Friday, September 11th marks the 25th anniversary of the brutal 9/11 terror attacks.  Never forget, America, the magnitude of the losses. See the 2:10 mark, and beyond. – JWR. Today is also the anniversary of the Benghazi Embassy attacks, in 2012. (Those events were recounted in the Hollywood film 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi.) Please remember the sacrifice of J. Christopher Stevens, Sean Smith, and CIA (former Navy SEAL) agents Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty. Between them, Woods and Doherty reportedly dropped at least 60 of the attackers, before their position was overwhelmed. Please also remember the spineless …

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This Week in History On September 8, 1664, the Dutch surrendered their colony of New Netherland, including New Amsterdam, to 300 English soldiers. Following the capture, New Amsterdam’s name was changed to New York, to honor the Duke of York, who had organized the mission. — September 9, 1000: Battle of Svolder, Baltic Sea: King Olaf on board the Long Serpent was defeated in one of the greatest naval battles of the Viking Age. He leapt to his death, overboard. — September 10, 1919:  Treaty of Saint-Germain. Austria ended its incorporation with Germany. But its independence was short-lived. In the …

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Introductory Disclaimer:  I am not an attorney, and the following is not legal advice. I am just a reasonably knowledgeable individual. Be sure to consult an attorney licensed in your state before making any changes to you gun collection! –  JWR A pair of consolidated court cases were recently appealed and a very strong and favorable Permanent Injunction was issued, nullifying a large portion of the National Firearms Act (NFA) of 1934, but only for the plaintiffs and for those in a “Protected Class” linking them to the plaintiffs. On August 5, 2026, a federal district court for the Northern …

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Editor’s Note: The following recipe for Survival Cookies is from fellow preparedness blogger Patrice Lewis. It was first published with many photos in her Rural Revolution blog. We highly recommend bookmarking her blog. – JWR When I put up the recent post on making strawberry preserves, a reader asked why I canned it up in quart jars instead of pints. Short answer: Just about the only thing we use strawberry preserves for is as a filling for so-called “survival cookies.” Back in our old home, these incredibly delicious filled oatmeal sandwich cookies made the rounds among our group of homeschooling …

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Today’s graphic is a map showing U.S. Census blocks with no residents. (Graphic courtesy of Reddit.) JWR’s Comment: A French journalist once referred to the Rawles Ranch as being in “Une Zone Depopulee Totalment.” Since we are surrounded by National Forest, he was just about right. The thumbnail image below is click-expandable.       — If any SurvivalBlog readers have personally taken or otherwise hold the copyright to a particularly nice landscape photo or other photo of particular interest to preppers that is in a wide horizontal format (to match our blog template) then please send it in as …

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In Economics & Investing Media of the Week we feature photos, charts, graphs, maps, video links, and news items of interest to preppers. This week, a map showing US Counties by GDP per capita [2022].  JWR’s Comment:  This illustrates the disproportionate economic contribution of oil, natural gas, and mining, in lightly-populated regions. The thumbnail below is click-expandable.       (Graphic courtesy of Reddit.) Economics & Investing Links of Interest $500 a Month Gone: Social Security Hits the Cliff in 2032 — and Congress Already Knows. Diesel Just Hit Its Highest Price in American History, AAA Data Shows — Topping …

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SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column, Finland readies itself for possible attacks. Finland Holds a Large Civil Defense Exercise AP reporter Emma Burrows: Finland runs Europe’s biggest civil defense exercise since the end of …

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Our weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters. — US Army declares ’42 is the new 35′ but millennials are outraged as enlistment age changed. JWR’s Comments: For someone who is in a stable civilian career that allows time off for annual training, enlisting (or seeking a commission) in the National Guard or Army Reserve represents a way to secure “double …

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REDOUBT NEWS LINKS This weekly column features media from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. Washington Attorney Bill Kirk: The Untold Consequence of Assault Weapon Bans. Montana FWP encourages caution after Columbia Falls bear attack. Emergency rescue planned for 499 wild horses in Oregon as water sources vanish. Two interesting backcountry flying videos: Soldier Bar 85U Idaho – Badlands Traveler, and, Cabin Creek Idaho in a Badlands Traveler Bushplane. Kennewick Police looking for third suspect in deadly shooting. Indian Relay …

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To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make both long-term and short-term plans. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities and planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, ranch improvements, bug-out bag fine-tuning, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year.  We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in your e-mailed letters. We post many of those — or excerpts thereof — in the Odds …

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The latest meme created by JWR: Meme Text: I Think We Can All Agree That The Pilot Did Not Choose… A Prime Landing Location Notes From JWR: Do you have a meme idea? Just e-mail me the concept, and I’ll try to assemble it. And if it is posted then I’ll give you credit. Thanks! Permission to repost memes that I’ve created is granted, provided that credit to SurvivalBlog.com is included.

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“We have a system that increasingly taxes work and subsidizes nonwork.” – Milton Friedman

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