Category: Retreat Security

Five Letters Re: Four Great Preparedness Myths

Jim, I enjoyed the letter by Dan B. on preparedness myths. I couldn’t agree more with his opinions and in particular with Myth #1 “You can defend yourself against the horde” I have no combat experience but I am a student of Sun Tzu’s military treatise “The Art of War” The principals and logic therein demonstrate that a wise prepper will be as prepared as possible to defend oneself but will use all means available of avoiding the direct conflict with so vast a number of enemies (other than surrender of course) One would employ deception, concealment, positioning etc. I …


Four Great Preparedness Myths, by Dan B.

I subscribe to the RSS feeds of a number of blogs about survival, including Rawles’ (top of the line!), and I subscribe to numerous firearms-related blogs and message boards. I also periodically meet people who are interested in survival issues in my non-electronic life. All preppers are trying to prepare for a particular situation, and their preparations reflect their beliefs about what that situation will be like. Unfortunately, many of those beliefs are false, and those false beliefs seem to be brought about by four myths, which I thought I would describe. The strange thing about these myths is that …


Letter Re: The EMP Threat and Electronic Gun Vault Locks

James: In looking at your blog on survival it revealed to me a major problem with safes with digital combo locks. If there is an EMP, those locks would most likely be fried and one could not get to guns, funds, et cetera! Do you know of a process or method of guarding against this? Is there some shielding that can be put around the combo unit that will protect the electronics? Thanks. – R.C. JWR Replies: This blog topic seems to pop up just as regularly as dandelions. I’ve mentioned the following several times in SurvivalBlog, but it is …


A Practical, Full Spectrum Suburban Survival Plan, by JIR

Survival planning can be overwhelming and a lot of the advice you get is not practical or compatible with our lifestyles. A lot of us choose, or are forced to live in the crowded East Coast far too close to cities to survive TEOTWAWKI. I dare say, a lot of SurvivalBlog readers live in suburbs just outside medium to large population centers. Many of us have jobs that don’t migrate to small towns and would face a substantial loss of income if we moved away from our livelihoods. Some of us like our current lives and feel that hunkering down …


Letter Re: The Westchester Burglaries as a Home Security Lesson

James, I found this article interesting: Professional Gang On Burglary Spree In Westchester. The homeowners spend so much money on their houses (prices start at $600,000) but fail to install any kind of security system. The other thing I thought about while reading this is that there are people who don’t take the threat of gangs seriously during a TEOTWAWKI event. Yet here is a professional gang breaking into affluent homes during ‘peaceful’ times. What do people think these gangs will be like when there’s no electricity? No grocery store? No fuel? The mantra is as always: hope, and pray, …


Letter Re: Sustainable Rural Cabins

Jim; In the article, “Sustainable Rural Cabins”, under the headline, “Designing the Outer Periphery”, the author wrote, “Evergreen windbreaks should be planted to block winter winds”. That works fine if the evergreens, (or other trees), you plant and the way you group them is consistent with the way the same trees occur naturally in the area. For example, if white pines grow naturally in the woods around where you are establishing your homestead, then you can plant more white pines and they won’t be noticed. But if you plant, for example, blue spruce where none normally occur, you can see …


Suburban Survival, by The Suburban 10

I am a public school teacher with five kids and one income. There is little in the way of extra cash to protect the family, but I will do my best to prepare for TEOTWAWKI. If you want to plan well; plan as if it was a lesson plan and you are going to teach it to a class. My class is my family the the goal being not to get anyone panicked (Refer to # 9 below). Having a receptive audience is difficult, because of what I deem…complacent comforts. These are built into the core and routine of our …


How to Do More than Survive at the Different Stages of Societal Collapse, by Tamara W.

Dmitry Orlov wrote about the five stages of social collapse. In descending order, these stages are: financial, commercial, political, social and – last and certainly worst – cultural. In the face of a collapsing society, what can be done to lessen the immediate and local impact at each of these stages? How can we lessen the personal impact of societal collapse? Preparedness is key in any disaster, and societal collapse is certainly a disaster on epic scale. The question then is what to do at each stage of societal collapse. Here is how to do more than survive at each …


Two Letters Re: Semi-Anonymous Internet Access

Sir, Introductory Note: Some of the activities suggested in this letter may not be legal in your country or your US State. Please ensure that you are familiar with any related laws before attempting any of the methods outlined below. They are therefore provided for information only: With regard to the recent article on semi-anonymous Internet access and the use of wi-fi, by Jeff T: I agree with many of the suggestions in this article, but also wanted to expand on these and identify a number of possible additional risks associated with using wi-fi connectivity. Ben from Tennessee is quite …


Letter Re: How to Remove Your House Image from Google Maps Street View

James, Your readers might be interested to know that the street view of their house can be viewed by anyone using Google Maps. If they do not wish to have the view showing all your expensive SUVs and G.O.O.D. vehicles, do the following: 1. Using Google Maps, find your address. 2. Activate the Street View for that address. 3. At the bottom of the view is a link that says “Report A Problem.” By clicking that link, you are taken to a form that allows you to request that your house photo be removed. Simply follow the directions on the …


Letter Re: Semi-Anonymous Internet Access

Dear Editor: Is using a laptop with wi-fi from the library etc any better (in terms of OPSEC) than having a home Internet connection? We disconnected from our satellite ISP from home a while ago and now only go online from assorted wi-fi connections when we get to town. But is this any safer? What else should I be doing to keep a lower profile? Thanks, – Jeff T. #1 Son Replies: There are several ways that you can be identified over the Internet. First is though your IP address, and more significantly, through your Internet service provider (ISP). Information …


Letter Re: Package Delivery OPSEC

Hi Jim, I am constantly making efforts to prepare for an uncertain future and I thought I was practicing good OPSEC. I do not discuss my efforts except with fellow preppers and my wife, I do not have anything outside my house that says “prepared”, and I generally stay low profile. One of my friends just decided to make a purchase of 50 food grade buckets with me so we could share the shipping charges. I was shocked when one of my neighbors just called me to say, “Scott: What the heck are you preparing for?” I raced home to …


Survival Mindset: Being Ready for a Violent Encounter, by AK in Tulsa

Most of us who spend any time at all thinking about “Survival” or “Preparedness” have probably spent some of that time considering the subject of Self Defense. If you’ve spent enough time thinking about it, you’ve probably spent more than time on the subject. Like many of your survival-minded brothers and sisters, you’ve likely spent some of your hard earned dollars on a weapon or two. Perhaps you have a small arsenal at home. Owning a weapon may save your life but not if it’s not with you when you need it or if you’re not prepared to use it. …


Three Letters Re: Now You See It, Now You Don’t — The Value of Concealment

Mr. Rawles, I read Joe M.’s article with great interest. The contributors to your site always seem to have creative ideas. I have often thought of ways to conceal a passageway, escape route or just a safe / storage room. Here are four links to companies that offer hidden doors or panels. HiddenPassages.com HiddenPassageway.com Hide a Door Decoradoors.com Thanks again for all you do. – John G. James, Two very good books contain a wealth of hints on constructing and concealing hidden compartments and entrances, covering evidence of work you want to keep concealed, and devising ways to guard against …


Letter Re: Observations from an Ice Storm Survivor

Mr. Rawles: I am writing a brief letter with a few points that may be helpful for your readers, who like myself, find your blog site a valuable resource, one well worth supporting financially. The value of your blog, and advice, is multiplied many times over by the extremely well informed readership you have. There are a few thoughts I could offer that others may find of use: 1. I lived through an ice storm that hit in the late nineties. As many have mentioned, when a calamity hits is not the time to start preparing. I was caught totally …