In this latest incarnation of a survivalist magazine, the two strands of the self-reliance movement are mixed up here with the glee of cognitive dissonance. You've got your pure survivalists, who run away from things (the government, Y2K, society in general), and now you've also got the greens, who run to society (rural values, ecotopia). So in one issue you'll get articles on solar-powered yurts, making your own soap, and the best "combat flashlights" used to temporarily blind an assailant, or software for training your long-range rifle skills. In between is material on outfitting four-wheel drives, diving for legal abalone, AC inverters, building your own home and other matters of living close to the land away from the crowd.

-- KK

Note: Self Reliance Journal went out of business since I wrote this review; extant subscriptions were taken over by Backwoods Home Magazine, which has very similar coverage of say, solar energy and guns. I'll do a proper review of BHM when I get to know it better.

Backwoods Home Magazine

Power Generator Lanterns
The new Liberty Power Generator unit is attached to the top of a lantern and heat from the lantern's flame produces enough electricity of run a portable AM/FM/short wave radio for as little as 1 cent per hour, providing a valuable alternative to battery power for radio communication or other electric needs. The generator has no moving parts to wear out, no batteries and needs no external power source, only the heat from the lantern's flame.