The 4 Most Likely Ways You Can Die If the SHTF

Author: Tess Pennington
Source: Ready Nutrition
June 2011

The subject of survival in a long term disaster goes beyond having stockpiles of beans, bullets and band-aids. Those that do survive during a long term emergency will no doubt be tried and tested with a great many things. One of those trying scenarios is dealing with death.

Zombie attacks seem to be a prevalent theme for preppers to prepare for. In fact, the CDC has even posted a preparedness article on how to ward off zombie attacks. While I believe these zombies will likely take the form of substance abusers, mental patients, chronically ill or diseased, and desperate individuals whose basic needs have not been met, they will die out in the first few months of an onset of a  major disaster, and there presence will rarely be an issue in a long term situation.

In reality, a majority of those that will die during a long-term disaster will be from illnesses brought on by acute respiratory infections due to cramped living conditions, poor water conditions (or lack of), or bacterial infections from wounds. If we survive a major disaster, America would become a third world country and the aftermath of such a scenario will be similar to those living in Africa, Ethiopia and India.

Illness Due to Poor Water Conditions

Typically, any diseases that are brought on by lack of sanitation and hygiene are controllable and preventable. In a disaster where water sources are compromised, people within a 50 mile radius could be adversely impacted by illness and disease if just one person incorrectly handles water or incorrectly disposes of waste.  Contaminated water, poor sanitation and/or lack of hygeine leads to diseases such as Hepatitis A, viral gastroenteritis, cholera, Shigellosis, typhoid, Diphtheria and polio. If these diseases affect enough people, an epidemic will ensue.

Dehydration and diarrhea are also water-related matters to contend with. Those without adequate water conditions and/or are suffering from disease brought on by poor water conditions could quickly dehydrate. These types of illnesses typically affect at-risk populations such as children, the sick and the elderly. Young children in particular are at high risk for diarrhea and other food- and waterborne illnesses because of limited pre-existing immunity and behavioral factors such as frequent hand-to-mouth contact. The greatest risk to an infant with diarrhea and vomiting is dehydration. In addition, fever or increased ambient temperature increases fluid losses and speeds dehydration. Having knowledge beforehand on how to properly clean drinking water and food, and the symptomatology and treatment of these types of diseases can prevent further outbreaks from occurring.

Recommended preparedness items: water filtration systems, water purification tablets, chlorine granules, bleach, electrolyte or rehydration powders, anti-diarrea medicines.

Malnutrition

Malnutrition from either improper water conditions or from lack of nutrients is also a large killer amongst those in impoverished communities.  Medical experts say there is a symbiotic relationship between malnutrition and diarreah.  Malnutrition increases the severity of diarrhea while diarrhea can cause malnutrition. Either way, prevention for both of these health issues is key.

Those that are malnourished are more suseptible to illness and disease. Individuals who are malnourished will also be vitamin deficient and their health is likely to regress further. Those who survive from malnutrition are permanently affected by this disease and may suffer from recurring sickness, faltering growth, poor brain development, increased tooth decay, reduced strength and work capacity, and increased chance of chronic diseases in adulthood. Adult women with this condition will give birth to underweight babies.

Recommended preparedness items: dietary supplements, vitamin powders, seeds for sprouting or  seeds for fresh vegetables and fruits, survival bars, knowledge of alternative means to attain vitamins

Acute Respiratory Infections

Upper respiratory infections (URI) will also be a leading cause of death in a long term disaster. Upper respiratory infections include: colds, flu, sore throat, coughs and bronchitis can usually be cured with additional liquids, rest and nourishment. Allowing the illness to exacerbate will lead to secondary infections such as bacterial pneumonia. The germs from pneumonia are easily spread from an infected person to others by coughing or sneezing or through close contact. A major concern about respiratory infections is that there are many drug resistant strands of viruses, bacterias and diseases (including tuberculosis), that regular medicine will not cure.  In a long term disaster situation, many could perish.

To properly prepare for this type of medical situation, learn about the more prevalent viruses and bacterias in your country and how to prevent them in order to provide a healthy living environment in a long term situation.

Not only are URI’s a concern but other air-borne diseases such as tuberculosis will likely fester during a long term scenario. In regular non-SHTF times, treatment for tuberculosis requires 6-12 months of medication.  In a long term emergency, chances of surviving tuberculosis are slim. The best way to prevent tuberculosis is adequate nutrition, vitamin D and living in a properly ventilated shelter.

Survival groups that have multiple people living under one roof will only increase the likelihood of passing air-borne infections and diseases to one another. In addition, those in an at-risk group (elderly, immuno-deficient, infants) are more likely to catch illnesses.  If a survival group is sharing a home, an infirmary or sick room should be prepared for those who have fallen ill.  Isolating the person who is ill will limit exposure to the other members of the group. Adequate nutrition, water, rest, good sanitary practices and ventilation of the home is essential in curbing this.

Recommended preparedness items: decongestants, expectorants, upper respiratory medicines, antibiotics (for secondary and bacterial infections), knowledge on medicinal herbs, prepare a sick room at your survival homestead

Infections From Wounds

Open injuries have the potential for serious bacterial wound infections, including gas gangrene and tetanus, and these in turn may lead to long term disabilities, chronic wound or bone infection, and death.  Anitibiotics will be few and far between and will be more precious than gold.  Without proper medicines, antiseptic and knowledge on proper medical procedures, many will die of bacterial infections.  Learning medical skills, gaining knowledge on natural medicines and alternative medical antiseptic (i.e., Dakin’s Solution) before a disaster occurs could help people survive from wound infections. Also, ensuring the area that you treat medical emergencies is clean and as sterile as possible may also prevent bacterial infections.

Recommended preparedness items:  stock up on maxi pads for wound absorption, gauze, celox, antibiotics, suture needles and other basic first aid supplies.

Additionally, consider developing the following skills: basic first aid class, sign up for EMT classes in your community, an off-grid medical care class such as those offered by onPoint Tactical. Also, consider investing in books such as When There is No Doctor and When There is No Dentist.

Also look into making your own antiseptics utilizing alcohol distillation, such as the custom made units from LNL Protekt.

These illnesses (provided above) have impacted countries all over the world. These illness and conditions, coupled with unsanitary living conditions such as substandard sanitation, inadequate food and water supplies and poor hygiene, make disaster-affected people especially vulnerable to disease. These illnesses will affect us no matter what part of the world we live in, what socio-economic status we currently hold, and no matter how prepared we think we are.

Understanding what can happen and being prepared when it does is absolutely essential. The last thing we want to do when a serious condition arises is to panic. Preparing your supplies, developing your skills and educating the rest of your family and preparedness group on how to prevent, identify and counteract these serious conditions will provide a significant boost to your ability to survive if the worst happens.

Recommended Readings:

Patriot Nurse: 5 Diseases that Will Explode WTSHTF

Prevention and Management of Wound Infections

Water, Sanitation and Hygiene in Emergencies

Author: Tess Pennington
Web Site: http://www.ReadyNutrition.com/
Date: June 29th, 2011

Related Categories: Health and Safety, Potable Water, Preparedness, Vitamins and Nutrients

 

Related Reading:

• When There is No Doctor: SHTF Medical Planning
• The 4 Things You Must Eat To Avoid Malnutrition
• SHTF Survival: How to Prevent Infections
• Are You Ready Series: Pandemic Preparedness
• SHTF Survival: Women’s Health

Complete Disaster Non-Preparedness: DC Grocery Stores Out of Food, Gas Unavailable, Grid-Down As Summer Heat Rages

Author: Mac Slavo
Views: Read by 21,721 people
Date: July 2nd, 2012
Website: www.SHTFplan.com

We’ve seen it time and again over the last decade. An emergency strikes and panic grips the city or region for days or weeks on end.

We saw a complete breakdown of emergency response and law & order during Hurricane Katrina. The 2011 Snowpocalypse on the east coast led to runs on grocery stores and empty shelves within a matter of hours. Widespread blackouts during Hurricane Ike left large sections of the Houston power grid down for up to four weeks. In all these cases gas was almost impossible to find, what was in your pantry was what you had until food distribution resumed, local water was not safe for consumption, and government response was limited to reinstating essential services first and foremost.

The bottom line, as Jesselyn Radack of the Government Accountability Project notes, is that after billions have been spent by Department of Homeland Security, FEMA and local law enforcement, we are no more prepared today than we were the day before September 11, 2011.

After a short but unusually severe thunderstorm that roared through the D.C. area on Friday night, the entire Washington Metropolitan Area was thrown into chaos.

Three days later, countless traffic lights are still out, hundreds of thousands of residents are without power, including myself, grocery stores and gas station are closed for lack of power, and the federal government is encouraging employees to telework.

[SHTFplan Editor’s note: Brilliant recommendation from the best and brightest – to “telework” when the grid is down. ]

…

Is this the work of a terrible terrorist attack? No, it is the complete disaster non-preparedness a decade after 9/11. Despite the fact that billions if not trillions have been spent since 9/11 on counter-terrorism and so-called “homeland security” measures, one of the major terrorist targets, the nation’s capital, cannot cope with a severe thunderstorm.

…

I received a message from PEPCO that most D.C.-area residents may not have power until next Friday at 11:00 pm – a full week after the storm hit. With temperatures this week set for the mid to upper-90s, that is a long time for residents to be with air conditioning, or fans, or refrigerators.

Two years ago, the Washington Post’s comprehensive examination of the billions of taxpayer dollars spent on “homeland security,” “Top Secret America” reflected that the D.C. metropolitan area was burgeoning with infrastructure, though apparently none of it focused on keeping the D.C.-area up and running after a severe thunderstorm.

…

I am not the only D.C. taxpayer wondering, where are billions in “critical infrastructure” protection and “homeland security?” They are not going toward obvious solutions like putting power lines underground.

The D.C. area’s responsiveness to unexpected events has not improved, but taxpayers’ pockets have been drained to create an entire secret city of “national security” in northern Virginia. Making sure citizens have food and power in an emergency should be a top priority, not a distant second to security theater like taking our shoes off before getting on an airplane.

(Pictured: Run on grocery stores; Snowpocalypse 2010)

Once again we are provided with ample evidence that not only is the government ill-prepared to handle a large scale city-wide emergency, but the residents of this nation are completely oblivious to the fact that if the shit hits the fan, no one will be there to provide assistance.

When Houston was hit almost head on by Hurricane Ike in 2008 the residents of the entire metropolitan area were shocked. Never mind the mass chaos as millions tried to flee the region, with drives to neighboring cities taking upwards of ten times longer than they normally would. Power for 90% of the city went out, and for some areas, including where we lived, power was not restored for almost a month. Suffice it to say our community was anxiety ridden, frustrated and tempers were flaring. When gas became wholly unavailable and the generators stopped running and we were overtaken with near 100 degree heat during the day, the situation for many became untenable.

FEMA’s own web site calls on Americans to have a two week supply of emergency items, yet most citizens have only a three day supply of reserve food available – whatever’s in the kitchen when disaster strikes is what they’ve got until things get back to normal.

Even after these recommendations from the very people who are tasked with responding to emergency and disaster situations, not a single resident in our community that we were aware of had emergency supplies on hand when Ike hit – even though many had gone through countless hurricanes before and knew what to expect.

After Katrina, Ike, the various earthquakes, wildfires, snow storms, “Derechos,”  power outages, and tens of billions in taxpayer funds supposedly appropriated into infrastructure, security and emergency response, it’s simply incredible that we are so unprepared as a society.

Imagine, for a moment, what happens in a scenario that affects not a single city, but an entire multi-state region, or, perhaps the entire nation. And imagine that the event(s) is so widespread that government is totally overwhelmed – food transportation stops, refineries can’t get gas to local areas, water and power utility workers stay home to care for their families, law enforcement is faced with widespread looting, the internet becomes inaccessible as do all avenues of communication due to blackouts, and grocery store shelves remain out of stock for weeks or months.

Such a scenario may be unlikely, but certainly possible – and the resulting effects on the population and our way of life would be nothing short of complete and utter pandemonium, especially for those who have failed to prepare.

Author: Mac Slavo
Views: Read by 21,721 people
Date: July 2nd, 2012
Website: www.SHTFplan.com

Copyright Information: Copyright SHTFplan and Mac Slavo. This content may be freely reproduced in full or in part in digital form with full attribution to the author and a link to http://www.shtfplan.com. Please contact us for permission to reproduce this content in other media formats.

Related articles

• My Workplace Disaster: Surviving Hurricane Ike (thedailymuse.com)
• Many in the region still in the dark (limaohio.com)
• Complete Disaster Non-Preparedness: DC Grocery Stores Out of Food, Gas Unavailable, Grid-Down As Summer Heat Rages (sgtreport.com)

Bee Lining: Simply Math Could Save Your Life

Bees Like John (The Baptist), by Mike The Bee Shepherd

Source: Survival Blog

 In a true TEOTWAWKI situation, many people will naturally resort to hunting and fishing to procure food. The increased hunting pressure will make many animals nocturnal and quickly deplete the populations of wild game. There is, however, one overlooked source of food that flies completely under the radar by even the most seasoned survivalists.  It tastes delicious, lasts forever,  replenishes itself to be harvested again and again, is a phenomenal barter item,  and can be found in every state in America.  I am talking about wild honey! The Bible says that this is the food that sustained John the Baptist during his time in the wilderness and that’s all the endorsement I need.

Allow me to give you a quick primer on honey.  Honey has roughly 1,376 calories per pound. It is not uncommon for a healthy colony of bees to produce 60 to 80 pounds of surplus honey in a good season. That equates to 60-80 days of life sustainment for one person from one hive.  Honey has an indefinite shelf life. Honey found in the tombs of Egyptian kings was found to be perfectly edible. Honey also has multiple uses. Besides its obvious value as a food item, honey can be fermented to make mead (honey wine) which can be further distilled to make ethanol fuel.   Honey also has antibacterial qualities since it contains trace amounts of hydrogen peroxide and it was reportedly used by Roman Soldiers to pack sword wounds.  Honey can and will crystallize over time since it is a super saturated solution but you can easily restore it back to liquid form by gently heating it. Did I mention that Winnie the Pooh loves the stuff?

I think it’s safe to say that John the Baptist didn’t get his honey from the local food co-op or Piggly Wiggly. Our ancestors didn’t have the luxury of buying bees from the Internet and having them shipped in a tidy box via UPS, instead they used an ancient technique known as “bee lining”.  Locusts may not travel in a straight line but fortunately for us, the honey bee generally does.  It is this straight-line behavior that we can utilize to lead us back to the proverbial “honey-hole”.  There are numerous techniques for bee lining and although I doubt John the Baptist used trigonometry to locate his wild bees, we can.  Do you remember the days back in high school when you were plodding with contempt through trigonometry homework and thinking to yourself “I will never use this”?  Personally, I would rather have watched paint dry as I was never very adept at math. I don’t think I could count all my protruding body parts and get the same number twice. I am now man enough to admit that I was wrong.  A little simple math can reveal the bee’s secret location.

Bees predominantly forage when the weather is nice so do not waste your time trying to do this in the rain. It takes honey to make honey! You need to start with a sweet solution of sugar or honey and water (dissolved 1:1).  Put this solution on a small piece of sponge in the center of a bowl.  Set the bowl with sugar baited sponge in an open area and wait. The wind will carry the scent to foraging bees.  The first time a honey bee takes her fill, she will fly up in ever widening circles trying to remember the landmarks so she can lead her sisters back to the source.  It helps them if you wear brightly colored clothes as they will use you as a landmark. The exception to this is the color red as bees cannot see the color red. You can get a very rough estimate of the distance to the hive by timing the round trip time between the first bees departure to its return. 3-5 minutes is generally indicative of a quarter-mile, 5-10 minutes a half-mile, and 15 minutes or more indicates a distance of at least one mile. Once the bee communicates the source of food to the hive, the whole family will join in and you should see an ever increasing volume of bees visiting your bowl. Take out a compass and note the direction that the bees are flying in between the dish and the hive. Shoot an azimuth and note the azimuth (in degrees) on a map. Write a line from your current position out a few miles indicating the bee’s current flight path. (We will call this line SIDE “A”) The hive is obviously somewhere along this line. Once you have 15 or 20 bees in your bowl you can place a cover on the bowl thus capturing the bees. Take your captured bees and walk 50 yards in a line that is exactly perpendicular to the bee’s line of flight. (It is very important that you are exactly 50 yards as this will figure into our equation later)  Jotting this line down on the same map as the bee’s azimuth would now form an “L” with your new position now being at the bottom right edge of the “L”. (We will call this bottom line SIDE “B”).  Now do your best to release just a few bees at a time from your new position and again shoot an azimuth with your compass.  Writing this line down on the map should now give you a right triangle with the right angle being in the base of the “L”. This last line SIDE “C” is the hypotenuse of our right triangle. The angle that you need to figure out is in the bottom inside right corner of your triangle (where you are now standing). We will call this angle “a”.  You can use a protractor on the map to determine this angle (angle “a”).  Once we have the bottom right inside angle of our triangle, we need to do a little math to determine where our new line (SIDE “C”) intersects with our very first line (SIDE “A”). This intersection will be the exact location of the hive.  The formula to figure this is:
SIDE “C”= SIDE “B” / cosine (angle “a”)
So let’s say that we used our protractor on the map and determined that SIDE “C” made a 47 degree angle with SIDE “B”. This means that angle “a” is 47 degrees. We also know that SIDE “B” equals 50 yards.
SIDE “C” = 50 yards / cos (47)
SIDE “C” = 73 yards

Our wild bees are approximately 73 yards from our current position at the point where our last azimuth intersects with our first azimuth.  Now we can bring our bowl to that spot and use our ears and eyes to look for the entrance to the hive. Many old time bee liners claim to hear the hive before they see it.  Now finding the cosine of an angle usually requires a scientific calculator (solar powered scientific calculators are available for five or six dollars). To make life easier, I have created a lookup table that automatically converts the degrees of angle “a” into the exact distance to the hive so no cosine calculation is necessary. This table will only be accurate if you walk exactly 50 yards (150 feet) to form SIDE “B”. I have printed a small version of this table and laminated it to keep in my wallet. The table follows:

 

Once we find our bees we need to don our protective gear. It might be a good time to mention that this should not to be done by anyone with bee sting allergies and I always carry two Epi-Pens with me just in case. A simple Tyvek painter’s suit sold for a few dollars at Home Depot will provide protection that is comparable to most commercial bee suits. Be sure to get the suit with the built in hood. Purchase some nitrile gloves as they are more puncture resistant than either latex or vinyl and are the choice of medical professionals to prevent needle sticks. A simple mosquito head net worn over a ball cap completes the outfit. Many beekeepers remove hives with no protective gear whatsoever but this is not recommended for the novice.  Tie some dry grass together tightly and light it on fire. Extinguish the flames so that it makes smoke. Fan this smoke into the hive entrance. This will trick the bees into thinking their home is on fire and they will immediately gorge themselves with honey in preparation of seeking a new home. This causes the bees to become very docile. Would you want to get into a fistfight after eating Thanksgiving dinner?  At this point, you may need to enlarge the access hole to reach the comb. It is preferable to only remove a portion of the honey and to do it without destroying the colony so that we can come back for more later. Remember that the bees need honey to survive throughout the winter and without sufficient stocks, they will die. This is the equivalent to shooting your cash cow.

Take the honey comb back to process the honey. You can eat it right in the comb or you can employ the crush and strain method. Whichever you do, do it indoors otherwise you will create a swarm of bees all looking to rob your honey.  Crush the comb and strain it through a paint strainer or cheese cloth. Make sure that at least three quarters of your honeycomb is capped. The bees cap the comb once they have the moisture content down to 18% or less. The uncapped portion is still nectar but with a much higher moisture content. Uncapped nectar can be eaten if done right away but it does not store as it will ferment from the natural yeasts that are present. The wax can then be utilized to make everything from candles to lip balm (again, outside the scope of this article).

Some people see the face of God in the clouds.  I see Him in the bees.  They are an amazing gift to us and they have been sustaining man for thousands of years.  God’s Manna from heaven was reputed to have honey in it and the best land was referred to “the land of milk and honey”.  When you realize that one out of every three bites of food you eat is a byproduct of honey bee pollination, you get a picture for how important they are to our sustainment.  Mr. Rawles, please forgive the unabashed plug but if you are interested in learning more about honey bees or about purchasing wild honey you can visit my web site, The Bee Shepherds.

5 Ways To Avoid Being A Darwin Award Winner

I’ve been an honorable mention candidate for a “Darwin Award” numerous times. I’ve done stupid stuff. At one point I was 50 pounds overweight and a miserable specimen for survival. My feet hurt. Who could blame them. They had to slowly toot 220 pounds – 50 more than the manufacturer’s recommended weight load. I had fallen from fitness grace! While being that overweight is not healthy, it’ll be deadly in a survival situation. And this year’s Darwin Award goes to…. [Don’t insert your name here!].

Years of stupid caught up with me. I was an average athlete in high school and college. Growing up active, I never thought I’d allow this to happen to me. I still remember talking to a seasoned counselor at the summer camp I worked at during college. This wiser, older counselor (mid 30’s – it’s all relative, right?) who had “built a shed over his tools” with 30 extras pounds spoke the ‘truth’ about growing older. He himself had been where I was, young, fit and full of life. “Wait ’til you get a mortgage and kids. You’ll look like me.” Why I remember this so many years later is that his perception and ‘truth’ had become mine. Only I had added 50 lbs. instead of 30.

When I discovered “The Primal Blueprint” by Mark Sission, my lifestyle did a 180. The purpose of this post is not to dissect his book or bash fat people. If your interested, you’ll check it out. It’s your life. I just know it worked for me. One of the Mark’s rules for primal living is to avoid doing stupid stuff. Here are five amazingly simple steps to keep your name off the Darwin Award Winner list.

A) Avoid doing stupid stuff

Some of the advice I read in the PrepperSphere only reinforces my theory of species-wide extinction. Note: I don’t claim to be an expert on anything. Read my writing at your own risk. My goal is to prove what works for me, and maybe you’ll try it. Or not. Now, onto more stupid stuff.

A really stupid idea I see promoted is the Bug-Out-Bag strategy. Hey, wait a minute! Don’t you have a BOB. Yes I do. Doesn’t that make you a hypocrite? No. Here’s why. I can carry mine. It’s not loaded with the latest mall-ninja throwing death stars. For the I’m-gonna-grab-my-BOB-and-live-off-the-land types who’s longest ‘run’ was to the Frigidaire, extinction awaits. If you’re last push-up consisted of pushing a frozen treat on a stick out of a sleeve, you should rethink your lifestyle (re-read the third paragraph). Your bug-out plan may be doomed. You’d do better sheltering in place and take your chances against the hungry hoards.

Again, I’m not hating on the plump preppers among us. Just trying introducing some common sense. The place to pick up free hiking gear is about two miles in on the AT. That’s where you’ll find the offloading zone. Either hikers packed unnecessary items (added weight), or were in poor physical shape and lightened the load to survive the next hill.

If you’re not a Sherpa, don’t try this!

Our retreat is a two-hour drive under rule of law conditions. When the brown stuff hits the fan, two hours could turn into two days or weeks. To make it there with family intact, there’s the possibility we’d have to hump the 95 miles – with packs – under crazy circumstances. The most desirable plan would be to physically live at your retreat location. If “ifs” and “buts” were candy and nuts…

B) Become A Producer. If you know how to make stuff, then Less Is More. This is 180 thinking. All the food, water, ammo, and medical supplies will eventually disappear from your basement bunker. I advocate stocking up on all these items in the good times. Put all the hay in the barn while it’s still daylight. But what happens when you run out? and you will run out in a prolonged spell of TEOTWASKI.

Wouldn’t it be smart to learn as many sustainable skills as possible. Wouldn’t you be popular among your smelly survivor groupies at your hide y-hole if you had the know-how and ability to make soap from scratch. Saponification anyone? You can only store so much soap, toothpaste, toilet paper, beans, bullets, and band-aids. Eventually someone will have to produce some stuff to consume. Hygiene products in long-term grid-down situations will be huge. Produce soap or barter with those who do.

Two of the oldest chemical companies got their start making soap. William Colgate (1806) and William Proctor and James Gamble (1837) kicked off their careers being producers. They made stuff – soap and candles. We’re still using their products today. Be a producer.

C) Don’t Panic. Loose your head = loose of life. Common sense is usually the first thing to collapse. While I’m not an expert in all things survival and preparedness, I try not to hit the panic button too often.

Get your hand off that!

The other day the wife and I were canning dilly beans. Ingredients ready. Jars, lids, and bands – check. Then I freaked out. I didn’t remember how much water to put in the new All American Pressure Canner. For those expert canners snickering right now… Stop it! Seems like a small thing, but I panicked. I rumbled through drawers and finally found the guidebook. I was reading the first half and told my wife to scan the back part – all at the same time! In hindsight, it was comical to see us scrambling. I was afraid I’d blow up the cooker with wrong water level.

Lesson: Know all the steps before the heat is turned up…and don’t panic. We made it through the process and learned from failure. Which brings us to my next point.

D) Fail Forward. My panic above taught me valuable lessons. My life has taught me to embrace failure. Trial and error is how we learn, discover, and invent. It’s never too late to learn new skills. The hardest hurdle is the fear of failure. At age 80, Moses lead his people out of slavery. Thomas Edison didn’t invent a filament for his light bulb on the first try. It’s highly likely, no – insured, that we will fail. Our attitude about failure determines which way we fall. Attitude determines altitude (sorry, a throwback from my coaching days).

My wife’s doctors have given her a 15% chance of beating cancer. Stupid odds. What do you do with news like that? We’re failing forward. With every setback, we regroup, re-think, and move one step towards our goal. It’s crazy scary. She’s a lover of life. She inspires me daily. She fails forward.

Failure when things are “normal” is just a bump in the road. In a survival situation, it becomes a mountain. Learn while it’s “normal” and life is good.

E) Grease The Groove of Preparedness. Prepping is a lifestyle. I guess some view it as a hobby. That’s how I started. It’s was a hobby. Then it became a lifestyle. How can we turn prepping into an effortless lifestyle? Grease the groove.

I first heard “grease the groove” when I started living a primal lifestyle. The idea comes from the world of exercise. It’s a process of progressing, step by step, to reach a given goal. Example: Two years and 50 pounds ago I could not do a single pull up. I installed a pull up bar in my shop and vowed to attempt a pull up every time I entered – which was several times a day. Even at work, I’d find a ledge or object from which to hang. I finally progressed to one pull up. It became a fun challenge to see how many places I could grease the groove.

How does this apply to prepping? When I walk into stores (especially thrift stores and yard sales) now, I look at items differently. How can I use this item in my preps? Does it have multiple uses? How many ways can I use that bandana in a survival situation? Would that cigar sleeve serve me in my BOB? Can I operate my sidearm in the dark? I can if I grease the groove.

Mentally and physically rehearse and practice until muscle memory takes over. I can start a fire with several methods. But if my hands are freezing in the rain/sleet, I might panic if I haven’t greased the groove. Hypothermia kills. Reminds me of the scene in “Jeremiah Johnson” when he found the 50 cal. in the frozen hands of the old mountain man.

Grease the groove to avoid a Darwin Award my friends.

Start early, practice often

Thoughts?

 

 

10 Things That We Can Learn About Shortages and Preparation From The Economic Collapse In Greece

A little light reading for you today…

Source: The Economic Collapse Blog

Date: 06 June 2012

10 Things That We Can Learn About Shortages And Preparation From The Economic Collapse In Greece

When the economy of a nation collapses, almost everything changes.  Unfortunately, most people have never been through anything like that, so it can be difficult to know how to prepare.  For those that are busy preparing for the coming global financial collapse, there is a lot to be learned from the economic depression that is happening right now in Greece.  Essentially, what Greece is experiencing is a low level economic collapse.  Unemployment is absolutely rampant and poverty is rapidly spreading, but the good news for Greece is that the global financial system is still operating somewhat normally and they are getting some financial assistance from the outside.  Things in Greece could be a whole lot worse, and they will probably get a whole lot worse before it is all said and done.  But already things have gotten bad enough in Greece that it gives us an idea of what a full-blown economic collapse in the 21st century may look like.  There are reports of food and medicine shortages in Greece, crime and suicides are on the rise and people have been rapidly pulling their money out of the banks.  Hopefully this article will give you some ideas that you can use as you prepare for the economic chaos that will soon be unfolding all over the globe.

The following are 10 things that we can learn about shortages and preparation from the economic collapse in Greece….

#1 Food Shortages Can Actually Happen

Most people assume that they will always be able to run out to their local supermarket or to Wal-Mart and get all of the supplies they need.

Unfortunately, that is a false assumption.  The truth is that our food distribution system is extremely vulnerable.

In Greece, many people are starting to totally run out of food.  Even some government institutions (such as prisons) are now reporting food shortages.  The following was originally from a Greek news source….

The financing for many prisons has decreased to a minimum for some months now, resulting in hundreds of detainees being malnourished and surviving on the charity of local communities.

The latest example is the prison in Corinth where after the supply stoppage from the nearby military camp, the prisoners are at the mercy of God because, as reported by prison staff, not even one grain of rice has been left in their warehouses. When a few days earlier the commander of the camp announced to the prison management the transportation stoppage, citing lack of food supplies even for the soldiers, he shut down the last source of supply for 84 prisoners. The response of some Corinth citizens was immediate as they took it upon themselves to support the prisoners, since all protests to the Justice ministry were fruitless.

#2 Medicine Is One Of The First Things That Becomes Scarce During An Economic Collapse

If you are dependent on medicine in order to survive, you might want to figure out how you are going to get by if your supply of medicine is totally cut off someday.

Read the rest of the article here

DIY Preparedness: Cigar Survival Fishing Kit

by Todd Walker

Improving on a great idea is what I tried to do.

The idea for my last fishing kit for my bug out bag came from Dave Canterbury. It was made of PVC, which was very sturdy, but weighed more than I liked. This summer I wanted to trim the weight on my BOB. It’s not going to be ultralight, but every pound I trim only makes humping that thing easier. So the first piece I tackle is my…um…my fishing tackle.

Step A: Assemble materials. I looked for a lightweight tube for a couple of weeks. I didn’t want glass. Plastic would work. Aluminum would be even better. I found a plastic tube that held a watch on a shopping trip with my wife. I bought it for $5.oo and ditched the cheap watch. The problem with the plastic tube is I would not be able to use it for boiling water in a survival situation.

Then we stopped by the adult beverage store for some wine. This place also has a nice humidor with a great selection of cigars. *Aha Moment*

We spent the next five minutes rummaging through stogies looking for the perfect candidate. I needed it to be long enough and with sufficient diameter to hold the necessary fish-catching supplies. I found a cigar, which I enjoy from time to time, with a great tube. It measures 1 inch in diameter by 6 1/4 inches long tube. Being aluminum, I can use it to boil water in a pinch. The picture below shows the difference in sizes of the old PVC kit (bottom) and the new one completed.

Old PVC kit vs. New Cigar Kit

Here’s what I used to assemble my kit: Cigar sleeve, duct tape, bank line, electrical tape, 10# fishing line, strike anywhere matches, fire starter (more details about this item later), dry flies, artificial lizard, non-lead weights, 3 types of fishing hooks, metal leader, swivels, 2 floats/bobbers, and a snack size zip-lock baggie.

Material needed

Assembly Process

Step A: Wrap the screw end (or non-rounded end) with about 3 or 4 feet of duct tape. Do I even have to tell you about all the uses for this miracle survival material?  I keep strips of it in my cars, wallet, desk, almost every where I go. Duct tape may not help you catch fish, but I’m sure it’s possible with a little creativity. It’s a utility player that should be on and in every preppers gear and bags.

Step B: Tie a slip knot on the end of your bank line (don’t forget to burn the nylon end to prevent unraveling) and tighten it around the tube next to the duct tape. Wind about 50 to 100 feet of line onto the tube. I used closer to 50 feet to keep the profile of the tube even. Bank line can be used for limb hooks and trot lines in a true survival situation. This allows for passive fishing while you attend to other tasks. [NOTE: Check your local fishing and game laws during times of rule of law before using these methods.]

The bank line can also be used for a makeshift fly rod (and other cordage needs). Simply cut a sapling about 8 feet, attach 10 feet of bank line to the end, add a piece of mono filament line to the bank line with one of the dry flies in the kit and you have a hillbilly fly rod rig. When no bait is available for your hooks, use this rig to catch smaller pan fish to use for bait on limb hooks. This is very enticing for larger fish and turtles.

Step C: Secure the bank line to the tube with a couple of wraps of electrical tape. Again, more tape to use as needed.

Step D: Now you’re ready to add the mono filament fishing line. I used 10# line. I wouldn’t recommend anything below 6# line. In a survival situation, the last thing you want to see is a decent sized fish run with 4# line and snap it off. An old technique I’ve used for years is to lay the line inside a book and reel the line onto the tackle. I did this for the cigar tube as well. Tie a slip knot on the end of the fishing line and secure it to the tube where you taped off the bank line. Start rotating the tube to add line. I guess you could wind the line on the tube with you free hand. I prefer to roll the line on by rotating the tube with my finger tips from both ends of the tube. I’m a little OCD. I think the line might accumulate more kinks if you wind it on with you free hand.

Add line until you get within one inch of the rounded end of the tube, then double back over the existing line. I added about 50 feet of line to my rig. Next, add a layer of electrical tape to secure the line to the kit. A wide rubber band might work, but I like the tape.

50 feet of mono-filament line going on

Below is the finished exterior of the kit. By the way, if you haven’t purchased and read “Boston’s Gun Bible“, do so now. It’s one of my top go-to books for prepping.

Fishing line taped

Step E: Place the strike-anywhere matches, fire starter (more details about this item later), dry flies, artificial lizard, non-lead weights, 3 types of fishing hooks, and swivels in a snack size zip-lock baggie. Squeeze the air out by rolling it toward the top of the bag. Seal the bag and slide into the tube.

Contents in a zip lock bag

Step F: Screw end-cap onto tube and wrap with electrical tape for a water-tight seal.

Screw cap taped

Fire Starter Note: I made the fire starter that guarantees fire. It’s jute twin that was saturated with paraffin wax. It literally only takes a spark to get a flame going. Just cut a one inch piece, unravel, and “fluff” to create more surface area for your spark. Another added bonus is that it even lights in wet conditions. I have bundles in all my kits. You never know when you’ll need to cook up those fish you just caught with your new Cigar Survival Fishing Kit!

Got any suggestions to make this better? Please add them in the comment section. Thanks!

Keep Doing the Stuff,

Todd

P.S. – You can also keep up with the Stuff we’re Doing on Twitter, Pinterest, Google +, and our Facebook page… and over at the Doing the Stuff Network on Pinterest, Google +, and Facebook.

P.P.S – If you find value in our blog, Dirt Road Girl and I would appreciate your vote on Top Prepper Sites! You can vote daily by clicking here or on the image below. Check out all the other value-adding sites while you’re there…

Thanks for Sharing the Stuff!

Copyright: Content on this site (unless the work of a third-party) may be shared freely in digital form, in part or whole, for non-commercial use with a link back to this site crediting the author. All links in articles must remain intact as originally posted in order to be republished. If you are interested a third-party article, please contact the author directly for republishing information.

For TEOTWAWKI, Do The Easy Stuff First, by Dale Martin

Below is a great post by Dale Martin over at Survival Blog! Dale Martin is the author of several books, including Every Man’s Guide to Outdoor Survival. I just bought the Kindle edition for $2.99. Mr. Martin has written other books such as The Trapper’s Bible: Traps, Snares & Pathguards.

Source: Survival Blog

Author: Dale Martin

Date: 30 May 2012

Permalink | Print

There are a lot of things to be fearful of in this old world.  But, for most of us Joe Average North Americans, there are things we believe that are likely to happen, and many other events that are a lot less likely.
Most of us are not all that worried about a magnetic pole shift, the Mayan calendar ending this year, the Yellowstone super volcano, or an alien invasion from outer space.  It’s not that all those things are impossible, but there are threats that are simply a lot more probable.

Mr. and Mrs. Joe Average (the people that don’t have their heads stuck in the sand in denial) are most worried about an economic collapse.  Joe knows these events have happened historically in our own country (1929), as well as many other countries.  He is not so rigid as to think it can’t happen again.

In the current world, Joe hears about it from many different media outlets.  Prior to the last few years, since around 2008, Joe never heard such dire thoughts from any media source, much less from the now countless sources.  He knows the causes could be myriad, and everyone out there has a theory and a prediction.  It might be “just” a hard economic downturn like the Great Depression, and there still might be basic law and order.  Or, it could be truly apocalyptic social disintegration.  Joe is not so arrogant as to think he knows how all the countless variables will turn out.  He might not know what the eventual “tipping point” will be, but neither is he is oblivious to what is happening in the world around him.  He sees the signs.  A recent poll indicated that nearly 50% of Americans believe there will be an economic collapse within their lifetimes.  Many see it as imminent.
Joe, being a practical sort, has stored up a little extra food, water, and supplies, including outdoor gear.  Joe and his family would much rather “bug in” than “bug out”, but he can envision a social collapse where that choice might not be his to make.  He especially knows that if the power grid were to go down, all bets are off.  Joe, trying to look ahead, can foresee a time when cities might become dangerous places, at least for a fairly extended period of time.  Though he can see this possible future, he is still more than a little reticent about the thought of bugging out his family to a remote location in a “live off the land” scenario.

However, Joe, as I have described him, has a lot more going for him than he might think if he has to put into action his bug-out plan to a remote area.  Less than 2% of the population has made any preparations for such an event.  Joe has; at least to some degree.  When he reaches his bug-out location, he has food, water, and camping gear.  He also has a little basic fishing and hunting gear.  He may not have enough for months or years, but he has some.  Most of the population will have virtually zero.

Also, he has been thinking about all the “what ifs” this new world might bring.  Again, that is a lot more than the other 98% out there who think preppers are ignorant idiots who are wasting their time.  Those folks believe the government will “do something” so that it won’t get that bad.  Yeah, right.

Even for Joe, however, life in the wilderness won’t be a picnic, especially for months on end.  Joe, like the rest of us, will need a little change of mindset.  We will all have to realize that at least some of the rules have changed.

The following is a list of “possibles” to think about.  These are all situation oriented.  Obviously, what to do will depend on the exact situation we find ourselves in, and none of us can really predict that.  We have to prepare for a little of everything, but we don’t need to go out of our way to make it any more back-breaking than it has to be.

The mantra of this list is:   Use common sense, do the Easy Stuff First.

(1)  Joe needs to go to water.  Most of us live within a few miles of a stream, river, lake, creek, or even just a pond.  The easiest stuff to successfully accomplish is almost always near water.  Obviously, this won’t help if you are stranded in the Mojave, but Joe has transportation.  Find water.
(2)  Joe needs to clear his mind of at least some old precepts.  Not many people are going to be able to take their trusty bolt action rifle (that has been in the closet for years) and go out and get a deer every couple of weeks to feed their family.  Many people think they could, but it is really unrealistic for most of us.  There might be a few exceptions.  There are a few areas of the country that are simply teeming with large game, but those areas are extremely few and far between.  Even in those areas, there will be a lot of other people competing for that same game in a TEOTWAWKI situation.  Again, think easy.  Hunting is, in most instances, a fair amount of work.  You want to conserve calories, not expend them.
(3)  After setting up his camp, Joe should try water resources.  It is generally easier to obtain protein in (or near) water than elsewhere.  Try tiny hooks for small fish.  Almost any water source will have perch or other small fish.  I have caught many small perch by using bait I scrounged up at the site such as grasshoppers, grubs, crickets, etc.  Once, I used a petal off of a very tiny white flower (or weed) I found in the grass.  All you have to catch with this improvised bait is one of these tiny fish, and then you can cut it into tiny pieces for better bait.  Once you have these tiny pieces of fish flesh for bait, you can generally catch all you want of the little buggers.  Does it matter that you can only catch 3 inch fish?  In the old world, it would not have gotten you any bragging rights, but now is a whole new ball game.  A skillet full will be good, and will conserve the canned goods and MREs you brought with you.
After all, most of us Joe Averages out there have an immediate family of five or less.  Most Joes won’t be trying to feed forty people.
(4)  Joe will have started off with a success; not a failure.  It is, admittedly, a small success, but at least it is a positive outcome, not effort expended that produced nothing.  Failures breed worry and panic.  A positive outcome will help not only Joe’s attitude, but also his wife and children.  If the kids (and their Mom) see an initial positive outcome, it eases their minds.  On the other hand, if they see Dad fail miserably right off the bat, it scares them.  Dad needs to be seen as doing things that work.  A series of little victories is a good thing.
(5)  Set traps that will work while you don’t.  Again, think easy and conserve energy.  Cut a plastic 2 liter soda bottle so that you can reverse the cone end back into the larger end, forming a cone fish trap.  Chop up one of the tiny fish you caught earlier to use for bait inside.  Let it “fish” for you in shallow water while you rest.  Again, it will only catch very small fish, but so what.
(6)  Set individual lines from limbs overhanging the water (or cut poles) to fish while you do other things.  Multi-hooked trot lines, if possible, are even better.
(7) If the body of water has crayfish (poor boy’s shrimp), toss a burlap bag or some such thick cloth into the waters edge, pat it down flat, and let it set for an hour or two.  Crayfish will hide under it, and you can catch some of them by quickly yanking it out on the bank.  Some will have their claws caught in the underside of the bag.  A lot of them will escape, but so what.  You have expended little effort.
(8) If Joe thought ahead and brought with him a piece of large plastic pipe (4” diameter, or so, like is used in sewage drain lines), he can make an un-baited hollow log catfish trap with very little effort.  He would need a piece about 3’ long.  Wire off one end so that water will flow through, but the catfish can’t.  Leave the other end open.  Tie a rope to that end (to retrieve), and toss it into the water.  Leave for several hours at least.  Catfish will swim into these just like they will an actual hollow log that has fallen into the water.  Exactly why they do it, I don’t have a clue.  But, they do.  It is a fact.  “Noodlers” take advantage of this catfish behavior.  Have you ever seen the television show Hillbilly Handfishing?
(9) Something to think about.  Most of the activities mentioned thus far are things that will fish for you while you do something else, or maybe while you simply rest.
(10) Something else to think about.  Virtually all of the above things can be hidden so that a passerby would not even notice.  In a TEOTWAWKI situation, even a remote area might have some people passing through that would rob a fish trap (or set hooks) if they were visible.
(11)  Look for shallow inlet pools.  These are little offshoots of most all waterways where water (and fish) have overflowed into shallow pools just off the main body of water.  Eventually the water level dropped slightly, leaving the fish trapped in the small pool.  If the pool is too large to grab the small fish by hand, carve a spear to stab them with.  Bamboo is relatively easy to whittle into a multi-pronged spear with barbs.  Water birds (like kingfishers) utilize these small pools because their prey is easier to catch there than in more open and deeper water.
This method is obviously a little more work, since you have to physically have to spear or catch the fish.  It won’t work while you rest.  Sorry about that.
(12)  If there are no shallow inlet pools around, you can make your own fairly easily.  Find a spot on the bank where you can wade out at least a few feet without falling into deeper water.  Drive sticks (bamboo is good, but use whatever you have) into the mud making a fence out into the water.  Obviously, the farther out you go, the longer the sticks will have to be.  Move about three feet over, and build a second fence out into the water.  Then, form a cone back toward the bank from the end of both fences.  Looking at it from the bank, it should look like an “M”.  Leave the cone of the M open, so that fish can swim in.  In essence, it is just another cone trap like you made earlier with the plastic soda bottle.  Again, a little work is involved with this one, but once built it will work for you relatively permanently.
(13)  In some waterways, schools of small fish can be netted if you just had a net.  If you can cut a ten foot long pole with a Y shaped end, you can fashion one.  Take a t-shirt and tie the sleeves into a knot.  Then, tie the shirt onto the Y end of the pole forming what hopefully looks something like a butterfly net.  Again, small fish is about all you can hope for, but so what.
(14)  Hopefully, it goes without saying that if a “big success” stumbles into your lap, go ahead and take advantage of it.  Use that trusty old rifle if an elk ambles by your camp.  Everything is situation oriented.  Don’t let doing the easy stuff blind you to an opportunity of bigger and better.
(15)  If Joe has a minnow seine or a cast net, either is quick and easy to use if the water is shallow enough to wade out a few yards.  Again, these items produce a quick gain for little effort.
(16) After a pattern of success has been developed, and the initial panic and apprehension of being forced to bug-out has faded, Joe can move on to “bigger” things if he wants.  He can move on to trying for bigger fish, hunting wild game, setting animal snares, and the like.  Squirrel or rabbit hunting generally has a high success rate.  If his time in the wilds is extended, he will eventually have to set up a water filter for when his initial supplies run low.  The really hard stuff is now starting.   But, he will have avoided the initial fear and panic that could have proved fatal for his little family.

Hope for the best.  Prepare for the worst.

About The Author: Dale Martin is the author of several books, including Every Man’s Guide to Outdoor Survival

7 Crazy Reasons Why Most Americans Think Prepping Is A Stupid Idea

I have a fear of ventilation. Not the kind in my home HVAC unit. The kind from lead passing through my body. I had a friend who was ventilated by some grudge-holding thug. Apparently, this idiot wanted to get even for a business deal that went south. So he chased my friend through the bays of his car wash shooting at him. Luckily, he was only armed with a .22 revolver. Fortunately, only his love handles got ventilated. After recovering, my buddy began making a plan to never get caught unable to defend himself.

 

Tabacco Smoke Enema

This may be painful for some. It won’t be as painful as the tobacco smoke enema shown above.

Why do so many Americans refuse to prepare for worst case situations? Or better yet, why do they not even prep for potential everyday emergencies? You’ve seen them pass you on their donut tire at 67 miles an hour heading to the 7-11 to get their winning lotto ticket. I’m sure with all their winnings they’ll be able to prepare for TEOTWAWKI.

Being prepared doesn’t take huge financial windfalls. So why do so many people think it’s a stupid idea to be prepared? Here’s my list.

A) Peer Pressure. Remember school days? Who wants to be standing outside looking in on the popular group? We all want to feel important and part of a group. We’re social animals. The group we associate with can determine our future.

My daddy always told me, “If you lay down with dogs, you’ll get up with fleas.” If you hang out with prepared individuals, you’re likely to become more prepared. [Warning: Avoid pretend preppers, mall ninjas, and opportunists. Only discuss preparedness with trusted friends]. As prepping goes more mainstream, many in the media portray preppers as crazy, racist, isolationist, anti-everything survivalist. None of us want that label. Practice OPSEC (Operational Security). There’s always a few fringe types in any group that make media salivary glands wet. The new growth to the prepper movement is fueled by “normal” people like soccer moms, taxpaying business owners, and law-abiding folk. I have no research on this last statement – just what I see on social media and other outlets.

B) Government Schools. My day job is to teach at a local school government indoctrination center. I started blogging about government schooling at my other blog The Education Vigilante back in December 2011. There you’ll find a school teacher’s case against public ‘education.’ I’ve made it my job to destroy government teachology, one mind at a time. My advice to any preparedness minded parent of school aged children: AVOID GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS NO MATTER THE COST! Government schools manage ignorance for profit. If you’d like, you can read more here and here. Government schooling fools only those who want to be fooled.

Preparedness and survival requires self-reliance and the ability to think for yourself. The State forces kids to spend their most formative 12 years (16+ including college) learning how not to learn, but conform. Finding learning in government schools is as hard as finding a corner in a round room. A quarter of their lives circle the toilet bowl taking the path of least resistance to the collective’s sewage plant to be recycled and made “safe” and useful tax-payers.

Parent choices greatly increase or decrease their kid’s survivability. So what’s the solution for educating prepared individuals? Homeschooling may seem impossible. Both parents have to work to keep the family feed, clothed and sheltered. It comes down to our priorities. What “important” stuff can we kick to the curb to rescue our kids from government gulags and offer them a real education? I can’t answer that for you. Humans are individuals with unique situations. One size does not fit all. Homeschool, unschool, anything but government school.

C) Dependence. We’ve abandoned our roots. Due to reason # (B), our history is intentionally distorted. I often ask kids to tell me about historical figures and events like Abraham Lincoln, the War of Northern Aggression, or more recently – the Federal Reserve. As to Lincoln and the unCivil War, kids today are taught that Lincoln invaded the south to free the slaves. While I abhor the concept of someone owning another person, I know that Lincoln didn’t care about slaves being freed. Follow the money.

When my ancestors stepped off a boat in 1735, there was no free lunch or welcome basket full of government goodies. dependence on their own ability, family, and immediate like-minded friends started my family journey in America. Their self-reliant skills didn’t insulate them from set-backs and calamities. The find-a-way-to-get-the-job-done attitude is what helped me and my family survive to this point. Thankfully, I’m part of the remnant of self-reliance left in our country. When their Katrina-style disasters hit, communities rebuilt without the help of FEMA. This spirit of pioneering one’s own life has been traded for dependence. Even after natural and man-made disasters, I’m amazed at the false hope Americans place in our government’s ability to sweep in for the rescue. It’s a stupid idea most Americans hold.

D) MBM (Morally Bankrupt Morons). “All I need is guns and ammo to survive. When the SHTF, I’ll just take what I need.” I’ve read this statement, or similar sentiments on many preparedness/survival forums. Do they think that the very people they plan to plunder are not able and ready to defend their personal property?

I saw an episode of Doomsday Preppers where one in their group stated that they don’t buy weapons and ammo. Their plan, when the armed  horde of hungry looters show up, is to show them all their food and offer more if they leave them unharmed. Maybe some MBM’s will live to loot another day. I wouldn’t place my hopes of survival in this strategy. It only speeds up natural selection via ventilation.

E) Nationalism. Arrogance leads to a fall. It could never happen here. This is America! We’re the envy of the world. I’m convinced that this is the thinking of the mentally ill – or the historically illiterate. I hear the disdain coming from ‘educated’ folk all the time. I think they suffer from altitude sickness in their ivory towers. Totalitarianism happens one step at a time. As long as we are allowed to wake up in our homes, drink our coffee, go to work, watch our TV programs, rinse and repeat, tyranny becomes routine. Vigilance dies. It’s frog-boiling 101. Gradually heat the pot of water and the frogs don’t jump out.

I love my country. I love my freedom more. Humility and honesty seem to be lost traits. I hope that there are enough people waking up to help rebuild our crumbling republic. Sheep never think the wolf will visit.

F) Mental Enslavement. With enough time, falling water can cut through rock. Is what we call ‘freedom’ really freedom? Many in the patriot movement call themselves “freedom lovers” yet accept tyranny as normal. We’ve all heard the battle cry of patriot-lite types. You’ll have to pry my guns from my cold dead fingers! No worries. The State will gladly oblige. Yet, the water fall of tyranny continues to eroded our liberties. It’s like watching a catastrophic train wreck in slow motion.

“Necessity is the excuse for every infringement of human freedom.” – William Pitt

We have as much freedom and liberty as the State, our rulers, give us permission to enjoy. To realize and enjoy our natural rights, we must free our minds. Stop listening to talking heads. Free you mind. And I don’t mean just the liberal main stream media. I use to listen to conservative talk radio religiously. I can’t stomach the party line talk anymore. Some pundits distinguish themselves as conservative, not republican. Liberal vs. conservative, Democrat vs. Republican. They are just different sides of the same liberty-destroying coin. Flip the coin to choose your master.

Ancient Chinese proverb: “The beginning of wisdom is to call things by their right names.”

Here are few links to get you started on the path of freedom:

Starving the Monkeys

LewRockwell.com

Strike The Root

Whiskey & Gunpowder

Top Libertarian Websites

G) Stifled Self-government. Critical thinking is dead (See # F). Passivity is encouraged, even demanded. Habits form us. We prefer  our guardians of darkness. It hides our secret need for fake security. We are addicted to our velvet chains. The principles of non-aggression and self-ownership have been systematically eradicated. Most Americans favor State coercion over individualism and self-reliance skills. Voluntary relationships between free individuals is no longer viewed as common sense. Our State monopoly on schooling crusades for government dependence and even sites individualism as a mental disorder. Rejecting government dogma invites the use of ‘legal’ force, or the threat of force, to reform rebellious subjects of the State. We have to get over ourselves and our dependency on government ‘safety’ nets. That is, if we want to be self-reliant. Breaking the addiction sometimes comes step-by-step. Sometimes it’s cold turkey that works. We’re all different. Do what works for you. Don’t wait. Take one step towards preparedness each day. What physical, mental, spiritual, emotional prep steps did you make today?

So much is riding on you fellow preppers. Free you minds!

 

Top 10 Survival Downloads You Should Have

Kudos to Activist Post for this link! They’ve got lots of survival/preparedness articles to check out.

Unless you have redundancy in producing electricity, enabling you to charge iPads, iPhones, and other electronic reader devices, I highly recommend printing hard copies of all survival related material. I organize mine in 3-ring binders by category. Just a thought.

Source: Activist Post

Date: December 30, 2010

Modern Survival Online

There are tons of good downloads in the Survival Database Download section of this website. For this article – I have selected 10 that everyone should have either printed and put away, or placed on a USB drive – or better yet both.

So – let’s get to it:

#10. FM 4-25-11 First Aid (2002) – Military First Aid Manual.  First aid information is a must – get training before you need it – use this manual for reference.

#9.  Guide to Canning – Being able to preserve crops to  be able to provide for yourself and your family long after the growing season is over is important. This guide will help with that.

#8. Rangers Handbook (2006) – Crammed with info on demolitions, booby traps, communications, patrolling, tactical movement, battle drills, combat intelligence and much more

 #7. Where There is No Dentist – The author uses straightforward language and careful instructions to explain how to: examine patients; diagnose common dental problems; make and use dental equipment; use local anesthetics; place fillings; and remove teeth.

#6. NATO Emergency War Surgery – While this is certainly not a manual that would stand alone in most persons emergency/disaster library, it is an absolutely necessary resource if you expect to handle any type of trauma where immediate comprehensive medical care is not available.

#5. A Guide to Raised Bed Gardening – This is not an “all knowing” gardening book – however it provides a lot of information to the “urban gardener” before or after TSHTF.  Best to get the experience and knowledge of gardening NOW rather than later.

#4. FM 3-06 Combined Arms Operations in Urban Terrain – Combat techniques covered in the manual which may be very valuable in a “Roadwarrior”-type world.

#3. 1881 Household Cyclopedia  – A massive resource of information that much of it has been lost over the past 203 generations. From Angling to Knitting – its here.

#2. FM 21-76-1 Survival-Evasion-Recovery (1999) – Excellent manual geared towards the soldier that finds himself behind enemy lines

#1. FM 21-76 US Army Survival Manual – From Amazon.com:  This manual has been written to help you acquire survival skills. It tells you how to travel, find water and food, shelter yourself from the weather and care for yourself if you become sick or injured. This information is first treated generally and then applied specifically to such special areas as the Arctic, the desert, the jungle and the ocean.1970 Military Issue Manual. General Introduction and Individual and Group Survival Orientation Navigation, Finding Water In All Parts of The Globe. How To Obtain Food, Start a Fire and much more!

Be Strong To Be Useful

I embrace the label “prepper”. The movement has gone mainstream over the past few years. What movement? The awakening of everyday people realizing that Uncle Sugar is not the answer in troubled times. Preppers take their preparedness into their own hands. Here’s the Survival Sherpa’s Guide to get started on your climb to preparedness.

Prepping is a journey, not a destination

My lovely wife, bless her heart (that’s right y’all – I’m southern), understands and supports this fact. Over the last two years I’ve added these skills to my toolbox (she just smiles and encourages me – and helps): soap making, blacksmithing, home brewing, water collection, medicinal plants and herbs, CPR training, barefoot running (strengthens the foot and ankles), backpacking/camping, and now, blogging (not a great skill after TEOTWAWKI ).  There never seems to be enough stuff, knowledge, or preps. I’ve never watched “Doomsday Preppers” by National Geographic highlighting the growing population of preparedness minded individuals in our country. It’s past my bedtime when it airs. The little I know from reading, the show seems to promote preppers as crazed, gun-totting fanatics. I love my guns, but I don’t watch sensationalized crap on TV. My advise to newbie preppers is to “keep it real” as my students say. Below you’ll find 7 tips to get your journey started. Starting is the hardest part.

Specialization is for insects

Five years ago I stumbled upon SurvivalBlog.com and realized that I was a prepper. Thanks to Mom and Dad, I was a prepper before prepping was cool. They taught me how to be self-reliant, an independent thinker, and a serial multi-tasker.

“A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.” — Robert A. Heinlein

My parents went through tough times growing up and passed on their experiences and knowledge to me and my siblings. The ability to think and apply knowledge is the key to surviving our uncertain times ahead. Whether it’s a financial collapse or natural disaster your best human survival skill is the ability to think. The last thing you want is to be the recipient of a Darwin Award in an emergency/SHTF situation. Stupidity will thin the herd – as nature intended.

If you haven’t noticed our predicament, you are not paying attention or watching too much mainstream media. Here’s what I see. A financial collapse is coming. It’s inevitable. Don’t believe me. Read some history. There is no way to print our way out of this enormous hole of debt. Read some Rothbard and Mises to get enlightened.

Two years ago, our family sat around a Thanksgiving table at the in-laws. My mother-in-law brought up and expressed her I-lived-through-the-great-depression opinion on a story she read in the local paper about our economy. In a nutshell, she knew the present levels of debt and fiat money printing will ruin us. “Our money is no longer backed by gold,” she rightly stated. She was scolded by a young 20 something nephew who was getting his MBA in Keynesian economics at our state university. The once pleasant conversation turned heated as he demanded that we believe our money is backed by gold and that our national debt was good for “leveraging”. “Where’s the gold?” she asked. His arrogant ignorance and his presence ended when he called her “un-American” for her beliefs. Debating is okay. Insulting his grandma-in-law opened a can of reality on this “educated” Keynesian. My lovely wife immediately threw out (I’m being nice here) this ungrateful, ignorant, schooled fool. He’s never apologized to my mother-in-law. Haven’t seen him in two years. If I ever see this poor propagandized soul again, I’ll introduce him to Mr. Mises and Austrian economics.

“The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country. …We are governed, our minds are molded, our tastes formed, our ideas suggested, largely by men we have never heard of. This is a logical result of the way in which our democratic society is organized. Vast numbers of human beings must cooperate in this manner if they are to live together as a smoothly functioning society. In almost every act of our daily lives, whether in the sphere of politics or business, in our social conduct or our ethical thinking, we are dominated by the relatively small number of persons…who understand the mental processes and social patterns of the masses. It is they who pull the wires which control the public mind.” – Edward Bernays, Propaganda, 1928

Wake up and smell the truth – and prepare accordingly

Fortunately, the internet makes your prepper education much easier than in previous generations. My position in government “education” gives me a front row view of the dulling down of common sense and critical thinking of the masses. Our ruling elites depend on our insane system of forced schooling to mass produce dullards who believe anything and question nothing.

On the phone yesterday with my daughter who graduates from college in May, we discussed her plans. Originally, she wanted to attend grad school. Now she’s not so sure. She is aware of the fact that student loan debt for higher education exceeds $1 trillion dollars. She’s not sure the money spent/owed is worth it. I told her to follow her gut. She’s so bright and has so much going for her, why go further in debt?

Albert Einstein described insanity as, “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Recovery is not going to happen. Collapse is coming. Prepare accordingly.

Here are a few of my go-to preparedness sites:

SurvivalBlog.com

SHTFPlan.com

The Survival Podcast

The Economic Collapse Blog

Backwoods Home Magazine

The Survival Mom

Survival Jane

Willow Haven Outdoor

Project Appleseed

Knowledge and skills trump gadgets and tools

We perform what we practice. Gadgets and tools aren’t very useful unless you acquire skills to use them. Example: Can you start a fire from scratch without a Bic lighter? How about sharpening bladed tools (axe, saws, knives)? For families with young kids, this makes for great outdoor family time. Unplug the TV and computer game. Take kids camping, hunting, fishing and hiking. Encourage play. Play is essential in learning. Make games of preparedness. Plant a garden. Get your hands dirty, literally. No backyard? Grow vegetables in containers and get creative. I ran out of room in my garden once and planted tomatoes and peppers in plastic storage containers on my back deck. They grew like kudzu.

Make a written plan for emergencies.

What if the kids are at school, mom and dad are at work, and society goes berserk? Is there a plan in place to get the family home safely? Our children are grown and out of the house. We still have a plan of action (written down) in case the S Hits The Fan.

Avoid information overload

How do you climb a mountain? One step at a time. Seems logical but many newbie preppers experience information overload and shut down. As in any new undertaking, a solid foundation is necessary. Fundamental preps should include: Water, food, shelter, and a way to protect yourself and family (self-defense). Focused energy and resources should be spent on securing these items. These doesn’t have to be expensive or elaborate. Rethink, reuse and recycle. There’s so much stuff that can be made useful in your preps. Yard sales, Craig’s List, and thrift stores are great at stretching your prepper budget. I’ve added many 100% wool sweaters to my cache from local thrift shops. I call this “Common Man Sense.” Budget for what’s important. Is that latte at Starbucks really that tasty?

Be redundant

Once you jump into prepping, take care of the fundamentals and build redundancy. Can I purify water with more than one method? Always have a plan B and C. Figure it out before you have to.

Get fit for SHTF- Be strong to be useful

I chuckle every time I read some survivalist’s comments on how he/she plans to survive TEOTWAWKI. The chuckle comes when I see their picture posted and wonder how they plan on humping a 60 pound backpack to their fully stocked retreat location on top of a mountain. I’m not cracking on their plan, just don’t see it happening when they are winded by climbing the three steps leading into their house. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not talking about what modern fitness experts tell us we are supposed to look like physically – beach ready with sculpted abs and tan bodies. I’m talking about functional fitness.

So, a plan has to be doable – physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Let’s address functional fitness for SHTF.

In a SHTF/TEOTWAWKI event our bodies will be shocked by physical demands. In my ex-coaching days, I never had my football players swing baseball bats during practice. That skill wasn’t very useful for optimal performance on the gridiron. Working out at the gym may offer some transfer in a collapse situation. However, in my experience, carrying buckets of water and swinging a sledgehammer to split firewood can’t be practice in most modern fitness centers.

Ditch conventional wisdom and grease the groove. What’s “grease the groove?” Whatever you want to improve (cardio, upper body, lower body, etc.), do it in intervals throughout the day. For instance, if you want to increase your pull-up repetitions, do a pull up each time you pass a pull up bar (or other structural equivalent). Swing a sledgehammer on an old tire or firewood pile if you have one to increase you upper body strength. I hit 20 to 30 push ups on my breaks at school. I no longer do cardio (long distances over 3 miles). Over the last two years, I started sprinting once a week. This triggers my fast twitch muscle fibers, build muscle mass, and burns fat. And it only takes a few minutes, where the long runs use to take close to an hour. Boring! Note: Disregard the silly stares you get when sprinting through your neighborhood or park barefooted. Be strong to be useful.

Here are some non-conventional resources on jumping, climbing, lifting heavy objects, playing, and natural movement:

Mark’s Daily Apple

MovNat

Robb Wolf: The Paleo Solution

What did I miss? Let me know.

Semper Vigilans,

SS