Extreme Supermarket Solutions

Bruce’s Poor Man Survival Bulletin
Your choice for urban survival resources!
http://www.PoorManSurvival.com


In This Issue:

1. Stretching your food budget, let me count the ways
2. Hunting & trapping-you might qualify for a free permit
3. If one Congress Critter gets his way, you may not legally own a gun
4. Property taxes reach breaking point for many
5. Purina’s 60-day farm animal challenge-coupons
6. Some extreme urban survival tips-video


"The tax that was supposed to soak the rich has instead soaked America. The beneficiary of the income tax has not been the poor, but big government. The income tax has given us a government bureaucracy that outnumbers the manufacturing work force."
-- Paul Craig Roberts



Supermarket Sticker Shock-Obama’s Solution-eat out less!

My primary purpose these days in visiting a supermarket is to pick up fresh items such as milk, fruits and vegetables. Even the Poor Man was unprepared at how much prices jumped on so many items.

My spinach doubled in price, a special condiment I enjoy went up 55 cents (and that was for the house brand), other items I got went up as well. Frankly, I don’t know how families with lots of children do it. With fewer folks getting decent raises and the lack of good jobs, it’s a tough world.

During this economic downturn, employee compensation in the United States has been the lowest that it has been relative to gross domestic product in over 50 years. That hasn’t held true for those at the top, where Wall Street bonuses this past year averaged $128,000!

Sales of private jumbo jets are so strong that Airbus and Boeing now have special sales forces devoted to potentates and the hyper-rich.

Our checkout cashier found herself apologizing for the prices! She reported a lot of folks were experiencing sticker shock and that prices were expected to rise further. The sad fact is, 47 million families are now getting food stamps in this country.

It’s no wonder then that gardening is the fastest growing hobby in America.

Check out EatWild.com and Local Harvest for food producer listings in your area. You can also get more leads through the Weston A. Price Foundation local chapter directory. Contact your local foundation chapter leader and get hooked up with natural food buying clubs and farmers close to you. Many farmers, especially Amish or small operations, don’t have websites and you might not otherwise know they’re doing business right near you.

Barack Obama and Ben Bernanke keep touting an "economic recovery", but the truth is that the only ones that seem to be benefiting from this recovery are those at the very top of the economic food chain. Beside, Obama is too busy playing golf and vacationing to worry about mainstream America. His cure for America - ‘eat out less.’


Across most of the country, now is the time to start your spring garden. A few months from now ... when food prices have skyrocketed another 20%, 30% or more ... will you be kicking yourself that you didn't get a garden in?


Marx was wrong. Give Americans a shopping cart or ‘reality TV’ and they’ll forget about liberty, equality, freedom…they’ll cease to care who governs them or how.
--The Poor Man



Stretch Your Meat Dollar
Resources to learn how to stretch your meat budget.
Stretching Your Meat Dollar offers practical tips that consumers can use to stretch their meat dollar in a time of rising food prices. The brochure features six recipes that use “value cuts” – meat cuts that offer a big protein return for the cost-free download.
http://www.meatmattersinfo.org/ht/d/sp/i/37365/pid/37365
http://www.frugalvillage.com/2009/06/17/tips-for-stretching-meat/
http://www.homeeverafter.com/how-to-stretch-ground-meat-frugal-fillers/


Planning your food budget is one of the most important things you can do to save money. With a food budget you are less likely to run out of food. Go here to find steps:
http://extension.oregonstate.edu/fcd/nutrition/ewfl/module3/budget1.html

Let Mr. Food Show you how to stretch that food budget…good videos
http://www.ktvl.com/video/?videoId=791297653001&play=now
Also, check out these food stretchers
http://www.everyday-wisdom.com/food-budget.html

The Frugal Chef shows you how to save some dough!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSMxgWPjaGo

How to Shop the dollar stores
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujNhXKvJHNA&feature=more_related



Meat Substitutes
Many families have a meatless night (or two). Here are some sites which rate meatless products, how-to, ideas, etc.
http://www.sustainlane.com/green-products/meat-substitute

http://www.suite101.com/content/how-to-choose-a-meat-substitute-for-your-recipe-a104293

http://www.organichealthyeating.com/meat-substitutes.html

Many companies provide the ability to print Grocery Coupons for their customers. With food costs increasing every day and the economy in a recession, consumers feel they need to use all available tools to reduce their food cost. We proudly recommend grocery coupon to print to save you some money.
http://www.printcouponsonline.net/index.html


Hunting, Fishing, Trapping…more ways to save
Getting wild game isn’t for everyone. Although I’m a good shot, I’ve never hunted (it’s the skinning and gutting that challenges me). At our previous farm, we had an abundance of wildlife that would visit our yard, turkey, deer, even mink and an occasional bear. We could’ve taken an easy shot from our backyard deck. Of course, that would’ve been poaching in the eyes of the government. Like the days of Robin Hood, all wild game belong to the government which heavily regulates all hunting and fishing.

Still, if the crap hit’s the fan, I wouldn’t hesitate (a 1 or 2-litre pop bottle makes for a good instant silencer).
There are tons of rules one must follow in order to legally hunt…how many, which kind, seasons, type of weapon, etc. and many of these rules will vary depending on which county you hunt or live in.
Some states do offer discounts for seniors and veterans and some states offer outright free hunting permits if you’re over a certain age.

I learned to shoot in the Boy Scouts and in the military. Among our original Poor Man group we had a husband and wife team who trained people in shooting safety and advanced shooting (under duress situations). All of us, including my teenage boys, took this class at our backyard shooting range.

Of course, you could do what a relative of mine does…grab road kill off the side of the road. Supposedly, he’s an amateur taxidermist, but I wonder. Just for fun, here’s a link a to prepare raccoon road kill. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOufQ2-GvSs

In any event, it’s a good idea to learn how to hunt and use a weapon. The NRA offers a variety of safety courses and some gun and ammo shops post fliers as to local courses. Personally, it might be a good idea to team up with an experienced hunter your first time or two out in the field. Search for instructors in your area at the NRA site:
http://nrainstructors.org/searchcourse.aspx Or…see this video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4bVfEjY1gM

Get Coupons from Purina for your livestock feed-60-day challenge
Sign up required in order to get coupons-Save $5 to $15
http://www.purinadifference.com/



The Pocket Fisherman
Last year sometime…I wrote about an interview I once did with Ron Popeil, the inventor and TV huckster. Well, his Ronco Pocket Fisherman is a product which has been around a long time and still gets excellent reviews. This handy device is portable and it works. Good to have one around, perhaps as a part of your bug-out kit.
Most listings on eBay are overpriced. Most Walgreen’s carry it for $19.95. The least expensive source for this from Walmart.com online. At only $17 it’s a bargain and there is free shipping to a Walmart location near you (or you can pay the 94 cents shipping charge to get it at home).

About Growing Healthy
Growing Healthy is the business run by Bev and Geoff Buckley. We are small-acre farmers and founders of the "Green Shed", a not-for profit community market that was set up in 2001 to give Tamborine Mountain growers a place to sell real food. We were winners of the Queensland Small Business Award for Fresh Food in 2007 and the only small-scale horticulture business to be one of four finalists in the Australian Vegetable Grower of the Year Award in 2008.
Our business is food.
We grow nutrient-rich, organic food. We sell organic food. We buy organic food and we teach others how to grow the most nutritious, chemical free food that it is possible to grow. Our goal is to help you grow real food for yourself, because we can't grow enough to meet demand.
We work with clients in four ways:
We provide on-line training programmes.
Go to: http://www.growinghealthyorganicfood.com

More goodies for the week…

Want to find out if an IRS representative has a reputation for being dishonest and abusive - or perhaps (against all odds) friendly and charitable? There's a web site for that! Point your browser to: http://www.irsdoghouse.com/

Magix FunPix Maker
Have you ever looked at edited pictures posted on the internet and wondered, "How did they do that"?, or thinking,"Hey, I want to be able to do that!" Well you could turn to a program such as Photoshop to similarly edit your own images. But you basically have to be a master (with a wheelbarrow full of money) to create some of those images. On the other hand, you could take a look into this really easy-to-use photo editing program called Magix FunPix Maker. The best part is that it is completely FREE!
http://www.magixphotowidgets.com/


Join a Free Support Group
Want to kick a habit, lose weight, get over a phobia? Find a free support group at:
www.SupportGroups.com

Buy spices in bulk at health food stores and save money-up to 85% over supermarket prices.

Super Simple File Sharing-Free
A very minimal site that offers free online file sharing.
www.Min.us

Using lithium batteries in your cameras, etc. initially cost more, but they last longer…or, opt for rechargeable batteries…that’s what we use.

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Government Ramblings

Big Brother is Reading your Emails - Whistle blower tells all…
the government is tapping your phone calls, reading your emails . the NSA copying everything on the internet - your emails, web traffic, VOIP phone calls? Yep - check out this story:
"AT&T whistleblower: I was forced to connect 'big brother machine'
"A former technician at AT&T, who alleges that the telecom forwards virtually all of its internet traffic into a "secret room" to facilitate government spying, says the whole operation reminds him of something out of Orwell's 1984.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXOAzIfeeLI&feature=player_embedded

What your identity is worth in the underground economy to thieves-$6-$80, your Facebook user ID and password=$300; credit card with personal info=$80

2011 Economic Freedom Rankings-US has fallen to 9th place. View them here:
http://www.heritage.org/index/Ranking


Left Wing Sen. Charles Schumer propose law to ban gun ownership even if you weren’t convicted of a drug crime
Get collared years ago on a bogus drug charge because the oregano in your back pocket looked like was a bag of weed? Or maybe a judge back in 2006 dropped those charges because you were able to provide proof for that Adderall prescription? Under proposed legislation, it will not matter if you were innocent all along or even proven innocent by a court of law.
Either way, you can forget about buying a gun.
The Fix Gun Checks Act of 2011 would greatly expand the definition of those legally prohibited from owning firearms to include anyone who’s ever been arrested — even if never convicted or found guilty — for drug possession within a five-year period.

Prominent housing analyst Gary Shilling is warning that U.S. housing prices are likely to drop another 20 percent.

Property Taxes Reach the Breaking Point
It really costs to own a home these days. Not only have home values fallen, leaving nearly one-quarter of residential mortgages under water, but also, local governments around the country have increased property taxes to make up for declining revenue from other sources. Some experts now say, home ownership is no longer worth it.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/bw/20110323/bs_bw/mar2011bw20110318558174;_ylt=AileIgi2LTt6bAYF_7WTQJxH2ocA;_ylu=X3oDMTM5cnA3MG1jBGFzc2V0A2J3LzIwMTEwMzIzL21hcjIwMTFidzIwMTEwMzE4NTU4MTc0BGNjb2RlA2dtcHJkbmJlBGNwb3MDMgRwb3MDMgRzZWMDeW5fdG9wX3N0b3JpZXMEc2xrA3Byb3BlcnR5dGF4ZQ--

Lower your monthly auto mileage and many insurers will lower your premium. Some insurers now offer a lower rate in exchange for putting a device on your car which measures how fast you drive, how many miles you put on, etc. Check with your carrier (if you want to).


Parting Wisdom-the folly of job training programs

Dave, a friend of ours who does odd jobs for us, including work on our cabin, recently got laid off from his factory job. Now Dave is an excellent carpenter and has good plumbing and some electrical skills.

As a part of his unemployment process, he qualified for free government job training and was enrolled in a computer programming course at a local college. While in school he can still collect his unemployment benefits, not a bad deal.

Unfortunately, by the time he graduates, those skills will most likely be outdated and corporate America is continuing to send such jobs to India. In fact, a recent report I read suggests there are 47 different job training programs offered by the government and a study by the GAO says they are mostly a waste of time and taxpayer money because few of these people ever find meaningful work as a result of the training.

Sixty-five million Americans—or one in four adults—have a criminal record. But employers—including major companies like Bank of America, Omni Hotel, and Domino's Pizza—routinely post job ads on Craigslist that explicitly exclude such applicants, according to a new report conducted by the National Employment Law Center (NELP), a labor-affiliated advocacy group.

Personally, I feel he should be given more training in either becoming a full fledged electrician or plumber. Those skills will be needed in any kind of economy and cannot be sent overseas!

On another note…Mother Nature fooled a lot of us this week with another blast of icy cold and snow, due to last another week. It knocked down 5 limbs from a tree in the yard…Ouch and darn-had hoped to begin outdoor projects this week!

REMINDER: Don’t overlook our Suggestion Box program for subscribers. We’re awarding several useful items including a 2005 Silver Bullion Eagle. To enter and view the other prizes, go to: www.PoorManSurvival.com/suggestionbox.aspx

I leave you with some extreme urban survival ‘grocery’ tips-using rat traps for…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xv3PbUSFC3c&feature=related


Check our Resources
http://www.PoorManSurvival.com

http://www.OldBookNook.com

Don't Get Caught With Your Pantry Down-New 11th Ed.
http://tinyurl.com/PMBasics

Go Green-save money!
http://www.GreenIrene.com/Poorman

Free Money assistance for women, businesses, more.
http://hop.clickbank.net/hop.cgi?poorman11/mlesko

YOUR FREE FOOD 2 GO: Site to be ready April 9th
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www.4051.freefood2go.com

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