The Survival Podcast

Zack Smith returns to TSPC today to talk about updates to his stock cropper system and give up some information on a new product release called the “ClusterCluck Drive”.  The ClusterCluck Drive is a solar-powered electric drive unit that bolts onto your existing portable coop or pen and moves it for you, manually with a Bluetooth key fob or on a fully autonomous straight-line schedule through our web-based app. No extension cords. No dragging. No sweat. Zack is a 5th generation farmer from northern Iowa who worked for 15 years in Big Ag and walked away to create a better … Continue reading →

My hope today is to help you understand money from as many new perspectives as possible.  If you think about it nothing in general has a greater effect on the lives of most Americans than money.  Money is why we work, how we provide our housing and food, how we are taxed and how our class structure is defined.  We can deny this if we choose to but a family with a gross income of 100,000 dollars a year lives a much more comfortable life than one with a gross income of say 25,000  a year. Yet if you ask … Continue reading →

Welcome to another week and this time we lead off on a Monday by taking a look at some of the both big and lesser known news stories that have happened over the weekend.  We will lead off with Trump new seemingly crazy plan to block the Strait of Hormuz after demand Iran open it.  Is this an unhinged Orangeman thing or is there actually a strategy behind it? Next we dig into an article about China making massive strides in AI and why current US policy is helpless in slowing it down by preventing the export of hardware.  So … Continue reading →

Today on The Survival Podcast the expert council covers a wide range of real world topics.  Today we start with a question, how similar is the Iran conflict to Afghanistan or Vietnam?  Then should you sell your home yourself or get a realtor?  Thoughts on harvesting tree fodder and storing it as “tree hay”.  Then we talk about inspecting and modifying older guns such as military surplus arms. Make sure if you submit content for an expert council show you do the following…. Email it to me at jack @ thesurvivalpodcast.com Put TSPC Expert in the subject line Ask you … Continue reading →

Today we are joined by Stephen Brass, a fourth generation farmer from northern Illinois who walked away from the conventional grain model to build a regenerative beef operation. Growing up in the Corn Belt meant a steady diet of synthetic fertilizers and heavy tillage. These inputs maintained a status quo while the topsoil literally washed away. For Stephen, the turning point was realizing that the land was not being improved, only managed through chemical dependence. He eventually traded the plow for perennial pastures, transitioning his family acreage into a biological powerhouse fueled by grazing rather than grain. The shift required … Continue reading →

The typical story about disease and vegetables is something like this from the all natural crowd…. Just use compost and good organic fertility, build good soil and it won’t be a problem. Yea, um, about that, look good soil, good fertility and abundant soil life and minerals go a long way to healthy plants, but they don’t eliminate all diseases.  They also take time to develop in your garden soil.  Some years my beans develop a fungus referred to as rust.  Why?  It is typical when it is wetter then normal.  In those years the same beds are growing jalapenos … Continue reading →

Everyone is looking for the ‘Killer App’ for AI. They want the one plugin or the one prompt that changes everything.  They're looking in the wrong place. AI is a mirror, it is a leverage tool, it's a management flight simulator and a leadership training program all in one. If you can’t lead a machine that has no ego and works for free, you aren’t ready to lead anything else.  The real Killer App of AI?  It's Personal Sovereignty.  It is a way for every human to have personal agency or more accurately own an agency of experts, assistants and … Continue reading →

Today on The Survival Podcast the expert council covers a wide range of real world topics, from what is actually happening on the global stage to the practical decisions you can make at home to stay more resilient and self reliant. We dig into shifts in military posture that most people are ignoring, along with smarter ways to build systems on your property that actually produce instead of just keeping you busy. We also get into protecting your personal data in an increasingly exposed digital world, improving land with better grazing practices, using composting systems that turn waste into value, … Continue reading →

Today Expert Council member Kerry Brown joins us to discuss what it really means to build systems that actually support your life instead of quietly draining it. Kerry is a fourth generation land steward out of Tennessee who is not playing hobby farm. He is restoring family land, applying permaculture principles, and building something that works in the real world, not just on paper or social media. What we dig into today is where most people get this wrong. They confuse activity with progress. They stack chores, animals, projects, and expectations until the whole thing collapses under its own weight. … Continue reading →

Today we have our first Tuesday Coffee Chat with John Willis of SOE Tactical Gear and Nicole Sauce of Living Free in Tennessee. These discussions are always a wildcard and can go anywhere. We usually hit on some current events of course. We also tend to talk about things like entrepreneurship, homesteading and a ton more. In general we try to inspire you a bit, make you laugh a few times, entertain you and teach you a thing or two along the way. Resources for today's show… Find Me on Nostr Article Explaining the GrowNostr Initiative Join the Members Brigade … Continue reading →

This show is of course The Survival Podcast.  So often when people first find it they are expecting only topics like storing and growing food, building bug out bags, guns and perhaps planing for the end of the world.  The reality is we have talked about plenty of things like that, but. great deal more as well. We discuss diet and health.  We discuss entrepreneurship and lifestyle design.  We discuss news and world events from a critical thinking angle.  And we discuss economics, technology impacts and investing. Why? They are all survival topics that match the show credo, “Helping You … Continue reading →

Today on The Survival Podcast the expert council answers your questions on the Iran war, hunting dogs, back up power, technology, gun optics, tax strategy, prep security and more. Make sure if you submit content for an expert council show you do the following…. Email it to me at jack @ thesurvivalpodcast.com Put TSPC Expert in the subject line Ask you question and state the expert you have the question for in one coherent sentence Hit the return key a few times and then give all the details you think are necessary ` Following that procedure makes it about 100X … Continue reading →

Expert Council Member Mike Milito joins me today to discuss the concept of the truck gun, where it came from, and how it fits into modern American life. We dig into the historical roots of keeping a firearm in a vehicle, from ranch rifles and old hunting guns to the practical setups people relied on decades ago, and how those ideas have evolved. From there, we get into why someone today might consider a truck or trunk gun at all. Mike breaks down realistic use cases, not fantasy scenarios, and explains how mobility, response time, and environment all factor into … Continue reading →

Most people are familiar with “The Serenity Prayer”.  This prayer was actually written by the American theologian Reinhold Niebuhr (1892–1971).  The long version is seldom spoken of and it is much more what you would expect from a truly religious prayer.  You can learn more about that if it interests you here. The version most know, the one on necklaces, coffee cups and used in many 12 step programs is very simple and yet very profound, even for those like myself or are non religious people, is simply states… God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot … Continue reading →

Mostly what we hear about AI right now is really only about one or two major impacts.  The first is the classic it is going to take all our jobs type fear mongering.  This is pretty common with just about any and all emergence of a truly disruptive technology.  The second is essentially “AI is going to cure cancer”.  Of course it goes into all aspects of medicine but cancer grabs the most attention. How big will those two impacts be?  Likely larger than the people who wave them off can imagine.  Yet at the same time likely a lot … Continue reading →

Today on The Survival Podcast the expert council answers your questions on foreign policy, guns, escalation of force, herbal medicine, diet and fitness, technology, knives, AI and more. Make sure if you submit content for an expert council show you do the following…. Email it to me at jack @ thesurvivalpodcast.com Put TSPC Expert in the subject line Ask you question and state the expert you have the question for in one coherent sentence Hit the return key a few times and then give all the details you think are necessary ` Following that procedure makes it about 100X more … Continue reading →

Join Expert Council Member Ryan Steva and I today as we discuss the concept of water for every homestead. Today we cover things like, how to think about capturing, distributing and storing water in the land scape as well as in tanks and other systems.  A wholistic approach to thinking about and implementing tactics that make a homestead more water resilient/independent and it plays on the title from PA Yeoman’s famous book. Ryan Steva is focused on building regenerative, resilient homesteads the right way, not the romanticized version people talk about online. His journey started the hard way. A health … Continue reading →

Note that title of today’s show is “in THE golden age of” not “in A golden age of”.  That was a conscious choice I made because I do feel today is the greatest age of propaganda humans have ever lived in.  Not because those in power are any worse than at other times, simply because the tools they have available to them are superior to even a couple decades ago. Today we are going to take a look at the last 150 years of the development of tools which enable propaganda.  We will talk about how those who use propaganda … Continue reading →

I had pleasant surprise this weekend in regard to the Iran war.  Instead of taking my analysis and interpreting it as pro or anti war they simply asked, “will anything we do in Iran improve the life of the average American”.  No tribal BS, no calling me either a warmonger for Israel or a idiotic lib-tarded hippy, just an honest and important question. I loved this question because it cuts right into the only reason we do shows like today’s.  Shows where we talk about at least some of the same things they talk about on AM radio talk shows.  … Continue reading →

Today on The Survival Podcast the expert council answers your questions on military service, EDC knives, knee and elbow injuries, good values on guns, solar power inverters, economics, investing and more. Make sure if you submit content for an expert council show you do the following…. Email it to me at jack @ thesurvivalpodcast.com Put TSPC Expert in the subject line Ask you question and state the expert you have the question for in one coherent sentence Hit the return key a few times and then give all the details you think are necessary ` Following that procedure makes it … Continue reading →

Everyone wants land. Land land and more land. I need 80 jillion acres, cattle and pigs. Do you though? An intensively managed small holding is more than most people really need. Today we will discuss how you can meet a ton of your needs for food, fiber and medicine on even a .25-.75 acre lot. We will also learn a lot about strategy and context and how those lead to proper implementation of tactics and techniques. Join Me Today to Discuss… First we must develop context Strategy begets tactics and techniques Interviewing yourself like you are your own client Do … Continue reading →

Do a quick search on YouTube and you will find plenty of videos on this subject.  Some pretty useful but most are full of hype as they attempt to cram as many varieties of things into them as possible.  You will also find a great deal of “debunking” videos saying the entire practice is pointless and doesn’t work.  That just because a celery core grows some roots doesn’t mean you can get celery from it. In this case both sides sort of have a point.  Something really are not worth the effort even if minimal production can be acquired.  Some … Continue reading →

I want to lead off today and explain that I am talking about individual leadership vs. corporate or political leadership.  In fact it is the herd that follows such so called leadership.  Additionally Monday shows are often about current events and while today’s is not, it does apply to them. Consider that right now there are honestly two herds in existence.  One herd is blindly pro-war in spite of that particular demographic having called for less conflict for at least a decade.  They fall in behind one level of political, media and corporate leadership and toe the party line.  The … Continue reading →

Today on The Survival Podcast the expert council answers your questions on war in Iran, joint pain, bull pups, foraging, business, cooking, dogs, homesteading and more. Make sure if you submit content for an expert council show you do the following…. Email it to me at jack @ thesurvivalpodcast.com Put TSPC Expert in the subject line Ask you question and state the expert you have the question for in one coherent sentence Hit the return key a few times and then give all the details you think are necessary ` Following that procedure makes it about 100X more likely your … Continue reading →

Nick Ferguson is a Permaculture Designer, Ecosystem Engineer, and international consultant with over a decade of professional experience designing resilient properties coast to coast in both the Northern and Southern hemispheres. Certified under Geoff Lawton at the Permaculture Research Institute Australia, Nick transforms land into self sufficient systems using function stacking, regenerative agriculture, and holistic design. Nick is also a long time friend of mine and a go to expert for TSP listeners looking for help with plants, fodder systems, and homestead ecosystem design. Over the years he has worked with landowners around the world helping them design landscapes that … Continue reading →

Today we have our first Tuesday Coffee Chat with John Willis of SOE Tactical Gear and Nicole Sauce of Living Free in Tennessee. And boy has a lot happened since the last Coffee Chat. Of course the biggest news is the US attacks on Iran so we will definitely spend some time on that. I also want to discuss the concept of “civilization collapse” with them today. Let’s take a look at the characteristics of civilizations that collapsed in the past and see how many apply to us today. Of course we will likely talk about some lifestyle design and … Continue reading →

I am going to cover the Iran war a bit today but save the deeper dive until tomorrow when I have John Willis and Nicole Sauce on with me.   Still it will be my lead story and I will cover it for about 20 minutes.  We will then move on to a segment on the probably of collapse of civilizations and how many characteristics the US is currently showing. We will also briefly touch on “protesting as a profession”, the fact that Larry Fink just called for a global digital currency at the WEF and more. Join Me Today to … Continue reading →

Today on The Survival Podcast the expert council answers your questions on pistol caliber carbine optics, hiking with dogs, mushroom foraging, ice dams, propane tanks, creative tax deductions, black solider flies and more. Make sure if you submit content for an expert council show you do the following…. Email it to me at jack @ thesurvivalpodcast.com Put TSPC Expert in the subject line Ask you question and state the expert you have the question for in one coherent sentence Hit the return key a few times and then give all the details you think are necessary ` Following that procedure … Continue reading →

Andy McCann is a seasoned health and fitness advocate, entrepreneur, and educator with over 18 years of experience helping people improve their lives through practical, sustainable habits. A Georgia Tech graduate with a degree in Electrical Engineering, Andy shifted from a successful career in tech sales to focus on fitness and wellness, becoming the owner of CrossFit Garage in Woodstock, Georgia. He also co-created Garage Fitness Online, a platform that supports garage and home gym athletes with expert programming and a supportive community. Andy's philosophy centers on his Five Pillars of Health and Longevity—Eat, Sleep, Move, Think, and Connect—offering a … Continue reading →

Today I cover 10 edible plants you can grow in your garden.  All of them are highly pest resistant, nutrient dense, great to eat and I will bet you haven’t even heard of at least half of them.  And for another bonus all but one are perennial. Gardening season is just ahead of use and everyone will be planting the usual suspects.  Tomatoes, peppers, egg plants, squash, beans and many other well knowns will soon be all over America’s gardens and tables but these 10 all deserve consideration.  Many of these are actually wild plants, others basically wild with just … Continue reading →

Today we look at mayhem around the world.  A huge US build up near Iran but will it go kenetic?  The Cartel is going ape in Mexico but will it simply be a short term temper tantrum?  The joy of socialism continues in NYC.  The Dutch just passed an “unrealized gains” tax which might have global consequences.  Did we have another assassination attempt or simply suicide by stupid?  We will also dig into some more positive and typical news things today. Join Me Today to Discuss… NYC is expecting epic snow, so they are hiring citizens to shovel, but multiple … Continue reading →

Today on The Survival Podcast the expert council answers your questions on politics, cooking, food preservation, fodder systems, water systems, passkeys, dog training, biochar and more. Make sure if you submit content for an expert council show you do the following…. Email it to me at jack @ thesurvivalpodcast.com Put TSPC Expert in the subject line Ask you question and state the expert you have the question for in one coherent sentence Hit the return key a few times and then give all the details you think are necessary ` Following that procedure makes it about 100X more likely your … Continue reading →

Today Abraham Pittman joins us to discuss how to apply engineering (particularly field service engineering) to homesteading and prepping, so examples include: Triaging problems, ie, make sure your chickens have reliable water systems before building a roll away nesting box. Developing systems and procedures, ie, maintenance regimes, and things similar to the documentation package you talk about. Calculating risk/cost benefit analysis, ie, is it best to just let a lawn mower run until it dies, compared to letting a generator run until it dies ` Abraham Pitman is a field service engineer, homesteader, and practical prepper based in North Queensland, … Continue reading →

School is marketed as key to success in life. Yet if we look at what defines real success and an exceptional life, much of what we are trained to do in school is an impediment to our goals.  On top of schooling be it K-12 or university we are also trained by the media, the government and “society”.   Much of this training is far more about conformity and keeping us easily controlled. Today we discuss 20 things were are trained to believe that must be unlearned if you want full control over your life and future. Join Me Today to … Continue reading →

Today we pause to look up and around and see what is going on in the abnormal world that most people consider normal.  We will look at government, the media and well meaning folks who think they are helping but are not.  Today we will take a look at practical solar farms, cartoon humor that is dark and accurate, Canada’s latest censorship, the socialist mayor trend, how voter ID would actually work vs. the democrat FUD and more. Today we discuss… A short cartoon that is incredibly dark due to how accurate it is – link Cities with socialist mayors … Continue reading →

Today on The Survival Podcast the expert council answers your questions on Bitcoin, politics, urban foraging, health, meat rabbits, shagbark hickory syrup, investing, biochar and more. Make sure if you submit content for an expert council show you do the following…. Email it to me at jack @ thesurvivalpodcast.com Put TSPC Expert in the subject line Ask you question and state the expert you have the question for in one coherent sentence Hit the return key a few times and then give all the details you think are necessary ` Following that procedure makes it about 100X more likely your … Continue reading →

Peter Quinones is the host of the “The Peter Quinones Show” which was formally known as “Free Man Beyond the Wall”.  If you don’t listen to Peter but he seems familiar to you it may be because he was one of the founding members of the “Unloose the Goose” group.  A sort of podcasting supergroup I helped found back in 2020. Peter reached out to me on Facebook about coming on the air to discuss “community organizing” from an liberty view point.  I think this may merge quite well with my prior shows like Rules for Radicals for the Right … Continue reading →

We are just a few days from Valentines day.  For me that is when I want most of my seeds started for spring set out.  I use that date as a cut off because I tend to set my plants out starting about March 15th.  This is also the time of year when my inbox starts to heat up with questions about the coming garden season and one topic always exceeds all others.  No not which variety of tomato to plant, not which fertility aid to use or what to use for mulch.  No the number one question is always … Continue reading →

Pretty much every year I do a show like this where I go into 10-12 things I am going to try growing this year that I have never grown before.  Thing is after decades of doing that I really don’t have a list of that many this year, that I have never grown before anyway.  I do have a few I will share today. The big thing though is my core crops, at least many of them came from this annual exercise.  Examples include Ping Tung Eggplant, Tromboncino Squash, Snake Beans and Safflower all became standard crops by starting out … Continue reading →

Today on The Survival Podcast the expert council answers your questions on politics, rental property, cooking, silver pricing, dogs, high end handguns, Bitcoin and more. Make sure if you submit content for an expert council show you do the following…. Email it to me at jack @ thesurvivalpodcast.com Put TSPC Expert in the subject line Ask you question and state the expert you have the question for in one coherent sentence Hit the return key a few times and then give all the details you think are necessary ` Following that procedure makes it about 100X more likely your question … Continue reading →

Zack Farr is a third generation Florida farmer who watched working land get chewed up and paved over while everyone pretended it was progress. Instead of cashing out, he walked away from a corporate job and went back home to try to make land pay again. That path led him somewhere unexpected, burned citrus piles, stubborn plants, and eventually biochar. In this episode we dig into what biochar actually is, why it works, and how turning wood waste into carbon can rebuild soil, clean water, and keep land in production. Zack tells the real story, not theory, not grant buzzwords. … Continue reading →

Today two of my favorite people, John Willis and Nicole Sauce join me for our First Tuesday Coffee Chat. Today we talk about some current events and news stories but mostly dig into the recent ice storms and what prepping should be done for such events. We talked about the things you need to get though winter storms including the 4 simple preps that would save 90% of people, 90% of the problems.  I learned about an 1800s cook book that I bought right in the middle of the episode.  We even talked a bit about the recent shooting in … Continue reading →

Is it the best of times or is it the worst of times?  Perhaps it is just the dumbest of times?  I mean just look around you and ask yourself how we got here.  Just five and half years ago over half of America was hiding from the flu while building forts out of toilet paper and bottled water.  They were also chanting death cult slogans like, “stay at home, save lives” and “my mask protects me and your mask protects me” all while shoving untested vaccines into their bodies. Eventually that stupidity ended but today’s stupidity looks far worse … Continue reading →

Today on The Survival Podcast the expert council answers your questions on checks and balances, dog training, athletic footwear, solar power, foraging, mortgages and more. Make sure if you submit content for an expert council show you do the following…. Email it to me at jack @ thesurvivalpodcast.com Put TSPC Expert in the subject line Ask you question and state the expert you have the question for in one coherent sentence Hit the return key a few times and then give all the details you think are necessary ` Following that procedure makes it about 100X more likely your question … Continue reading →

SPECIAL NOTICE – The intro to this episode may seem a bit “off” as it is a rewind of a rewind.  I am stuck in Vegas so this is the best I can do for today and tomorrow.   For more info on that, see this link. I was going to call this show “14 Rules for Being a Modern Survivalist” but I realized that would violate my survival tenet that reads… “Your personal philosophy is more important for you than mine! You are the master of your own life and if you don't agree with my views, great, define, understand … Continue reading →

SPECIAL NOTICE – The intro to this episode may seem a bit “off” as it is a rewind of a rewind.  I am stuck in Vegas so this is the best I can do for today and tomorrow.   For more info on that, see this link. Today we get a lighter show and I think we could use one.  I was happy to see this subject come in second place in the polls for September's shows.  Those of us that grew up in the 70s and 80s may be the last generation of children who knew true freedom as children. … Continue reading →

On this episode of The Survival Podcast, I was joined by Geoff Lawton, a familiar face and esteemed member of our expert council. Geoff, a renowned figure in the world of permaculture and regenerative design, brings with him over four decades of experience and a profound commitment to sustainable agriculture and self-sufficient communities. As the founder of the Permaculture Research Institute, Geoff has been an invaluable resource for our audience, sharing his wealth of knowledge and expertise. His previous appearances on the show have provided invaluable insights and practical advice on topics ranging from restoring degraded lands to establishing resilient food … Continue reading →

Well the truth is these are 10 life skills we should be teaching every child and many adults who never learned. them.  I have done shows like this before but I want to come at it from a slightly different angle today.  More along the lines of the process behind the skills.  In other words you can teach someone to cook but showing them how a stove and a knife works and giving them recipes.  That is basic technique teaching. Of you can teach the process and theory behind cooking and a person can then create meals on the fly … Continue reading →

Sadly a component of the “sovereign citizen movement” have actually ruined the word, “sovereign citizen”.  While many in the movement are peaceful and tend to operate via turning the state unto itself via the courts, enough idiots have committed acts of violence under the phrase to widely ruin what it was supposed to mean. However, as so often is the case that which is ruined often leads to that which is better.  In this case I think the term “sovereign human” is a much better term.  Citizen denotes a state, and a state denotes control.  But no matter our state … Continue reading →

This episode was a back to basics show. Simple stuff that we all need reminding about day to day in order to stay sharp. This is also the exact type of information to give to people new to prepping, especially the totally unprepared that “don't get it”. We all have fiends like that right? So many people seem to believe you are either some sort of “extreme doomsday prepper” or you are just normal.  I say that the way most people not normal.  I am talking about adults here and adults should be first and foremost responsible.  Responsible first for … Continue reading →

Today we are going to talk about one of the primary support planks that need to be in place for real modern survival living.  It won’t be about storing food, the right guns, getting defense training or securing your property.  All of those are incredibly important and there is a ton more that is important as well.  That said, what is the primary leverage we use to get these things and many others done?  The answer is money. Money is a symbol for energy, that is what it really represents, whether human labor, natural energetic systems or man made automation, … Continue reading →