Today, we are wrapping up this series. We’ve already discussed the importance of prayer and are looking at what we need to take with us, most recently discussing first aid and medical supplies. We’ll continue with a few health care notes and move on with other items that need to be prepared and ready to go when it’s time to head to your retreat.
Preventive Measures Against The Triad of Death
The “triad of death” is the condition were your patient has hypothermia, excessive blood loss, and acidosis, which is a condition where the body is unable to clot. This triad of death is a vicious cycle where one condition causes the other, with death as the final result. Yet two of these are easily preventable for those skilled in standard first aid. A properly applied tourniquet applied two inches above the wound will suffice for extremity wounds. Turn until it hurts for tourniquet application, then turn two more times. A tourniquet can also be left on for two days without risk of permanent injury to the limb.
Remember to record the time the tourniquet was placed. Your emergency blankets and sleeping bags can also be used to prevent hypothermia in your patient. Direct pressure must be used to prevent excessive bleeding in the torso, neck, and head. If that doesn’t work, then direct pressure above the wound applied to the area where there are major arterial pathways should suffice. The SAS Survival Manual has detailed pictures of these pathways. As mentioned, acidosis is a nasty condition where the blood becomes acidic, which will prevent blood clotting. This will result in excessive blood loss, hypothermia, and further acidosis.
Tranexemic acid, or TXA, is a possible remedy to this. You will, however, need the appropriate supplies as well as proper IV skills to necessitate this. Whole blood that matches the blood type of the injured will also suffice. This will require knowing the blood types of all team members and knowledge of what is compatible to another. If you are interested in preventing the facet of the triad of death known as acidosis, then you will need to acquire appropriate supplies and IV skills. Train up.
Resources For Treating Gunshot Wounds
My job as a combat medic, when I encounter serious gunshot wounds, is to stabilize them medically and get them to a doc, who is not your usual family physician but rather a trauma surgeon who can repair damaged internal structures of the body. If a total collapse occurs, a trauma surgeon may be difficult to find. It may be up to you to provide for your loved one if they are wounded. You will need supplies and skills.
One of the best resources is in fact James Wesley, Rawles first book Patriots. In it, one of the characters is shot in the shoulder. It describes in great detail what is needed in terms of skills and supplies to help an injured loved one. Besides that, a copy of The Emergency War Surgery NATO Handbook, and a good book that details human anatomy, such as a Tortora medical reference text is recommended.
Night Vision and Flashlights
Night vision gear should be included. This should preferably be head mounted gear so you can walk unaided without creating a light signature. I own a Vega Armisight that comes with a head harness. Remember, flashlights that are both handheld and can be tactically mounted as well, with extra batteries for them.
Knives, Blades, and Swords
A fixed blade knife, such as a KA-BAR, to suit utilitarian needs is recommended. The knife is still the preferred choice for many currently serving military members, despite its inception in 1942. The name incidentally comes from a trapper in 1923 who provided a testimonial that the knife was used to kill a bear when his rifle malfunctioned.
My favorite edged weapon is a Samurai sword given to me by a friend several years ago. I am unfamiliar with its exact origin. When I first received it, I ran my finger gently over its edge to determine its sharpness. The blade cut deep across one of my fingers, with the minimal exertion I applied. To this day, one of my fingers has an incomplete fingerprint. If you have access to something like this, bring it. It will prove extremely useful in clearing paths, general bush-craft, and as a close quarters combat weapon.
Fire Starter and Lighter
A magnesium fire starter and a lighter are necessary. Although lighting a fire is a security breach, if you need to get warm then so be it.
Miscellaneous- Paracord, Duct Tape, Compass, and Map
Ample paracord and duct tape should be brought as well. There are a 1001 uses for these two items, including securing loose items and repairing torn fabrics.
A compass and map of your chosen geographical region need to be included in your bug out gear. Practice your topography skills. This is essential.
Late Model Heavy Duty 4×4 Truck
If you have access to a late model heavy duty 4×4 pick up truck with a snow shovel attachment, it should prove to be of great benefit if rural roads are semi-passable. The snow shovel can also be used as a battering ram to clear obstacles. Make sure you also have a full tank of gas always, plus extra fuel on board in canisters to provide for the full length of your journey. A spare tire and truck jack should be included as well as your knowledge to use them. In an urban area littered with broken vehicles, there is a danger of getting a flat tire. Prepare accordingly. As James Wesley, Rawles points out: “You may only get one trip out of Dodge.”
Prepare to walk your journey, but pray you can drive it.
Remember the Goal
Remember your primary goal should be acquiring farmable land of at least four acres, with a sturdy shelter, a drilled well, and septic tank, that is all in your legal possession. Maintain vigilance in your purchases, until this primary goal has been completed.
Stage 3: Hope and Pray- Urban Preparedness Is A Myth
An Anticipated Timeline For Collapse
It is possible to figure a timeline for the next major economic collapse. I believe it will happen in 2018 and most likely in late August or early September. This follows the timeline of earlier financial crises. It will happen because patterns exist, and they repeat in nature. Like a clock face hitting the same number time and time again.
In September 1998 a large consortium of Banks bailed out the hedge fund, Long Term Capital Management, to prevent an ongoing domino effect that threatened the very lifeblood of the financial markets. In September of 2008 the financial giant Lehman Brothers also became insolvent. This consequently became the largest bankruptcy in American history. Later in 2008 the United States Federal Reserve bailed out Wall Street and with it the entire financial sector. It did this by a program called quantitative easing, or QE. This is essentially running the printing press to create a false monetary resource.
Jim Rickards is a lawyer, who was the chief negotiator for the bailout of Lehman Brothers who later went on to become a financial analyst for the Central Intelligence Agency as well as a celebrated author. To quote him:
In the next crisis who is going to bailout the big banks? In other words, each crisis gets bigger than the one before. Each bailout gets bigger than the one before. We have now exceeded the capacity of the central banks to save the day.
There now exists no monetary policy capable to get us out of the disaster that awaits our nation.
August 1998 marked another notable event– the official default of Russia on its government bonds and treasury bills, triggering financial calamity for its country. Will our nation fall into the same situation on Russia’s 20th anniversary of economic crisis, in 2018?
Our Social Climate- The Thin Veneer Of Society
If you examine the debt clock of our country, it appears that it is exactly where our nation is heading. However, we need to realize our current social climate is markedly different than Russia of 20 years past. Our ability to recover is also impeded by deep social divides that may be impossible to overcome and will lead us unto a path of civil war or worse.
What you have just read goes back to what James Wesley, Rawles calls the “thin veneer of society” as described in his best selling book How to Survive the End Of The World As We Know It. Ask yourself why has such a non-fiction book risen to the New York Times best sellers list?
Urban Barbarity From Food Scarcity
British author Andrew Simms has an article entitled,“Nine Meals From Anarchy”. According to the article we are only nine missed meals from barbarity. This represents the Hatfield versus McCoys again, with neighbor versus neighbor, but this time disputing the scarcity of food. How many meals missed by your loved ones will cause you to fall into that slippery slope?
To quote the often crude writer, James Howard Kunstler, “The successful places in the years ahead will be those with meaningful relationship to food production”, as for the cities, “their destiny is slums, salvage or ruins.”
There is no such thing as true urban preparedness. The final stage of urban preparedness is to prepare to get out. Consequently, I will trust you need no further convincing on relocating to a rural environment.
Seemingly Burdensome Gear May Be Necessary
As an addendum, I would add that a large portion of the gear I mentioned might prove burdensome. If seasons permit and the roadways become unsafe you might have to go into a camping/hiking mode. I would also advise bringing a tarp, survival knife, and sleeping bags that can be compressed. Several forms of fire starting gear, a compressible air mattress, and a camping pot with utensils along with fishing line with hooks ,Survivor Pro filter portable water system, and I emphasize its importance. I would personally bring a Sven survival saw for bush-craft as well my Samurai sword.
Additionally, I plan to take a 22 caliber LR semi auto, such as the ISCC Austrian made MK12 with six magazines and 1000 rounds along with an appropriate tactical vest. A bullhorn should be taken if you spot potential predators from far distances in order to communicate effectively, as well as a pair of binoculars. I have a young son, so I would need the Big Boy Barrow heavy duty carp porter cart.
Write Your Own Plan
I urge you to write your own personal article about your plans as well. By writing about your own particular situation and your personal strategy to cope, you will then be able to engage in legitimate thought experiments. This will greatly assist you to survive and thrive in “uncertain times”. You will find practical solutions to your dilemma.
Ask yourself what would you do if you had one year to prepare for such a disaster?
Take action now.
I will pray we have at least another year to prepare. I hope you will, too. God bless.
See Also:
- Getting Ready For the Long Walk-Part 1, by Lone Wolf and Cub
- Getting Ready For the Long Walk-Part 2, by Lone Wolf and Cub
SurvivalBlog Writing Contest
This has been part two of a three part entry for Round 72 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $11,000 worth of prizes for this round include:
First Prize:
- A $3000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
- A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,195 value),
- A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
- DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
- An infrared sensor/imaging camouflage shelter from Snakebite Tactical in Eureka, Montana (A $350+ value),
- Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
- A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
- Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).
Second Prize:
- A Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
- A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
- A gift certificate for any two or three-day class from Max Velocity Tactical (a $600 value),
- A transferable certificate for a two-day Ultimate Bug Out Course from Florida Firearms Training (a $400 value),
- A Trekker IV™ Four-Person Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $250 value),
- A $200 gift certificate good towards any books published by PrepperPress.com,
- A pre-selected assortment of military surplus gear from CJL Enterprize (a $300 value),
- RepackBox is providing a $300 gift certificate to their site, and
- American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.
Third Prize:
- A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
- A custom made Sage Grouse model utility/field knife from custom knife-maker Jon Kelly Designs, of Eureka, Montana,
- A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
- Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
- Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
- Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances,
- Montie Gear is donating a Y-Shot Slingshot and a $125 Montie gear Gift certificate.,
- Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value), and
Round 72 ends on September 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.
I question the application of a tourniquet as indicated in your offering. In EMS training we were instructed to apply a tourniquet and gently increase pressure until the blood flow stopped. Keep constant pressure at that point but loosen slightly every two hours for a minute or so to maintain a slight blood flow into the damaged limb in an effort to prevent necrosis.
Granted, training may be different in other parts of the country but stating to tighten “until tight then two turns more” is very subjective as there is no specific definition of “tight.”
A spare blood pressure cuff makes a great tourniquet. The amount of pressure can be recorded and maintained and the cuff exerts a smooth even pressure around the limb rather than squeezing the limb in a tight band as a rag or other makeshift tourniquet would do.
The new rules concerning tourniquets have changed. I remember when the thought was to loosen it every few hours. That can be deadly… allowing clots that have formed to travel to the heart/lungs, etc.
Now for trauma first aid they teach placing tourniquets “high and tight”. In other words, as high up on the extremity as possible, and as tight as possible.
Good Sir,
Thank you for your insightful medical information.
God bless,
Tourniquet on for a day or two? Seems you would loose the limb. I have to agree with Randy, unless protocols have changed, which they do regularly.
Good day Sir,
Thank you for your response. Your comment has been taken into consideration.
God bless
I am a medical doctor, though not specialist in trauma surgery. But I am qualified as emergency pre-hospital doctor.
I agree with the above commentor on tourniquet. A blood pressure cuff is best, and above method should work well.
Two days without blood flow in the limb will equal loss of that limb and often life, due to toxic backwash once tourniquet is released.
Acidosis is defined and explained mildly wrong, however, there is a treatment with tranexic acid for blood loss.
Good day Sir,
Thank you for your medical Information.
God bless
“The final stage of urban preparedness is to prepare to get out.”….absolutely!…urban and close-in suburban areas will be unlivable…I got out in 1993 and haven’t looked back….but for my daughters and their families still living in the metroplex I’ve urged them to consider stashing a get away boat…many major metropolises are on navigable waterways and the highways out of town may be choked with vehicles and stragglers on foot…boating as far as possible before walking may give the family a head start on the horde…. keep up the good work Lone Wolf!
Good day Sir,
Thank you for your response and encouragement . It is much appreciated.
God bless
I agree with the above advice about how to apply a tourniquet
ACIDOSIS is a condition of excessive acidity of the body tissues and fluids. The author is correct in stating that it is Not A Good Thing. It can be caused by many medical conditions, including hypotension (inadequate blood pressure), blood loss, poorly controlled diabetes, sepsis (infection that has spread into the bloodstream), kidney failure, lack of oxygen or increased levels of carbon dioxide, various poisons and toxic chemicals, starvation, hypothermia, etc. It is a final common pathway of many disease states, some of which are correctable, some of which are not. For example, uncontrolled diabetes is easily correctable if insulin is available.
In an emergency context, excessive blood loss or hypothermia are easy to determine. Acidosis may be presumed to be present but cannot be measured without special techniques, so it is a less useful parameter for first responders to be concerned about.
The inability of the blood to clot is different from acidosis, although both problems may occur together. It is most commonly caused by medications such as Coumadin, which can be witheld in an emergency situation. It can also occur in such diseases as hemophilia (c.f. the unfortunate Russian tsarevitch). In an emergency situation, with massive injuries and blood loss, or with sepsis, the patient may develop Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC) which cannot be adequately addressed in a “ditch medicine” situation.
Good day Sir,
Thank you for your information it is appreciated.
The huge fallacy of tourniquets and survival post shtf.
The original issue still exists and is compounding with time without additional medical care.
At best limb use reduction at worst a slow painful death.
Tough decisions need to be made before application.
Good day Sir,
Thank you for your comment in this discussion.
Acidosis is a condition of excessive acidity of the body tissues and fluids,
It is as the author indicates Not A Good Thing. It can however be caused by many medical situations, such as excessively low blood pressure, blood loss, respiratory failure, kidney failure, sepsis (infection that has spread to the blood), uncontrolled diabetes,dehydratition, exposure to toxins, hypothermia, and even radiation exposure. Some of these conditions are correctable, others not so much. For example, diabetic acidosis is treatable if insulin is available.
Less emphasis is placed on acidosis in a “ditch medicine” context because it cannot be either diagnosed or directly treated outside of a formal medical context (a lab). Other conditions such as blood loss or hypothermia are self-evident and should be addressed first.
Failure of the blood to clot is a different problem, although it may occur in the same context as acidosis. Apart from a few rare hereditary diseases such as hemophilia (c.f. the unfortunate Russian tsarevitch), the commonest cause of blood not clotting is the use of Coumadin or other blood thinners, so ask the patient! These medications can be withheld in a situation of blood loss. In a catastrophic medical emergency, the patient may (rarely) develop Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC) wherein the blood does not clot at all. Outside of an ICU (sometimes even inside of one) very little can be done about this. Medical students are told that DIC stands for Death Is Coming. Here again, as with acidosis, your best bet is to correct everything that is correctable; stop the bleeding, warm up the patient, put him in the most comfortable position for breathing, hydrate, give antibiotics if indicated, treat pain, give comfort and encouragement, pray.
Thank you for your excellent blog.
Good day Sir,
Thank you for the medical information provided to benefit readers,
God bless,
LW&c –
I appreciate that you’re a trained medic and have put your life on the line helping others and defending the freedoms the rest of us most often seem to take for granted.
I, and I suspect all of us here, completely agree with your prediction that urban areas will be unlivable in the event of any number of catastrophic scenarios.
On the other hand I’m left with the impression that your expectations seem unreasonable.
Not trying to be combative but I think this set of articles is lopsided.
I’m imagining that you have some very solid and useful stories from your experiences [no doubt, about team work] that would be of more benefit than referencing popular Hollywood scripts.
Again, it’s not my wish to be offensive but after reading all 3 installments of this post I have to say it’s some very dangerous daydreaming to rely on this ‘gear driven’ Loner mindset and info as ANY kind of useful info in a social collapse situation.
Granted you may find yourself alone but contemplating a plan to stay that way is just insuring that’s how you’ll die.
Sorry mate, but you’re going to need some help, and well established BEFORE any unpleasantries occur.
You’ll need someone at the location and some that you can meet up with on the way.
The idea of heading all by my onesey out to a retreat location, the condition of which I don’t know, plundered, covertly observed, or occupied with armed nasties, is one I wouldn’t put myself much less my son into.
What I’m getting at is communication, which in this scenario is most likely Ham Radio, to get in touch with those you trust. A whole other article would be required for the how’s on this.
Here’s a start: http://tinyurl.com/y7todhgl
And 3 or 4 days and nights of cross country hauling a cart with a couple of hundreds pounds of gear, supplies and toddler is a clear advertisement, “Hey, over here, I’ve got STUFF!” And a bullhorn? Really? That may be intimidating from the leader of a SWAT team but on your own, stealth might serve better. Again, we’re talking about a situation where anything may happen and it’s all unknown so planning exclusively for what you expect is a unwise.
Take it from the keepers of this site, JWR and HJL… are either of them are Lone Wolves or have they built solid community around them to deal most effectively with whatever happens?
Gear is great and we all need some but without well practiced skills that gear is just going to end in someone else’s stash when you’re all too quickly gone.
Plans are necessary, too, but we had better have more than one. Or two.
Again, I’m not meaning any attack here since at times we all find ourselves on our own but to intentionally stay that way is folly.
A distinctly more useful bit of information can be found here:
http://tinyurl.com/y7c5eul6
Good day Sir,
Thank you for your response.
Collapse is the “elephant in the room” that most people ignore.
For many in the urban environment such discussion may result in jeopardizing your job, personal relationships and even your personal freedom.
It would be prudent to have a plan and equipment and skillset regardless of current team size.
With the power of prayer such individuals may become valued members in the smaller agrarian communities across our nation.
I hope this response has been satisfactory to you.
God bless
A lot of people are planning on surviving whatever happens more or less alone. Some because they are alone and others because they cannot trust their family members. While it may be, in theory, much better to have a group to rally around it may not be possible and to choose to make plans to do it alone then is not a mistake as you imply but a necessity.
NASA did a study for their long space flights to try to determine the best size/number of astronauts. What they found is that one or two was the only number of people who could work together effectively over time without having mission destroying social problems. With three people, two would always ally themselves against the third. With four there would be two factions opposing each other similar results were encountered for every number of participants above two people.
Also we don’t know “what” the disaster/emergency will be. It is not only possible but quite likely that alone or a man and his wife will be the best number to survive.
Good day Sir,
Thank you for your information.
God bless,
Rawles, Thank you for your book Patriots. I bought it at the Preppercon in Utah and it will make a great difference to me. I am in Coalville so I know where the couple were dropped from Chicago . . . Great job.
I work in the forest summers doing wilderness boundaries that are in contention. Many years of out West life in the wilderness and uninhabited areas gives me the following understanding:
1. The most dangerous place you will be will be in the forest, desert, wilderness of every type. You must have water and all animals will be competing for life in these areas and directly where at water. So if you plan to survive in these places you better be prepared for survival of the fittest.
2. Wilderness first aid. Absolutely a must. Tourniquets? If you have that problem then fix it or die, but tourniquets . . . go ahead and die. The best fix for wounds is clean water and soap, mud from rivers or lakes – be careful it is a real lake and absent clean water and soap you will have to use the mud – especially for deep gashes. Use the mud. If you are downstream of cattle then you are going to just have to die, but the mud may just work if all other conditions are right. If you are in camp then good water, soap, tea tree oil, vaseline if you want to heal the wound anaerobically otherwise just use the tea tree oil and let the air heal the wound. Large gashes just hold the gashes together. If you don’t think the mud works then go ahead and die. Use the mud. It works. I have had to use it. Tea tree oil, vaseline to heal anaerobically – especially blisters on feet. You will walk for a week and your blisters will be healed when you arrive. Use the athletic tape with the small holes that is used for ankle wraps etc.
3. Going alone. I will go alone or with two perhaps three total individuals. A guy was hunted by police and sheriffs helicopters, etc. He was on drugs and did something very bad. He was never caught. In a time I was going through the washes along the Virgin River through the Virgin River Gorge between St. George where the manhunt began and Las Vegas probably where he went I came across a small dig . . . it had to be that guy. A person on his own can do wonders if willing to do the hard work of it. I prefer alone or one max two others. Look at native travelers throughout the West – they did not usually go in caravans when on a hunt or scout. Research the moves of Geronimo with a small/medium band and “War Chief” Joseph (Nez Perce) with a large band. Very difficult to do, and great skill so keep it small. Remember the most dangerous place is in the forest, desert, wilderness areas – man is a serious predator and there you have the others as well.
3. You will be surveiled through the air. I have seen drone practice in the most completely deserted places. Be careful if these are part of the problem They operate these from Las Vegas, but they are just like next door no matter where you are. So again, alone or very small groups, and expect and train for the greatest difficulties.
4. Survival weapon is your hard work at being undetected. All conflicts avoided are conflicts won or overcome. Like the hunted man in the washes. It was very cold when he went on the run. Next – 22? No. Being ‘outgunned’ is only learned from experience. A 22 with a hot load like a 5.56 is the min. A SCAR weight 7.2 lb, with a mag fully loaded 8.0 lb approx. total. I have carried a camera that weighed 4.6 lb long, very long distance in the past. Take a SCAR. Semi autos are problematic because of the gas systems so use a bolt or take a SCAR. One bullet, one kill. Do not use 20 rounds for anything. If you have been ambushed – then die and next life make sure that doesn’t happen again – or kill all ambushers – one bullet one hill and don’t get ambushed again – 100 rounds. Geronimo took a smart little group through completely unhideable country through lots of troops, scouts, and others and not a soul had the slightest idea he had been perhaps feet or yards from them and lived that way for a long time until he came out, so it can be done.
Knives: Mors Kochanski? Maybe the guy from wildernesssurvival.com: 1 knife = no knife. Take two, min.
Thanks for your blog. Very important for me and all the rest of us I am sure. Thank you very much.
PS I am looking for wilderness first aid class. I was in a Hostel International hostel and they had a group for two days giving this class to ski patrol, forest rangers, river guides etc. I am looking for class like this. And yes hopefully we have a year, but I doubt it. I think we are talking months, with a number of months cushion or response – maybe we can squeeze a year out of that. In Utah our governor has a fully funded and staffed police state that can be put on us in . . . say 10 to 20 hours! Hungry people are not the real problem. Broke and vicious government people are. We have 52% of working people in Utah employed by government . . . enough said? And not only federal highways are fully surveiled. State roads, often right in the middle of the very small towns (main streets) I observe the same cameras.
Godspeed
Good day Sir,
Thank you for your insightful comment.
God bless,
Sometimes going it alone or with another person you trust is your only option, many live with the fact they are the only one who prepares ahead and ” can see ” events ahead with a calm logical mind. Group think cannot or does not happen because no one in your family or anyone in your area can except the reality of a wipe out of the finance system or [ insert event here] I comepletely disagree that people who are alone and have the right mindset and put the training in will fail, very often the will to live is what pulls you through the most adverse conditions in life. If you have a bug out place,have a group you trust and all family on board with you, great!, wonderful, the reality is exactly the opposite, most don’t, most people who plan or prepare ahead are alone!, frankly if you have a yacht, motor boat, bike, 4wd or a donkey, then congrats to you, its making a concerted planned effort that should be commended, lots of people think there is one year left, some months,some years, people are just guessing, my inbox is flooded weekly and daily with mail from the so called big name experts who magically predicted 2008 GFC, ALL are selling some new e book or want to sell you their winning stock, the only people who know when the next big reset of the finance system are the ones who control it, last nighT the debt clock showed the US is 106 percent of GDP in debt, insolvent ,bankrupt,kaput,nada, the only thing keeping the system from imploding is the USD fiat money.
There are officially 324 million people in America, I have figures of between 5 and 6 milion people who prepare bandied about, how many out of that number have cabins on land stashed away somewhere remote ? really ? 100,000- 200,000- 50,000, not many either way is it ?, so its critical to understand most will be alone or in ones and twos watching and planning, a very large unspoken topic to talk about.
last item, a katana is a poor choice because of flex, blade profile and geometry[ contrary to legend it cannot cut the space time continuim], the skrama out of Finland is cheaper, and far better.
Good day Sir,
Thank you for for your useful comments. In addition your alternative to a Katana is taken under consideration.
God bless,
While bicycling across the USA some years ago I drank from freely flowing springs with the exception of Louisiana where there are only a couple springs in the whole state . I would say that even in a serious nuke attack it would be many weeks or months before the water flowing up to the surface would be tainted . In Ohio you can’t ride 30 miles without seeing a half dozen springs . The hillier it is the more springs .
Good day Sir,
Thankk you for your response. It is good to know clean water is available straight from the source.
God bless,
All sorts of food for thought here. First aid training would seem to be a must. The need to cashe. The JWR recommended book on the subject is great. There was a comment about meeting your end solo. Takes 9 adults to be secure and live as distinguished from simply surviving. You have to make friends. You have to trust someone.
My little bolt hole is about and hour 20 away. Plan a cashe on alternate routes and there in mini-warehouses. Cannot imagine all my eggs in one little rolling basket. Was going to a small place 10 minutes south and west. Have a house and property there. Found out they have gang activity in that little town. So much for that paradise.
Good day Sir,
Thank you, for your response. I take your response under consideration. With the power of prayer and my efforts, my team is growing.
God bless,