Dollarweed

A trip to the LDS cannery.

2012-01-22T17:30:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I was fortunate enough to be able to revisit the LDS cannery with a few of my coworkers where we spent a few hours canning several dozen cases of food. Since the Oath Keepers retracted the article they released in December I told my friends to bring cash for the food they were going to buy so as not to leave an electronic paper trail just in case all of the canneries were being "watched". The canneries keep records of who visits, but the feds would have to show up and request that information in order to keep track of who was buying what. IMHO, there is no need to make it easy on them. I know you are thinking that I am paranoid, but with Obama signing the NDAA I think should all be cautious of big brother.

Another example of an over reaching federal government

2011-12-11T13:26:00.000-05:00

This article really pisses me off. Talk about an over reaching federal government...

December 9th, 2011

Oath Keepers Alert: Federal Agents Demand Customer Lists From Mormon Food Storage Facility

Oath Keepers has learned that federal agents recently visited a Latter Day Saints (Mormon) Church food storage cannery in Tennessee, demanding customer lists, wanting to know the identity of Americans who are purchasing food storage from the Mormons.
This incident was confirmed, in person, by Oath Keepers Tennessee Chapter President, Rand Cardwell. Here is Rand’s report:

“A fellow veteran contacted me concerning a new and disturbing development. He had been utilizing a Mormon cannery near his home to purchase bulk food supplies. The man that manages the facility relayed to him that federal agents had visited the facility and demanded a list of individuals that had been purchasing bulk food. The manager informed the agents that the facility kept no such records and that all transactions were conducted on a cash-and-carry basis. The agents pressed for any record of personal checks, credit card transactions, etc., but the manager could provide no such record. The agents appeared to become very agitated and after several minutes of questioning finally left with no information. I contacted the manager and personally confirmed this information.
This event points to a new level of federal government encroachment on the basic freedoms of the American people. Likewise, it points to a confused policy within federal agencies. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in their “Are You Ready?” guide to “In Depth Citizen Preparedness” recommends that citizens store emergency supplies, including bulk food, in the event of a natural disaster or man-made event (the new politically correct term applied to a terrorist attack). The FEMA guidance is spot-on as it allows individuals and families to be self-sufficient during an emergency situation.
And here in Tennessee, we just learned that Nashville Metro Public Health and the Tennessee Department of Health are conducting “door-to-door assessment of disaster preparedness … using a tool designed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to go door to door and check to see how disaster ready you are. .. in 30 neighborhoods in Davidson County [TN] that have been randomly selected to be the target of a door to door assessment.” I have confirmed that that is a state run effort.
So on the one hand, government agencies both state and federal are urging you to be prepared and even checking up on you to see how prepared you are, and on the other hand, we now have federal agencies that are attempting to gather information on individuals that are following FEMA suggestions. What is the reasoning behind gathering this information? Are American citizens now being “listed” by DHS if they are simply following FEMA guidance and purchasing bulk food and emergency supplies for their families? It appears as so.
This should be a red flag to all Americans. Not unlike the “trip wires” identified in the Oath Keepers list of orders that will not be obeyed, this incident should be considered as further evidence that our federal government is out of control. What business is it of the government if any of us purchase and store bulk food? Answer: It is none of their damn business! Maybe during the next Katrina-type event federal agents will storm your home to take your food stores along with your firearms. We can only theorize as to the motives of the government for this type of “list” being developed, but it goes against the very fabric of what a free people should allow by our government.” – Rand Cardwell.

Additional comments by Stewart Rhodes, Founder of Oath Keepers:

As Rand noted, it was fortunate that this particular cannery does not keep records of its customers. And Rand is correct that this is a very serious red flag. There’s a very good reason why one of the top ten orders that active duty Oath Keepers will refuse to obey is “We will NOT obey any orders to confiscate the property of the American people, including food and other essential supplies.” As our Declaration of Orders We Will Not Obey goes on to state:

“Deprivation of food has long been a weapon of war and oppression, with millions intentionally starved to death by fascist and communist governments in the 20th Century alone.
Accordingly, we will not obey or facilitate orders to confiscate food and other essential supplies from the people, and we will consider all those who issue or carry out such orders to be the enemies of the people.”

If those who carry out such orders to confiscate food are enemies of the people, then that same label also fits anyone in the government compiling lists of Americans who store food. There is no legitimate reason for the Department of Homeland Security to compile such lists. Al Qaida suicide bombers are not known to store powdered milk and buckets of wheat. Nor are they known to store away dehydrated carrots and instant potatoes, or fruit punch mix for the kids. But the Mormons are known to do so, and so are many other Americans who have the common sense and maturity to take personal responsibility for ensuring that their families will have food, come what may.
It is part of Mormon Church religious doctrine to store food for hard times and emergencies, with a recommendation that each family store a year’s worth of basic dry goods along with three months worth of store-bought canned and boxed foods. To facilitate that practice, the Mormon Church runs its own food storage canneries selling powdered milk, wheat, flour, rice and beans, sugar, salt, and various other dry goods either in bulk 50 lb bags or in #10 cans for long term food storage (up to 30 years for some items). These Church canneries also often sell food storage items to non-church members, seeing it as both morally right and prudent to help their neighbors store food, whatever their faith. The cannery in Tennessee that was “visited” by federal agents follows that practice of helping the general public become better prepared.
So why do federal agents want to know who is storing away long-term food storage? We suspect it is for the following reasons:

1. DHS/FEMA wants to know which Americans have food storage so the federal government can at some future point confiscate that food. Just as with lists of gun owners, compiling such lists is the first step toward future confiscation.
2. DHS wants to identify those Americans who are “switched on” and squared away enough to actually store food for coming hard times (such as during an economic collapse). That population of awake, aware, and prepared Americans poses a “threat” to whatever DHS and its masters have in store for the American people, and as Joseph Stalin so ably demonstrated, one of the easiest ways to subjugate defiant people is to confiscate their food and starve them into submission.

The federal government already tipped their hand by sending the FBI to military surplus stores (as we reported), gun stores, and pawn shops to encourage those businesses to spy on their customers who buy MRE’s (Meals Ready to Eat), bipods, “night flashlights”, high capacity magazines, rifle bipods, and bulk ammo. Maybe some of you fooled yourselves into thinking there might be some legitimate reason for them to track purchases of such items. But powdered milk and wheat berries? Those are hardly items that could be used in a terrorist attack. It must be the storage of food itself that the feds now find so offensive and so “dangerous.”
And while the door-to-door preparedness assessments in Tennessee appears to be well intended (and we spoke with a friendly state preparedness officer who said it was motivated by the recent natural disasters in Tennessee), Americans are well justified in being concerned about such efforts and how that information may be used in the future, in light of these other well documented and confirmed incidents of federal law enforcement collecting information on those who purchase preparedness items and indicating that the purchases of those items may be “indicators of terrorist activity.”
If you are one of the many Americans who still have on rose-colored glasses, or who still have your head buried in the sand (or stuck somewhere else warm and dark), it is time to pull your head out and face the reality of what the federal government is telling you by the actions of its agents. Those actions show both what they fear and their intent. What they fear are prepared, equipped, and “switched on” Americans, and their intent is to identify who they are, where they are, and then plan on dealing with them when the time comes. And rest assured that time will come. The recent U.S. Senate passage of S. 1867, which authorizes military detention and trial of U.S, citizens under the international laws of war (as if we were conquered Iraq or Afghanistan) is also an expression of their intent, and their contempt for the Bill of Rights.
Clearly, in light of the above, if you purchase food storage, along with any other preparedness items, you should be concerned about those purchases being tracked and your name winding up on some government list. But don’t let that stop you from storing food and other essential supplies, and don’t let this disturbing incident keep you from using your local Mormon cannery to do so. You need to get prepared. But do it while following the advice of James Wesley, Rawles over at www.survivalblog.com, who repeatedly urges his readers to “think OPSEC!” – if at all possible, buy with cash and pick it up in person, just like the customers of this particular cannery did, which left the “agitated” agents empty handed and frustrated. Good. That is as it should be. Don’t make it easy on them. And if you have not yet begun to store food, now is certainly a good time to start. You’re going to need it. Time is short, and you need to be prepared for what is coming. “Are You Ready?” indeed. – Stewart Rhodes
Recommended Preparedness and Self-reliance Resources:
http://www.providentliving.org/ (LDS website with links to church guidelines on preparedness and food storage)
www.survivalblog.com (one of the very best prepper websites, with tons of information. Use the search feature and enjoy)
http://www.thesurvivalpodcast.com (EXCELLENT radio show by Oath Keeper Airborne vet Jack Spirko. Also has great articles, forum, and how-to videos too)
www.operationsleepinggiant.com (an Oath Keepers sister project, just getting off the ground, to wake up veterans and get them focused on individual, family, community, and state: preparedness, security, sound money, and state sovereignty and independence).
www.alt-market.com (how to build strong communities, barter exchanges, food independence, sound money independence, the Montana Safe Haven State project, and excellent economic analysis by Brandon Smith).
www.americanpreppersnetwork.com (another great site with tons of information, a podcast show, articles, videos, and chat)
www.onpointtactical.com (innovative scouting, tracking, wilderness and urban survival school. Stewart Rhodes has attended several of these classes and personally recommends this school to those who understand that “training trumps gear” as Kevin Reeve says)

Why didn't we learn this in school?

2011-10-28T11:46:00.000-04:00

While in school I was never taught just how religious our founders were. How there were church services held at the capital. The progressives that have hijacked the curriculum that is being taught in our so called schools want to teach kids how to put condoms on cucumbers instead of teaching them how to read and write. They have re-written history to benefit their agenda. God help us all if we as a nation do not turn back to God. President Obama has said that the United States is not a Christian nation but I disagree. The downfall of the country will be because we have turned our backs on God.

Do you know who your friends are?

2011-10-13T10:58:00.000-04:00

Everyone thinks that they have a ton of friends, but do you? We have all heard the old saying "to have friends you must be friendly". Well, one thing that I have learned since being out of work for two months is that your true friends can usually be counted on one hand. Some of your true friends will be people that you didn't expect. I have found out who my true friends are, whether it is a phone call, an invitation to come over and just hang out, or someone bringing a dish of food over and hanging out for awhile. Then there is family. My brother and I have never been close and I think that is due to the age difference. Ten years separate us, but I have to say that my brother has been a great friend through this time in my life. If you have some good close friends you are truly lucky. I am a lucky man indeed.

Quote of the day

2011-10-04T00:10:00.005-04:00

An armed society is a polite society. Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life. ~Robert A. Heinlein~

Its been a while

2011-09-29T23:20:00.000-04:00

It has been a while since I posted anything so let me catch you up on whats been going on. On August the 12th I woke up with a terrible headache. It wasn't as bad the next day so I didn't go to see a doctor. Sunday comes around and I notice my vision is a little blurred, so I go to the hospital, where they start drawing blood and running tests. Come to find out the headache was cause by a tumor on my pituitary that had ruptured. The doctors operated on Thursday and caught the tumor or what was left of it as it poured out of my right nostril. They sent it to the lab for testing and it was benign. My vision is back to normal and I thank God for his blessings. The doctor said I was a lucky man due to the fact that the tumor could have ruptured my optic nerves and that the pressure on my brain could have killed me. Lucky? Meh, I don't think so, the good Lord wasn't ready for me yet.

RUGER!!!

2011-03-03T03:28:00.001-05:00

Here are some updated pictures of Ruger that Itook about a month ago.

He has grown alot and has turned into a pretty good silent alarm. A few weeks back I was watching tv when he alerted to the front door so I got up and walked over and about that time the door bell rang.

GOOD DOG.

Ruger was supposed to be a boxer... I think he has some Boxer in him, but I wouldn't trade him in for one. So does anyone have a clue as to what kind of half breed he is?

Quoate of the day

2010-10-20T09:00:00.000-04:00

Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.
-Roger Caras

Fall is here and it feels great!

2010-10-20T08:32:00.002-04:00

Fall is in the air. The cooler temperatures are welcome here in Florida. It is nice to be able to go outside without instantly breaking out into a sweat. It has been a long time since I posted anything, so, I think a Ruger update is long over due. Voila!

I think he was six months when these were taken and I can say the food bill has increased. He's a great dog (so far) and I am glad I bought him. The pet shop lady might be laughing at me right now because I don't think he looks like a Boxer. His body might be like a Boxer, but the head... definitely NOT! He was a little miffed at me in the bottom picture because I took that bone away from him. He found in the backyard somewhere and we can't have him gnawing on that... we don't know where it has been!

Quote of the day

2010-07-11T19:06:00.002-04:00

Acquiring a dog may be the only opportunity a human ever has to choose a relative. -Mordecai Wyatt- Johnson

Canine alert!

2010-07-11T18:52:00.006-04:00

Its been a week since I posted anything.... so here goes.

Introducing... Ruger!

Ruger is a boxer and is a little stubborn and I will have to convince him that I am the boss. I will have to stop by Walmart tonight while at work and get some Puparoni doggie treats for when he actually starts to listen.

Quote of the day

2010-07-04T00:11:00.000-04:00

Tens of thousands of brave Americans died to break the chains of British tyranny so that the principles of our Declaration of Independence could take fold and flourish in the birth of a new nation. -Jim Gerlach-

Yes, I am a Glock snob.

2010-07-04T00:02:00.003-04:00

I admit it, I am a Glock snob. It was the first gun I ever owned and I fell in love with them. Glock model seventeen. I know, I know...9mm? What did I know? It didn't take me long to buy my second and it is my favorite Glock. Model twenty three... forty cal. To this day it is my favorite, although the model 27 isn't too far behind. Today my trigger finger was itching so I went to my range and let it rip from twenty yards. After about 8 rounds my phone rang and here I am, standing there pistol in hand. As soon as the hello's were exchanged I quietly sat the phone down and squeezed the trigger six more times.

My nephew was silent for a few seconds after he picked it back up and he yells...COULDN'T YOU HAVE WARNED ME BEFORE YOU DID THAT! Then came the laughter. Do you want a steak he asks? Heck yea man was the response and I started packing. Good thing the range isn't too far from my house.

Quote of the day

2010-06-28T14:59:00.001-04:00

Gun control means being able to hit your target. If I have a 'hot button' issue, this is definitely it. Don't even think about taking my guns. My rights are not negotiable, and I am totally unwilling to compromise when it comes to the Second Amendment. -Michael Badnarik-

What part of Shall NOT be Infringed dont you understand?

2010-06-28T14:42:00.000-04:00

Today freedom has again been defended. Not only on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, but in the court system. The United States Supreme Court has ruled against the city of Chicago's gun ban. Thank you Mr. McDonald and the NRA for pursuing the case. In spite of today's decision, the US Senate is holding confirmation hearings on Elana Kagans appointment to the court. I do hope that she is not confirmed because she is about as qualified to be on the bench as I am.

Quote of the day

2010-06-19T06:14:00.000-04:00

There is a certain enthusiasm in liberty, that makes human nature rise above itself, in acts of bravery and heroism. -Alexander Hamilton-

The Star Spangled Banner

2010-06-19T06:01:00.003-04:00

Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light

What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?

Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,

O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?

And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,

Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.

Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave

O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep,

Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,

What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,

As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?

Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,

In full glory reflected now shines in the stream:

'Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh long may it wave

O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore

That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion,

A home and a country should leave us no more!

Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution.

No refuge could save the hireling and slave

From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:

And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave

O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand

Between their loved home and the war's desolation!

Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land

Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.

Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,

And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."

And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave

O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave

Frances Scott Key

Quote of the day

2010-06-10T09:12:00.002-04:00

The world is filled with violence. Because criminals carry guns, we decent law-abiding citizens should also have guns. Otherwise they will win and the decent people will loose. -James Earl Jones-

Uh... can everyone please pay attention?

2010-06-10T09:00:00.001-04:00

The deadliest road

Welcome to Florida... Home of the deadliest stretch of Interstate highway in the country. It is definitely not a news flash for me, since I drive it every night, and every night IS an adventure! For instance, last night I was riding along and was being passed by another big rig when I noticed he had his dome light on. RED FLAG, RED FLAG!!! I now have a death grip on the wheel... hands at ten and two... there he goes off into the third lane and I knew it wasn't good so I moved over as far as I could. When he realized he was not in his lane, he jerks the steering wheel to get back in his lane. Eighty thousand pounds of big rig doesn't react like a sports car and the momentum of his actions causes his shiny white freight shaker to cross the line into my lane. He missed me only because I was paying attention. Of course I gave him a one finger salute like I was telling him that he was number one.

Then there are the telephone drivers. Please do not text and drive. No matter how good you think you are at texting it only takes a few seconds for things to go horribly wrong. Line to line they go, faster and faster, and then way too slow. If you must talk on the phone while driving... use a blue tooth device. Please pay attention while you are behind the wheel.

Driving while sleepy is as dangerous as driving after you have had a few too many. Its late at night and the on coming headlights are hypnotizing . You begin to stare down the road. The roar of the tires starts to relax you. Your eyes begin to itch and are getting heavy. You know you are getting sleepy so you turn up your radio, maybe to a rock-n-roll station, and immediately you perk up. It doesn't last and soon your eyes begin to close. You shake your head like killer bees are swarming around your hair. Pull over and take a power nap. Even if it is only for thirty minutes. When you wake up you will be refreshed and will be able to continue on with your journey. DO not fall into the trap of thinking that you need to stop and get a cup of coffee because it will not help. Sure, it will let you get a few miles down the road, but after fifteen minutes or so, you will find that you are staring down the road again.

Quote of the day

2010-06-08T18:18:00.001-04:00

To vote is like the payment of a debt, a duty never to be neglected, if its performance is possible.
-Rutherford B. Hayes-

Super Tuesday

2010-06-08T18:05:00.003-04:00

The polling places were open today across the country so that we can practice one of the greatest rights we have. That right is taken for granted my a majority of citizens of our country. How many times have you heard people rant about politics and complain about policies that the leviathon force upon us. Then you ask the simple question... Do you vote? It makes me sick to my stomach when they reply "No, I dont have time for that and besides it wouldn't do any good". It is high time that people get off of their high horse, and go make their voices heard. One vote might not do any good. But, if the masses get tired of the bullspit that goes on in DC and decide to get off of their lazy rumps, we could see real change. A change that this country needs.

Some signs from the tax day TEA party in Jacksonville, Florida 4-15-10.

Quote of the day

2010-06-04T22:34:00.003-04:00

We have four boxes with which to defend our freedom: the soap box, the ballot box, the jury box, and the cartridge box.-Congressman Larry McDonald-

HERE HERE!

2010-06-03T21:45:00.004-04:00

If Mexico wasn't such a shiite hole maybe your citizens wouldn't be coming over OUR border Mr. Calderon!

Quote of the day

2010-06-03T21:08:00.001-04:00

What I object to the current government intervention in so-called 'solving the crisis', they haven't solved anything. They've just postponed it. -Marc Faber-

Get out there!

2010-06-03T20:35:00.004-04:00

Today I took a trip to Fernandina Beach to visit Fort Clinch. Yes, I had been there before, but it had been

20+ years since my last visit. The place had changed and for the better. You can tell some of the bricks aren't the same color because they have been restoring it.

Don't SHOOT!

Fort Clinch was built in 1847 and Union troops were stationed there during the Civil War. Although there weren't any battles there it looks like the were prepared for Johnny reb to make an entrance.

The fort was built on this location to protect the entrance of the Amelia River, and during the War of Northern Aggression it guarded against resupply efforts of the south.

Cannon balls that were recovered from the site.

I was wondering what they did for drinking water... so I asked a park ranger. He told me that some of the roofs were "V" shaped to collect rain water. When the fort was under construction they put in six cisterns that could hold 53,000 gallons of the collected rain water. They also had a hand pump near the cook house

and bakery.Can you imagine just having water to drink, maybe some tea and coffee? I took this photo from the store house and it looks to me like someone was prepared for saturday night!

After checking out the fort I decided to walk one the trails called Willow pond. Some visitors near the trail were slow moving while yet another didnt want to move at all. I told the second one that he could have the trail to himself and that it was time for me to go.

He was on the trail as I approached and I am glad that he moved about a foot or so or I wouldn't have seen him. He sat there and was a lil too close to the trail for me to pass by. IMO the only good poisonous snake is a dead one. Since I was only packing a camera I shot him with what I had!