On February 2, 1892, the bottle cap for beverages was patented by US inventor William Painter and is still used today. — On this day in 1974: The F-16 Fighting Falcon flew for the first time. — Today’s feature piece is by SurvivalBlog staffer Tom Chistianson. — We are now seeking entries for Round 123 of our nonfiction writing contest. Round 123 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging. In 2023, we …

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The Gamo Swarm Magnum Pro is a break-barrel air rifle that loads from a 10-shot magazine whenever it is cocked. This significantly speeds the pellet loading process. The Swarm has a two-stage adjustable trigger, comes with a surprisingly good 3-9x40mm scope, features a suppressor integrated into the barrel, and includes a well-designed glass-filled-nylon (GFN) stock. Designed for small-game hunting, pest control, and target shooting, the rifle is reasonably accurate, reliable, easy to use and economical to operate. The rifle cost $300.90 at the time of this writing at gamousa.com. It is made in Barcelona, Spain. Background Airguns are not classified …

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The following recipes for Jam Pie and a requisite Rich Pie Crust are from SurvivalBlog reader and fellow blogger Jennifer Rader. Jam Pie Ingredients 1 rich single-crust pie shell (see included recipe, below) 1 pint of jelly or jam 1 cup whipping cream 2 tablespoons sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Directions Spread jam on the hot pie crust.  Let cool completely. In a small, chilled bowl, combine cream, sugar, and vanilla.  Whip until stiff peaks form.  Spread onto cooled jam. Refrigerate the pie for 3 hours before serving. Rich Pie Crust Ingredients 2 cups all-purpose flour 1/8 teaspoon baking powder …

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Today’s graphic: The United States total fertility rate (# of children per woman) in the year 2025, by state. (Graphic courtesy of Reddit.) The thumbnail below is click-expandable.         — Please send your graphics or graphics links to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) Any graphics that you send must either be your own creation or uncopyrighted.

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“…I think that what we need to do is examine the entire Federal Reserve Institution and whether they have been successful…   ..You know, if this were the FAA and we were having this many mistakes, we would go back and look at, why has this happened? …So, you know, I think this idea of them not being able to break out of a certain mindset…   …all these PhDs over there, I don’t know what they do. I don’t know what they do. This is like Universal Basic Income for academic economists.” – U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, from a July …

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On February 1st, we recognize the 1942 birthday of the late Dr. Gary North. North was a prolific writer on Christian Reconstruction and economics topics. He passed away on February 24, 2022. His more than 50 published books are a lasting legacy. He also assembled a free online library of books by other godly writers, through his Institute for Christian Economics (ICE). Those free books, totaling 38,000 pages, are all still available online, They are a great resource for homeschoolers and economics students. We also remember February 1st, 2003, when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated over Texas and Louisiana as …

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We’ve announced the winners of Round 122 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. Note to the top three prize winners: Please contact me and let me know your UPS and USPS address(es), for your prizes. Thanks. – JWR The top three prize winners will each receive some great prize packages. The winners for Round 122 are… First Prize Winner: First Prize goes to A.F., for Introducing Your Community to Emergency Preparedness. It was posted January 8-10, 2026. See:  Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.) He will receive as prizes: A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used …

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Introduction My wife and I have been into prepping for over twenty years. We lived in Mississippi when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005 and we were without power for ten days. That was our impetus to prepare after struggling with the basics when everything we had taken for granted failed. The suffering was immense, and the lessons keen. We vowed to never be unprepared again when niceties of civilization ceased to provide comfort. We started reading the Survival blog and the excellent articles soon after recovering from our hurricane wakeup call. The Problem Fast forward twenty years, and now living …

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The latest meme created by JWR: Meme Text: There are Some Differences Between “Homely” Pretti, and “Pretty” Pretti  News Links: It appears MSNBC gave Alex Pretti a tan, a stronger jawline, better teeth, shorter forehead, and a nose job. AI-altered pic of Alex Pretti is being widely circulated after his killing by Border Patrol. 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 …

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“Then came together unto him the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from Jerusalem. And when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled, that is to say, with unwashen, hands, they found fault. For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash their hands oft, eat not, holding the tradition of the elders. And when they come from the market, except they wash, they eat not. And many other things there be, which they have received to hold, as the washing of cups, and pots, brasen vessels, and of tables. Then the Pharisees and …

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On January 31, 1905, the first automobile to exceed 100 mph (161 kph), a Napier six-cylinder racing car named ‘Samson’. It was driven by British daredevil Arthur Macdonald, at Daytona Beach, Florida. A top speed of 104 miles per hour was recorded. — On January 31, 1934, President FDR devalued the US dollar in relation to gold at $35 per ounce. This came just months after FDR’s administration had confiscated all privately-held gold bullion and non-numismatic gold coins. — Today, we present a guest article from a SurvivalBlog reader. Because it is partially promotional for a published book, it is …

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(Continued from Part 4. This concludes the article.) In Part 4 of this series, we reviewed the Merchants of the Earth, the Persecution of the Saints, and the Harvests of the Righteous and of the Unrighteous) In this concluding installment, we will study the Bowl Judgments, Earthquakes on the Rise, and the Second Coming of Jesus. The Bowl Judgments The Seal and Trumpet Judgments have passed. Now God pours out His wrath on the unbelievers with the Bowl Judgments: “And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is …

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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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“At the end of every seven years thou shalt make a release. And this is the manner of the release: Every creditor that lendeth ought unto his neighbour shall release it; he shall not exact it of his neighbour, or of his brother; because it is called the Lord‘s release. Of a foreigner thou mayest exact it again: but that which is thine with thy brother thine hand shall release; Save when there shall be no poor among you; for the Lord shall greatly bless thee in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance to …

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On January 30, 1648, Spain and the Netherlands signed the Peace of Munster, ending the Thirty Years’ War. — Actor Eugene “Gene” Allen Hackman born January 30, 1930.  He and his wife both sadly passed away in February, 2025. — January 30th is also the birthday of historian Barbara Tuchman (born 1912, died February 6, 1989). She wrote some very engaging history books. — Jase Medical just updated their affiliate agreement with SurvivalBlog.  All SurvivalBlog readers now get an automatic $10 discount at checkout. Just click on their ad in the SurvivalBlog ad stack, or use this link, to be …

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(Continued from Part 3.) In Part 3 of this series, we reviewed the Antichrist, the False Prophet, the Mark of the Beast, and the One-World Money System. In this installment, we will look at the Merchants of the Earth, the Persecution of the Saints, and the Harvests of the Righteous and the Unrighteous. The Merchants of the Earth One of the most overlooked topics from the Book of Revelation is that of the “merchants of the Earth.” (Revelation 18:11) This term appears repeatedly in Revelation, which shows the importance of certain types of commerce, especially during the Tribulation: “And the …

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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. On Monday (January 26, 2026), spot silver touched $116.59 per Troy ounce in Comex trading. That brought the silver-to-gold price ratio down to 43.3-to-1. (It was 102-to-1 in late May of 2025.)  I expect the ratio to drop perhaps to as low as 28-to-1, in 2026. I was recently asked by a consulting client if he was too late to get into tangibles investing. I told him that it was indeed too late to jump into gold …

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“The fundamental source of all your errors, sophisms, and false reasoning, is a total ignorance of the natural rights of mankind. Were you once to become acquainted with these, you could never entertain a thought, that all men are not, by nature, entitled to a parity of privileges. You would be convinced, that natural liberty is a gift of the beneficent Creator, to the whole human race; and that civil liberty is founded in that; and cannot be wrested from any people, without the most manifest violation of justice.” – Alexander Hamilton, “The Farmer Refuted,” 1775

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On January 29, 1944 USS Missouri (BB-63), the last battleship commissioned by the US Navy, was. launched. It was decommissioned in 1992, and was donated for use as a museum and memorial ship on May 4, 1998. It is now on display near the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. — Today, we present a guest article from a SurvivalBlog reader. Because it is partially promotional for a published book, it is not part of the judging for Round 122 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $978,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running …

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(Continued from Part 2.) In Part 2 of this series, we reviewed the Trumpet Judgments, and how the people on earth will be affected by these catastrophic events. I sincerely hope that the pre-Tribulation rapture believers are correct, and that Christians will be gone to heaven by this point. However, what if Christians end up having to endure part or all of the Tribulation? If so, are you emotionally prepared for this possibility? In this installment, we will look at some of the specific events associated with the False Prophet, the Antichrist, the Mark of the Beast and the One-World …

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