Texas – Page 4 – The Burning Platform

IS IT SAFE?

Is your gold safe in the Federal Reserve vaults beneath Wall Street?

Of course not.

The number of paper claims against the actual physical gold in the world are vastly greater than the actual amount of physical gold. Germany and Austria know this. That is why they keep repatriating thier actual physical gold from NYC and London. Now Texas is coming to its senses.

Unless you have physical possession of your gold, you will feel like Dustin Hoffman getting a dental checkup with Szell when the shit hits the fan.

By Anna M. Tinsley

[email protected]

AUSTIN

Texas — long known for cattle, cowboys and oil — could soon be on the map for something much different.

Gold.

State Rep. Giovanni Capriglione asked the Legislature to create a Texas Bullion Depository, where Texas could store its gold, which is now in New York, and where others could keep their precious metals.

The Southlake Republican must have the golden touch, because the House and the Senate have signed off on his plan and his bill appears headed to Gov. Greg Abbott for consideration.

“We are not talking Fort Knox,” Capriglione said. “But when I first announced this, I got so many emails and phone calls from people literally all over the world who said they want to store their gold … in a Texas depository.

“People have this image of Texas as big and powerful … so for a lot of people, this is exactly where they would want to go with their gold.”

And other precious metals.

House Bill 483 would let the Texas comptroller’s office establish the state’s first bullion depository at a location yet to be determined.

Capriglione’s changes to the bill must be approved by Monday, the last day of the 84th legislative session.

Continue reading “IS IT SAFE?”

9 Killed, 18 Injured, 192 Arrested After “True Biker Shootout” At Texas “Breastaurant”

This is probably how a TBP get together would end.

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 05/18/2015 13:14 -0400

It’s not everyday that a “true biker shootout” happens, but according to police and eyewitness accounts, a “simmering feud” between rival biker gangs reached the boiling point at Twin Peaks Sports Bar and Grill in Waco Texas on Sunday afternoon.

Twin Peaks — a so-called “breastaraunt” where “eats and drinks” are all “served by friendly and attentive Twin Peaks Girls, offering their signature ‘Girl Next Door’ charisma and playful personalities to ensure that your adventure happens at the Peaks” — erupted into chaos after a dispute which Reuters reports “may have been over a parking lot” spilled from a bathroom, to the restaraunt, and then into the parking lot, where five rival biker gangs “attacked each other with guns, knives, brass knuckles, clubs and motorcycle chains.”

Police soon joined the shootout and when all was said and done, 9 people were dead and 18 were hospitalized (presumably all bikers) while 192 were arrested. Authorities say they adopted the standard ‘deadly biker shootout rules of engagement’ by only firing once fired upon:

“Yesterday’s events was bad guys on bad guys. When our officers arrived, those bad guys turned their guns on our officers.” Waco Police Sergeant Patrick Swanton said.

Unfortunately for local patrons who enjoy having their “eats” and “drinks” served by “playful girls next door,” the Waco Twin Peaks location was shut down by the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission due to … well, due to the threat that high noon biker shootouts pose to the public.

Continue reading “9 Killed, 18 Injured, 192 Arrested After “True Biker Shootout” At Texas “Breastaurant””

PIN MEET HOUSING BUBBLE 2.0

Housing bubble 2.0 just met Pin 2.0

The 30 Year U.S. Treasury bond yield hit 2.35% yesterday. That is the lowest rate in U.S. history for the 30 Year Treasury. During the deepest darkest depths of the recession in March 2009, after the stock market had fallen over 50%, the yield was 3.5%. One year ago it was yielding 4.0%. Long term interest rates are not controlled by Yellen. They reflect the economic prospects of the country. When they are rising it means the economy is doing well. When they are plummeting to all time lows, the economy is either in recession or headed into recession. Take your pick. No amount of government data manipulation, feel good propaganda spewed by the captured mainstream media, or Ivy League educated Wall Street economist doublespeak, can change the fact this economy is in the dumper and headed much lower. The Greater Depression is resuming its downward march toward inevitable war.

KBH SEES 1Q BOTTOM LINE ABOUT BREAK-EVEN (against expectations of a 17c rise!)
KB HOME CFO SAYS FIRST-QUARTER MARGINS EXPECTED TO BE DOWN
KB HOME PULLED OUT OF `COUPLE’ HOUSTON LAND DEALS, CEO SAYS

LENNAR CFO SAYS MARGINS ARE POISED TO NARROW ON LESS PRICING POWER
LENNAR GROSS MARGIN DECLINED & SALES INCENTIVES GREW
LENNAR CEO SAYS “ACROSS THE BOARD, WE’RE SEEING INTENSIFIED COMPETITION AS BUILDERS GO OUT AND CHASE VOLUME”

KB Home had revenues of $2.4 billion in 2014. They are one of the largest home builders in the country. It’s stock has dropped 30% in the last few days. It’s down 40% from its February 2014 high. It’s down 85% from its 2005 high. It had $9 billion of revenues and delivered 60,000 homes in 2005. Then Pin 1.0 popped the first bubble. Revenues collapsed to $1.3 billion and they lost hundreds of millions from 2007 through 2012.

Lennar had revenues of $7.0 billion in 2014. They are the largest home builder in the country. It’s stock has dropped 9% this week. It had been trading at a seven year high, but is still trading 33% below its 2005 bubble high. It had $14 billion of revenues and delivered 42,000 homes in 2005. Then Pin 1.0 popped their bubble. Revenues imploded to $3 billion and they also lost hundreds of millions from 2007 through 2012.

Their admissions earlier this week are proof Bubble 2.0 has met Pin 2.0. KB Home’s 85% increase in revenue and Lennar’s 130% increase in revenue since 2011 have been nothing but a Federal Reserve/Wall Street/U.S. Treasury engineered scheme to repair the balance sheets of the insolvent Too Big To Trust Wall Street banks. The financial industry oligarchs and their servile lackey puppet politicians decided an easy money, Wall Street created scheme to boost home prices would benefit the .1% and restore some of their fraudulently acquired wealth. It isn’t a coincidence home prices rose in parallel with the Fed’s QE programs. And it isn’t a coincidence the bubble is rapidly deflating now that QE3 is over.

The fraudulent nature of the supposed housing recovery can be deciphered by analyzing a few pertinent data points. 30 year mortgage rates were in the 5% to 6% range during the first bubble. Mortgage rates have been consistently below 4% for the last three years. In a healthy market driven economy, these low rates should have brought in first time home buyers and led to a sustainable long-term recovery.

Instead, the number of homes bought by first time buyers has languished at record low levels. The majority of homes sold in 2011 and 2012 were distressed foreclosures and short sales, and the vast majority of sales in the last two years have been to Federal Reserve financed Wall Street investors, Chinese billionaires and fast buck flippers. New home sales of just above 400,000 five years into an economic recovery are at previous recession lows, despite record low mortgage rates. They languish 65% below 2005 levels, when KB Home and Lennar were minting money. Existing home sales of 5 million are back at 1999 levels and 30% below the 2005 highs. This pitiful result is after $3.5 trillion of QE, extremely low mortgage rates, and tremendous hype from the NAR and the corporate MSM (It’s always the best time to buy).

The falsity of the housing recovery storyline can be seen in the fact that mortgage applications linger at 1995 levels, even though mortgage rates are 400 basis points lower than they were in 1995. A critical thinking individual might ask how home prices could rise by 20% since 2012 even though mortgage purchase applications are 20% lower than they were in 2012 and 65% below 2005 levels. The answer is they couldn’t have risen by 20% without massive monetary manipulation and insider deals between Wall Street banks, Wall Street hedge funds, FNMA, Freddie Mac, The Fed, and the U.S. Treasury.

You see, average Americans buy houses not as an investment, but as a place to live. They save enough for a down payment by spending less than they earn, and then make monthly payments for 30 years from their rising household income. Of course, that was the old days. Real median household income is exactly where it was in 1995. It is currently below the level of 1989. Average Americans have made no headway in 20 years. The median price of a home in 1995, according to the Census Bureau, was $128,000. The median price of a home today is $281,000. When prices go up 120% and your real income remains stagnant, even record low mortgage rates is just pushing on a string. With real wages continuing to fall, young people saddled with a trillion dollars of student loan debt, the full impact of the Obamacare neutron bomb (kills small business, doctors and jobs, but not insurance conglomerates or government bureaucracy) just detonating, and an economy clearly going into the tank, there is absolutely no possibility of a real housing recovery in the foreseeable future.

The Too Big To Trust banks have consistently accounted for 35% to 55% of all mortgage originations in the U.S. over the last four years. Wells Fargo is the undisputed leader. All of these banks have reported dreadful financial results this week, with plunging revenues and profits, even with accounting shenanigans like relieving loan loss reserves and marking their balance sheets to fantasy rather than true market values. In the midst of a supposed housing recovery, with mortgage rates at historic lows, the largest mortgage originator in the world, saw their mortgage originations FALL by 12% over last year. They are down 65% from two years ago. JP Morgan and Citigroup also saw their mortgage businesses contracting. These banks have been firing thousands of people in their mortgage divisions. This is surely a sign of a healthy growing housing market. Right?

Essentially, the entire housing recovery storyline has revolved around the Federal Reserve providing free money to Wall Street banks, who then withheld foreclosures from the market, sold them in bulk at inflated prices to Wall Street hedge funds like Blackstone, who then created a nationwide rental business, driving prices higher. FNMA and Freddie Mac did their part by selling their bulk foreclosures to the same connected hedge funds. The average person had no opportunity to bid on foreclosed homes and reap the benefits of lower prices. Blackstone has since created a new derivative, by packaging their rental income streams into an “investment” to sell to muppets. Their rental properties are concentrated in the previous bubble markets of Arizona, California, Florida, and Nevada. What a beautiful business concept. Free money from their Federal Reserve sugar daddy, kicking people out of their homes and then renting their houses back to them, driving prices higher by restricting supply and stopping new household formations, double dipping by creating a new exotic subprime investment opportunity, and then exiting stage left before it all blows sky high again.

Continue reading “PIN MEET HOUSING BUBBLE 2.0”

SHOW ME YOUR PAPERS!!!!

The noose tightens. Know your real enemy.

Via Police State USA

Truck drivers jailed for 19 days after exercising rights at federal checkpoint

“I could never imagine challenging government’s actions, talking about your rights could get you arrested.”

LAREDO, TX — A long-haul truck driver was arrested and detained for 19 days after invoking his rights at an internal federal checkpoint on a highway in Texas.

The incident occurred at approximately midnight on September 26th, 2014. According to Reason TV, a semi-truck hauling Xerox copier machines was stopped at the Laredo North Border Patrol Station, which is miles away from the border on I-35 North inside Texas.

The driver and his passenger were questioned by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents while stopped at the checkpoint. The men — fed up with the routine harassment from federal agents while crisscrossing the United States — were exercising their rights to not answer questions.

Greg Rosenberg, the passenger, is a naturalized U.S. citizen who grew up in Soviet-ruled Armenia. He speaks with an accent and is passionate about keeping this country free. He recalled his version of events in an interview with Reason TV.

Border Patrol became increasingly hostile as the driver politely refused to participate in the roadside interrogation. Mr. Rosenberg sat in the passenger seat recording the incident.

“You have a legal right to ask me a question. I have a legal right not to answer your question,” the driver said in a cell-phone recording.

The CBP officer requested that the truck move to the “secondary checkpoint area” for further questioning. The request was refused, Rosenberg said, because there was “no probable cause to do so.”

Shortly thereafter, the two men were yanked from the truck and put into handcuffs. Only the final 2 minutes of the video were salvaged because CBP officers later confiscated Mr. Rosenberg’s cell and tried to delete the evidence.

Despite verifying his American citizenship, Mr. Rosenberg was detained and interrogated. He said that agents laughed at him as he talked about the constitution and took joy in the situation.

Both the driver and passenger were booked for “impeding border patrol duties,” Reason reported, which is a felony. The men were locked in a South Texas jail without access to legal counsel.

“I saw my lawyer after two weeks,” Rosenberg recalled. It wasn’t until October 10th, 2014 — nineteen days after the incident — that he was released. The government ultimately dropped the charges, avoiding the tenuous legal questions about the legality of the arrest.

“I didn’t get it, because I could never imagine [that] challenging government’s actions, talking about your rights, could get you arrested,” Rosenberg told Reason TV. See the interview below:

There are approximately 170 permanent federal checkpoints erected on highways inside the United States, legally supported by the U.S. Supreme Court in United States v. Martinez-Fuerte. Mr. Rosenberg says that internal checkpoints do not make sense and are reminiscent of the behavior of the former Soviet Union.

“I see a lot of similarities [to] the stories my parents were telling me about the past. If you complained about the government, back then [in Soviet-controlled Armenia], they took you to Siberia,” said Rosenberg. “You don’t have a right to legally challenge the government.”

“It completely doesn’t make any sense to have these interior checkpoints,” he said. “If they are saying they want to protect the border, they should be on the border — not inside America, violating our rights; freedom of movement.”

Attorney Prerna Lal is representing Rosenberg. She intents to file federal lawsuit against the agency alleging false imprisonment and violation of her client’s rights.

{ SUPPORT POLICE STATE USA }

Watch What Happens When a 76-Year-Old Man Is Confronted By Police for Not Displaying a Vehicle Inspection Sticker

Via The Blaze

Police in Victoria, Texas, placed an officer on administrative duty pending an investigation after an altercation with a 76-year-old man who didn’t have an inspection sticker on his car.

Victoria resident Pete Vasquez pulled over at the Adams Auto Mart, where he helps with mechanical work, when the officer, 23-year-old Nathanial Robinson, got out of his patrol car and confronted him. The 76-year-old is seen on dashcam video pointing to the dealer license plate on the back of the car.

The Victoria Advocate newspaper reported that Vasquez told Robinson the vehicle was exempt from requiring an inspection sticker because it still had dealer tags. Police chief Jeffrey Craig later confirmed to the paper that the vehicle was, in fact, exempt.

Robinson appears to have tried to take something out of Vasquez’s hand but failed to do so. That’s when Robinson twists Vasquez’s arm behind his back, eventually landing the man on the ground out of view of the dashcam. Moments later, Robinson is seen standing in front of the patrol car holding a stun gun, which he used on Vasquez at least twice, police told the Victoria Advocate.

“He just acted like a pit bull, and that was it. For a while, I thought he was going to pull his gun and shoot me,” Vasquez said, according to the Advocate.

Another man, sales manager Larry Urich, emerged from the auto mart, appearing to shout at the officer, “What in the hell are you doing? This gentleman is 76 years old.”

Urich told the Advocate, “The cop told me to stand back, but I didn’t shut up. I told him he was a godd**m Nazi Stormtrooper.”

“Public trust is extremely important to us,” Craig said, according to the Advocate. “Sometimes that means you have to take a real hard look at some of the actions that occur within the department.”

Craig later apologized to Vasquez, the Huffington Post reported. Additional officers later arrived on the scene and asked Vasquez for his side of the story and whether he was hurt in the scuffle.

“Are you hurting anywhere?” one of the officers asked Vasquez.

“Not yet,” he said. “Probably later on. I’m 76 years old.”

Vasquez was taken to the hospital, but was not cited by police.

District Attorney Stephen Tyler said he has not been contacted by police. However, Tyler told the Advocate that if authorities determine Robinson committed criminal wrongdoing, moral wrongdoing or violated department policy, he could face a variety of charges including official oppression, injury to elderly, aggravated assault or assault.

The Associated Press was not able to reach Robinson for comment, Huffington Post reported Monday.

(H/T: Huffington Post)

That’s it, I’m done with Walmart

Guest Post by the Lonely Libertarian

Seriously, I’m done.

I went to pick up a few toiletries at lunch and came up against a lesson in immigration and entitlement. I was in the vitamins aisle, listening to several foreign women chattering away loudly in the next aisle over. Irritating? Oh yeah, but what are you going to do? They are entitled to speak whatever language they want while out shopping. They may be new and working on their English skills, and their native language is more comfortable for them. Whatever the reason, it’s none of my business.

So rounding the corner to head down the lotions aisle, I see them standing right in front of what I need. Three Somali women, dressed head to toe in native garb, laughing and talking in Somali and blocking the whole aisle. I saw two shoppers head down the aisle, see them and back out; I’m not that timid. I walk up to them, politely ask to get what I need, and start to reach for my body lotion. That’s when they turn, proudly displaying their Walmart employee badges, and shift to block my access. One of them tells me, “No English, no English.” WTF?! Seriously?!

So I pantomime that I need to get past them and get my lotion, they giggle, chatter and turn their backs to me, not ceding an inch. Don’t mess with a redheaded Texan, bitches; I gently pressed past them and grabbed my lotion. I decided I’d shopped enough and headed straight to Customer Service where I waited for 25 minutes while the service rep tried to explain to the non-English speaking Hispanic woman why she couldn’t return used panties. When I finally got up there, my blood pressure was pounding behind my eyes and I had a massive migraine starting, but I used my polite reasonable words. I explained that I had been treated rudely and dismissively by three employees who were taking a break in the lotions aisle. I explained they pretended to not speak or understand English, and refused to allow me access to the products they were blocking. Since I couldn’t pronounce or even spell the names on their tags (not a single one of them was Beth or Peggy), I described them as closely as possible considering I could only see fabric, the tips of their shoes and their faces. And that’s when I was told that they were NOT required to speak English, that they were hired to interact with Amarillo’s Somali community, and not English speaking customers. Furthermore, I was being unreasonable to expect them to act a certain way. I was basically treated as a redneck bigot and told if I didn’t like interacting with other cultures, I shouldn’t shop there. Absolutely fine with me.

No surprise here, this is the same suburban Walmart that was featured in my back to school entitlement post. This is the store the farthest from the Somali community (there are two others within a couple of miles of their neighborhoods), it is in the upscale Southwest area where homes range from $250K to $750K, and one million-plus dollar gated community. Not a lot of Somali refugees. So one wonders, just how much work do they do? How often are they called upon to translate or interact? Are these some of those jobs we’re told Americans won’t do? How many qualified American applicants were turned down so these women could have these jobs?

So yeah, I’m done with Walmart; and I left the lotion on the Customer Service desk, not another penny.

Strategic Relocation Briefing: “A Huge Area Where One Can Find Mild Weather, Good Water, Rural Farmland And Down To Earth People”

Via Mac Slavo’s SHTF Plan

This week’s strategic relocation briefing from Joel Skousen takes us to the Lone Star State. Well known for its Second Amendment freedoms, expansive landscape, good hearted people and die-hard liberty lovers, those looking to relocate may find Texas to be an optimum final destination for a home or retreat. The business climate in the state has always been welcoming and advantageous, as has the cost of living, which is far lower than states like California or New York. But, like any retreat area in the country, it is not without its drawbacks.

Whether you are looking at Texas as a possibility or not, the following analysis from Joel Skousen guides you through the pros and cons of finding that perfect homestead and highlights key considerations such as metro areas and their suburban extensions, water availability and future trends as they relate to population growth. All of these points are essential to making the right decision.

If you have any questions about Texas or another retreat locale you can always contact the good folks at Survival Retreat Consulting (SRC) to help provide some guidance. When you’re ready to start searching for a home or retreat take a look at the Strategic Relocation For Sale By Owner web site – you’ll find nationwide listings, prepper-minded search tools and property survival ratings.

For insights on other areas of the country (and world) we recommend reading previous Strategic Relocation Briefings from Mr. Skousen. They are chalk full of incredible information that you’ll most certainly find helpful.

(Pictured: A Longhorn enjoys the expansive landscape in Texas Hill Country.)

Strategic Relocation Briefing: Eastern Texas
By Joel Skousen
Author, Strategic Relocation and The Secure Home

Texas is a very large state with more than one climate and geography—very dry in the West and humid in the eastern part from Tyler down to Houston. This week, I’ll cover east Texas as a Strategic Relocation destination. But first we’ll cover some of the pros and cons of living in Texas as a state.

Climate: Texas has a wide range of climate because of its size. Since it is located in the south central part of the continent, it experiences the effects of two dangerous air masses, Canadian cold air and the Gulf of Mexico’s warm, moist air, which often collide over Texas causing huge thunderstorms and tornados. Eastern Texas has a Gulf Coastal climate with more rain than west Texas, lending to its pine forests, deep soil, and good growing conditions. Texas gets a lot of sun so solar potential is good in the East and excellent in the drier West.

Population density is well below average in rural Texas (about 35 ppl/sq. mile), and above average within 50 miles of all the major cities. Overall, the cost of living in Texas is the 6^th lowest in nation, partly owing to its lack of an income tax.

Only 2% of Texas is government owned (State and federal), however, building permits are required state wide. Water Quality is good, except in urban areas (where 66% of Texas’ water supplies are fluoridated). Stay some distance from large commercial farms where extensive fertilization of crops and spraying of chemicals takes place. Air pollution is not a big problem in Texas except in the major cities. Traffic is only a big problem in Houston and Dallas/Ft, and to a lesser extent in Austin and San Antonio.

Texas is a conservative state although the large cities always tend to favor more liberal policies and the social welfare state—owing mostly to the liberal mainstream media, which dominates all large metro areas. Corruption in Texas government and police is very high, including the metro level. The “good ol’ boys” network is a source of pride among all levels of power in Texas.

Gun liberty is pretty good in Texas. State law does not require a permit to purchase firearms, but is required to carry concealed (a “shall issue” if you meet the requirements.). Open carry of a handgun is not permitted except on your own property, but long guns are allowed in open carry in rural areas. Alternative Medicine is allowed with the full range of natural health practices. Home Schooling is nearly unfettered with the state which requires no notification, nor test scores.

Overall, I rate Texas pretty high except around the major cities. But in the long-term my assessment of Texas will always be diminishing due to the flood of illegal immigration, accompanied by crime, welfare dependency and socialist political trends—all of this encouraged or tacitly encouraged by the globalist multicultural conflict agenda guiding the current administration. Sadly, conservative Texans are easily fooled by politicians who talk and walk like traditional Texans and who say what conservatives want to hear, but are in league with powerful and corrupt national forces which intend to subvert traditional values in this once great state.

In general, because of the sheer size of this state, you can find medium-term safety in most rural areas away from the Mexican border and enjoy a fairly low cost lifestyle—at least for the present. But, keep in mind that many areas of Texas, especially in the humid Gulf Coast, cities like Houston have only grown large due to air conditioning. Without it life is pretty miserable during the summers.

All of the major metros in Texas are too big to survive social unrest in a major crisis, so you should plan on a rural retreat—and those should not be toward the south where the influx of immigrants are already becoming the majority. If you must live near one of the large metro areas, you should locate in the suburban towns on the outer ring of any metro area. And within those suburban towns, you should also be located near the least populated segments leading away from cities. For, example, if you’re in the middle of suburban Plano or Garland, you will have a hard time escaping the traffic generated locally, not to mention what is being generated deeper inside the Dallas metro area. Remember, if you can’t get out quickly, you might as well stay put—don’t get stranded on the freeways or roads.

In the Dallas area/Fort Worth area, your best retreat sites are further East into the pine forest country of East Texas and northwest (toward the small towns near Witchita Falls)—but in this case, you can’t get West without first going north. In the Houston area, you want to locate on the periphery in a northerly arc, centered around Spring Texas. You best retreat sites are NW into the pine country of East Texas.

East Texas: This is the beautiful pine country near the Louisiana border and the Gulf Coast. It is generally defined by the east side of I-45 going north to an imaginary line going further north from Fairfield to Greenville on I-30 and then East to the border. This area encompasses the outer ring of suburban cities around Houston, along the Gulf Coast to Port Arthur and includes all the small towns going north to Tyler Texas. There are lots of good rural sites around the towns of Athens and Palestine, but most any rural area in the pine country will do.

Naturally, the Gulf Coast portion of this area within 25 miles of the water is not recommended due to the threat of Hurricanes. This is a huge area where one can find mild weather, good water, rural farmland clearings and down to earth people. However, keep in mind that the towns closest to Dallas and Houston will eventually receive a lot of refugees; so keeping to the central zone around the Angelina National Forest will give you the most buffering distance.

One of the big advantages of East Texas over West Texas is better soil depth and the ability to build basements without dealing with the notorious Caliche hardpan out West. Wherever you decide to relocate to, be sure and check the listings at www.strategicrelocation.com. Todd Savage, who runs the website has a great deal of expertise in preparedness property.

Survival Retreat Consulting, Todd Savage, on Bugging Out to your Retreat: There are some emergencies that call for drastic measures. We could go through a whole list of emergencies, but you’ll know when the crap really hits the fan and when to employ certain measures. In Texas, as well as other metro areas with outlying suburban townships, getting out via vehicle can be a major issue. The following technique could be the best bet to get out successfully if you’re caught off guard by a major event in and around major congested cities, especially when your timing and bug out route are compromised for whatever reason.

Emergency Bug Out Driving: Most volunteer Firefighter/EMT’s or even reserve LEO’s, probably have emergency warning lights installed in their vehicles. These come in handy when happening upon accident scene, et cetera, however they can be a Preppers best friend with the right type of vehicle, for that last ditch bug out.

Discreetly storing several Red or Blue (depending upon your jurisdiction) inside mounted LED light bars, the ones with window suction cups (about 10-12 inches in length each, for easy storage) can be used to move through traffic, possibly, if the conditions are right.

Will this work with your swagger wagon (Mini-van?), I highly doubt it, but those with Suburban’s and other SUV’s may look into this as a viable option, especially white, black and red colors. Could you go all out and install a siren and make magnet signs for a Fire Department or whatever, even going so far as making a uniform? Sure, but remember this is only to be used in that major TEOTWAWKI event, as there is certainly jail time awaiting you for actually impersonating an emergency worker.

Would any of this matter if you used this technique during a nuclear, biological or EMP lights out event? I doubt it. These items can be purchased easily online and stored for that rainy day. Most likely these are items that you may have never thought about needing to put in your bug-out bag, but they could be that thin margin between life and death.

Texas is spectacular for Solar alternative energy systems. The number one upgrade that almost all of our clients complete within the first year of making their Strategic Relocation is upgrading their retreat home with alternative energy. Besides abundant Water, energy creation is next in line.

I spoke with Brandon and Maggie, our friends over at Iron Edison Solar this morning. They have announced the new 300Ah USA made Series battery. This battery is rated for 30 years or 11,000 full discharge cycles! SRC highly recommends the Iron Edison battery to all of our consulting clients.Mention this article or SRC to get 10% off your order!

Strategic Relocation Realty from the American Redoubt, is looking for several Prepper Realtors in the Texas area to bring aboard as referral brokers. If you know of anyone that would qualify to represent your fellow Prepper in a real estate transaction (Discrete, Knowledgeable, Honest and a Prepper, of course), please email us his or her information. Thank you, Todd Savage

This article has been generously contributed by the Strategic Relocation web site. Contact Survival Retreat Consulting for any questions you may have about Texas or other retreat locations in the United States or around the world.

BACK TO SCHOOL THE TEXAS WAY

Back in January, the district voted in favor of school marshals. Some Argyle teachers will act as the long arm of the law under the state’s Protection of Texas Children Act.

Gun-toting teachers must have and maintain a handgun license; pass a psychological evaluation; and undergo firearms and emergency response training.

Some parents say the district is right on target.

“I think if a tragedy does occur, lives can be saved by guns being in the right hands, and I think the teachers here might be able to stop something like that and life can be saved,” parent Lacey Fenoglio said.

Argyle ISD Superintendent, Dr. Telena Wright tells NewsFix continuous training is required, and some training even took place over summer break. However, the names and number of pistol-packing teachers will not be released for safety reasons.

Seven states – Texas, South Dakota, Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, Tennessee and Alabama – have passed legislation to make it legal for teachers to carry a gun following the Dec. 2012 Sandy Hook shooting.

Greg Coker, creator of the Shield 91 program that helps schools effectively arm teachers, talked to Brian Kilmeade this morning, explaining the process by which armed teachers are chosen.

Coker, a Special Ops veteran, says he is on a “crusade” to prevent another attack like Sandy Hook, which took the lives of 20 children and six adults.

He said the program is worth it if it can save even one life. Coker noted that most school shootings are carried out in about five minutes, but it usually takes police about 10 minutes to respond.

Coker said a properly trained individual can draw and fire in two seconds, adding that the goal is to delay the shooter’s actions until law enforcement arrives.