October 3rd, 2023 is the 30th anniversary of the Mogadishu, Somalia raid. The 18 Americans killed were:

MSG Gary Gordon, 1st SFOD-D

SFC Randy Shughart, 1st SFOD-D

SSG Daniel Busch, 1st SFOD-D

SFC Earl Fillmore, 1st SFOD-D

MSG Timothy Martin, 1st SFOD-D

CPL Jamie Smith, 3/75 Ranger

SPC James Cavaco, 3/75 Ranger

SGT Casey Joyce, 3/75 Ranger

PFC Richard Kowaleski, 3/75 Ranger

SGT Dominic Pilla, 3/75 Ranger

SGT Lorenzo Ruis, 3/75 Ranger

SSG William Cleveland, Jr. 160th SOAR

SSG Thomas Field, 160th SOAR

CW4 Raymond Frank, 160th SOAR

CW3 Clifton Wolcott, 160th SOAR

CW2 Donovan Briley, 160th SOAR

SGT Cornell Houston, 10th MTN DIV

PFC James Martin, 10th MTN DIV

The Somalis killed were unnamed and un-numbered, but estimates range from 315 to 2,000 KIAs.

The events of October 3, 1993 were memorialized in the movie Black Hawk Down.

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I just heard that Seed for Security is running a Harvest Stock-Up Sale. Their Colossal Security Pack is now priced at 20% off. This Pack is a total of over 5 pounds of vegetable, grain and herb seeds. All are open-pollinated and non-GMO. Included are three of their most popular collections: The Super Survival Pack, 4 Grain Collection, and the Heirloom Herb collection. This offer is for a limited time.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 109 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  4. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  5. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.
  6. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  2. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  3. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC.
  4. Montana Survival Seed is providing a $225 gift code for any items on its website, including organic non-GMO seeds, fossils, 1812-1964 US silver, jewelry, botany books, and Montana beeswax.
  5. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. A $300 gift certificate from Good2Goco.com, good for any of their products: Home freeze dryers, pressure canners, Country Living grain mills, Emergency Essentials foods, and much more.
  2. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  3. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

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More than $850,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. We recently polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 109 ends on November 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.