VEGETARIAN DIET? Here are the things you should consider: Here is what it means to be a vegetarian What is the difference between a vegetarian and a vegan? By Christopher Nyerges [Nyerges is an ethnobotanist, teacher, and author. He’s written many books, which can be viewed at www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com] It is widely believed that throughout history, no societies were strictly vegetarian because all food had to be obtained very locally, and it was not possible to get “complete protein” from the local plants alone. Though historically correct, that premise is not entirely accurate.&nbs ..read more

Building Your Basic Survival Kit While it is true including ammunition and a rifle or pistol for protection in your essential survival kit is necessary, there are several other items that you’ll need to consider other than an AR15 from your favorite online gun store and plenty of ammo to go with it. Remember, whatever the emergency you find yourself in, you may need to make it on your own for several days afterward. When building a basic survival kit, enough water and food is critical, but knowing how much you’ll need of both and how you’ll transport your equipment is just as important. Here ..read more

MULTIPLE SURVIVAL USES – For DISCARDED ALUMINUM CAN  By Christopher Nyerges [Nyerges is a longtime field guide, and author of 17 books, including “How to Survive Anywhere,” “Extreme Simplicity,” “Guide to Wild Foods and Useful Plants,” and others. He can be reached at Box 41834, Eagle Rock, CA 90041, or www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com.] Did you all see the movie “The Gods Must Be Crazy”?  A bush pilot drops a soda bottle out of the plane and falls into the midst of some aboriginal people. They have never seen such a device before and they all use it for a dozen or so practical uses.&nb ..read more

By Allan Smith So one of our readers reached out to us and asked if we had any knowledge about a survival radio that reaches coast to coast with no monthly fees called a “Rapid Radio”.  Frankly we had never heard of them and so wanting to bring you the latest and greatest reviews, we reached out to the company known as “My Emergency Radio”. They were kind enough to send us two radios to test and evaluate. We were not paid for this review! So to get started, this company is based in Michigan and states they are made in the good old USA, but the parts however are shipped from Asia.  Th ..read more

By Christopher Nyerges [www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com] The world is full of dangers and threats to our existence, both real and imagined. How we respond to “fear’ is everything.   One option is to ignore it, to pretend that it won’t happen to me, and go on with your blissful life.  Another option is to act on those fears – to take some sort of action to counteract the rising tide of adrenalin that shouts “the end is near.” I was bigger than most of my school mates, and so for that reason alone, they thought I was either a good fighter or that I wanted to fight.  (Neither w ..read more

79 years ago, the first waves of Marines landed on the shores of Iwo Jima. Those Marines, whose ranks quickly grew to over 80,000 Marines and Navy Corpsmen, faced a relentless 36-day battle. 26,000 were wounded and 6,800 made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our Nation. As the anniversary of the Battle of Iwo Jima — the battle that has come to symbolize the uncommon valor of United States Marines. Their heroism and legacy will never be forgotten ..read more

By Allan Smith GROOVE LIFE BELT So attending the 2024 Shot Show, once again it lived up to its hype. This being our 8th year to attend, we love seeing the new products that are hitting the market and interacting with the industry. Cruising down the isles of product we came across GrooveLife’s Groove Belt. Having done a previous review on a different belt that didn’t fair so well, we were curious how this one was different. They were kind enough to offer us a sample belt for review, so we thought why not! I’m not a fan of the ratchet belt system and one thing is for sure, if your a conceal car ..read more

By Allan Smith When you live off-grid as we do, the ability to get a fire started for cooking or heating is vitally important. When we were introduced to the SOL “Explore” Plasma Dual-Arc Lighter we had to dive in and learn more. In full disclosure, this product was not sent from the manufacturer, but purchased by us here at ETS. Upon opening the packaging it is well made and feels very durable. Length runs just shy of three inches and has almost no weight to it.    The Dual Arc Plasma Lighter lets you start fires with the touch of a button. Windproof and waterproof and is a USB-rec ..read more

By Christopher Nyerges [Nyerges is the author of “Guide to Wild Foods,” “Foraging California,” “How to Survive Anywhere,” “Self-Sufficient Home,” and other books. He leads regular survival and wild food walks. He can be reached at www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com, or Box 41834, Eagle Rock, CA 90041.] For the most part, I am not a smoker.  Clearly, smoking tobacco isn’t good for you! The real culprit in commercial cigarettes are the chemicals added to the tobacco and paper, things such as moisturizers, flavors, things to keep the cigarette burning, etc. etc.  There are anywhere from 70 t ..read more

By Allan R. Smith Living on a homestead with a long driveway in the woods, we were looking for a good off grid long range wireless sensor for added security. The one thing we quickly found out is that is not east as we thought it would be. We found the “Guardline Wireless Driveway Alarm” and thought we would test it out. To be clear, we purchased this product and Guardline did not send this to us for review. When we received the box, It consists of two sensor units and a receiver unit with built-in speakers, along with some mounting gear. The sensor units can be mounted at the edge of a drive ..read more