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Ragnar Benson is the pen name
Pen name

A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her writings, or for any of a number of...
 of a prolific non-fiction
Non-fiction

Non-fiction is an document or representation of a subject which is presented as fact. This presentation may be accurate or not; that is, it can give either a true or a false account of the subject in question....
 survivalist author that specializes in preparedness topics, particularly survival retreats
Retreat (survivalism)

A retreat is a commonly used term for a place of refuge for those in the Survivalism subculture or movement. Retreats are also sometimes called Bug-Out Locations ....
, trapping
Trapping

Trapping may refer to:* Animal trapping - The act of trapping animals* Spreading and choking - A prepress technique in printing, also called spreading and choking....
, austere medicine, false identification, explosives, firearms, and improvised weapons
Improvised weapons

Improvised weapons are devices that were not designed to be used as weapons but can be put to that use. They are generally used for self-defence or where the person is otherwise unarmed....
. Many of his books were published by Loompanics Unlimited
Loompanics

Loompanics Unlimited was an American book seller and publisher specializing in nonfiction on generally unconventional or controversial topics, with a philosophy arguably tending to a mixture of libertarian and left wing ideals, although Loompanics carried books expressing other political viewpoints as well as outspokenly apolitical ones....
 (which went out of business in 2004) and by Paladin Press
Paladin Press

Paladin Press, is a book publishing firm founded in 1970 by Peder Lund and Robert K. Brown. The company publishes non-fiction books and videos covering a wide range of specialty topics, including personal and financial freedom, survivalism and preparedness, firearms and shooting, various martial arts and self-defense, military and police tac...
. Both Benson and Paladin Press are controversial, because actually formulating or constructing many of the explosives and weapons that he describes would be illegal in most jurisdictions.






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Ragnar Benson is the pen name
Pen name

A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her writings, or for any of a number of...
 of a prolific non-fiction
Non-fiction

Non-fiction is an document or representation of a subject which is presented as fact. This presentation may be accurate or not; that is, it can give either a true or a false account of the subject in question....
 survivalist author that specializes in preparedness topics, particularly survival retreats
Retreat (survivalism)

A retreat is a commonly used term for a place of refuge for those in the Survivalism subculture or movement. Retreats are also sometimes called Bug-Out Locations ....
, trapping
Trapping

Trapping may refer to:* Animal trapping - The act of trapping animals* Spreading and choking - A prepress technique in printing, also called spreading and choking....
, austere medicine, false identification, explosives, firearms, and improvised weapons
Improvised weapons

Improvised weapons are devices that were not designed to be used as weapons but can be put to that use. They are generally used for self-defence or where the person is otherwise unarmed....
. Many of his books were published by Loompanics Unlimited
Loompanics

Loompanics Unlimited was an American book seller and publisher specializing in nonfiction on generally unconventional or controversial topics, with a philosophy arguably tending to a mixture of libertarian and left wing ideals, although Loompanics carried books expressing other political viewpoints as well as outspokenly apolitical ones....
 (which went out of business in 2004) and by Paladin Press
Paladin Press

Paladin Press, is a book publishing firm founded in 1970 by Peder Lund and Robert K. Brown. The company publishes non-fiction books and videos covering a wide range of specialty topics, including personal and financial freedom, survivalism and preparedness, firearms and shooting, various martial arts and self-defense, military and police tac...
. Both Benson and Paladin Press are controversial, because actually formulating or constructing many of the explosives and weapons that he describes would be illegal in most jurisdictions. Some of his books have been banned ("challenged") from importation into Canada, by the Customs Canada censors at the Connaught Building
Connaught Building

The Connaught Building is a historic office building in Ottawa, Canada. It is located on Sussex Drive just to the north of the Chateau Laurier and south of the Embassy of the United States in Ottawa....
. His book "Ragnar's Guide to Home and Recreational Use of High Explosives" was reportedly pulled from distribution in 1999.

Secretive Personal Life

Benson has revealed very few details of his background and personal life. His real name has not been revealed publicly. He was reportedly born in Indiana and was raised on a farm where dynamite was used for utilitarian purposes. As of 1999, he lived "...on nine acres in southern Idaho with his pet skunks and his wife and 100-plus guns of varying caliber." He was apparently the son of a German immigrant. (In his book Urban Survival he recounts some of his father's experiences growing up in Germany after World War I.)

Benson has apparently travelled extensively and has had no settled career. In the narrative of his book Bull's Eye: Crossbow, Benson mentions that he at one time worked as a mercenary
Mercenary

A mercenary is a person who takes part in an armed conflict, who is not a national or a party to the conflict, and is "motivated to take part in the hostilities essentially by the desire for private gain and, in fact, is promised, by or on behalf of a party to the conflict, material compensation substantially in excess of that promised or p...
 in Africa. In a rare interview with Salon magazine, he mentioned that he "...learned about man traps while serving as an agricultural specialist in rural Southeast Asia " Benson has also intermittently worked as a private investigator for more than 25 years. As of 1998, he was 60 years old.

Bibliography


  • Acquiring New ID : How To Easily Use The Latest Technology To Drop Out, Start Over, and Get On with Your Life ISBN 0873648943


  • Action Careers: Employment in the High-Risk Job Market


  • Breath Of The Dragon: Homebuilt Flamethrowers


  • Bull's Eye: Crossbow


  • David's Tool Kit: A Citizen's Guide to Taking Out Big Brother's Heavy Weapons


  • Do-It-Yourself Medicine: How to Find and Use the Most Effective Antibiotics, Painkillers, Anesthetics and Other Miracle Drugs... Without Costly Doctors' Prescriptions or Hospitals


  • Eating Cheap


  • The Greatest Explosions in History: Fire, Flash and Fury


  • Guerrilla Gunsmithing: Quick And Dirty Methods For Fixing Firearms In Desperate Times


  • Hardcore Poaching


  • Home-Built Claymore Mines: A Blueprint For Survival


  • Homemade C-4: A Recipe For Survival


  • Homemade Grenade Launchers: Constructing The Ultimate Hobby Weapon


  • Live Off The Land In The City And Country


  • Long Term Survival in the Coming Dark Age - Preparing to Live after Society Crumbles


  • Mantrapping


  • The Modern Survival Retreat


  • Modern Weapons Caching: A Down-To-Earth Approach To Beating The Government Gun Grab


  • The Most Dangerous Game: Advanced Mantrapping Techniques


  • New And Improved C-4: Better-Than-Ever Recipes For Half The Money And Double the Fun


  • Ragnar's Action Encyclopedia of Practical Knowledge and Proven Techniques (A compilation from some of his other books)


  • Ragnar's Big Book Of Homemade Weapons: Building And Keeping Your Arsenal Secure


  • Ragnar's Guide To Home And Recreational Use Of High Explosives


  • Ragnar's Guide To Interviews, Investigations, And Interrogations: How To Conduct Them, How to Survive Them


  • Ragnar's Guide to the Underground Economy


  • Ragnar's Homemade Detonators


  • Ragnar's Tall Tales


  • Ragnar's Ten Best Traps: And A Few Others That Are Damn Good Too


  • Ragnar's Urban Survival: A Hard-Times Guide to Staying Alive in the City


  • Survivalist's Medicine Chest


  • Survival Nurse: Running an Emergency Nursing Station Under Adverse Conditions


  • Survival Poaching


  • The Survival Retreat: A Total Plan For Retreat Defense


  • Switchblade: The Ace Of Blades


  • Switchblade: The Ace Of Blades (Revised Edition)


  • Starting a New Life in Rural America: 21 Things You Need to Know Before You Make Your Move


See also

  • Retreat (survivalism)
    Retreat (survivalism)

    A retreat is a commonly used term for a place of refuge for those in the Survivalism subculture or movement. Retreats are also sometimes called Bug-Out Locations ....
  • Survivalism
    Survivalism

    Survivalism is a commonly used term for the preparedness strategy and subculture of individuals or groups anticipating and making preparations for future possible disruptions in local, regional or worldwide social or political order....
  • Flamethrower
    Flamethrower

    A flamethrower is a mechanical device designed to project a long controllable stream of fire.Some flamethrowers project a stream of ignited liquid fuel; some project a long Liquefied petroleum gas flame....
  • Explosive
  • Shaped Charge
    Shaped charge

    A shaped charge is an explosive charge shaped to focus the effect of the explosive's energy. Various types are used to cut and form metal, initiate nuclear weapons, and penetrate armour....
  • Loompanics Unlimited
    Loompanics

    Loompanics Unlimited was an American book seller and publisher specializing in nonfiction on generally unconventional or controversial topics, with a philosophy arguably tending to a mixture of libertarian and left wing ideals, although Loompanics carried books expressing other political viewpoints as well as outspokenly apolitical ones....