10 Economic Trends

The Atlantic has identified ten trends (actually, reverses in trends) that it believes to be unusually significant. It terms them "stealth" trends, but for those who dig behind the headlines, there are no real shockers. Some of the trends: the rise of cheap solar power; the decline of immigrants from Mexico; the Chinese population bust; and the stagnating value of a college education.

Uses for Overripe Fruit

Whether you grow your own fruit or buy from the market, there is always the potential that you won't eat, or can't can, freeze, or otherwise process all your fruit fast enough before it becomes overripe, and less palatable. However, here are a couple of articles that discuss how you can put that fruit to good use rather than throwing it away:

From the Kitchn, the Top 10 Ways to Use Up Overripe Fruit:

1. Make Quick Bread: Of course, we all know brown bananas are great forbanana bread. But peaches, nectarines, and strawberries are also great in breads, muffins, and scones, where the chopped or mashed fruit bakes into jammy little pockets. [I would also note that zucchini--I know, not technically a fruit--can be grated and used to make zucchini bread which is similar to banana bread], 

2. Make Jam: Dana gave us a great strawberry refrigerator jam a while back. This quick jam is a great way to use overripe strawberries — or any other fruits that need using up! 

3. Make a Crumble, Cobbler, or Pie: The best solution for fruits that are no longer quite so plump and pretty is to wrap them in some pastry! Use our templates for making Fruit Crumble or Fruit Pie, and sub in whatever fruit needs using up.  

4. Make Smoothies: Smoothies are always a good standby for using up fruit! It doesn't matter how pretty they are as long as they still taste good. I even find that the concentrated flavor of over-ripe fruit makes especially tasty smoothies. 

5. Make a Chunky Sauce for Pancakes or Sundaes: Give those syrupy, ripe fruits a rough chop — or even a smash with a potato masher — and you have an instant topping for pancakes or sundaes. Even better, fold the fruit right into the batter for fruit-filled pancakes. 

6. Make a Sauce for Meat. Overripe fruit, if it hasn't lost all of its juice, can still impart some good flavor to a sauce. Chop it into small bits (or whiz it in a blender) and add it to some chicken stock and balsamic vinegar to make a glaze or sauce for meat. You could even substituted it for the jam in our Chicken with Shallot-Apricot Sauce. 

7. Make a Salad Dressing: If your fruit isn't pretty enough to chop on top of your salad, put it in a blender with some olive oil, vinegar, herbs, and seasonings. It can make a fantastic, slightly sweet dressing for a salad, especially when you add some salty nuts or cheese. 

8. Make Juice: If you have a juicer, your fruits can go right on in. If you don't, try pureeing the fruit in a blender or food processor and straining it. The solids are great on top of yogurt and the juice can be drunk on its own or added to glasses of sparkling water. [And you can use the juice to make jellies].

9. Make Fruit Leather: This is especially good for fruits that have passed the squishy stage and gone to the wizened stage. Blend up the fruit and spread it in a thin layer on a Silpat or dehydrator rack — you can bake it at very low temperature in the oven until it's leather-like or dehydrate it in a dehydrator. 

10. Make Popsicles: Last but not least, we can make popsicles — one of my favorite afternoon snacks on a hot summer day. You can juice the fruit first and strain out the solids, but I love leaving some of the fruit a little chunky so that there are pieces to nibble.

 ThriftyFun has some additional suggestions.

While I'm thinking about it, if you like berry jams, but don't like the little seeds, try juicing the berries and make jelly. We did that this year with our raspberries, and have absolutely loved it.

The End of the Strategic Helium Reserve

From the Economist (h/t Instapundit):

Helium does not just fill balloons and render voices squeaky. In gaseous form the inert, lighter-than-air gas is used in a range of applications from welding and fibre-optic technology to deep-sea diving. Super-cold liquid helium is essential to making and running the superconducting magnets for MRI scanners and to manufacturing electronic devices from TVs to phones. The world stands on the edge of a “helium cliff” precisely because the gas has always proved so useful. 

Unless American politicians can come to an agreement by October 7th, supplies could face a sudden and dramatic shortfall. A third of the world’s helium comes from an underground reservoir in Texas built up under government auspices and run by the Bureau of Land Management. ... 

... Relief for the helium market seems destined to come from Russia, long a minor producer. The country has the wherewithal to create a reserve of its own. Gazprom appears to be gearing up to become a big supplier by 2018, just as America’s reserve is set to run dry (if it secures the cash to continue past October). Not everyone will be pleased that an arm of the Russian state may in future hold sway over their medical treatment and their children’s parties.

Silver Can Assist Antibiotics

From Cosmos Magazine:

... Silver’s infection-fighting abilities have been recognised since at least 400 BC, when Hippocrates was using it to help wounds to heal faster. James Collins at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Boston, US, and colleagues have now shown that silver can help overcome modern drug-resistant bacteria, including certain antibiotic-resistant E. coli strains.

The researchers made their discovery while investigating just how silver exerts its effects. Despite centuries of use, silver’s microbe-killing mode of action was still unclear, says Jose Ruben Morones-Ramirez, a member of Collins’ team. The team found that silver ions tip the bacteria’s cellular chemistry out of balance, killing the cells by generating deadly levels of highly destructive molecules called reactive oxygen species (ROS). The ions also degrade the bacteria’s outer membrane. 

As some antibiotics also kill bacteria through ROS generation, the researchers decided to test whether teaming these drugs with silver ions would create a more powerful medicine. The results were dramatic. The two treatments worked synergistically, the combination therapy up to 10,000 times more powerful than the antibiotic alone.

The article goes on to note that very tiny amounts of silver ions can cheaply purify water.

Not a Comforting Thought....

The average derivative/asset ratio at the top 3 banks (JPM, Citi, BofA) as of Q1 stands at 37.6x. This is higher than the average leverage ratio (32x) of Lehman, Bear Stearns and Merrill Lynch leading up to the 2008-09 recession. The average exposure of these 3 banks to interest rate contracts (% of total derivatives) is 78.7%. A mere 0.1% loss on interest rate derivative contracts would send these banks reeling, a 3.5% loss would wipe out all of their assets, and a 10% loss would exceed all US Commercial Bank Assets combined. 

Eric Pomboy, Meridian Macro Research via kingworldnews.com 

(via the Woodpile Report).

Review: Life Proof Cell Phone Cases

Life Proof makes what they claim to be waterproof cases for the IPhone.  Obviously, the protective features of the cases are big plus, and overall, we had been pleased with the cases. We have not been pleased with the durability of the product.

My wife and I both purchased IPhone 4/4s cases. She has had hers about 2 and 1/2 years. She dropped her phone about two weeks ago, and cracked the door covering the charging port. It is supposed to withstand drops of 6.5 feet, but didn't at less than 1/2 that distance. 

I have had mine for little over a year and a half.Today, I discovered that one of the buttons on mine (they are a soft plastic material) had split--even though the phone spends most of its time in a pocket or sitting on a side table.

For the price, and based on the hype, I would have expected these cases to last longer.

Battle Rifle Review

Randy Harris at Taipan Magazine (formerly Warrior Talk News) discusses the primary battle rifles. By "battle rifle," the author means rifles in .30 caliber or larger such as the .30-06, 7.62 NATO, and 7.62x54R. The four the author compares are the M-14 (and the M1A civilian counterpart), the FAL, L1A1 (the British version of the FAL), and the G-3 (and the PTR91 civilian version).

After discussing a bit of the history of each firearm, Harris gets into some of the issues for the prepper.

So what is available today and why would you want one? 

We will start with the “why”. Simply put 7.62x51 (or .308Win) makes concealment out of things that .223 and 7.62x39 still thinks are cover. The battle rifle is simply built to shoot through things. A friend asked me what the underlying logic was for a civilian owning an iron sighted .30 caliber battle rifle. My immediate answer? Vehicles. In a Hurricane Katrina or other natural disaster situation or civil unrest where looters (or worse) might try to enter a neighborhood and bust through a neighbor hood roadblock, a 7.62x51 rifle can disable a car a lot faster and while expending far less rounds than any .223 or 5.56x45. Also when out in the great outdoors if you take a rifle with you a .308 can simply do more (engage at longer distance and shoot through things better than .223 or 7.62x39. While I’m not saying you should sell all your ARs or AKs and roll with just battle rifles, I am saying a battle rifle is never a bad thing to have on hand in case of civil unrest or natural (or man made) disaster.

The author has a few complaints about the rifles, which I won't repeat here; suffice it to say, though, that he does not think highly of the M14 and civilian variants based on its design features (including the wood stock), and that it is not very reliable when run dry (you need to keep the gun greased). The FAL and L1A1 seems acceptable to the author, except for its reputation for being a little finicky with ammo (I would also note that the Israelis had problems with its reliability in desert conditions). He likes the G3/PTR91 the best (although, I would note that his employer sells them, so there may be some bias). One concern he mentions is that models available for civilian sale are all clones in some way--they all had to be modified to some extent or another to allow sales in the U.S.--and that the mil-spec parts for these rifles have largely dried up. Part of the reason that he favors the PTR91 is because PTR had imported manufacturing equipment from HK, so their rifles are the closest to mil-spec as you can get. Harris was also conscious of magazine prices for the various rifles, with magazines for the M14 at about $50, the FAL at $20, and the HK for $7 (although, I think you can still find deals where you can pick them up for a few dollars each).

Although I have shot the M1 Garand and the Mini-14, I don't have any experience with the M-14/M1A myself. I agree that the design is old. I know that the Garand needs to be greased. On the other hand, the Mini 14 is the probably the most reliable rifle I've ever shot, and doesn't require any special lubrication. Maybe Ruger improved the design--I don't know. Harris doesn't like the safety on the trigger guard. I actually think it is a great location for the safety because it is truly ambidextrous and doesn't require you to break your hold or grip (such as lifting your thumb) to operate the safety. Plus, as soon as you try to put your finger in the trigger, you know the safety is on. The location would be a downside for a select fire weapon, but for a semi-auto, it is superior. The downside to the design is that it is not amenable to adding optics, and the bolt is completely exposed to the elements.

The FAL easily has one of the best triggers of any combat/self-defense rifle I've shot, and is very accurate. The cocking handle is on the left, and easily reached. Ergonomically, it is also a very good design. There is a reason is was so widely adopted. As I mentioned above, the Israelis had problems with the rifles in the sand and dust of the Sinai and Golan heights. Otherwise, it seems to have been reliable enough for anywhere it served.

I've also shot the PTR91 and CETME, and find the design to be ergonomically acceptable. When correctly put together, the rifle is extremely reliable, but I have heard of some manufacturing issues with some of the U.S. made clones at different times. It seems to work fine in the desert environments (and was widely adopted throughout the Middle-East), but I've heard that the roller-block system doesn't like the high humidity of jungles and so on. So, about the opposite of the FAL in that regard. I think its sights are the worst of the lot, but since you probably would be putting some sort of optical sight, that probably is not as important as it would have been. As noted above, one of the primary advantages is that magazines are easily found, and cheap.

Spread of Cartels Into the Southwest

Another warning sign of the spread of the cartels:

A former police chief in a New Mexico border town collected more than $2,000 a month from the notorious Juarez Cartel in exchange for protection and help with smuggling drugs and guns, a former town official testified on Wednesday. 

Blas 'Woody' Gutierrez, the former Columbus village trustee, told a federal court that former Police Chief Angelo Vega also received $1,500 each time he allowed cartel members to use village vehicles, including police cruisers, for the syndicate's various operations. 

That testimony came in a trial involving Danny Burnett, a former school superintendent who is charged with leaking information about a federal wiretap investigation into a Columbus gun and drug smuggling ring.

Global Warming As A False God

The Washington Examiner looks at the impact of the soon to be release U.N. report on global warming, which now has to try and explain 15 years without any warming. But it also notes how global warming has become less of a science, and more of a religion:

The religious analogy is appropriate because belief in global warming has taken on the trappings of traditional religion. 

Alarmists like to say the science is settled — which is nonsense, since science is a series of theories that can be tested by observations. When Einstein presented his theory of relativity he showed how it could be tested during astronomical events in the next decade. The theory passed. 

Saying the science is settled is demanding what religions demand, that you have faith.
Religion has ritual. Global warming alarmism has recycling and Earth Day celebrations.
Some religions persecute heretics. Some global warming alarmists identify “denialists” and liken them to Holocaust deniers. 

Religions build grand places of worship. Global warming alarmists promote the construction of windmills and solar farms that produce uneconomic and intermittent electricity. 

Global warming alarmism even has indulgences like the ones Martin Luther protested. You can buy carbon offsets to gain forgiveness for travel on carbon-emitting private jet aircraft. 

Some religions ban vulgar pleasures, like the New England Puritan sumptuary laws banning luxuries. Some global warming alarmists want to force most Americans out of big-lawn suburbs into high-rise apartments clustered around mass transit stations. 

This last element seems to be dominant among many global warming alarmists. Stop the vulgar masses from living their tacky lifestyles driving those horrid SUVs. They must be made to repent, conform and be saved.

 And let me add another aspect, that is common to false religions and cults--preaching for sake of power and gain.

Where Is Obama In His Negotiations With Iran?

From the Debka File:

1. Iran’s nuclear capabilities will be preserved in their present state. Tehran has already pocketed respect for its right to enrich uranium and keep back in the country all accumulated stocks, including the quantities enriched to the 20 percent level (a short hop to weaponised grade). 

2. Tehran accepts a cap on the number of centrifuges enriching uranium at the Natanz facility. The exact number has not been decided. 

The number of machines for enriching uranium to 5 percent is still at issue. There are no restrictions on centrifuges generating a lower level of purity.  

Discussions on this point have not been finalized, since Washington wants to limit the number of advanced IR2 and IR1 centrifuges in operation and Tehran is holding out against this, 

3. Iran will sign the Additional Protocol of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty-NPT, which allows International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors to make unannounced visits outside declared nuclear sites, when they are suspected of carrying out banned operations.
It will also allow the IAEA to install cameras in the chambers where the centrifuges are spinning and not just the areas where the enriched uranium is deposited. 

Here too, it is not clear whether Tehran will also stipulated that Israel sign the same article and permit inspections of its reputed nuclear sites. 

4.  The US and European Union will gradually lift all sanctions. 

The linkage President Obama made between the Iranian and Palestinian negotiating tracks is puzzling: 

Does it imply that the more land Israel gives up on the West Bank for a Palestinian state, the more heavily he will lean on Iran to give up its nuclear weapons program? 

Was the president suggesting that if Israel is ready to evacuate settlements and reach a land swap deal with the Palestinians, he will be all the more ready to use force to preempt a nuclear-armed Iran? 

If that is the president’s thinking, he is giving the Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, by accepting or rejecting the extent of Israeli concessions, the power to determine the endgame of US nuclear negotiations with Iran. 

Does that make sense?

Gang War Warning for L.A.

The Daily Mail reports on mass arrests of the Mexican Mafia gang in Orange County:

More than 120 people linked to street gangs that claim allegiance to the Mexican Mafia - who control most of the drug trade in California - have been indicted on various racketeering, weapons and narcotics charges as authorities attempt to cripple the notorious prison gang's Orange County wing. 

Hundreds of law enforcement officers fanned out across Southern California on Tuesday, making arrests as part of a two-year investigation dubbed, 'Operation Smokin' Aces'
A total of 129 people have been indicted by county and federal grand juries alleging crimes including murder, drug trafficking and extortion. 

The Mexican Mafia, which controls most of the organized crime around LA, San Diego and parts of Arizona sought and received payments from gangs in Orange County in exchange for freely committing crimes in primarily Latino neighborhoods, according to court documents.  

Those who refused were put on lists that often resulted in violent retribution. 

... The indictments are designed to cripple the 1,000 strong gang which operates in the heart of Orange County and across Southern California.

1,000 members isn't very large for a street gang controlling much of Southern California. What is important to remember is that the Mexican Mafia is primarily a prison gang--it gets its control because members of other gangs will, at one time or another, be imprisoned and at the mercy of the gang. Thus, arresting and throwing members in prison may not do much to weaken the gang.

It may be worse, though, if it did weaken the gang because of the resulting power vacuum and turf wars that could erupt, similar to the collapse of the Guadalajara Cartel after the arrest of top leaders spawned the various cartels now in existence in Mexico. The best case scenario is that local gangs step into the fray, because they will likely maintain the status quo as far as the type and distribution of violence ; worst case, the Mexican cartels push aggressively to assert control over the drug distribution in Southern California, and import the violence and tactics employed in Mexico.

Update on Nairobi Terrorist Attack

The Daily Mail reports that the current death toll is at 72, with an additional 175 injured. Also this:

The news comes as it was claimed today that the Islamic militants who stormed the mall rented a shop inside the complex apparently to store a cache of guns and explosives before the attack. 

The Kenyan Interior Ministry said the terror group may have had control of the store for three months leading up to the siege. 

Law enforcement officials believe the arsenal of weapons used in the atrocity were smuggled in, which suggests they may have been kept inside the shop during that time.

The Fed's Hidden Agenda?

Peter J. Tanous writes, at CNBC, regarding his theory on why the Federal Reserve has continued with quantitative easing, even though the Fed has already bought up $3.6 trillion of U.S. Treasury bonds.  I figured that it was something mundane like keeping the financial markets artificially inflated, but he thinks it may have something to do with maintaining social order. He writes:

I believe that one of the most important reasons the Fed is determined to keep interest rates low is one that is rarely talked about, and which comprises a dark economic foreboding that should frighten us all. 

Let me start with a question: How would you feel if you knew that almost all of the money you pay in personal income tax went to pay just one bill, the interest on the debt? Chances are, you and millions of Americans would find that completely unacceptable and indeed they should. 

But that is where we may be heading. 

Thanks to the Fed, the interest rate paid on our national debt is at an historic low of 2.4 percent, according to the Congressional Budget Office. 

Given the U.S.'s huge accumulated deficit, this low interest rate is important to keep debt servicing costs down.

Tanous then notes that the average bond rates during the last 20 years was 5.7%, and in 2020, it is estimated that government debt will $16.6 trillion. At 5.7%, the cost of servicing the debt in 2020 would be $930 billion--85% of the $1.1 trillion that the Federal government collected in personal income tax last year. He also notes that many economists believe that quantitative easing will lead to inflation, which will cause interest rates on T-bills to go even higher.

One thing is clear: Based on CBO projections, if interest rates just rise to their 20-year average, we will have an untenable, unacceptable interest rate bill whose beneficiaries are China, Japan, and others who own our bonds. 

And if Americans find out that the lion's share of their income tax payments are going to service the debt, prepare for a new American revolution. 

Hollywood Goes for Armored Cars

Drudge had a link to this article on the increasing popularity of armored cars among the Hollywood elite. What I thought was interesting was this little bit on why the popularity:

Texas Armoring executive vp Jason Forston says the company has seen demand in the U.S. soar the past five years. "A large part of it is celebrities, pro athletes and rock stars," Forston says. "You even have a lot of Hollywood executives, studio heads, people not in the spotlight." Forston credits the "climate of fear right now -- the growing gap between the haves and the have-nots" -- for the surge in sales.

(Underline added). I wasn't aware that there was a climate of fear right now, so I'm curious what the Hollywood elites are hearing that we are not.

Explosions and Fire at Nairobi Mall

The Daily Mail is reporting:

Kenyan special forces were today locked in a fight to the death with Islamic terrorists who have been barricaded inside a Nairobi mall with up to 40 hostages since Saturday. 

Witnesses described hearing four large explosions at the Westgate Shopping Centre followed by the sight of thick plumes of smoke and the sounds of fierce gunfire after the military tried to break the three day siege by gaining access from the roof. 

It is feared that some of the gunmen, who are from Al Qaeda affiliated group Al Shabaab, may have blown themselves up, though a Kenyan government minister said that militants had set fire to some mattresses in a supermarket as a decoy. 

Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku said that two of the terrorists had been killed and that most hostages were now free. All of the militants were men, he added, although some were dressed as women. 'We think the operation will come to an end soon', he said. 'We are in control of all the floors, the terrorists are running and hiding in some stores... there is no room for escape'. 

The Red Cross has put the death toll at 62 - including four Britons - and say 63 are still missing. At least 175 were injured, including children.

How to Get Rid of Fruit Flies

From Suburban Turmoil, a good idea to get rid of fruit flies:

First, take a wide mouth jar and fill it 1/2 — 3/4 of the way full with apple cider vinegar. (No other vinegar will work, btw. It has to be apple cider vinegar.) 

Add a few drops of dish soap, then fill the rest of the jar with water until the bubbles reach the rim of the jar. 

Finally, in the words of my lovely friend…. WATCH THE CARNAGE. 

If you leave that jar alone for a few hours, the fruit flies will come. TRUST ME. THEY WILL COME.

(H/t Instapundit)

North Korea's Drug Trade

The Daily Mail reports that North Korea has become involved with manufacturing crystal meth, but it may be getting out of control:

A new study reveals vast quantities are being made for export by state-trained scientists in collusion with corrupt officials and criminal gangs in a country desperate for hard currency. 

Inevitably, it has ended up creating a catastrophic epidemic back home. In some parts of the country up to 50 per cent of the population are reported to be hooked. 

The study discloses drug abuse has reached ‘remarkable proportions and keeps growing, engulfing new social groups and regions’. 

The inquiry, by two South Korea-based academics, is based on interviews with 21 recent defectors. It confirms earlier evidence from the US and China, where there are soaring levels of crystal meth addiction in border regions with North Korea. 

Perhaps most remarkably, the trade began as a state-sponsored exercise. 

The nation, hit hard by the collapse of the Soviet Union which supported it with aid, began making methamphetamine in large laboratories in its poorer northern regions for export.  

These were scaled down about eight years ago as the drug began flooding back into the country. 

But instead of slowing down production, this sparked explosive growth in crystal meth manufacture.  

Jobless scientists and technicians created their own ‘kitchen labs’, teaming up with smuggling gangs that blossomed during a deadly famine in the Nineties. 

‘They were rather old people and their lives were tough,’ one defector told the report’s authors. ‘Private entrepreneurs began to look for such people and employ them.’ 

Users include soldiers in the world’s most militarised state, women taking it for weight control and sick people unable to access medicines in a country with such chronic healthcare  that doctors use old beer bottles for hospital drips. 

‘People in North Korea do not realise what the side effects will be,’ said  Professor Kim Seok-Hyang, who co-authored the report. ‘They think it is a good thing to relieve their pain. A cure-all medicine.’ 

Parents even offer it to children to help them concentrate – with no inkling of the consequences.

China is surrounding by narco states--I see a huge problem developing for Chinese law enforcement.

"I am not leaving."

The Daily Mail reports:

White supremacists are gathering today in Leith, North Dakota, the tiny town that a neo-Nazi leader hopes to turn into a white-only haven for racism.  

But Leith's only black resident is defiant and say's he's staying put.  

The other residents of the dwindling town of 24 people are planning a counter-protest to oppose the meeting of white supremacists. Leaders from across the state are joining forces in an effort to show the hate groups that they aren't welcome.  

'We are deeply disturbed that one of the residents of our small community has invited hate groups to our town and to the state of North Dakota. One of these hate groups, the National Socialist Movement, is planning to hold a meeting in our city hall on Sunday afternoon, and raise neo Nazi flags on property around our town,' the town of Leith said in a statement.

There are successful methods to deal with this problem, although it may require exercising the Second Amendment.

Blogging "65 Signs of the Times Leading Up to the Second Coming" - Part 3.

This is part 3 of my review of David Ridges, 65 Signs of the Times Leading Up to the Second Coming. Part 1 is here. Part 2 is here.

Before moving on to Chapter 3, which discusses each of the 65 signs the author has chosen to elucidate, there is another point from Chapter 2 which Ridges raises: that there may be considerable time from when Christ appears to when he comes to reign on Earth. He notes, in that regard, Zech. 14:1-9, describing Christ's appearance to the Jews when the Mount of Olives splits, to Ezekiel 39:8-16, describing that it will take 7 months to "cleanse" the land after the final battle (by burying the dead). Presumably, the Lord will not return until the land has been cleansed. 

In Chapter 3, Ridges discusses (in no particular order I could discern) 65 of what he considers to be signs preceding the second coming. It is important to note that many of the signs have already been fulfilled, or in the process of being fulfilled. My point is not to repeat Ridges book here, but to interject comments or emphasis. Thus, while I will list all the signs, I will not comment on all of them.

(1)  The discovery of America and establishment of the United States -- fulfilled.

(2)  The coming forth of the Book of Mormon -- fulfilled. This is in fulfillment of Ezekiel 37:15-19, where the stick of Judah (the Bible) is to be joined with the stick of Joseph (the Book of Mormon). 

(3)  The restoration of the priesthood and the priesthood keys (i.e., the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods, and the sealing powers)  -- fulfilled. (Malachi 4:4-6, Jeremiah 31:31-33). 

(4)  The restoration of the true church of Jesus Christ -- fulfilled. Ridges obviously cites those scriptures that discuss that there will be a falling away or apostasy from the original church, such as 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3 and Acts 3:19-21. I would also note that the Lord spoke many times of the "first being last and the last first." (e.g., Luke 13:30; Matthew 19:30; Matthew 20:16). Christ, during his ministry, was very clear that His purpose was to go to the Jews first. (See, e.g., Mark 7:24-30). Later, the apostles were commanded to take the Gospel to the Gentiles (essentially the whole theme of the Acts). The restoration of the Church has now made the last first and the first last because the restored Gospel was first made available to the Gentiles, and the Church has agreed with Israel that it will not proselyte to anyone in Israel, such that Israel will truly be the last to receive the Gospel in these latter days.

(5) The Church will be established in the tops of the mountains--fulfilled. (Isaiah 2:2-3). (Note that in much of what is written by Isaiah and the other prophets concerning the last days ("in that day") "Zion" refers to the restored Church while "Jerusalem" refers to Judah (the nation of Israel, and/or the Jews)).

(6) The Church will grow to fill the whole Earth--being fulfilled (Daniel 2:35, 44-45).

(7) Slaves will rise up against their masters--being fulfilled (referring to a portion of the prophecy on wars: D&C 87-4).

(8) A full end of all nations--yet to be fulfilled (D&C 87:6). I would note that this ties together with the prophecy, cited above, from Daniel, to when the stone cut out of the mountain will strike and destroy the figure (representing the great empires).

(9) Scattered Israel will be gathered--being fulfilled (e.g., Isaiah 5:26-30; Ezekiel 28:25). This refers not only to the gathering of the Jews to the Holy Land, but also the gathering of peoples into the Church.

(10) All will hear the Gospel in their own tongue--being fulfilled.

The Great New England Hurricane of 1938

Tomorrow is the 75th anniversary. The Daily Mail has the story and photos:

Approximately 700 people died 75 years ago when the storm known variously as the Great New England Hurricane of 1938 or the Long Island Express began plowing up America's Northeast coastline at 2:45 p.m. on Sept. 21, 1938. 

It slammed into land and rapidly moved north, destroying buildings, altering coastlines, ripping apart forests and shocking a population that had never experienced a hurricane.
A weather station in Massachusetts recorded sustained winds of 121 mph and gusts as high as 186 mph - a major storm by modern standards that dwarfs the land wind speeds recorded in storms Irene and Sandy, which also devastated parts of the Northeast in recent years. 

'It was the strongest, the most devastating, the deadliest and the costliest for the region and still is,' says Lourdes Aviles, a Plymouth State University meteorology professor in Plymouth, N.H., who this month published the book Taken by Storm, 1938: A Social and Meteorological History of the Great New England Hurricane. 

The hurricane was the death knell for many mills and factories that had barely survived the Great Depression.  

It stripped 4 million bushels of apples from orchards, killed livestock and felled millions of trees, according to Aviles' research. Bridges and dams were destroyed, and rail travel was halted for weeks.

Hezbollah Obtains Assad's Chemical Weapons

The Washington Free Beacon reports:

The terror group Hezbollah has assumed control of at least a portion of Syria’s chemical weapons cache, according to a Syrian military commander, multiple lawmakers, and rebel leaders. 

A portion of Syrian President Bashar al Assad regime’s chemical weapons supply has fallen into the hands of Hezbollah, which has been fighting on Assad’s behalf, according to these multiple sources. 

The latest confirmation that Hezbollah, which was founded by Iran and receives funding and support from the regime, had gotten ahold of these deadly weapons came earlier this week when a former Syrian army commander claimed that certain chemical weapons shipments had been delivered to Hezbollah. 

“Some of the chemical weapons shipments are already with Hezbollah,” Brig. Gen. Zaher Saket, a defector who was formerly in charge of a unit equipped for chemical warfare, said to The National Online, an Abu Dhabi-based news agency. 

Saket claims that he was ordered on at least three occasions to deploy chemical weapons until he defected and went public with the regime’s crimes. 

It remains unclear what exactly Hezbollah would do with chemical weapons.

Probably use them. Duh.

Syrian Christians Facing Extermination ...

... writes Raymond Ibrahim at PJ Media.

Scientists Told to Conceal Lack of Global Warming

From the Daily Mail:

Scientists working on the most authoritative study on climate change were urged to cover up the fact that the world’s temperature hasn’t risen for the last 15 years, it is claimed.
A leaked copy of a United Nations report, compiled by hundreds of scientists, shows politicians in Belgium, Germany, Hungary and the United States raised concerns about the final draft. 

Published next week, it is expected to address the fact that 1998 was the hottest year on record and world temperatures have not yet exceeded it, which scientists have so far struggled to explain. 

The report is the result of six years’ work by UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which is seen as the world authority on the extent of climate change and what is causing it – on which governments including Britain’s base their green policies.
But leaked documents seen by the Associated Press, yesterday revealed deep concerns among politicians about a lack of global warming over the past few years. 

Germany called for the references to the slowdown in warming to be deleted, saying looking at a time span of just 10 or 15 years was ‘misleading’ and they should focus on decades or centuries. 

Hungary worried the report would provide ammunition for deniers of man-made climate change. 

Belgium objected to using 1998 as a starting year for statistics, as it was exceptionally warm and makes the graph look flat - and suggested using 1999 or 2000 instead to give a more upward-pointing curve. 

The United States delegation even weighed in, urging the authors of the report to explain away the lack of warming using the ‘leading hypothesis’ among scientists that the lower warming is down to more heat being absorbed by the ocean – which has got hotter.

Can't let the truth get in the way of the politician's desire to use global warming as a means to increase their power and control.

Plans for the Caliphate Move Ahead

From the Wall Street Journal:

Across northern and eastern Syria, units of the jihadist group known as ISIS are seizing territory—on the battlefield and behind the front lines—from Western-backed rebels.
Some FSA fighters now consider the extremists to be as big a threat to their survival as the forces of President Bashar al-Assad. 

"It's a three-front war," a U.S. official said of the FSA rebels' fight: They face the Assad regime, forces from its Lebanese ally Hezbollah, and now the multinational jihadist ranks of ISIS. 

Brigade leaders of the FSA say that ISIS, an Iraqi al Qaeda outfit whose formal name is the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, has dragged them into a battle they are ill-equipped to fight. 

Some U.S. officials said they see it as a battle for the FSA's survival. 

In recent months, ISIS has become a magnet for foreign jihadists who view the war in Syria not primarily as a means to overthrow the Assad regime but rather as a historic battleground for a larger Sunni holy war. According to centuries-old Islamic prophecy they espouse, they must establish an Islamic state in Syria as a step to achieving a global one.

... The proliferation of the Sunni jihadists and extremists has brought a new type of terror to the lives of many Syrians who have endured civil war in the north. Summary executions of Alawites and Shiites, who are seen as apostates, attacks on Shiite shrines, and kidnappings and assassinations of pro-Western rebels are on the rise. 

 (Underline added).

Review: Polish Radom Magazines (Updated)

Some friends and I had gone into a group purchase of the Polish Radom Circle-11 magazines for the AK-47/AKM style rifles. Aim Surplus had them on sale for $7.95 each.

My initial impression was actually quite good. Although they don't have metal reinforced feed lips, the construction appeared to be sturdy, and the floor plate is steel. The follower is a non-tilt style, and the spring appeared to be strong. In short, clean, well-made, polymer magazines.

The problem I had was that I could not get them to fully lock into place. After checking that the feed lips weren't pushing up against something, I decided it must have to do with the extra plastic right above the locking tab.





My suspicions were confirmed when one of my friends sent me this from the AK Forum gun board: 

“I had a little time today so I did some work on the polish radom 11 mags. Had to file right above the locking tab on all of them and get them to fit all my rifles. 10 seconds per mag took care of it. Actually, I prefer doing this. You can get your mags nice and tight as apposed to having sloppy mags. Anyways, they fit the same with the mags loaded or empty. Tells me there is not that much flex in them. Which is fine and unlike the Korean mags that flex alot.

Asmodeus is correct. These are identical to tapco slabsides. I haven't had any problems with tapco mags in the past so I don't think I will have any with these. I ran 90 rounds through them without any problems.

All in all, would I buy them again? No. They will make good range mags but that's about it. I wouldn't say I would trust my life on them but you get what you pay for.”

Anyway, I will work on filing that portion down a bit to see if I can get it to lock into place, and let you know what I think of the functioning.

Updated (9/29/13): So I took a hand file to the magazines for a few minutes (pausing to check the fit ever little bit). It didn't take too much effort to get it to fit; and only a couple more minutes and I had the magazine fitting to my satisfaction where it was easily inserted, but solid.

With this correction, I have to say that I was impressed that there was no side-to-side movement of the magazine. Now I just need to get some range time....

Looting in Acapulco

From Yahoo News:

Looting broke out in the flooded Mexican beach resort of Acapulco as the government struggled to reach tens of thousands of people cut off by flooding that had claimed at least 80 lives by Wednesday. 

Stores were ransacked by looters who carried off everything from televisions to Christmas decorations after floodwaters wreaked havoc in the Pacific port that has experienced some of the worst storm damage to hit Mexico in years. 

... Shops were plundered in the city's upscale neighborhood of Diamante, home to luxury hotels and plush apartments, where dozens of cars were ruined by muddy brown floodwaters. Marines were posted outside stores to prevent further theft. 

"Unfortunately, it wasn't looting from need of food. It was stealing for stealing's sake," said Mariberta Medina, head of a local hoteliers' association. "They even stole Halloween and Christmas decorations and an outboard motor."

When Boys Aren't Allowed to Be (Updated and Bumped)

The basic philosophy of feminism is not to support what is unique to women, but to instead tear down men, while forcing its twisted view of masculinity onto women. Feminism seeks to force women to be men, and men to be women.

A couple articles mentioned by Glenn Reynolds on the War on Men.

Sarah Hoyt muses on what happens to boys when you force them to be girls:

... when it comes to the relationship between men and women, it is marked by the fact that they outweigh us, out-lift us and out-run us.  We can outlast them both in effort and in longevity, for what consolation that’s worth.  BUT physically they’re stronger than us, even at the same size.  (I had a moment of shock when my then 11 year old son, who was still shorter and slimmer than I, could easily lift 100 pounds in a dead lift which I couldn’t do.) 

This means in interactions between men and women – as adults and partners – men must modulate their strength and women must find non-physical ways of projecting theirs.  We see women doing this as far back as pre-history.  The wise counselor.  The advisor.  It’s in all our legends and quite a few of our histories.  The man goes home and consults with his wife. 

I’d say our “civilization” – our road to being human – started when hominid males decided to court women rather than simply overpowering them. 

... But… women don’t understand this. 

... there is a group of women, we’ll call them “the sob sisters” who are really really dumb about this.  They either view men as a sort of hairier woman with a penis, or they wish he were so.  ... 

... They don’t understand that the decision to court rather than rape is built in very deeply in a man’s psyche, layered by thousands of years of evolution and – yes – sexual conditioning.  It is a gentleness born of strength.  Men who know themselves to be stronger than any woman they want, discipline themselves to go slowly, to court her.
Even in the most primitive tribes, rituals are instituted to bend men into this civilized mold.  Because when the mold is broken, the result is that men abuse women, women abuse children, and the world goes to hell. 

The sob sisters don’t get this.  They are gentle because they’re weak and this forces them into being gentle.  Hell hath no fury and ability to oppress as one of these weak, die-away sisters given some power, but every woman here will know what I’m talking about, because sooner or later you find yourself fin a group where one of these has got the bit between their teeth.  Their power is mostly gossip and back stabbing and unbelievable psychological abuse, but they use it to the hilt. 

Which is why they think that if men aren’t using their superior strength, it must be because they’re weak, and the “solution” to society (they nurse in their black little hearts the hope of not just making women equal but reversing society and having women do all the masculine jobs and men do the feminine ones.  It’s nuttiness) is to raise men to be weak and not to know their own strength.  Hence the entire “rise of the sensitive male.”
The problem is this – you don’t reverse evolution in two generations. ... 

... yes, boys can be taught to act weak and much like the sob sisters.  The problem is they aren’t.  Not even when they’re raised to act that way. 

The end result is that they don’t know how to express their strength and they’ve never been taught to modulate it. 

Men who have only been taught to “act sensitive” but have no other discipline, no other moral, no other idea of what it means to be a man, will in fact hoist the pirate flag.
Whenever a memoir surfaces from the sixties, the thing that always strikes me is how these men who were considered champions of women were in fact nasty little petulant creatures, taking advantage as much as possible.  Say, the story of Ayers raping a girl and then making her sleep with someone she had no interest in, by bullying her with the idea that not to do so would be unenlightened. 

I often think that the people now controlling education were women who went through this, and therefore want to stop boys from being… well boys.  But what they’re doing in fact is creating more sociopathic males who will act as you want them to, but will take as much advantage as possible.

 Turning to a more specific example, is this interview at the National Review with Christina Hoff Sommers, who comments about how our education system is stacked against boys:

But boys and young men have been massively neglected. Women in the U.S. today earn 62 percent of associate’s degrees, 57 percent of bachelor’s degrees, 60 percent of master’s degrees, and 52 percent of doctorates. When an education-policy analyst looked at current trends in higher education he quipped, only half in jest, “The last male will graduate from college in 2068.” 

Let’s face it, boys are different from girls. As a group, boys are noisy, rowdy, and hard to manage. Many are messy and disorganized, and won’t sit still. They tend to like action, risk, and competition. When researchers asked a sample of boys why they did not spend a lot of time talking about their problems, most of them said it was “weird” and a waste of time. 

Today’s classrooms tend to be feelings-centered, risk-averse, competition-free, and sedentary. As early as pre-school and kindergarten, boys can be punished for behaving like boys. The characteristic play of young males is “rough-and-tumble” play. There is no known society where little boys fail to evince this behavior (girls do it too, but far less). In many schools, rough –and-tumble play is no longer tolerated. Well-meaning but intolerant adults are insisting “tug of war” be changed to “tug of peace”; games such as tag are being replaced with “circle of friends” — in which no one is ever out. Boys as young as five or six can be suspended for playing cops and robbers. Our schools have become hostile environments for most boys.

She also notes that it is unlikely that Congress would do anything to rectify the situation, such as some other countries have begun to do:

A “Success for Boys” campaign would face furious opposition in the U.S. Congress. Legislators would receive an avalanche of protesting faxes, e-mails, petitions, and phone calls from women’s groups accusing them of taking part in a “backlash” maneuver against women and girls.

And so the house of cards will tumble down.

Updated Sept. 9, 2013: An article discussing MSNBC's attack dogs criticizing Ms. Sommers, and an article Ms. Sommers published at the Atlantic.

(h/t Instapundit).

Obesity As A Sign of Prosperity

America (and the rest of the developed world) has an obesity problem. 

The reason that gluttony is a problem--the reason people tend to crave more food than is healthy (at least in the long term) to eat--is biological. Our ancestors had no Costco or McDonald's; conditions of food scarcity were frequent enough that natural selection favored the instinct to eat when food was available and the capacity to store nutrients as fat as a protection against lean times. 

If Bruni had omitted obesity from his discussion of Costco, it would have been a paean to the glory of the free market. Not only is the average American free from worry about famine or malnutrition; he can purchase vast quantities of good food at low prices. Even an indigent American has access to plentiful food via government programs like food stamps and school lunches. 

What we are describing is not a market failure or a government failure, but a massive success of both the free market and redistributionist welfare policies, thanks to which no one in America need go hungry. The problem is that the human body is not optimally designed for conditions of such plenty. If you simply follow your appetites, you're likely to get fat. Eating healthy requires knowledge, cognitive ability and self-discipline.

Polish Demographic Downturn

PressEurope reports that in the first half of this year, more Poles died of old age than were born.

How to Zombie Proof Your Car

(H/t The Survival Spot blog)

Why Store Peanut Butter?

The Apartment Prepper explains why you should include peanut butter in your storage plans (assuming no peanut allergies, of course). It has many uses other than just for food.

The Small Things Count

Over the last few weeks, I've had the opportunity to see just how much small or seemingly insignificant things count toward preparations.

My wife has been busy with canning and dehydrating fruits this past couple weeks. Yesterday, she cut her thumb badly when using an apple slicer. Of course, using regular gauze or bandages over the end of a finger or toe never seems to hold very well. But a quick trip to Walgreens solved the issue, where they sell packages of tubular gauze and finger cots (basically, these fit over the finger like a small prophylactic to keep the gauze clean and dry).

Also, working on different projects the last few weeks, I have to emphasize the importance of having one or two nail brushes for cleaning dirt and grime from under your nails. As I've written before, and is emphasized in several emergency prep books (such as Cody Lundin's When All Hell Breaks Loose) proper hygiene is critical in a natural disaster or survival situation. And, when you have been involved in gardening, digging, or working with grease and oils, a finger brush is a critical piece of equipment for proper washing of hands and nails.

1913--A Year to Live in Infamy

Paul Rosenberg writes:

For all the problems America had prior to 1913 (including the unnecessary and horrifying Civil War), nothing spelled the death of the nation like the horrors of 1913.
Here are the key dates: 

February 3rd: 

The 16th Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified, authorizing the Federal government to impose income taxes on individuals. ...

As a result, the Revenue Act of 1913 was signed into law by President Woodrow Wilson in October. Income taxes began in 1914...

And, by the way, the amendment was introduced by Senator Aldrich of Rhode Island, to whom we’ll come again shortly. 

April 8th: 

The 17th Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified, taking the powers of the states and transferring them to Washington, by mandating the popular election of senators. 

Previously, senators were appointed by state legislatures, restraining the power of the national government. This change gave political parties immediate and massive power, nearly all of which was consolidated in the city of Washington. ...

December 23rd: 

Woodrow Wilson signs the Federal Reserve Act, which had passed Congress just the previous day. This system – called the Aldrich Plan, and promoted by Senator Nelson Aldrich of Rhode Island – gave a monopoly on the creation of dollars to a consortium of large banks. ...

Here is why I say that these three changes of 1913 killed America: 

They robbed every producer in America of their money and handed it to politicians. ...

They consolidated all power in Washington DC. ...

They created a money empire that took over almost everything. ...

 Read the whole thing.

Al Qaeda-Assad Alliance?

Bridget Johnson, writing at PJ Media, claims that Al Qaeda is actually in cahoots with Assad. She writes:

In a chilling alliance that could turn conventional wisdom about the current Syria debate — and the revolution’s players — on its head, signs continue to mount that show al-Qaeda is working not against Bashar al-Assad but in concert with the dictator. 

This includes assassinating key Assad opponents, coordinating attacks, not targeting each other’s positions and helping push a War on Terror narrative to keep Assad in power.

Read the whole thing.

Reaction to Colorado Flood

Drudge had a link to this Denver Post article concerning the recent flash flood near Boulder, Colorado. I'm more interested in one of the comments. In response to a comment that such a flood may represent a judgment by God because of the moral (or rather, immoral) stances taken by the City of Boulder, someone responded:

Please take your leaping and prancing and tongues and serpent handing elsewhere while good and decent and non-judgemental [sic] folks step up and do the hard worked needed to help their fellow human beings. Your god is vengeful and willing to kill innocents to "make a point" about why we need to kneel and fear him/her.

Well, there is no evidence that the person who made the original comment wasn't stepping up to help--and statistically, conservatives are more likely to contribute to charities, and contribute more, than liberals. But I regress. The point I want to make is that God has often used disasters and wars to encourage people to repent. But, in the last days, many will harden their hearts. I don't know if the flood in Boulder was punishment from God, but the attitude above--that people should not be subject to moral constraints, and it is an immoral God that punishes people--is prevalent and will be so even when the serious disasters preceding the Second Coming begin.  

One-Third of Food Wasted

So the world isn't maxed out on the number of people it can feed...

From Fox New York:

The U.N. food agency says one-third of all food produced in the world gets wasted, amounting to a loss of $750 billion a year. 

The Rome-based Food and Agricultural Organization said in a report Wednesday that food in developing countries is wasted mostly due to poor harvesting techniques, while in high-income areas the primary cause of waste is careless consumer behavior. 

... Wastage of cereals in Asia is a significant problem, according to the report, with major impacts on carbon emissions and water and land use. Rice's profile is particularly noticeable, given its high methane emissions combined with a large level of wastage. 

FAO stressed the importance of raising awareness among consumers. 

It says that consumers fail to plan their shopping, overpurchase, or over-react to "best-before-dates," while quality and aesthetic standards lead retailers to reject large amounts of perfectly edible food.

I would note that the "best-before-dates" and quality and aesthetic standards are mostly the result of government regulations.

Blogging "65 Signs of the Times Leading Up to the Second Coming" - Part 2

This is part 2 of my review of 65 Signs of the Times Leading Up to the Second Coming. Part 1 is here.

In chapter 2 of his book, David Ridges sets out some general cautions and observations. First, he cautions that Satan knows his time is short, and is intensifying his efforts. (See Rev. 12:12). He notes a couple (but certainly not all!) of the tactics that Satan is using:

(a)  Destroying Valid Heroes: Ridges notes that "one of the devil's effective approaches for deceiving is to attempt to do away with decent heroes." This includes efforts to undermine and question the greatness of America's Founding Fathers. "When we encounter such tearing down of the founders of our nation, we would do well to study what the Lord says about these great individuals." For instance, in D&C 101:77-80:

77 According to the laws and aconstitution of the people, which I have suffered to be established, and should be maintained for the brights and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles; 

 78 That every man may act in doctrine and principle pertaining to futurity, according to the moral agency which I have given unto him, that every man may be accountable for his own sins in the day of judgment. 

 79 Therefore, it is not right that any man should be in bondage one to another. 

 80 And for this purpose have I established the Constitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose, and redeemed the land by the shedding of blood.

(Underline added). Ridges then discusses the temple work performed for many of the founders, and quotes statements from Wilford Woodruff in this regard, including:

I am going to bear my testimony to this assembly, if I never do it again in my life, that those men who laid the foundation of this American government and signed the Declaration of Independence were the best spirits the God of heaven could find on the face of the earth. They were choice spirits, not wicked men. General Washington and all the men that labored for the purpose were inspired of the Lord.

(b) Pitting Men Against Women. Ridges writes that "[a]nother all-out effort on Lucifer's part to deceive and destroy in our last days is his evil effort to pit men against women. This is an obvious and overt attempt at the destruction of families.... Pitting men against women and women against men destroys unity and teamwork. It destroys the very finest of feelings and relationships. The debate rages on as to who is most important, man or woman." He then discusses both modern revelation and scripture that note that men and women are to be equal partners in the family--"one flesh" as it says in Genesis. He also notes that marriage is necessary to enter into the highest kingdom in the after-life--no man can get there without his wife; and no woman can get there without her husband. Quoting Bruce R. McConkie, "Exaltation grows out of the eternal union of a man and his wife."

Second, Ridges cautions that we should avoid using the signs of the times to frighten or spread panic. "It is very significant that the Savior instructed His loyal followers [in Matthew 23] not to allow the signs of the times to promote fear and trouble in their own hearts." As Christ goes on to explain, the signs of the times are given to the faithful so that they can know that the Second Coming is near--i.e., the signs are not meant to frighten the faithful, but instead to build their faith and act as a testimony. The fulfillment of the signs acts as "proof" of God's existence to the faithful.

Third, Ridges cautions that no everyone will be subject to the "mark of the beast" or under the rule of the Beast's kingdom. He notes that other portions of Revelation specifically mention that there will be those that oppose the Beast and his power. See Rev. 14:9 and 20:4. "We [must] conclude that only the wicked and those who foolishly ignore the counsel of the prophets to live the gospel, to live within their means, and so forth, will fall under the control of the 'beast' in the last days before the coming of the Lord." He explains the mark on the forehead:

Simply put, symbolically, those who are loyal to wickedness, financial greed, and so forth, are depicted as having the mark of the beast on their foreheads. Whereas, those who are loyal to God and to righteousness, are depicted in the revelation, according to the Jewish cultural symbolism of John's day, as having the name of God on their foreheads." Thus, it is a misconception to belief that the "mark of the beast" will be a literal tatoo or barcode or implanted chip.

Fourth, he warns (and as I have discussed before) that no one--not even Christ, Himself--knows the timing of the Second Coming. It cannot be calculated or extrapolated, and obsession with trying to calculate the time of the Second Coming can be harmful and lead some astray.

Fifth, Ridges advises that we should not put our lives on hold because of the closeness of the Second Coming. As noted, we do not and cannot know the timing. We must go on with our lives, get an education and develop a career, save for retirement, raise families, and so on.

Sixth, only those caught up in the ways of the world will be caught off-guard by the Second Coming. This may seem to contradict the prior point, but it does not. The signs will compound so that the faithful will get a better and better sense of the general timing, if not the specific time. See D&C 106:4-5.

Seventh, he advises us to avoid trying to develop an exact sequence of the final signs of the times. I won't go into detail here, suffice to say that as you read different scriptures from the Old Testiment, Revelations, and other scripture, there is not discernable sequence. As above, we are not meant to know the exact time of the Second Coming.

Wilderness Survival Myths

Fox News has a short article about 13 survival myths (actually, there are only 6 myths discussed at Fox News' site--you have to go to the Active Times to get all 13). The article is essentially a brief look at why you shouldn't rely on survival shows to show you how to survive. From the article:

Tim Smith, the founder of Jack Mountain Bushcraft School in the Maine North Woods, is also quick to teach his students this distinction [between primitive living and survival].  

“Survival is very romanticized,” says Smith. “It’s not about being the toughest or most experienced; it’s about keeping out of those situations.” 

Survival, according to Nester, Smith and Shane Hobel of Mountain Scout Survival School in upstate New York, is a matter of getting your priorities straight. (Shelter, water, and a clear mind are at the top of your list, by the way.)

Some of the myths discussed are: (1) you need to immediately start looking for food (a person can survive weeks without food); (2) you can rely on field guides to identify safe sources of food (if you don't know what it is, don't eat it); (3) shelter means having a roof over your head (concentrate on building an insulating bed first); (4) you should suck the venom out of a snake bite (good way to infect the wound and get venom in your own mouth); (5) you can outrun a bear (no you can't); (6) you can get water from a barrel cactus (actually, only one species is non-toxic); (7) a solar still can get you water in a desert (except you will use more water in sweat building one); (8) you can drink your own urine to stave off dehydration (no, it may push your body over the edge); (9) you need to ration your water (you should drink up to avoid dehydration); (10) you cell phone/GPS can save you (except when its broken or there is no service); (11) you may suddenly find yourself in a survival situation (reality is, you probably got there by a series of bad situations). The remaining two are about how difficult it is to start a fire under bad conditions, but how easy it is with the right tools and favorable conditions.

European Energy Costs Undermining Economy

As a follow up to the EU's biofuels debacle, there is this from the Telegraph:

"We face a systemic industrial massacre," said Antonio Tajani, the European industry commissioner. 

Mr Tajani warned that Europe's quixotic dash for renewables was pushing electricity costs to untenable levels, leaving Europe struggling to compete as America's shale revolution cuts US natural gas prices by 80pc. 

"I am in favour of a green agenda, but we can't be religious about this. We need a new energy policy. We have to stop pretending, because we can't sacrifice Europe's industry for climate goals that are not realistic, and are not being enforced worldwide," he told The Daily Telegraph during the Ambrosetti forum of global policy-makers at Lake Como. 

"The loss of competitiveness is frightening," said Paulo Savona, head of Italy's Fondo Interbancario. "When people choose whether to invest in Europe or the US, what they think about most is the cost of energy."

America's Seven Nations and Three City States

Joel Kotkin and Mark Schill, at New Geography, write that the United States is not a single "nation" but an amalgam of seven distinct regions and three city states (New York, Los Angeles and Miami--and I would add Washington D.C. to that tally). They then go on to look at current economic and demographic trends and make some broad predictions for the future. Interestingly, the demographic trends favor the "red states" over "blue states."

Man Who Disappeared Into Andes 4 Months Ago...

... found alive, having survived by eating sugar, rats and raisins he'd found in a shelter.

Gang Setting Booby-Traps

The Daily Mail reports:

The NYPD is warning Manhattan cyclists to beware gangs who are setting up booby traps along the bike path on the Hudson River and then beating and robbing the unfortunate victims. 

Police only have a vague description of the gang who have set up rope clotheslines designed to knock cyclists off their bikes before attacking them with bats and brass knuckles. 

Warning those who use the popular route to New Jersey that crosses the George Washington Bridge at 164th street in Washington Heights to be on their guard, the NYPD admit they are concerned by the spate of attacks.

The clotheslines are being strung at neck level.

What If A Tsunami Hit California?

The Daily Mail reports on a U.S. Geological Survey report detailing the impact of a tsunami, similar to that which struck Japan in 2011, on Southern California:

At least 750,000 people would need to be immediately evacuated from coastal areas such as Newport Beach, with at least 90,000 of them being tourists or visitors, according to the USGS, causing untold amounts of economic activity to be brought to a halt. 

The posts of Los Angeles and Long Beach would be closed for at least a handful of days, leading to a loss of at least $1.2billion, if not more, according to the USGS. 

At least one-third of the boats docked in the state’s marinas could be damaged or completely sunk, with liabilities running upwards of $700million, said the agency. 

Oakland International Airport would be flooded and need to be closed until the water subsided, with any necessary rebuilding adding to the liability total.

However, much of the California coast would be protected because it is cliffs.

AIM Surplus Has 30-Round AK47/AKM Magazines...

... for $7.95 each.

National Geographic's "Close Quarter Battle" Now on HuluPlus

National Geographic's "Close Quarter Battle" program is now available (at least, the first episode) on Hulu Plus. The show is hosted by Terry Schappert, who also did the excellent "Warriors" series on historic warrior societies and their weapons.

The Ruins of Six Flags

Photos of the abandoned Six Flags amusement park outside New Orleans. I like this one--it reminds me of the movie, West World.

From the Daily Mail

The Collapse of Libya

Something to think about as we stare into the abyss of another Middle-East "military intervention":

Mutinying security men have taken over oil ports on the Mediterranean and are seeking to sell crude oil on the black market. Ali Zeidan, Libya’s Prime Minister, has threatened to “bomb from the air and the sea” any oil tanker trying to pick up the illicit oil from the oil terminal guards, who are mostly former rebels who overthrew Muammar Gaddafi and have been on strike over low pay and alleged government corruption since July. 

As world attention focused on the coup in Egypt and the poison gas attack in Syria over the past two months, Libya has plunged unnoticed into its worst political and economic crisis since the defeat of Gaddafi two years ago. Government authority is disintegrating in all parts of the country putting in doubt claims by American, British and French politicians that Nato’s military action in Libya in 2011 was an outstanding example of a successful foreign military intervention which should be repeated in Syria. 

In an escalating crisis little regarded hitherto outside the oil markets, output of Libya’s prized high-quality crude oil has plunged from 1.4 million barrels a day earlier this year to just 160,000 barrels a day now. Despite threats to use military force to retake the oil ports, the government in Tripoli has been unable to move effectively against striking guards and mutinous military units that are linked to secessionist forces in the east of the country. 

Libyans are increasingly at the mercy of militias which act outside the law. ...

 Read the whole thing.

(H/t Instapundit)

Obama Delayed Attack to Give Time to Get Russia On-Board

Israeli National News is saying that Obama delayed attacking Syria in order to give more time to get Russian support. From the story:

A report Monday said that the reason U.S. President Barack H. Obama effectively delayed the threatened American response to the recent chemical attack by Bashar al-Assad's forces was to give the diplomatic process a chance – and to bring Russia onboard with the efforts to force Assad to give up his chemical weapons.
The Kuwaiti report said that Obama was consulting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on ways to persuade Assad to step down from his position without the need to resort to force. Russia sees Syria as a patron state, and has threatened to “take action” if the U.S. or other Western powers attack Syria.

Kindle Match-Book Service

Amazon will begin offering the Kindle Match-Book service in October. Under the service, you will be able to order digital versions of books that you bought from Amazon in a physical-paper format--provided that the publisher agrees. The digital copies will be priced at $2.99 or less. Full story here.

The Scrubba Portable Washing "Machine"

It is a bag with a flexible cleaning board that allows you to clean clothes without a machine while camping, traveling, etc.

‘The Scrubba wash bag works using the same principles as the old fashion washboard, but with the advantage that you don't have to get your hands wet. 

‘As clothes are rubbed along the washboard, the bumps create friction and water movement though the clothes, which assists in dislodging oils and dirt from the clothes.
‘The Scrubba wash bag weighs only 180g and folds to pocket-size, meaning it is suitable even for the lightest traveler, and the recommended capacity is around 5L. 

‘You can easily wash up to three days of summer wear in one load such as three T-shirts, three pairs of socks and three pairs of pants in five to six minutes.’