Category: Emerging Threats

Looking For the Wave: Our Experience with Hawaii’s 2010 Tsunami Alert, by An Oregonian

Here on the Oregon coast we have included precautions for a Tsunami in our emergency preparations.  This last spring while on vacation on the north shore of Oahu we experienced some valuable lessons when the Tsunami alert was raised after the earthquake in Chile.  This experience has helped us and hopefully will provide food for thought for others. We have family living on the north shore of Oahu, in Laie that we were staying with during our trip.  About 4am in the morning as I was sleeping on the porch, a woman knocked on the door to inform the family …


Three Letters Re: List of Countries by Real Population Density

Jim- Dr. Hugh asked the question about population density in the US States.  Below is the answer. Since I couldn’t finagle Wolfram Alpha to do this in people per square kilometer, I did it in square miles. For reference: If you convert Dr. Hugh’s figure of 245 people per square kilometer to people per square mile and that equates to 634.5 people per square mile Keeping that number in mind, I used this Wolfram Alpha equation, and learned: Rank State Pop. Density 1 New Jersey 1,185 people/mi^2 2 Rhode Island 1,007 people/mi^2 3 Massachusetts 835.2 people/mi^2 4 Connecticut 737.7 people/mi^2 …


America’s Transition to Preemptive Law Enforcement

There is a disturbing trend in American law enforcement and in our courts: They have been enforcing nonexistent laws, misapplying laws, arresting people who are obviously innocent, and arresting people on suspicion that they might be thinking about doing something illegal. This is similar to the policing philosophy in England, where police often preemptively detain people and seize household goods “for the safety of all concerned”. In my estimation, this is just one notch below arresting folks for “thought crimes” (a la Orwell’s novel 1984) or “pre-crime”, (a la Philip K. Dick’s novella that became the movie Minority Report.) Here …


The Truth About Survival and TEOTWAWKI, by T.H.

If you are reading this, it is because you are already aware of many of the events that you may think could be the catalyst for TEOTWAWKI.  Many think it will be something that quickly turns the whole world upside down and causes the Golden Horde to attack your retreat, threaten your family, steal your food supply and rape, pillage and burn the neighborhood;  all by tomorrow night. It’s something envisioned on a national rather than regional or local scale. Some attempt the overwhelming task of preparing for the national event.  More prepare for the regional or local event.  Most …


A Key Concern and a Preparedness Strategy, by Patrick E.

I have been an avid SurvivalBlog reader for a couple of years now, and I have been a lifelong prepper, although never like I am now.  Through this blog and other excellent sources, I have gained immeasurable information and comfort, and the feeling that by the grace of God and diligent effort, I am finally obtaining a level of preparedness which ensures a very good chance of providing safety and security for my family and me through whatever the future may bring.  Though I have made many personal preparations, I don’t feel that I have done enough to help others …


Three Letters Re: Bypassing the Internet Kill Switch

Hello Mr. Rawles! Long time reader here, but had taken a break from most blogs for almost a year as I focused on generating alternative sources of income. I have an important question for you. How will we access the Internet after the government shuts off “the switch“? Would we still have access via dial up possibly? I’m on broadband now and its been a long time since I’ve used dial up service. I’ve used Ubuntu Linux the past 4, almost 5 years now and I know many old dial up modems do not work well in Linux/ (At least …


Letter Re: Question About Eris (Planet X) Tidal Forces

Dear JWR,   I will present some facts and allow you to draw your own conclusions.  Having been in Army Intelligence, I am certain that you are capable of analyzing data and arriving at multiple possible scenarios of likely outcomes: 1.)     There are currently 9 [well-known] planets in our solar system; 2.)     According to physicists, objects of greater mass attract objects of lesser mass (same goes for planets); 3.)    On October 31, 2003 a new , 10th planet (Planet X [also known as Eris]), was discovered outside our solar system, but traveling towards it in an elliptical orbit; 4.)    See …


A Philosophy to Live For, by Lightfoot

I don’t remember the exact date, but it was close to a year ago that, on a whim, I downloaded and read “Patriots“ on my iPad.  As I read through the fictional account my world was turned over and an amazing trip down the rabbit hole of preparedness began. I scoured the blogs and read every account, both fictional and non,  searching for and accumulating knowledge that would lead me to effective action in order to save my family’s life.  I learned the distinctions of TEOTWAWKI and more, then began to design a way to “bug out” of my current …


Bee Colony Collapse Disorder and Adapting Gardens for Surviving TEOTWAWKI, by Craig D.

At any retreat or home base a garden is vital to help supplement your stored food supply with fresh fruits and vegetables. In the past decade a disorder has been rapidly occurring in the bee pollinator populations that can put the viability of your garden in jeopardy.  Unless you adapt to prepare for this phenomenon and its possible affects upon bee populations, your garden can have serious short comings come harvest time. Pollination is the process in which a pollen grain (produced by male portion of a flower) is deposited upon the stigma (female portion of flower), the pollen grain …


One View of The End Of The World As We Know It, by John Y.

The wonderful thing about the Internet is how many viewpoints and perspectives there are out there that can save a person a lot of time trying to articulate his own.  And I found one that suits me and mine.  If you haven’t taken the time to explore the SurvivalBlog.com do it.  I have barely scratched the surface and have found so many interesting things.  I generally download or copy and paste the stuff that I think has value and add it to my growing digital library.  That’s actually another project that I encourage.  I have multiple digital folders divided by topics …


David in Israel Re: Family Protective Measures — New Instability in Lebanon

James: The following is mostly for the benefit of SurvivalBlog readers who live in Israel, but other readers might find it of interest. Here we go again! Hizb’allah has apparently taken down the somewhat western-aligned government in Lebanon. I want to put not only Israeli readers on warning to have some extra supplies on hand but also collect bedding and blankets to be ready to accept people into your home seeking refuge from the north along the Lebanon and Syria borders. This time around it is important even for people living in the merkaz and possibly even south of Jerusalem …


Gun Grabbers Pounce on the Tucson Shootings–America’s Hungerford?

Just as I predicted, the headlines are already full of shrill cries for civilian disarmament. Never mind the fact that these were the actions of just one man who was mentally unstable. They aim to disarm the 99.9% of us law-abiding gun owners in the hopes of disarming the remaining 0.01%–the dangerous lunatics. This is something akin to the Hungerford Massacre, where the actions of one sick individual were used as the pretext to disarm an entire nation. Most of what I’ve read so far is just the expected statist knee-jerk reaction. But there was one well-reasoned response. And, despite …


Letter Re: New Year’s Eve and The Thin Veneer

Happy New Year! I’ve been reading your blog for a while now and have gotten a lot more prepared than I was in the past. As a law enforcement officer (LEO) for the past nine years, much of the information on human behavior mentioned in SurvivalBlog hasn’t been a surprise to me. I particularly enjoy reading the articles you post from other LEOs due to the fact that they tend to have 20+ years experience and thus impart a lot of knowledge. I wanted to share my experience with you in reference New Years Eve celebrations this year. I live …


The Razor’s Edge, by Don V.

“The sharp edge of a razor is difficult to pass over; thus the wise say the path to Salvation is hard.” – W. Somerset Maugham The United States and a majority of the world stand at the proverbial razor’s edge and as most preppers realize, the road to salvation will definitely be difficult.  The coming changes may happen tomorrow or ten years from now but the grand clock is in countdown mode.  Many experts like to focus on specific issues but it is the culmination of these separate issues that will create the ultimate crisis.  Evaluating each issue allows the …


Crisis Mode and Effects Analysis, by Scott B.

In survivaldom there are countless potential crises to consider, ranging from a limited local flood to massive global nuclear conflict, and anything in between.  For the newcomer to the prepper/survivor mindset, as well as for those who have begun the journey to preparedness, the range and scope of calamities to consider can be overwhelming.  How does one weigh the need to keep fresh baby formula or insulin available while recognizing that unprotected electronics could become useless after an EMP event?  What good is frozen food if there is no electricity available?  Countless tradeoffs and prioritization must occur, but how does …