SurvivalRing News Update...

More new files have been added to the Civil Defense Now download section, and all the broken links are being fixed.  I have also been working on the NEXT generation of SurvivalRing, with entire new sections, new navigation layout, and lots more online resources for you.  Still in development is a database system for searching, listing, finding, and reading ALL the hundreds of megabytes of authentic civil defense and homeland security information that we have online right this very moment.  It is going to be amazing, I promise.  For a preview of the navigation and NEW areas, just click here!! (new window)

Radio
Probably the greatest news is that the SurvivalRing Radio Program is coming close to being a reality.  Since November of last year, I have been working part time as a radio announcer at a REAL radio station ( KTRZ in Riverton, Wyoming ), for the VERY specific reason of getting real world experience in writing, producing, recording and actually BEING a live radio host.  Of course, KTRZ is "only" a 100,000 watt FM station, and I'm "only" of the three main DJs, covering the 8pm to 5am shift, and certainly not least, our station signal covers "just" one-third of Wyoming...but I consider it swell training for my MAIN goal, of being "the source" of online preparedness and survival information with downloads, links, audio, and soon VIDEO.  SurvivalRing Radio is going to start small, but eventually will have full archive of available shows, either in MP3 format, or streamed.  Topics?  You name it...if I've mentioned it on the site, in emails, or in articles, it will be covered on SurvivalRing Radio.  I'll be interviewing all those same folks you've heard about for years, but without the sensationalistic, opportunistic angles that Art Bell or similar talk show hosts have used in years past. My goal, Facts...not Fiction.

College
My return to college is going great...a 4.0 GPA for the fall 2003, spring 2004 and summer 2004 semesters, which put me on the president's honor list at Central Wyoming College, as well as being invited to join the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society...something I *never* expected.  With this kind of luck ( and continued hard work, obviously ), I hope to get a few more scholarships (I have two small ones for next fall) to get even farther with my college goals. To top off this great turn of events, I just added "another" part time job to the list of current projects of "Richard's Career Enhancement Plan for the future". 

A TV Career
Starting a few months ago, I'm became a "Broadcast Assistant" for Wyoming Public TV.  It's only 10 to 18 hours a week, but it's simply one of the most astounding opportunities I've had yet to get my foot into the door of the media world.  WyoPTV is based here at the CWC campus, where I'm taking classes, and almost 97% of the state gets their public television signal from us.  My job is to sit in Master Control, maintain the logs and update them, grab shows from the main PBS satellites for rebroadcast, keep tabs on all the sat signals, servers, and video players, and even all the tapes for all the shows on a weekly basis.  In other words, I am responsible for the "entire" Wyoming PBS network when I'm on shift. How often does ANYONE get the chance to learn skills like THAT! And, if you read the previous post below, associated work with this job includes Production Assistant jobs that bring me into direct contact with very powerful folks, including the Governor of Wyoming.

Tools
And probably the my most favorite news, and best thing yet for EVERYONE...my tax refund came in, and I have finally, after almost 40 months, been able to upgrade to "state of the art" computer power.  My laptop, which I replaced with another used system last summer ( exact same make, model, speed, etc) with GREAT thanks to many of you who sent donations, and allowed me to be able to continue working on all the projects, is going to be put to rest ( meaning, sold on eBay). 

System
My new system, purchased as "factory recertified", via an online computer discounter I've dealt with for a couple of years now, is almost 3 gigahertz in speed, has 160 gigs of harddrive space, a DVD burner, CD Burner, 512 meg of ram, 128 meg video card, USB2.0, firewire, TV tuner card, and more, gives me ALL the power needed to create, edit, produce, market, and burn any and every video project I can come up with, create all the audio needed for the radio show, and literally handle ANY digital project I can dream up ( and believe me, you don't have enough waking hours available to hear MY list). 

Power
With the 80 gig external harddrive, and 52x external CD Burner I bought for the laptop staying with the new system, I can burn twice as many CD's, compile DVD data CD's of unbelievable content specs ( like half a million pages of documents on ONE DVD data disk with 4 gigs of storage), and have ONLINE and AVAILABLE nearly one quarter of a TERABYTE of info at my immediate disposal.   

In other words, yes, things are going well.  This new system, with extended 2 year warranty, and without a monitor ( I have 3 unused 17 inch moniters sitting around the dorm ), cost me only $900, and with my sale of the good laptop, the dead laptop, and the laptop accessory cards (USB 2.0 card, Realport Ethernet cards, etc.), I'll have less than $500 cash invested in this powerful system. 

Selling the laptop was the deal I made with my wife to enable me to get the new system, and still be able to use our refund and pay on all our other monetary needs ( 4 out 5 family members in college, one approaching wedding for my oldest son, minor car repairs, etc.).  The incredible power of this system, and sheer speed, will let me get that oh-so-behind scanning of all these HUNDREDS of unscanned civil defense documents sitting here in sealed boxes, DONE...faster, easier, and yes, better. 

You will be the recipient of the new documents, which is the BIGGEST reason for upgrading with the focus on POWER.

As always, you're continued support and interest of EVERYTHING I do with SurvivalRing, is why I KEEP doing it.  If it can be done, and it helps folks to learn ANY aspect of how to better take care of themselves in good, and bad, times, I will do what it takes to make sure EVERYONE has a chance to know about it.
 
Til Next Time,

Richard

 

Sometimes things just go good for a change.
 
Step One
 
On my end, Friday, June 16th was a very good day. I was in Cheyenne, Wyoming (the state capital) with Wyoming Public TV, as a production assistant, covering a special legislative session, and Friday was very exciting for me personally. We had a bit of slack time before taping in the afternoon, and we made a few rounds about the town.
 
First, one of my fellow cameraman and I dropped by the Herschner building, where a lot of the state's main offices are, and visited the main Wyoming Homeland Security office. I met the Head Guy there, and spent about a half hour with the Public Information officer, and explained to her what I was doing with my website, gave her two copies of the latest update of my CD, and expressed to her my interest in doing a documentary about Homeland Security as seen from the role of the private citizen, and how one can become more involved with any of the various aspects of local, regional, and state level organizations.
 
She was very receptive to it, and we exchanged email addresses, and she is going to make sure I have access to info, contacts, and any tools I can use for the video project. This would be a project that I would be putting together with the goal of gaining more video production experience for my college media production degree, as well as a possible project to be shown on our TV station sometime after it is done. I am really excited about the possibilities here.
 
Step Two
 
Around 4 in the afternoon, we had an appointment with the Governor, Dave Freudenthal, and I was the cameraman for the shoot, for a segment for our station's special news coverage of the legislative session. Afterwards, during the small talk, while we were putting the equipment back in the storage bags, I was able to talk to him for a few moments, and handed him a copy of the CD as well, and got a picture of he and I shaking hands with the State Seal right behind us. It was a big moment for me, and I hope it bodes well of good things to come.
 
Here's the picture...
 

 
( I'm the cute one on the left!)
 
Governor Dave, although a Democrat, seemed to be a heck of a guy. I met him once before (before he was governor) when I was working in his home town for a few days at the last restaurant I managed, and the guy is about as good as we can get for this state.
 
The one step back, as mentioned above, is quite interesting...
 
Also located here in Cheyenne is Warren Air Force Base...which just happens to be an ICBM nuclear missile base. While filming all the shows this week at the State Museum, we had a little time there. In the main entrance hall, is a very large display rack with brochures for nearly all the special and interesting places in the entire state of Wyoming.
 
One of these was a brochure for the Air Force Base, for the "ICBM missile museum" they have there. The brochure mentions free admission, and weekday hours, and "Bring the Family." Well, we went. And basically got the boot. Kicked off the base, that is...Outside the main gate is a visitors center, where every nonmilitary person must stop and check in.
 
Picture ID, vehicle registration, and car insurance verification must be provided, says the sign in the small parking lot.We park and walk in, paperwork in hand. There's a small line of about 6 folks.
 
We get up to the counter, and provide the paperwork, and show them the museum brochure, and ask if it is currently open today."Oh, no...you can't go in there. It's only open to military personnel, and those with military sponsors."
 
I assume a military sponsor is a family member in the military, or someone assigned by the military to give tours of the base to officials and preselected groups. I was wearing my travel vest with my "Official TV Station PRESS Pass" attached, but it didn't work.
 
The nice Air Force Lady behind the counter looked at us upon saying the above, than without saying another word, we knew we had to look for the nearest exit.
 
Maybe the fact that it WAS open to the public at some point (because of the plethora of those informational brochures) but is NOT now, should be SOME kind of DOT...I mean, they didn't even check my ID on their computer system, just glanced at the brochure, and said "No".Big Bummer.
 
I was really looking forward to this all week. Alas, it was not meant to be. NEXT time I come down this way, I am going to PREARRANGE an official tour, for that documentary video I am going to be working on.
 
Anyway, just wanted to let you folks know that A) your leaders in government ARE approachable...and B) Something is worrying Big Bro Big Time.
 
Just thought I'd share my two cents, after getting home late today...
 
Rich
Founder - SurvivalRing.org
http://www.survivalring.org

 
"Study Yesterday...Prepare Today...Live Tomorrow"