”

Chaired by Rep. Thomas Petri, R-Wis., the focus of the hearing was to “examine the impact that the regulations and policies of the Transportation Security Administration have on aviation passenger experience and the free flow of aviation commerce,” according to a summary posted on the panel’s website.

Despite being requested by a duly authorized congressional committee, Pistole, via a statement issued by the agency on its website, refused to comply:

By U.S. House of Representatives rules which state that the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has no jurisdiction over the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), no representative from TSA will be present at the Subcommittee on Aviation hearing scheduled for Nov. 29.

TSA will continue to work with its committees of jurisdiction to pursue effective and efficient security solutions. In the 112th Congress alone, TSA witnesses have testified at 38 hearings and provided 425 briefings for Members of Congress.

TSA also continues to work to enhance security screening measures and to improve the passenger experience including through the expansion of [an agency pre-check program]. As part of its risk-based security initiatives, TSA has modified screening procedures for passengers 12 and under and 75 and older while pursuing a multi-layered approach to security that includes behavior detection officers, explosives-detection systems and federal air marshals, among other measures both seen and unseen.

House Republicans on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee have long said the expansive and haughty agency is in need of major reform since its hasty creation in the pandemonium of the immediate post-9/11 era. A section on the panel’s website describes the agency as “a massive, inflexible, backward-looking bureaucracy of more than 65,000.”

“TSA is a top-heavy agency in need of reform,” says the site.

The Transportation committee is currently chaired by Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., who has been a consistent, vocal critic of the TSA and who has pushed for airports to stop using the agency and instead employ private security screeners.

Mica wrote the legislation that created the agency; he has recently declared it to be a miserable failure.

Defund the TSA

In the upcoming 113th Congress, which convenes Jan. 9, Mica steps down and will be replaced by Rep. Bill Shuster of Pennsylvania. When asked by reporters for a reaction to the TSA’s refusal to show up and testify at the scheduled hearing, as well as the agency’s declaration it did not fall under the auspices of the committee, Shuster explained: “I don’t think we have direct jurisdiction but when they impede commerce, when they impede the traveling public, they need to answer to the committee.”

In an interview with Bloomberg News, Shuster said he “absolutely” expects the agency’s officials to appear at Transportation committee hearings. When asked what he would do if they refuse, Shuster was cryptic: “We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”

As we’ve reported often – and will continue to do so – the TSA is a rogue agency being run by unelected bureaucrats who believe they don’t have to answer to anyone – the public, which has grown tired and wary of the behavior of its agents, or the elected congressional representatives charged with overseeing it.

No bureaucracy is above reproach. Congress has the power of the purse strings; it should exercise that power and defund the TSA.

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/038154_TSA_Congress_hearings.html#ixzz2DjT8TEiO

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7 Common Prepper Food Storage Mistakes

Posted by Ed Corcoran News No Responses »

Nov 302012

1. VARIETY – Most people don’t have enough variety in their food storage. 95% of the people I’ve worked with only stored the 4 basic items we mentioned earlier: wheat, milk, honey, and salt. Statistics show most of us won’t survive on such a diet for several reasons.

Many people are allergic to wheat and may not be aware of it until they are eating it meal after meal.
Wheat is too harsh for young children. They can tolerate it in small amounts but not as their main staple.
We get tired of eating the same foods over and over and many times prefer not to eat than to sample that particular food again. This is called appetite fatigue. Young children and older people are particularly susceptible to it. Store less wheat than is generally suggest and put the difference into a variety of other grains, particularly ones your family likes to eat. Also store a variety of beans. This will add variety of color, texture and flavor. Variety is the key to a successful storage program. It is essential that you store flavorings such as tomato, bouilion, cheese, and onion.

Also, include a good supply of the spices you like to cook with. These flavorings and spices allow you to do many creative things with your grains and beans. Without them you are severely limited. One of the best suggestions I can give you is buy a good food storage cookbook. Go through it and see what your family would really eat. Notice the ingredients as you do it. This will help you more than anything else to know what items to store.

2. EXTENDED STAPLES – Few people get beyond storing the four basic items, but it is extremely important that you do so. Never put all your eggs in one basket. Store dehydrated and/or freeze-dried foods as well as home canned and store bought canned goods. Make sure you add cooking oil, shortening, baking powder, soda, yeast and powdered eggs. You can’t cook even the most basic receipes without these items. Because of limited space I won’t list all the items that should be included in a well-balanced storage program. They are all included in the The New Cookin With Home Storage cookbook, as well as information on how much to store, and where to purchase it.

3. VITAMINS – Vitamins are important, especially if you have children, since children do not store body reserves of nutrients as adults do. A good quality multi-vitamin and vitamin C are the most vital. Others may be added as your budget permits.

4. QUICK AND EASY AND PSYCHOLOGICAL FOODS – Quick and easy foods help you through times when you are psychologically or physically unable to prepare your basic storage items. No cook foods such as freeze-dried are wonderful since they require little preparation. MRE’s (Meals Ready to Eat), such as many prepardness outlets carry, canned goods, etc. are also very good. Psycological Foods are the goodies – Jello, pudding, candy, etc. – you should add to your storage.

These may sound frivolous, but through the years I’ve talked with many people who have lived entirely on their storage for extended periods of time. Nearly all of them say these were the most helpful items in their storage to normalize their situations and make it more bearable. These are especially important if you have children.

5. BALANCE – Time and time again I’ve seen families buy all of their wheat, then buy all of another item, and so on. Don’t do that. It’s important to keep well-balanced as you build your storage. Buy several items, rather than a large quantity of one item. If something happens and you have to live on your present storage, you”ll fare much better having a one-month supply of a variety of items than a year’s supply of two to three items.

6. CONTAINERS – Always store your bulk foods in food storage containers. I have seen literally tons and tons of food thrown away because they were left in sacks, where they became highly susceptible to moisture, insects and rodents. If you are using plastic buckets make sure they are lined with a food grade plastic liner available from companies that carry packaging supplies. Never use trash can liners as these are treated with pesticides. Don’t stack them too high. In an earthquake they may topple, the lids pop open, or they may crack. A better container is the #10 tin can which most preparedness companies use when they package their foods.

7. USE YOUR STORAGE – In all the years I’ve worked with preparedness one of the biggest problems I’ve seen is people storing food and not knowing what to do with it. It’s vital that you and your family become familiar with the things you are storing. You need to know how to prepare these foods. This is not something you want to learn under stress. Your family needs to be used to eating these foods. A stressful period is not a good time to totally change your diet. Get a food storage cookbook and learn to use these foods!

It’s easy to solve these food storage problems once you know what they are. The lady I talked about at the first of the article left realizing what she had stored was a good beginning, but not enough. As she said, “It’s better to find out the mistakes I’ve made now while there’s still time to make corrections.” This makes a lot more sense.

If you’re one who needs to make some adjustments, that’s okay. Look at these suggestions and add the things you’re missing. It’s easy to take a basic storage and add the essentials to make it liveable, but it needs to be done. As I did the research for my cookbook I wanted to include recipes that gave help to families no matter what they had stored. As I put the material together it was fascinating to discover what the pioneers ate is the type of things we store. But if you have stored only the 4 basics, there’s very, very little you can do with it. By adding even just a few things it greatly increases your options, and the prospect of your family surviving on it. As I studied how the pioneers lived and ate, my whole feeling for food changed. I realized our storage is what most of the world has always lived on. If it’s put together the right way we’ll be returning to good basic living with a few goodies thrown in.

Read More at: Bushcraft and Survival Skills

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How to Start a Fire With Wet Wood

Posted by Ed Corcoran News No Responses »

Nov 302012

By Tom Sciacca

As often as possible, I like to address questions that come to me by email from CampingSurvival.com customers. This happens to be one of those days and I’m going to talk about how to start a fire with wet wood. I’m also going to touch on whether or not you should use a fire starter.

Now that we’re getting into winter, you might not have nice dry wood lying around your campsite or sitting outside your hunting cabin. Some people will use a bunch of lighter fluid or – even more unwisely – gasoline (don’t do this!), but there are huge hazards to doing so. Not to mention, if you’re hunting, that petroleum smell will probably permeate your clothing, which may lead to deer picking up your scent and staying far away. (Kind of negates the deer urine your rubbed all over yourself, doesn’t it?)

So, without further ado, here’s how to start a fire with wet wood:

Build a nice pile of tinder that is no bigger around than your pinky finger. If you’re getting it off a live tree or bush, pick branches that are close to the trunk and lowest to the ground, as they’re the driest. If there’s a dead tree nearby, break off twigs that aren’t in contact with the ground.
Slightly larger logs may have dry wood inside that you can get out by chipping off the wet surface with a hatchet, but don’t even bother with soggy, rotten wood. Chipping up birch bark will work too, but I personally avoid hacking at live trees. If you’re going to do this, pick one branch to cut and use all of it. Don’t chop at the trunk.
Make a bed for the fire to get started on, such as a piece of cardboard or even an arrangement of branches. It’ll keep the moisture in the ground from ruining everything and provide more stability to build the fire on.
Crumple some nice dry paper and build a teepee over the top of it with the twigs and small tinder. I even peel off pieces of the twigs to expose more surface area.
Set a pile of kindling next to where you’re building the fire, because once you get it lit, you don’t want to be wandering around looking for more wood to throw on. The kindling should be the size of your thumb and you can use branches off pine trees with sapwood or fatwood, as the oil will burn even with wet wood. Just split them down the centerline to expose the inside.
Light your paper and twig teepee, making sure to keep it well shielded from the wind. Don’t rush to put more tinder on, but keep it close enough to get heated by the flame. Gently add more tinder as the fire gets some legs.
As you get more and more tinder added, keep the kindling close enough that it gets heated by the flames to further assist drying. Slowly add in some of your kindling as the fire builds. Now you’re off and running.

One of the most important aspects of starting a fire with wet wood is not to add too many big pieces right away. With dry wood, it’s not a big deal, but you need to be very patient and methodical.

So, if you now know how to start a fire with wet wood, does that mean that carrying a fire starter is unnecessary? Not exactly. A fire starter can be a huge asset in minimizing your frustration and making sure that you get the fire going as quickly as possible. Fire starters are small, relatively inexpensive and really shorten the time it takes to get a fire going, so it makes sense to pack one. You can ask anyone who knows me: I never go wilderness camping without bringing along my fire starter, and that includes on day hikes. You just never know when you might need one.

So which type of fire start is best? That depends. I’ll cover more on the different types of fire starters in another blog and even include a video demonstration.

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Section 1033(a) of 2013 NDAA is Pure Smoke and Mirrors

Posted by Ed Corcoran News No Responses »

Nov 292012

I recently received this alert from Dan Johnson; founder of PANDA (People Against the National Defense Authorization Act). Please read and share with as many people as possible! You may also download this document. Just right-click HERE and select “Save link as…”

Freedom fighters, Anti-NDAA groups, and alternative media:

This news needs to get out to all patriots ASAP, as the Senate is voting on the 2013 NDAA this week. There has been a lot of talk on recent Amendments to the 2013 NDAA. None of them will save our rights, and none of them are even a step in the right direction.

Please disseminate the attached legal reviews of all three changes that purportedly stop the NDAA, and why they do not and will not.

It’s crucial we get this information out so “We the People” are not tricked again.

Section 1033 (a) of the 2013 NDAA is Pure Smoke and Mirrors

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men”

-Declaration of Independence, 1776

There has been a lot of talk about Section 1033 of H.R. 4310, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2013. Some have been hailing it as bringing habeas corpus and other rights back to the U.S. This clause in the NDAA does nothing to protect our rights.

H.R. 4310, Section 1033(a) reads as follows:

“Nothing in the Authorization for Use of Military Force (Public Law 107-40; 50 U.S.C. 1541 note) or the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 (Public Law 112-81) shall be construed to deny the availability of the writ of habeas corpus or to deny any Constitutional rights in a court ordained or established by or under Article III of the Constitution for any person who is lawfully in the United States when detained pursuant to the Authorization for Use of Military Force (Public Law 107-40; 50 U.S.C. 1541 note) and who is otherwise entitled to the availability of such writ or such rights.”

There are several problems with this clause, including but not limited to:

This clause does not explain how a person came into military detention, and does not exempt them from such detention.
This clause does not exempt any person in the United States, its territories, or protectorates from the targeting profile of the AUMF, or the expanded targeting profile of the 2012 NDAA.
This clause fails to address the main problem with the 2012 NDAA, that the United States is a battlefield subject to the laws of war, some of which are inconsistent with the Constitution.
There is no guarantee a person will get a trial in an Article III Court.
There is no guarantee of a trial at all.

Let’s break it down:

“Nothing in the AUMF or the 2012 NDAA shall be construed to deny the availability of the writ of habeas corpus or to deny any Constitutional rights in a court ordained or established by or under Article III of the Constitution for any person who is lawfully in the United States when detained pursuant to the AUMF and who is otherwise entitled to the availability of such writ or such rights,”

We emphasized certain parts of this language for a reason. Of particular note are the phrases “in a court ordained or established by or under Article III”, and “when detained.”

Section 1033(a)’s protections only apply IF a person is taken to an Article III Court. This does not guarantee that a person WILL go to an Article III Court. Anyone could be indefinitely detained and never tried at all, or be indefinitely detained and then taken to a Military commission/tribunal….and this is where it gets interesting.

If you are a covered person under the 2012 NDAA, you could be detained indefinitely without a trial “pending disposition under the law of war.” (See 2012 NDAA, Section 1021(a).)

Section 1033(a) does not address how a person came into detention in the first place. There is nothing in this section legally protecting a person from being indefinitely detained. In fact, this Section acknowledges that a person can be detained:

“any person who is lawfully in the United States when detained pursuant to the AUMF”

This clause is not addressing a fundamental problem of the 2012 NDAA, and does nothing to keep the military, Interpol, or the Secret Service from bursting in anyone’s house and detaining them in a military brig.

Next, this clause does not exempt a person from the expanded targeting profile of the 2012 NDAA. Section 1021(b)(2) lays out the requirements for someone and their family to become a “covered person.” It states:

(2) A person who was a part of or substantially supported al-Qaeda, the Taliban, or associated forces that are engaged in hostilities against the United States or its coalition partners, including any person who has committed a belligerent act or has directly supported such hostilities in aid of such enemy forces.

Federal Judge Katherine Forrest pressed the government lawyers for details on what constitutes “associated forces, “substantial support”, or “direct support,” and found out they were unable to answer. That those terms could be interpreted broadly to mean whatever the government wanted them to mean, and therefore anyone could be a covered person. In her first injunction, she wrote:

“The Government was unable to define precisely what ”direct” or “substantial” “support” means. . . .Thus, an individual could run the risk of substantially supporting or directly supporting an associated force without even being aware that he or she was doing so.”

Besides acknowledging the government’s right to detain anyone and failing to exempt them from the 2012 NDAA’s targeting profile, Section 1033(a) does not address the main issue with the 2012 NDAA. The United States of America is now a battlefield, under the commander-in-chief, the law of war, and the jurisdiction of Military commissions, at their discretion.

Section 1021(a)(1) of the 2012 NDAA lays it out succinctly:

“IN GENERAL.—Congress affirms that the authority of the President to use all necessary and appropriate force pursuant to the Authorization for Use of Military Force [AUMF] (Public Law 107–40; 50 U.S.C. 1541 note) includes the authority for the Armed Forces of the United States to detain covered persons …pending disposition under the law of war.” (emphasis added)

If one applies the laws of war to any territory, it is now a battlefield. In fact, Sen. Lindsey Graham said the “The whole world is a battlefield, including the homeland.” on the floor of the U.S. House of representatives during debate on the 2012 NDAA. Section 1033(a) of the 2013 NDAA does nothing to address that crucial issue.

Because the U.S. is a battlefield and therefore subject to the laws of war, anyone could be tried in a Military commission/tribunal. 10 USC 818 – Art. 8. Jurisdiction of general courts-martial states:

“General courts-martial also have jurisdiction to try any person who by the law of war is subject to trial by a military tribunal and may adjudge any punishment permitted by the law of war.” (emphasis added)

The 2009 Military Commissions Act gave Military commissions/tribunals (also known as courts-martial) the statutory authority to choose whether or not they had jurisdiction over a certain area. In layman’s terms, that means a Military commission (an Article I Court) can decide themselves whether or not they will take “jurisdiction” over cases involving AUMF/NDAA “covered persons,” including those “captured or arrested” on U.S. soil, despite the fact that the internationally-recognized “laws of war” require most “covered persons” be tried in the civilian court system, which in the United States is an Article III Court.

According to the April, 2010 Congressional Research Service (CRS) report, The Military Commissions Act of 2009: Overview and Legal Issues, “A military commission has jurisdiction over persons subject to …the law of war. Military commissions are expressly authorized to determine their own jurisdiction.” (emphasis added)

Referencing laws about the jurisdiction of Military commissions and referring to the fact that a person could be tried in one would be a moot point if these Military commissions were Article III Courts. However, Section 1033(a) of the 2013 NDAA is purely smoke and mirrors, because Military commissions are NOT Article III Courts.

Military tribunals are authorized in the enumerated powers of the federal government. The U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 8, Clause 9 states that Congress shall have the power “To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court.”

Section 1033(a) only guarantees a person his or her Constitutional rights “in a court ordained or established by or under Article III of the Constitution.” This clause does not protect the rights of a person tried in a military tribunal.

This Section also fails to guarantee that any person detained will get a trial. It only states that nothing in the 2013 NDAA “shall be construed to deny the availability of the writ of habeas corpus or to deny any Constitutional rights in a court ordained or established by or under Article III of the Constitution.”

This clause never, explicitly or implicitly, guarantees a trial for any person detained under the 2012 NDAA. By refusing to address this issue, the original language in Section 1021(c)(1) remains unaffected…and that Section specifically states a person detained under the NDAA may not get a trial:

“Detention under the law of war without trial until the end of the hostilities authorized by the Authorization for Use of Military Force.”

Section 1033(a) of the 2013 NDAA does nothing to guarantee anyone a trial, and does not protect their rights until they are on trial in an Article III Court.

Section 1033(a) does absolutely nothing to protect our inalienable, God-given Rights. It recognizes the un-Constitutional practice of indefinite detainment as legitimate, and does not exempt any person from the targeting profile outlined in the 2012 NDAA. Since the U.S. is legally considered a battlefield subject to the laws of war, and Military commissions have jurisdiction over battlefields and cases under the laws of war, this Section can’t secure the rights of persons who make it to Article III courts since they were already secured by the Constitution and Bill of Rights, but are eliminated by the fact that any detained person can be tried in a Military commission. This Section of Orwellian doublespeak does not even guarantee a detained person their right to a trial, much less a “speedy and public trial” as required by the 6th Amendment. Therefore, any person detained under the 2012 NDAA is subject to “detention without trial until the end of hostilities.”

Finally, this Section does not address the fundamental concept of the 2012 NDAA; that the United States is now a battlefield, subject to the laws of war, Constitutional Rights optional. Section 1033(a) is just politics as usual on Capitol Hill. Trick the American people, strip us of our rights, and tell us to go back to sleep.

Do your own research, look at the language. Do not accept false fixes to serious problems, and do not support language that does not defend or restore our inalienable rights. Watch out for Smoke and Mirrors.

Why do the people we trust to defend our rights…try so hard to destroy them?

Dan Johnson
Founder, People Against the NDAA
https://www.pandaunite.org
Facebook.com/pandaunite
Twitter.com/pandaunite

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The Power of Gratitude, The Higher Level of Self-Reliance, Solfeggio Frequencies and the Origins of Media Control

Posted by Ed Corcoran Show Archives No Responses »

Nov 292012

This week on the show, Ed examines the state of gratitude as a force for positive change and manifestation and discusses another way of looking at self reliance in terms of freeing yourself (and others) from the total control grid. He also explains how the corporate-military media machine started conditioning the masses in the years leading up to World War II, including the suppression of ancient knowledge of sound and how music has been manipulated to keep us under control. He also goes into more detail about Solfeggio frequencies and how they can be used to entrain your brain, relieve anxiety and raise your consciousness.

Left-Click the button below to listen online or right-click and select “Save link as…” to download

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Where to Hide Your Food (And a Few Places Your Shouldn’t)

Posted by Ed Corcoran News 6 Responses »

Nov 292012

Places to Hide Food – 5x5Survival.com

Quick update: This article pertains to long-term stored food. Food that has an expiration under 3 years should be actively rotated in your day-to-day food preparation. The food that you hide away should have a shelf life of 10 years or longer.

There is a lot you can improvise when you are a knowledgeable, skilled prepper. Among what you cannot improvise is food, water, and firearms. As I have suggested in previous posts, a single person should store at least 3 months of food and a family should store at least one year’s worth of food. These are minimums. And I recommend that you continuously build up your food storage program until you reach three years of stored food.

Why three years of stored food? In the first year after the collapse, you need to lay low, hunker down, and try to remain unnoticed, until the mass die off occurs. You need a second year of food to survival through your first planting season. Your third year of food is a buffer for garden mistakes and drought. Or your third year of food will feed the family members who suddenly show up on your doorstep. Or you can donate your third year of food to charity after the collapse. Or swap some long-term stored food in exchange for fresh items, such as eggs or milk. Or you can barter food in exchange for goods and services. I can easily foresee paying someone in food to take overnight security watches.

Of the first year of stored food, I recommend that it consists of canned and dried food that your family commonly eats. This would include canned tuna, canned beans, canned fruits and vegetables, dried pastas, breakfast cereals, etc. It is important to rotate this food, so that none goes to waste. First in is first out. Stack the newer items towards the back and the older items towards the front of the shelves. This way you grab the oldest items first for your daily meal preparations.

The 2nd and 3rd year of stored food should be long-term stored food. This includes dehydrated food, freeze-dried food, and food buckets with grains and beans. The storage life of this type of food should be at least 10 years, otherwise put the food into your daily rotation.

So where do you store all that food? One to three years of long-term stored food takes some serious storage space. Here are some suggestions on where to store all your food:

Take a tour of your home to find any dead space. Dead space is in the interior of your home which has no functional use. Here are some common dead spaces, which can store food:
1. In your food pantry – When I look in people’s kitchen pantries, I often see non-food items. People will put extra pots, pans, and kitchen gadgets in their kitchen pantries. Or paper supplies. Clear out everything except food from your kitchen pantry. You can stack canned goods up to 3 deep and 3 high on the shelves in a pantry. Your first goal of a food storage program is to fill up your everyday kitchen pantry. Do not buy long-term stored foods, until after your kitchen pantry is filled with everyday foods. Beans and canned meat such as spam have long shelf lives, often up to 5 years. Canned salmon and sardines can have a 7 year shelf life. The key to filling your kitchen pantry is a rotation plan. Have a system that prevents you from eating the new items. One of your weekly tasks is to go into the kitchen pantry to find what is nearing expiration. Whatever is nearing expiration is your dinner tonight.
2. Under beds – this is a nice dark and cool space. Under beds are perfect for #10 cans. Buy a bed frame which can be elevated just a bit to accommodate boxes containing #10 cans. My daughter was told one of her friends that her daddy stores rice under her bed. Bad OPSEC on my part. I forgot to instruct my daughter to not talk about stored food.
3. Behind the head-board of your bed. Pull out your bed from the wall just far enough to store food buckets. Stack up food bucket to the height of the head-board, then throw a shamee or other covering on top of the buckets to make the space presentable.
4. Closets floor space – the space on the floor under need the coats and linens.
5. Closet shelf space – often there is dead space high above a closet shelf. You can stack boxes sometimes fairly high above the shelf. Test the shelf to see if it can support heavy weights.
6. Under desks – My home office desk has spare space for food buckets and boxes.
7. Under bathroom sinks – often the space is unused. Make sure any food stored under a sink is in water proof containers, in case of water over flow.
8. Under coffee table – some coffee tables have dead space underneath.
9. Garages – Only store food in a garage if cool enough in the summer. If your garage is shaded and does go above 75 degrees in the summer, then you can store some items in your garage. This is a good place for large bulk A galvanized steel garbage can will hold lots of grains and beans.
10. Under stairwells – Often under the staircase, there is dead space.
11. In an extra, unused bedroom – I have an extra bedroom, which serves as my home office. In the closet of my spare bedroom, it is stacked with lots of stored food. Behind my desk are food buckets. No guest are allowed into my home office (man cave), so I don’t give a darn about appearance.
12. Underneath a sofa with hide-away bed – often there is unused space there. Or unscrew the pull-out bed to give you lots of spare space.
13. In the basement – whether you have a finished or unfinished basement, block off a corner of the room to stack boxes.
14. In the laundry room – Due to humidity in the laundry room, make sure any items are waterproof sealed.
15. Behind couches - Due to the tilt of the back of a couch, there is often dead space at the rear bottom of a couch.
16. A mud room or utility room – If you have such a room and it is cool year round, this is perfect for stored food.
At your bug-out location. If you have a cabin up in the mountains or a vacation home, store extra food there.
Store food with other family members. If you are on good terms with a family member, agree to store food for each other as a back-up. Then if you need to retreat to that family member, some of your food is already there.
Store food with good friends and neighbors. If a good, reliable friend or neighbor whom you trust, who also have extra storage space, then this might be an option.
Store food with your survival group. One of your survival group members is likely to have extra storage space or a basement.
Store food in a rental storage unit. This is a good option if you do not have close-by friend and neighbors. You should never keep all your supplies in just one location, in case your primary home is destroyed. If you do not have a bug-out retreat, the rent a storage unit within walking distance of your home (under 5 miles). Find a storage unit which is well shaded and does not get direct sunlight. You are looking for a cool place to store food. Some storage units get very hot in the summer. Heat is the enemy of stored food. If you can afford it, rent a temperature stabilized unit Some storage units specialize in storing wine or art, which must be temperature controlled. A temperature control unit is ideal, but more expensive. Also make sure the storage unit is accessible when there is a power outage. When you need the store food the most, there will likely be a power outage in your home town.
Store food at work. If you own your own business or have a dedicated office which you can lock, then storing food at your place of business is perfect.
Start a food storage program at your place of worship. Many places of worship have lots of unused basements and closets. If your place of worship has like-minded survivalist, then start a food storage program.
Storage caches on your property. If you can build a proper storage cache to bury or hide on your property, this can be a place to store lots of food. Search youtube.com for southernprepper1, who has very good advice on this subject.
An underground shelter is an excellent option for food storage. If you live in a tornado area, then you should have a storm shelter. Store food under the benches or on shelf spaces in your storm shelter.
If you have farmers in close proximity to your home, establish a direct food purchase relationship with the farmers. One of the best way to keep beef fresh is on the hoof, live and ready. You are storing future food in that direct farm relationship.
Nuture the wildlife around your home. Perhaps set up a salt lick or feeding station for deer. Find locations around your home where there a lots of rabbits and squirrels. Have small animal traps and a 22 LR rifle for hunting small game.
Obtain books that describe the wild foods in your region. Within a mile of your home, you can likely find dozens of wild foods. While this is not technically hiding your food, but perhaps you hide the wild food book. (I know this is a stretch on this topic. But hopefully you get the point.)

Where should you not store food:

Do not store food in the attic. The summer heat in the attic will likely cause any stored food to go bad.
Do not store food in crawl space. Crawl spaces often take too much heat in the summer and susceptible to rodents.
Do not bury food, even if in sealed, water proof containers. Ground water will eventually rot the containers. Or the containers can collapse under the weight of the earth. Or rodents or other animals will chew through. Or you will lose track of the location.
Sheds and barns – Gets too hot in the summer and attracts rodents.
Do not store any food near fuels and other chemicals. I do not store any food in the places where I store extra fuel.
You not store extra food in your fat belly. If you are over-weight, you have a duty to your family to trim down. An obese person will live 6 years less, on average, than a person with normal body weight. Do not deprive your family of your love and presence in those last 6 years.
At the Grocery store – Time and time again, the pattern is the same. An announcement of a pending large storm sends everyone scrambling the groceries stores. Groceries are then stripped bare within 24 hours. Then groceries stores are not replenished until long after the storm has gone. Do not rely on getting to the grocery store at the last minute. Instead at the last minute, I am testing the power generator, filling up the bath tubes with water, covering the windows, and perhaps topping off my fuel supplies. I can focus on preparing my home for a storm, because I already have enough food to last for months and years.

Food is so tremendously cheap in US and Canada, despite food inflation in the past three years. The story of Joseph in the Old Testament book of Genesis describes how he stored 7 years of grain in anticipation of a famine. The next Great Depression is likely to last 7 or more years. You have the opportunity now to store years of food for your family. When disaster strikes, the opportunity to prepare is gone. A mouthful of food to a starving person is worth more than all the gold in the world.

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15 Non-Tradional Containers for Your Bug Out Bag or Emergency Kit

Posted by Ed Corcoran News No Responses »

Nov 292012

Photo: Tim Musson

TheSurvivalMom.com

A rolling suitcase on wheels. Look for sturdy wheels because if one breaks off, you’ll be carrying that suitcase. Not fun! Some of these suitcases also have backpack straps.
A Rubbermaid container with lid. You select whichever size suits your needs and space. These are a good choice because the bin itself can be used to hold water, kindling, and a lot more.
Under the bed storage container – Mine fits perfectly in the back of my Tahoe and the transparent plastic lets me see the contents.
Trash can on wheels. These hold a lot, are very sturdy, and have an attached lid. They will also be heavy and difficult to load into a truck. However, if a trailer is part of your bug out/evacuation plans, you could store a trash can, fully packed, in the trailer. Include a box of heavy-duty black trash bags to keep the interior of the trash can clean if you ever have to use it for actual trash!
Space Bags – Great for use with softer items, such as blankets, coats, jackets, and pillows.
5-gallon buckets with lid – Again, these buckets have multiple uses besides holding your emergency kit contents.
Multiple milk crates – My husband swears by these! They are extremely durable, stack easily, but do not have lids. They’re also free if you can find a grocery store that will give you one or more.
Military duffel bag – Soft-sided means you’ll be able to shove this bag behind and between things, and they come in several sizes. Their muted colors are also a plus.
Ziploc Flexible Tote – Inexpensive, can easily see inside the tote, and lightweight. Not heavy duty, though, if your evacuation includes trekking through the wilderness.
Diaper bag. The waterproof lining could be very helpful, especially if you have small kids and/or a baby.
Tool box – Not lightweight but could be very useful for protecting fragile items.
Metal bucket with lid
A storage locker, preferably one with wheels
A messenger bag with shoulder strap – Anything with a shoulder strap will leave both hands free and might be easier to carry than a backpack for someone with back problems.
A fisherman or photo vest – Obviously this won’t carry as much as these other containers, but with all the multiple pockets, you could keep the most essential items close at hand.

Unless you are single and will be evacuating alone, I recommend dividing the contents of your emergency kit into 2 or more different types of containers. For example, a 5-gallon bucket can hold food and cooking supplies and will provide an emergency toilet, a large water container, and a handy tote for firewood. Then use a Space Bag to hold sleeping bags and cold weather clothing and finally a large backpack for everything else. You’ll have 2 multi-purpose containers and a backpack large enough to hold all the essentials in case you have no choice but to continue your evacuation on foot and have to leave the bucket and Space Bag behind.

When choosing your containers, keep in mind that they might be in for a pretty rugged future. Look for:

extremely durable fabrics
sturdy construction
heavy-duty zippers, snaps, or other closures
colors that blend in
non-tactical appearance. This may cause you to look too prepared and a potential target.
tight fitting lids

Also keep in mind the different ages and physical capabilities of your family members. Even young kids can carry small backpacks, easing the load for parents and teens.

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Manipulating the World Economy

Posted by Ed Corcoran News No Responses »

Nov 292012

By Martin Armstrong

ArmstrongEconomics.com

We are facing a very serious crisis in the year ahead. There is no changing the course of government. They will continue to borrow every year. This is far worse than printing money and it is why we will not see hyperinflation. This is actually the greatest transfer of wealth in the history of human existence. This is not Marxism, but Marxism squared. We are not taking from the rich and giving to the poor. There is no paying your “fair share” in any reasonable manner. We are taxing and spending our resources to keep the debt rolling. This is systemically destroying the productive forces within society and transferring that to the bondholders. This is why everything will collapse. It is not the leverage problem of 2007, it is the bloating of pretended pensions that all presume Sovereign Debt is less risky that corporate paper and stocks.We are in a serious state of affairs

Manipulating the World Economy is what governments and bankers have been desperately trying to do. The entire foundation of the “New Economics” of which Paul Volcker mentions in his Rediscovery of the Business Cycle, was to create a flat line in the economy. Governments have been trying to do that for so long, they have forgotten what is reality. No worries though! The Free Markets are starting to remind them.

The PI mid-point on the declining wave from 2007.15 into 2011.45 was April 16^th, 2010. What event took place that day? It was the 16^th of April 2010 when the whole Sovereign Debt Crisis erupted onto the headlines around the world precisely with the Economic Confidence Model to the day. Fury erupted in Greece over proposed IMF intervention where the Greek government admitted that it would need help from the International Monetary Fund. This realization played out as a proposed bailout up to €45bn. http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/may/05/greece-debt-crisis-timeline

This same point on the previous wave produced the 911 attack. While it is nice to point the finger at me and say I am manipulating the world economy because no one else can project to a specific day, just perhaps it might be that we really live in a complex dynamic world that everything of precisely ordered and we only think someone is in control. We may be just a mouse running in a maze without realizing that our direction is a product of our own reactions that follow a standard pattern sequence. I wrote: in “The Business Cycle and the Future (Part II)” back on October 10th, 1999:

“For example, using the breakout high of 1997 in the NASDAQ 100in January of that year projects a high for March 2000. Looking at the July 1998 major high that coincided with the model projects a low for September 2001 with high volatility. The next turning point would be projected from the July 1999 high brings us to September 2002 for a probable major low at that turning point.”

Take the high of the previous wave 1998.554298. Add Pi in terms of years and months 3.141. This produces the date 2001.695. Take 365 days and multiply .695 yields 253.675 days into the year 2001. That amounts to September 11th, 2001. That is the same point on the 2007.15 wave that produce the Sovereign Debt Crisis - the crack of Greece.

Instead of trying to blame me for manipulating the world economy as if I am the character in a James Bond movie, how are they going to explain when the precise day still can be determined after I am dead? Just perhaps, I may have stumbled upon something extraordinary – that the economy is far more precise than anyone ever imagined. What is at stake is the entire economic-political structure. If what I stumbled upon is real, then how government operates is wrong, a delusion, will collapse into dust, and result in blaming someone else leading to war.

This is why so many want me to form a real international think tank which does not accept funds to produce bullshit studies to support some political spending agenda. We are headed into a crisis period where our models on civil unrest/war kick in come 2014. So what we have seen as civil unrest now, is brewing into a serious storm. In Britain they want a referendum on leaving the EU and Scotland votes in 2014 of separating from England. In Spain there is a separatist movement north from the south. In Italy the same is starting to percolate there as Sicily is Italy’s version of Greece. There is a risk of societies starting to break apart even in the USA because Marxism has destroyed the very fabric of society. “Vote for me because I will take someone else’s property and give it to you” is starting to grow very old.

Free speech is under assault everywhere. Trying to suppress the truth is spreading into every corner of the global economy. Even the fanatic Goldbugs, who bad mouth me because I will not say buy gold every day and hate my guts for daring to disagree with their theories, demonize me to try to prevent others from looking at facts they cannot explain. They too adopt the same policies as government – suppress free speech whenever it disagrees with their propaganda. Gold is the perfect movable hedge against government – not a religion. They ban together to try to silence what I have to say no different than any tyrant in the past. They cannot accept that gold is an investment that rises and falls like everything else. Like the mural here in Berlin where I am writing this now ahead of our Berlin Conference next weekend. (English), there is free speech and then their is propaganda designed to manipulate the minds of others just to support your own beliefs. Whenever any group tries to suppress any opposition, freedom, liberty, and everything worthwhile in society is simply lost.

We are headed into an abyss from which society may enter a new Dark Age. Greece was the tip of the iceberg. Here are the stats on the percent of government consuming the national productive forces of their people. Greece is not anything unusual (see table below).

Country	Taxes as % GDP	Public Sector Spending as % GDP
Greece	35.1	46.8
France	44.6	52.8
Germany	40.6	43.7
United Kingdom	38.9	47.3
United States	26.9	38.9
Japan	28.3	37.1

All governments only borrow, never pay anything down, and are now shelling out the wealth from the productive forces not even to the poor, but to the bondholders. Why do you think there is civil unrest spreading everywhere? Europe has institutionalized debt agreeing that deficits should be held to 3% of GDP. That means it is fine to keep borrowing forever. Nobody reads Ann Rand’s Atlas Shrugged. We are systemically destroying the productive capacity of society. The Abyss we are headed into is so severe, thank God I will not be around much longer to half to witness this insanity.

I have met with numerous governments on this world tour. I have been invited to start courses at 3 universities around the world. I am only one person and despite the demonizing, I cannot manipulate the world economy for if I did, I would stop this insane perpetual government borrowing at least as a legacy. I have received invitations to hold conferences in several smaller countries. Everyone knows something is wrong. Just do the math for that 2 year old with a pocket calculator can figure out we are going bust in a few years.

What the Goldbugs fail to get, is we are talking about the systemic collapse of our political structures. Governments have created money laundering agencies all sharing info among themselves and the target are not terrorists or drug dealers. It is the wealth of the productive forces. Banks have to verify to whom money is being sent. If they cannot – they will not. This is all about taxes not 19 guys and a camel. Gold is not safe to even keep in banks. On one phone call, the bank will hand over your gold. Bloomberg services require your fingerprint to use. With a password, you can say anyone stole it. With a fingerprint, the government knows it is you and what you are even looking at on Bloomberg. There is no alias possible for trading. They are tracking everything and everyone all in pursuit of money to keep the debt rolling. When it stops – look out.

Government manages only by crisis. We have no democracy only republics with professional politicians who voting on all this nonsense without you knowing anything about what they are signing your rights away. As the debt simply grows with no end in sight, the productive forced are being destroyed in the name of Marxism but the transfer of wealth does not go to society, but to the bondholders. Welcome to the new reality.

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5 Things You May Have Overlooked in Your Emergency Plan

Posted by Ed Corcoran News 2 Responses »

Nov 292012

By The Survival Woman

BackDoorSurvival.com

Today I am going to share with you a list of things that you may have overlooked in your emergency plan for a short term disaster or a SHTF situation where you will be on your own and totally off grid.

One of the very first things I did when I adopted what I like to call the “Prepping Lifestyle” is do a walk around inventory. Although I had not consciously considered myself a prepper – and at the time I barely knew what that meant anyway – I discovered that I had a lot of stuff, but that it was woefully disorganized and lacking in many key areas.

I had lots of canned goods, supplemental lighting, off-grid cooking devices, tools and more. But I was sorely lacking in water and first aid items. Go figure.

Over the past couple of years, I have learned a lot, shared a lot and made a number of prepping mistakes. Taking them all in stride – well, not quite, but I try – I can now look back with relief that I have come as far as I have. But as I often say, prepping is a way of life and there is always something new to learn, tasks to do and gear to purchase.

Today I am going to share with you a list of things that you may not have thought of when planning for an emergency, a short term disaster or a SHTF situation where you will be on your own and totally off grid.

5 Things That Will Be Useful if the SHTF

1. Aluminum Foil

A few rolls of aluminum foil will serve you well in an emergency situation. You can use foil to fashion cooking utensils or to line your pots and pans before cooking so that you do not have to waste precious water cleaning up. If you do cook on you pans directly, a crumpled up piece of foil can be used as a handy scrubber to remove the crusties. You can even use foil to create an impromptu Faraday cage.

There are a lot more uses for this handy stuff such as wrapping stones in foil, heating them by the campfire, then using them to heat up your blanket or sleeping bag before going to bed. Once you put a mind to it, you will wonder why you had not thought of including aluminum foil in your survival kit before now.

2. Disposable Eating Utensils

Unless you live near a lake or stream, chances are that water is going to be precious. Even a 55 gallon water barrel or two will only go so far and you will want to reserve that water for drinking and cooking. Paper plates and disposable utensils (forks, knives and spoons) are the answer and will only set you back a few dollars.

3. Laundry Equipment and Supplies

You are going to need to have tools and supplies for hand washing and drying your clothes. Sure, you can wear a shirt and pants for a few days without worry but hopefully the undies and other unmentionables will be clean. And who wants to wear dirty socks?

You are going to need a tub and plunger (don’t discount using a plumber’s helper if that is what you have) or better yet, an old-fashioned washboard. You can fashion a clothes line out of paracord or purchase a dryer rack. But have you thought about clothes pins?

And for washing, how about a bar of Fels Naphtha washing soap? It is light weight, portable, and does not take up a lot of space. As good as my DIY laundry soap works in a machine, when you are the machine, nothing beats a bar of soap for rubbing, scrunching and stain removal.

4. Cooking Grate

Depending on your facilities and the number of mouths to feed, cooking over an open fire may be a real possibility. Even if you are using a rocket stove – either home made, an Ecozoom, Solo Stove or other type – an open fire may still be needed for grilling freshly caught fish or game or for long term simmering if stews and chili’s made with your stored food items.

5. Sanitation supplies

Funny how people forget about the basics. In addition to a supply of TP, how about some old tee-shirts cut up into squares to use “there” when nothing else is available? In addition, you will need some feminine supplies for ladies and diapers for the little ones. And, if the sewer or septic system in inoperable, you are going to need a buckets and some large heavy duty plastic bags to use as a liner so you have someplace to do your business.

The Final Word

As you look over this list, it may occur to you that many of these items are already available in your pantry, closet or basement storage area. And if not, none are overly expensive. Even the cooking grate can be improvised from an oven rack or you can purchase one at a second hand store.

The moral of today’s article is that when and if the time comes, it will be comforting to have the basics covered so that you can spend time worrying about the important things such as your safety, security and the health of your loved ones.

For the next few days, why not walk around your home or apartment and seek out items that will be useful in an unconventional manner in an emergency. Add them to this list and of course, share your ideas below in the comments.

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Not in Texas You Don’t! State Rep. Lyle Larson Nullifies NDAA

Posted by Ed Corcoran News 1 Response »

Nov 272012

Texas threatens to do what all states should do in the face of tyrannical, unconstitutional law.; exercise their 10th Amendment right to nullify. State Representative Lyle Larson pens the Texas Liberty Preservation Act to protect Texans from NDAA.

From The Western Center for Journalism

Written by Texas representative Lyle Larson, the Texas Liberty Preservation Act says that “…Texas shall not provide material support or participate in any way with the implementation of Sections 1021 and 1022 of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012 within the legal boundaries of the state of Texas.”

Incorporated into the NDAA at the demand of Barack Obama, these sections allow the president “…to indefinitely detain, without charge, persons including United States citizens and lawful resident aliens, whether or not they are captured within the confines of the United States.” That is, anyone Barack Obama considers a terror threat to the United States or the American public may–at his sole discretion and direction–be rounded up and incarcerated by members of the U.S. military.

The NDAA not only authorizes this exercise of police powers on American soil by the U.S. military; it allows the president to detain “until the end of hostilities” anyone he believes to have “substantially supported” al Qaeda, the Taliban, or “associated forces.” Those subjected to this arbitrary exercise of presidential power would face an indefinite period of imprisonment with no right of habeas corpus, no right to trial, no right to present proof of innocence, and no method of appeal. It makes for an utter abrogation of constitutional protections.

But State Representative Larson will have none of it as he seeks to shield the people of Texas from a law that Republicans in the U.S. Congress could not wait to pass. “Sections 1021 and 1022 of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012 are in direct contravention to the limits of federal power as stated in Article 1, Section 8 of the United States Constitution and are in violation of the Texas constitution,” writes Larson in his Act.

The prospective Texas law relies for its authority and legitimacy on the 10^th Amendmentto the U.S. Constitution. “The Tenth Amendment…provides the United States federal government authorization to exercise only those powers delegated to it in the Constitution (Article 1, Section Eight) and nothing more,” writes Larson. And the NDAA was in no way created according to “…[the] powers delegated to [congress] in the Constitution.”

In April, Virginia passed HB 1160, making it illegal for anyone to accommodate the NDAA in that state. And as of November 19^th, 16 states have refused to permit the creation of ObamaCare exchanges within their borders. With the corrupt, Marxist Obama administration in charge in Washington DC and the weak-kneed Republican Party a thoroughly undependable champion of individual liberty, it will be up to Republican-run state legislatures and non-RINO Governors to halt the progress of the imperial presidency.

The American public must make their voices heard at the state level on every important issue.

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Will The Peak Of The Solar Cycle In 2013 Produce Technology Crippling Solar Super Storms?

Posted by Ed Corcoran News No Responses »

Nov 272012

From endoftheamericandream.com

Our sun is becoming increasingly unstable, and most people have no idea the complete and utter devastation that a massive solar storm could potentially cause. A giant solar storm could potentially take out satellites, GPS systems, electrical grids, communication networks and pretty much anything else that runs on electricity or that relies upon electronics. And considering how dependent our society has become on technology, we are talking about an event that could possibly bring about the end of the world as we know it. Right now, solar activity is increasing as we approach the peak of Solar Cycle 24. But the worst is yet to come. Scientists are expecting a significant increase in coronal mass ejections and geomagnetic disturbances as we approach the peak of this solar cycle in 2013. A number of scientists are warning that there is a chance that we could even see an event similar to the solar storm of 1859 that fried telegraph machines all over Europe and North America. Other scientists are warning that our sun is starting to behave so unusually that it is becoming very difficult to predict what may be coming next. If our sun starts to behave even more erratically, that could mean big trouble for all of us. If our sun fails, there is no backup plan. We only have one sun. Most of us take the stability of the gigantic ball of fire that our very small planet is circling for granted, but what if it becomes apparent that we can’t take that for granted any longer? That can be very frightening to think about.

Just a few years ago, there was very little activity on the sun. Normally, activity on the sun does slow down during non-peak times, but the years of 2008 and 2009 were unusually slow. At the time, David Hathaway of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center said that we were “witnessing something unlike anything we’ve seen in 100 years“.

But now solar activity is becoming dangerously intense as we approach the peak of the solar cycle in 2013. One group of sunspots was measured to be 118,681 miles wide earlier this year. According to NASA, that would be “more than 15 Earths set end to end“.

But what we have seen this year is only the beginning. Scientists expect solar activity to really kick into high gear once we get into 2013. Just check out what Dr. Matthew Penn of the National Solar Observatory in Arizona said earlier this year…

“Because the sun is becoming more active, it will have an impact on millions of people. Sunspots can cause the biggest and most damaging space storms that occur.

During the next two years, we are expecting the number of sunspots visible on the sun to reach a maximum. We know that sunspots are the source of a lot of space weather and solar storms, so we expect a larger number of solar storms here at the Earth.”

Solar activity runs in cycles, and some scientists are concerned that since solar activity got so quiet back in 2008 and 2009 that it might mean that the coming solar peak might be particularly intense.

The shift in solar activity that we have witnessed over the last couple of years has definitely been dramatic. Back in 2009, there were 260 days without any sunspots. In 2012, there have been zero days without any sunspots.

The following chart from spaceweather.com shows the number of days without any sunspots that we have seen since 2009…

2012 total: 0 days (0%)
2011 total: 2 days (<1%)
2010 total: 51 days (14%)
2009 total: 260 days (71%)

But it isn’t just that we are seeing a lot of sunspots. We are also seeing some truly breathtaking explosions on the sun. Just check out this example from earlier this month…

A truly gigantic explosion happened on the sun yesterday. On Nov. 16th, magnetic fields snaking halfway across the sun’s southern hemisphere erupted in tandem, producing a prominence so big, it doesn’t fit inside this image from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO): “The red-glowing looped material is plasma, a hot gas made of electrically charged hydrogen and helium,” officials with NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, which oversees the SDO mission, explained in a description. “The prominence plasma flows along a tangled and twisted structure of magnetic fields generated by the sun’s internal dynamo. An erupting prominence occurs when such a structure becomes unstable and bursts outward, releasing the plasma.” The blast hurled a CME into space, but the cloud does not appear to be heading for Earth.

If our sun becomes even more unstable, that could dramatically affect the lives of every man, woman and child living on the planet.

The number one thing that causes changes in our weather patterns is the sun, and the United States is just coming out of one of the worst summers of drought in U.S. history.

If solar instability plays havoc with our weather patterns and we see dramatic crop failures all over the globe, what would that do to our ability to feed ourselves?

And if people cannot feed themselves, would that cause societal instability all over the planet?

Perhaps an even greater concern is what would happen if a giant solar super storm caused a massive EMP burst took out our electrical grids.

Remember, we have seen such an event before in 1859. Many scientists warn that if a similar event happened today that it would be absolutely catastrophic.

Even a relatively minor event could have devastating consequences for our very vulnerable communications systems. The following is from a National Geographic article…

Of particular concern are disruptions to global positioning systems (GPS), which have become ubiquitous in cell phones, airplanes, and automobiles, Baker said. A $13 billion business in 2003, the GPS industry is predicted to grow to nearly $1 trillion by 2017.

In addition, Baker said, satellite communications—also essential to many daily activities—would be at risk from solar storms.

“Every time you purchase a gallon of gas with your credit card, that’s a satellite transaction,” he said.

But the big fear is what might happen to the electrical grid, since power surges caused by solar particles could blow out giant transformers. Such transformers can take a long time to replace, especially if hundreds are destroyed at once, said Baker, who is a co-author of a National Research Council report on solar-storm risks.

The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory’s Cliver agrees: “They don’t have a lot of these on the shelf,” he said.

If a very large EMP burst did take out our electrical grids, it would be a natural disaster unprecedented in U.S. history and it would potentially take many years to recover from such an event. The following is from a recent New York Times article…

A powerful solar (or “geomagnetic”) storm has the potential to simultaneously damage multiple transformers in the electricity grid and perhaps even bring down large sections of it, affecting upwards of a hundred million people in the United States for many months, if not years.

These huge transformers are expensive and difficult to replace, and not many are stockpiled in the United States for an emergency. In the worst case, the impact would be devastating: An outage could cost a few trillion dollars, with full recovery taking years. Not only would parts of the grid be compromised, but telephone networks, undersea cables, satellites and railroads also would be affected.

A 2008 National Academy of Sciences study warned that “because of the interconnectedness of critical infrastructures in modern society,” the “collateral effects of a longer-term outage” would likely include “disruption of the transportation, communication, banking and finance systems, and government services; the breakdown of the distribution of potable water owing to pump failure; and the loss of perishable foods and medications because of lack of refrigeration.”

Solar storms are just like regular storms – they can range from the totally harmless to the totally catastrophic.

But if we did experience a totally catastrophic solar storm, what would that mean for all of us?

In a previous article, I asked some questions that most people have not considered…

What would you do if an EMP attack happened in the middle of the winter and you suddenly were not able to heat your home any longer?

What would you do if all the electronics in your car got fried and you simply could not drive anywhere?

What would you do if all the supermarkets in your area shut down because food could not be transported across the country anymore?

What would you do if you were suddenly unable to call your family and friends for help?

What would you do if you were suddenly unable to get the medicine that you needed?

What would you do if your debit cards and credit cards simply did not work any longer and you could not get any of your money out of the bank?

What would you do if all of these things happened all at once?

Most people just assume that nothing like this will ever happen.

But what if it did?

Would your family be prepared?

Over the next couple of years, conditions are going to be ideal for solar super storms to develop which could potentially change life as we know it in a single day.

So keep an eye on news reports about the sun.

Hopefully nothing will happen.

But if something does happen, those that have made preparations in advance will be in the best position to survive the aftermath.

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The 6 ‘C’s’ of Hunting

Posted by Ed Corcoran News 1 Response »

Nov 272012

By Craig Caudill

Using animals and their byproducts is probably the least important reason for hunting these days. There are very few people who feel that it is an useful endeavor. Rather, they would take the easier route of simply getting their meat protein from a grocery store. Simply put, I agree with those who do, which probably includes you that are reading this blog.

For those of us who utilize the grocery store as a our main means of support to get food, I would like to introduce you to some reasoning for hunting as a means of getting your next meal in addition to your grocery shopping.

Connected – When you hunt and take your food from the field to the table, you are simply more connected to the process. You do not have to guess where it came from, you were there when it was taken and KNOW where it came from.

Calories – This is a play on words here, because what I mean is that there is more nutritional content in wild game than in domesticated meats sold at the grocery store. Fat content is lower in wild game than in domesticated animals. It is also lower in cholesterol as well. Many studies have tried to determine the reasoning. My research says that it dwindles down to the simple fact that wild game eat only wild-organic foods and therefore their meat is not full of impurities.

Cost – This is certainly a debatable topic around most homes where someone is a hunter. In its simplest terms a pound of meat taken in the field is cheaper than a pound of meat taken at the grocery store because wild game is free, right? Sort of. You still need to factor in weapons, clothing, licenses, and fuel to and from your hunting site. With that in mind, cost is probably about the same. But particularly if you are using weapons handed down through a family, wild game is certainly less costly than grocery store meat. Plus you have all these other benefits that are mentioned here, that are not necessarily true at the grocery store.

Continuance – This is the best C word I could come up with that means survival. :). Food is an important part of the your survival, whether that survival is day-to-day living, or making it in a crisis event. I have said often that plant material is a better choice in survival situations and explained my reasons for that. However, getting an animal allows you to get nutrition from the the meat, bone marrow, and edible organs. Not to mention (form a primitive skills mindset), all the other uses that animals offer.

Conservation – For those that do not understand how wild animal populations work, it seems rather counter-intuitive to kill an animal so that its larger populations can flourish. Nothing could be more true however. As recent as the early 1900′s, there were very few wild animals about here in the USA. Unregulated hunting had dwindled numbers of wild animals to near devastation. Wildlife biologists and conservation officers, along with hunters, have helped to grow many animal populations back form the brink of disaster. Well regulated game laws, and ethical hunters who follow these laws are the only reason, that wild game populations are back to where they are now. If these laws and ethics continue, they will continue to be healthy for years to come.

Chance – Chance encounters is what I mean here. There are certain things that one only sees if they hunt a lot or simply go to the field often and sit quietly. This past weekend alone my son and I had a turkey almost get into our pack, an owl try to take my hat off, a mother raccoon chasing down a baby raccoon that had wandered from the nest, song birds too numerous to mention, squirrels too active to take it all in, redtail hawks, chipmunks, a buck deer chasing a doe with love in the air, and on and on. I should have written a book years ago about all the chance encounters in the woods. My experiences mirrors thousands of other hunters who see them as well.

These are a few of the reasons to consider hunting as an alternative to grocery shopping for meat protein. I don’t think it would be wise to immediately stop the grocery shopping and start a hunting lifestyle. It certainly would not come easy, as hunting is an activity like any other in which there is quite the learning curve. As always, feel free to contact us if you have any questions or concerns. I will be happy to help you get started. Also check out new forums , on the Dan’s Depot site. You can start a hunting discussion there!

Until next time, I hope to see you on, or off the trail!

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