Category: Retreat Security

Observations on City Life in Brazil, by P.R.

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I recently vacationed in Brazil. Whenever I’m abroad, I always keep my eyes out for things that may be of interest to you fellow preppers. Brazil presented a lot of opportunities for this.  I do like theoretical discussions, but I really like to see how people in the real world cope with problems and issues that we may have in the future.  Looking at these real world examples can greatly help out own plans and preparedness. Although a fairly developed country, Brazil does have a larger economic disparity than the US, especially in the larger cities like Rio de Janiero …


Protecting Your Farm Animals With a LGD, by Kit Perez

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If you’re serious about prepping and/or homesteading, chances are you have some animals on your property. Maybe it’s just a few chickens for eggs; maybe you have some other birds as well. You might have a beef steer or heifer, pigs, or even some goats or sheep. There’s a huge variety of animals to get, and just as many reasons to get them: meat, milk, wool, whatever. The point is that if you’ve taken on the responsibility (and privilege) of raising animals, then you’ve also taken on the responsibility of protecting them from predators. Anyone who’s raised chickens for a …


Letter: Steel Job Site Boxes as a Valuables Storage Option

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Hugh and James: It’s often mentioned at Survival Blog that firearm magazines are a critical component. As Tamara K. of the View From the Porch blog has written: “The correct number of magazines to have is: ‘more.’” So, some of us buy magazines, especially lots of them when we find a very good price. But…as valuable as magazines are to us they’re just as valuable to anyone else, which is why we buy way more than we need, even considering that they are “wear items” that will eventually require replacement. Magazines have substantial value as trade or barter items. They’re …


Guest Article: Maps and Pins Won’t Save You, Part 2, by Kit Perez

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Editor’s Introductory Note:  This article first appeared at the excellent American Partisan web site, and is re-posted with permission. This the second of two parts.  Part 1 was posted on Friday, February 1, 2019. I recommend American Partisan as “must reading.” Be sure to bookmark it. — Part 2: Information vs. Intelligence In Part 1, we talked about your Area of Operations (AO) and how to figure out what your boundaries are, as well as what your actual capability is within that area. Today we’ll focus on another problem area that gets a lot of misguided attention: information vs. intelligence. …


Guest Article: Maps and Pins Won’t Save You, Part 1, by Kit Perez

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Editor’s Introductory Note:  This article on Intelligence first appeared at the excellent American Partisan web site, and is re-posted with permission.  Part 2 will be posted on Saturday, February 2, 2019. I recommend American Partisan as “must reading.” Consider bookmarking it. — Part I: Understanding Your AO There’s a disconnect among many in the prepper community between information and intelligence. In recent years, a disturbing notion has become fashionable; namely, that in order to effectively operate in your area — whether it be due to a societal meltdown of some type or a natural disaster — you need a big …


Letter: Carpenter Bees and Boring Beetles

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Hugh, My husband and I have purchased a log cabin, which we are moving into in a few months. This cabin is located in SW North Carolina, and the property is surrounded by a national forest. We are dealing with carpenter bees and boring beetles. My husband has been looking into all sorts of ways to deal with these wood-damaging insects. He just bought hypodermic syringes from the local farm store to put liquid borate in them for injecting into the holes we can see. We need a permanent solution, if there is such a thing, to keep them at …


Utilizing Military Tactical Planning- Part 2, by Last NJ Conservative

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Military tactical planning has been used formally for a long time by fighting and maneuver elements. This article is a combined overview of the ground combat units’ frameworks. In part 1, We began using the BAMSIS acronym as a framework and are in the “B”, which stands for “Begin Planning”. Using the METT-TC acronym, we have gone through the M for Mission, the E for Enemy, and the first T for Terrain and Weather. Now, we will continue on with this military tactical planning framework. Troops and Fire Support- Second “T” in METT-TC Part D is Troops and fire support, …


Utilizing Military Tactical Planning- Part 1, by Last NJ Conservative

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Military tactical planning has been used formally for a long time by fighting and maneuver elements. This article is a combined overview of the ground combat units’ frameworks. Not all branches of our armed forces use all of this together in this format nor is the terminology exactly the same. Obviously the Army and Marine Corps, whom have organically most of the ground combat units, utilize significant amounts of these doctrines. A Solid Foundation When Group Has To Combat Evil Doers This planning is not all inclusive nor the be all to end all. However, it does provide a solid …


The Thin Veneer

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Editor’s Introductory Note: This is a re-post from the early days of SurvivalBlog, back in August, 2005. Blog Years are like Dog Years. To explain: SurvivalBlog has been published since before most people had even heard the word “blog” for the first time. A piece this old has probably never been read by 90% of the current SurvivalBlog readership. So we feel fairly safe in re-posting it. BTW, we recommend that any new readers take a look through the archives of SurvivalBlog’s first year, to come up to speed on our jargon, core beliefs, and unique acronyms. – JWR o …


My Longer Lesson, by D.D.

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This is the sequel to my submission published 9/11/15. I am temped to follow in the steps of Larry Niven’s unfinished short story in which he said, “There are some things man was not meant to know.”, and simply write “I should’ve learned.” However, that won’t help you. So, let me expound. Those You Think Most Likely To Become Prep Allies Probably Won’t My piece of three years ago basically concluded, with some level of frustration, that the people you think are most likely to become your prep allies probably won’t. So save yourself the disappointment and stop trying to …


Guest Article: Strategic Relocation: Are You Missing Out? by Kit Perez

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This article originally appeared in the American Partisan. The concept of strategic relocation is not new, but it’s recently become more popular, as more and more liberty-loving folks get tired of being crammed into crowded public transportation or spending hours on the road in the daily snail-pace commute. For many, the thought of leaving everything can be a bit terrifying, and if you have a family who doesn’t want to leave, you might be thinking that your Big Move is more of a pipe dream than a real possibility, even though you see the death grip on your everyday freedoms …


The New Urban Fortress- Part 2, by M.H.

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Pulling from the fortress concept and the family of Anne Frank, who hid in an attic for two years, I am considering an idea of an urban fortress in the event of SHTF. My idea is based upon the construction of a multi-story commercial building, where the top floor is unmarked on the elevator and unknown and inaccessible to those who do not have a passcode. The idea is creating a large area that is totally overlooked because the construction is such that people cannot identify from the outside how many floors are within the building since there will only …


The New Urban Fortress- Part 1, by M.H.

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Stealth vs. Tactical I am a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, retired Navy O-5, a mechanical engineer (academically), and an IT business consultant. I am considered by my colleagues to be an “idea machine”. I have made a good living based largely on my outside-the-box thinking. While I have too many ideas to viably act on all of them, there are enough good ones that all are usually worth at least consideration. An Idea To Have Readers Find Flaws in My Thinking I have been prepping for a couple of years now and have come upon an idea that …


Perspectives on Patrolling- Part 5, by J.M.

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Today is the final part of this article on patrolling in the post-SHTF scenario. If you just jumping in here and have missed the earlier parts, go back and look at what has been covered already, including objectives, planning, navigation, movement, contact, observing and more. Bivouacking Let’s look at the practical concerns of bivouacking within a patrol group. Even if everyone in the patrol is in perfect physical shape, you’ll still need to stop for food and rest occasionally. Since you will be walking a lot, you’ll be burning a lot of calories, which you’ll need to replace. Food is …


Perspectives on Patrolling- Part 4, by J.M.

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We are looking at patrolling in a post-SHTF scenario. In parts 1, 2 and 3, I reviewed the definition of “patrol” and objectives of patrolling as well as planning, dress and kit, navigation, movement, and now the subject of dealing with contacts while out on patrol. I have provided some pointers on handling contact situations, and there is still a considerable amount to cover on this subject. Let’s continue. Contact (continued) Document Each Contact Once the contact is complete and you’ve departed the immediate area, you should stop and document the contact while the information is still fresh. This should …