The American Preparedness Radio Net

Hi to the APRN, listeners and readers,

We had a good net thurs night, even tho there was a lot of QRN and QRM plus some bad prop thrown in.  Thanks to everyone with the help in pre-net. 

As a bit of traffic I mentioned the leaked paper on peak oil published in the Der Spiegel magazine.  A condensed version of the translation is available on The Oil Drum under the title “German military study warns of potential energy crisis”.  The article is by Robert Rapier.

The topic of discussion was RELOCALIZATION – How we free ourselves from overdependence on the global economy.

There was wide agreement that the Big Box Stores that have chased many mom and pop stores out of business.  The Big Box Stores don’t have that personal community touch that mom and pop stores have.  Another point is the BBS take money away from community that m and p stores retain.

BBS are no longer as price competitive as they once were.  Why would they be after they’ve chased out the mom and pops?

Some communities have zoning laws to keep out the BBS and that seem to be a good idea.

There was a good deal of discussion about how the job opportunities have dried up for college grads with businesses degrees, at least for the present.

Even with the bad prop we did manage to have a good net.  Thanks to all for making it happen.

Checkins:

W4DMH Dave

KD8MFK Jim

AC0BG Dean

KD8KWD John

W3JSW Joe

KJ4PZZ Bill

N8TMF Lee

K2IPX Bill

KI4LWA Howard

NW8I Del ncs

Hi to the APRN, listeners, and readers,

Don’t forget.  APRN Thurs nite net on/or about 3.818 mhz at 0100z(9:00 pm).  Following last net’s topic of Unemployment and Underemployment lets talk about Relocalization.  I’ll try to be on freq about 8:30 pm.

RELOCALIZATION – “The process by which a region, county, city or even a neighborhood frees itself from an overdependence on the global economy and invests its own resources to produce a significant portion of the goods, services, food and energy it consumes from its local endowment of financial, natural and human capital.”

The above definition comes from The Transition Handbook by Rob Hopkins. 

73s

Del nw8i

Hi to the APRN, listeners and readers,

We had another good net Thurs night.  In the prenet discussion W4DMH Dave, made an interesting observation.  When he has discussed things like The Power Grid, Peak Oil, and other things with community leaders, and when the discussion is one on one, they will often agree that things aren’t too good, but when in an official capacity – they disavow the positions they privately hold. 

The topic of Thurs net was Salting and/or Smoking meat for preservation.  Some of us (me included) don’t know too much about how to do it.  Others tho, were pretty knowledgeable.  Generally speaking, you can smoke almost any kind of meat.  Pig, beef, turkey, fish, squirrel, deer and just about everything you can think of.  You can smoke it in an oven, outside over a fire pit with something to snuff out the flames and cover the meat over.  You can smoke it in a made to order smoke house or I suppose you could use a good thick tent. 

I’m not exactly sure about when to salt, how much to use, how many times to use it and how often to smoke it.  If someone reading this wants to jump in here and give us some more info on this smoking, salting process, please do so.

Salt Cured Meat

Smoked meat

The meat is cut into 1/4 inch strips, several inches long, and heated to about 190 to 200 degrees for 45 or 50 minutes, then turned over.  It can be flavored with black pepper, chilli pepper, brown sugar and/or many other flavorings.

Also mentioned was using a meat grinder to tenderize it before you salt and/or smoke it. 

Another good idea was to use a solar oven to dry the meat.   In the Western Countries we don’t usually think of using something like solar ovens but they are regularly used in third world countries.  Solar cookers are also used to cook meals as well. 

I had a question about fruit trees, how fast they mature and bear fruit.  Some dwarf trees can bear fruit in as little time as three years.  Wish I had planted some 15 or 20 years ago.

I didn’t do justice to this net with this brief blog.  Anyone wishing to add to this please do so.

Checkins:

W4DMH Dave

AC0BG Dean

KB4MSU Robert

N8TMF Lee

N8VFJ Ed

W3GRD Gary

KD8KWD John

NW8I Del ncs

73s

Del nw8i

Hi to the APRN, listeners and readers,

Topic for the net Thurs night will be Preserving Meat by Salting and/or Smoking.  I’ll try to be on freq at about 8:30 Eastern, on/or about 3.818 mhz.  Official net time is 0100z. 

Had a short power failure the other night.  I figured out that besides my emergency power supply, flashlights, kerosene lanterns and lamps I need to have a battery powered lamp as well to light up quickly while I bring the other stuff online.

I checked out and put in my favorites several of the websites we talked about on the Sun night net.  Johnnyseeds.com, heirloomseeds.com, rareseeds.com and heartlandamerica.com (buyouts and closeouts on many different kinds of stuff).  A couple of the seed sites have herbs as well as veggies etc.  There were other sites as well, just Google heirloom seeds.

Also, while I’m on the subject, what kind of fruit trees can you get that grow well and mature fast?  That can be an additional topic if we have time Thurs night.

73s

Del nw8i

Hi to the APRN, listeners and readers,

W4DMH, Dave has some family problems tonight so we’re winging it. 

After about 20 minutes the band improved and most of us could hear each other.  We did another open mike segment tonight and it worked ok.  We talked about heirloom seeds again.  There is general agreement that using and protecting sources of heirloom seeds is a good idea in this age of genetically modified seeds.  Also we’re concerned about bovine growth hormone being used to make milk cows produce more.  That in itself is bad enough, but how much of that stuff gets into the milk we buy and how does that affect us?

The second subject of focus was Property Security.  There were several methods suggested to help Property Security.  The use of infrared detectors and light beams was discussed.  The use of barriers such as blackberry bushes and other types of natural growth put in appropriate positions is a good idea.  Of course using our four-legged friends is good.  One thing I forgot to mention is that geese are good alarms also.  They raise the dickens if anything gets near your property! 

Many of these alarm systems can be tied into your radio and tv also, as well as loud speakers and light systems. 

One good point that came up was to try and decide what threat you’re trying to be secure from.  Is it just burglars or threats from roving gangs after a disaster?

These alarm systems can sometimes be found on sale in publications such as Heartland America catalogs or at heartlandamerica.com  .

Other good suggestions were: Don’t draw attention to yourself.  Be careful about who you let on your property and in your house.  If in the middle of a disaster blackout you’re running your generator black out your windows.  And of course we should have home defense weapons and know how to use them.

Checkins:

KD8KWD John

WA3KYS Bill

KJ4PZZ Bill 

John and the 2 Bills helped keep the freq open before the net time

KI4LWA Howard

WA1HHN Walt - Propagation in Walt’s direction was tough tonight.

AC0BG Dean Thanks for hanging in there Dean

W9RGM Ron – Ron thanks for the Heartland Catalog tip

NW8I Del NCS

Thanks to everyone who checked in and participated in the net. 

73s

Del nw8i

Hi to the APRN, listeners and readers:

Our topic for tonight was open mike.  It worked out very good and we had 3 new first time checkins. 

There was futher discussion of Heirloom seeds.  One source is to go to someone who has been farming for many years and get your seeds from him.  2 seed websites were rareseeds.com and myseeds.com – Baker Creek Seeds was another source for heirloom seeds.

We briefly discussed hand tools.  AMES tools is a good tool brand.  There were several APRNers that mentioned estate sales as being good sources for tools and other stuff.

The prices on guns and ammo have come down and now would be a good time to buy before the fall hunting season begins.

KI4LWA said that the website – buildinghomesforheros.com is doing a good j0b for helping disabled vets.  Also Gary Seneise who played Captain Dan in the movie Forest Gump is helping with this.

I relayed the info I tracked down in a Wall Street Journal  article which covered how some American roads in several states are going back to gravel because of budget limitations.  In not dire circumstances yet but bears watching.

How salt was made in various places was discussed.  At one time we had several salt processors in Ohio.  An interesting tie-in to the salt discussion was that in WVA salt brine from wells in which it is used in a flushing process is being reclaimed to be reprocessed to use on the roads in the winter.

Two topics for future nets came from our open mike session tonight.  One will be on Salt preservation techniques for saving meat and how to use a smokehouse.  The other topic was a further discussion on Property Security.  We have briefly touched on these topics in the past but will do a more in-depth discussion on future nets.

When we get a chance we’ll have N8TMF Lee talk a little more about his homebrew 160 and up antenna.

The checkins for tonight were:

KD8KWD John

KJ4PZZ Bill

KI4LWA Howard

N8TMF Lee – new checkin – Lee I’d love to see that Greenbank ant.

N8PS Phil – short time – new check in

N8NMJ Mike

KJ4EIW  Robert – new checkin

NW8I Del ncs

Thanks to all who checked in.  A big hello to the new guys.  Thanks for all your comments and suggestions.  Also, thanks to the early pre-net checkins.  It was a great net tonight and I could hear everyone for almost the whole net. 

73s

NW8I Del

Hi to the APRN, listeners and readers,

Thurs night’s net topic will be an open mike night.  If there is something you want to talk about that’s what we’ll do.  3.818 mhz +/- at 0100z ( 9 pm EST ). I’ll try to be on freq at about 8:30 pm, feel free to start the pre-net before 8:30 if you wish. 

73s

Del nw8i

Dave K7DLB – I saw a Wall Street Journal article on our deteriorating highway system.  I saw a reference to the article and hunted down the actual article to be sure it was real.  It was a WSJ article on the subject.

Keep on truckin Dave,

Del nw8i

Hi to the APRN, listeners and readers,

The topic for tonight’s net was underemployment and unemployment.

This topic produced some good input.  (As an aside, Mike, you lucky dog, you live close to all those scenic Civil War sites!)  The topic of underemployment and unemployment has been experienced by all of us or our family and friends one way or another.  There was a consensus that this is a problem over the US  in almost every area.  Dean AC0BG said that underemployment was a bigger problem in Iowa than unemployment.  But that still means less into the economy. 

Generally, I think we all agreed that the true unemployment figures are higher that the published figures because the numbers don’t include those who have quit looking for work.  If you want to see where that leads look up tent cities or car parks.

We’re probably going to need to learn new skill sets.

One area of this topic that seemed to hit a nerve with everyone was the issue of temp employment agencies who will hire people to do the same job they were doing before, but at a reduced pay rate.  That is of course with no benefits and at a 20 or 30 percent reduction in pay, the difference going to the temp agency.  Of course the temp agency is usually close to a check cashing scam establishment charging about  600 percent compounded interest and fees on a yearly basis. ( Here in Ohio we’ve had new laws in the past year to minimize the worst practices of  payday lenders.)  KJ4PZZ Bill said SS checks, disability checks etc. are areas of big business at the end of the month for these payday lenders.

AC0BG, Dean said a good place to get some info on economics is to google the words crash course.  Dean, you had a good signal tonight.  Thanks for your input and hanging in there thru the bad conditions we’ve been having.  Thanks also to WA1HHN, Walt for sticking with us as well.

Tonight I couldn’t hear very well W4SQL Landy and W4DMH, Dave.  Conditions have been rough.

KI4LWA Howard, mentioned that we could have a round of inflation coming up because the US is monetizing its debt.  Wouldn’t surprise me at all. 

Checkins tonight were:

W4DMH Dave the regular Sun night NCS, but he was having sigs problems, probably propagation.

W4SQL Landy

N8NMJ Mike – Thanks for helping with the relays Mike.  It would have been a short net without your help.

AC0BG Dean - Good to copy you well for a change.  Hope everything gets back to normal after the nasty flooding you guys had out there in Iowa.

KI4LWA Howard

WA1HHN Walt – Thanks for hanging in there.

KJ4PZZ Bill

NW8I Del – 6th man NCS tonight  That’s everyone for your input and help.

73s

Del NW8I

Oh, before I forget, K7DLB Dave, give us a post will you?  What’s happening with the roads out there?

Hi to the APRN, listeners and readers,

We had a very good net Thurs night. The topic of discussion was Gardening, specifically seeds, the kind that will reproduce for the next year. I think the word I’m looking for is open-pollinated.

First we had prenet where we discussed Peak Oil and the problems associated with it. It isn’t a pretty picture.

Heirloom seeds is one of the types that breed true, year after year. I hope I spelled this right, Rugger tomatoes are good, Red and White beans. Belgium tomatoes. Pepper plants, German tomatoes, cucumber, corn, green beans. All these crops can be grown using non-hybrid seeds, which will give you seeds for the next year.

Anyone reading the above post please contribute the brand names of the seeds for the different crops involved so we can be clear on what to use.

Using wire mesh down to a depth of about 8 to 10 inches around your garden will keep out moles. I’m trying to train my cat to be a moler but he demands a can of tuna for each mole so I might be facing diminishing returns there. HI HI.

One of the ways of preserving seeds is to lay the seeds out on a newspaper and let them dry then store them in a cool dry place till next season. I guess you would put them in a jar or ziplock bag.

One point that was made is that these seeds we are talking about can be bought at your local feed mill. That is a good point. I have 2 mills within a mile of me. I almost never go there but I’ll check this out.

Terminator seeds were mentioned. Terminators are seeds that are good one planting only. You have to get new seeds next year.

Growing herbs was part of the topic Thurs as well. Before the modern era of anti-biotics herbs such as yellow root(goldenseal), echinacea, fenugreek, thyme,garlic and others were widely used in medicine.

We had quite a few checkins Thurs night:
W4DMH Dave
KD8KWD John
KI4LWA Howard
KD8USA Ty
W1RKT Bob
WB8VOW Rusty
KJ4PZZ Bill
AC0BG Dean Thanks for hanging in there Dean
NM8D Mike
NW8I Del ncs

W9RGM Ron checked in. I know Ron from the Amateur Radio UFO Net. There was some interest shown for that net. While the subject matter is different at ARUFON we have some good discussions up there at 3.9777 mhz every Tues and Sat evening at 2400Z (8pm) We talk about UFOs, some para-normal topics and ham radio and other things as well.

Also I mentioned the movie Collapse. This movie is about Peak Oil and what happens after we hit Peak. Basically Peak Oil occurs when roughly half of the oil that is in the ground has been extracted. After that the half that is still in the ground will be harder to extract and already is, in some oil fields, of lower quality.

While there is a lot of talk on the subject, if you really study the subject you’ll find the world is about there at Peak. At the Peak, oil will no longer be something we take for granted. We already saw the prices go sky high 2 years ago and it will occur again.

It is interesting that the folks who sponsered Collapse were from the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission. Those folks try to look ahead and plan for the future, so they’re not a fly by the night organization.

The movie Collapse was based on Michael Ruppert’s book Confronting Collapse. While I just got a copy of Ruppert’s book it looks to be a good read. It explains Peak Oil much better than I can. Also Ruppert offers an Emergency 25-Point Plan for Action to help mankind to ease down from the Peak. Michael Ruppert is probably better known for writing Crossing the Rubicon: The Decline of the American Empire at the End of the Age of Oil. I know this is pretty heavy sounding stuff but it bears looking at.

Collapse is not an action movie. It isn’t entertainment as such. Its a fact based interview with Michael Ruppert about Peak Oil. Some other subjects are mentioned but in my opinion the other discussions take away from main theme.

73s

Del nw8i

Hi to the APRN,

Tried to get this up last night ( Weds ). Storm knocked me off line. The Thurs version of the APRN is tonight. 3.818 mhz +/_ a few khz. The topic will be gardens, specifically gardens grown with seeds that will produce seeds for the next year as well as food for the present year. You know, what kind of potatoes, corn, etc. Oh, and the time will be 0100z (9 pm Eastern). I’ll try to be on about 8:30 for pre-net.

Last night, I went to the movie Collapse by Michael Ruppert. It was pretty good, better than I expected in fact. It covers primarily Peak Oil with some of Mike’s conspiracy ideas thrown in. You know, there was pre-knowledge of the 9/11 attacks! Of course there wasn’t pre-knowledge of 9/11, that’s why the two airlines had stock speculation for 2 weeks before the attack. But I thought his off the peak oil subject comments distracted from Peak itself.

Just by coincidence, I received my copy of Confronting Collapse, Mike’s book from which the movie was made, this morning. It looks to be an in-depth study of the topic of the movie.

73s

Del nw8i