Notes from JWR:

Today is the birthday of the late Burt Blumert (born February 11, 1929 in New York City, died March 30, 2009.) He once owned Camino Coin Company. (Coincidentally, so did former congressman Dr. Ron Paul from 1984 to 1996.) I was a Camino customer before the turn of the century. I can remember Burt personally helping me dolly out my first purchase of 100-ounce Engelhard bars. That was back when they cost just $580 each. Those were the days. (The same bars now sell for more than $3,200 each.)

—

Today’s first feature article is by our Back Country Editor, Mat Stein. The second piece is by our Medical Editor, Dr. Cynthia Koelker. The third post comes from Pat Casio, our Field Gear Editor. They are all subject matter experts. I am very grateful to all of them for their volunteer work for the benefit of the SurvivalBlog readership.

Why Your Doctor Won’t Help You Prepare–And What You Can Do About It, by Cynthia J. Koelker, MD

This past week I had a pharmacy call me about a multi-year prescription I had written for a fellow prepper.  The pharmacy would not fill the prescription, and didn’t even know if was legal.  At first they told the patient I would have to write a note regarding the purpose of so much medication, and that the drug might not even be good beyond a year.  On further consideration, they informed him that he would have to get a new prescription written for a smaller amount.  It seemed they did not even want to keep the written prescription in their records (which are periodically reviewed).

It so happened that the state board of pharmacy was visiting that day and the pharmacist inquired as to what the law actually states.  I’m told the pharmacist was advised that they could not fill any prescription for more than one year into the future, even if the physician writes a note saying the patient is aware the medication will be considered out of date beyond a year.
This demonstrates just one of the obstacles to obtaining long-term medication for TEOTWAWKI that I’d like to address.  There are other barriers as well – perhaps you’ve encountered a few.

To begin, here’s my short list of reasons your doctor won’t help you prep:

  • He or she believes all is well – From your doctor’s point of view, tomorrow will be much like today, and on and on, indefinitely.  All this doomsday stuff is mere malarkey. 
  • Your doctor may be an employee – Even if he’s a hard-core survivalist, your doctor is obligated to comply with his employer’s policies.
  • Your physician is afraid of getting in trouble – How many people are looking over your doctor’s shoulders?  To name a few, your physician may be answerable to partners or peers, a practice manager, a hospital or other employer, pharmacies, drug boards, the DEA, insurers, Medicare, Medicaid, the state medical board, and no doubt the IRS.  Would you risk losing your license and livelihood under these conditions?
  • Your doctor thinks you’re a nut – Perhaps your questions are perceived as paranoia rather than preparedness.
  • Depending on your condition, your doctor may fear you’ll hurt yourself – Medical concerns include overdosing, under-dosing, not recognizing certain side-effects, drug interactions, necessary lab tests, and many others.
  • Your doctor does not want to be responsible for someone he or she is not seeing regularly – Current law requires a doctor to oversee a patient’s care on a regular basis, and to document this in a legal medical record.  Physicians are required to document every prescription written or dispensed, as are pharmacies.  Doctors are responsible for treatment regimens we prescribe.
  • Your physician may fear lost income – Doctors still have to make a living, which is becoming increasingly difficult, particularly for primary care physicians.
  • Society as a whole and medical providers as well believe the field of medicine should be left to professionals – The person who learns enough to care for himself may be more feared than respected, a loose cannon beyond societal norms.

The point of this list isn’t to make you give up, but rather to recognize and quantify the challenge.  There is much you can do, depending on your motivation.  You, too, can make a difference.   
So here’s a list of suggestions to overcome the above obstacles:

  • Convince your doctor that all is NOT well – When you see your doctor, take a brief moment to ask a question about the economy, or where our medications come from, or what you should have on hand if a tornado strikes, or how your community is set to handle a disaster like Hurricane Katrina.  
  • Learn whether your physician is an employee – If so, don’t expect much cooperation in the prepping department.  You may want to seek out a second, independent medical professional.  Solo practitioners are becoming a rare breed, but are much more likely to be independent thinkers.
  • Don’t put your doctor at risk – Ask only for small favors, perhaps an extra month of medication at each visit. 
  • Don’t act like a nut – Doctors appreciate patients who act responsibly, who know the names and doses of their medications, and who follow-through on agreed-upon treatment plans.  There could come a time when your doctor comes to you for advice on a preparedness issue.
  • Educated yourself thoroughly about your own medical condition, medications, and other treatments – There is nothing that prevents you from studying up on your own disease.  Your doctor likely has more clinical experience, which is an enormous advantage, but otherwise you can learn an great amount about any medical condition.  A good place to start is with the American Academy of Family Physicians journal which is online free at www.aafp.org.  You should know the common side-effects, potential for poisoning, and common drug interactions for all your medications.  Although doctors are aware of many of these, they cannot memorize them all.  A free online Interaction Checker is available at www.drugs.com.
  • If you have a chronic medical condition (such as diabetes, hypertension, etc.) see your doctor regularly – I cannot emphasize this enough.  The point is not only your current care, but your future health as well.  If you demonstrate trustworthiness in small things (such as keeping appointments), your doctor is more likely to trust you with bigger things (such as extra medication or a prescription for antibiotics for a future need). 
  • And now for the fine print – I recognize the above will only get you so far.  I strongly advise taking advantage of your current freedoms.  Currently you are allowed to seek medical care from more than one physician, perhaps one within your insurance network and one out-of-network, or even in a different city.  Currently you are free to obtain prescriptions from more than one pharmacy.  Currently you have access to a vast and amazing array of effective over-the-counter medications, about which I’ve written previously.  Currently you are permitted to acquire a wide variety of A-B rated USP generic antibiotics intended for aquarium use.  Currently you have access to as much medical information as physicians enjoy.  Currently you have the freedom to acquire medical items for potential future barter.  Currently there is no restriction regarding obtaining medical skills for personal use, such as suturing and casting, as taught in my classes and elsewhere.   Currently you can acquire insulin over-the-counter.  Currently desiccated thyroid replacement may be obtained without a prescription.  Currently herbal medications are available in abundance.  Currently you can purchase new or used books on physical therapy, massage, and chiropractic.  Currently you have the freedom to attend EMT or nursing school, even if you don’t intend to pursue a career in the field.

Fortunately there is much you can do to build your self-reliance in the medical arena, but it cannot be accomplished overnight.  An abundance of free information to get you started is available at my ArmageddonMedicine.net web site, and I suggest reading my other articles in the SurvivalBlog archives. (Put “Koelker” in the Search box.)

Winter Survival Tips, by Mat Stein

Note: This article is adapted from my book When Disaster Strikes: A Comprehensive Guide for Emergency Planning and Crisis Survival

Tips for Surviving Outside in Extreme Weather and Subfreezing Temperatures

Every year people get lost in the backcountry near where I live in the High Sierras, and end up spending one or more unplanned nights outside in the snow and extreme cold. Some of those folks live to tell the tale, and some of them don’t. Hopefully you will never need to spend unexpectedly long hours outside in extreme weather, but in case you do, here are a few tips:

  • Stay Dry: If at all possible, keep your clothing dry, including hat, gloves, and boots. It takes a huge amount of energy to dry clothing using just body heat, and wet clothes will not insulate nearly as well as dry clothing. If you must lay down to sleep, break fresh green pine boughs off evergreen trees to make a somewhat insulated “bough bed” that will help you stay drier and warmer than lying directly on the snow.
  • Check for numb hands and feet: The extremities of your body will tend to cool and freeze first, so keep a watchful eye on your hands and feet. At the first signs of numbness, you should stop what you are doing and get the blood circulating again, or you will risk frostbite and potentially permanent damage due to freezing your flesh. For the feet, brace your arms against something, stand on one leg, and vigorously swing the other leg back and forth, like a ringing bell in a bell tower. The centrifugal force of the swinging motion will usually restore blood circulation and warm your toes, unless they are already truly frozen and not just cold. If they burn and hurt, that is okay and the painful condition should only last a few minutes, unless the feet had actually suffered frostbite. The easiest technique for restoring feeling and circulation to the hands is similar to the previous technique for the feet. Swing your arms in wide rapid circles to help drive blood into the fingertips. Alternately, take your gloves or mittens off and stick your bare hands under your jacket and into your arm pits until your hands are warm.
  • Check each other for signs of hypothermia and frostbite: A few years back a father and son skied out of bounds into the Granite Chief Wilderness and survived several nights out until they were rescued. The father kept the son moving most of each night to keep his feet and hands from freezing, and to help prevent him from succumbing to hypothermia. A couple winters back, a female snow boarder descended out of bounds into the Granite Chief Wilderness. She perished from exposure while trying to hike her way out of the wilderness, not realizing that in the direction she chose, it is about a 50 mile snow covered backcountry trek to reach the nearest all-season road. If you have no companion to help each other check for frostbite and/or hypothermia, you must be vigilant and do this for yourself. Frostbite on the skin shows up as a bright white patch of skin, usually surrounded by pinkish colored flesh. It is caused by freezing of the flesh, and actual frost crystals start forming on the skin’s surface. See below for more details on both frostbite and hypothermia.
  • When in doubt, backtrack: Surprisingly few folks who get lost in the wilderness try to backtrack. Downhill skiers and snowboarders who travel out of bounds inherently dislike the idea of hiking back up the mountain the same way they came down, but this course of action would have saved many a life. However, when snows are incredibly deep, like they can be in the high mountains, backtracking may not be a viable option.
  • Seek Shelter: Tree wells and snow caves can provide shelter from storms and extreme cold. Snow is an excellent insulator, but try to keep yourself from getting wet both while building your snow shelter and when staying inside the shelter. If you must sit or lie down in the snow, a layer of fresh green pine boughs can provide insulation and help minimize getting wet from melting snow with body heat
  • Build a Fire: Your chances of starting a fire in extreme weather, using primitive methods, like a fire drill, or flint and steel, are pretty slim, but if you happen to have matches or a cigarette lighter on hand, by all means build a fire! Look for standing dead wood, or drier branches sheltered underneath fallen logs that may be drier than the rest of the available wood. For kindling, look for branches on trees that have a bunch of dead brown pine needles. The dead pine needles on these branches will usually burn even if they are fairly wet. Make sure you knock the snow off any overhead branches before you start your fire, so they won’t dump snow on your fire as it heats up. You can build a fire directly on top of the snow. Just lay down a bunch of branches to keep your drier wood separated from direct contact with the snow.

An aside:

On a solo trans-Sierra backcountry ski trip, while I was setting up my camp for the night, I made the mistake of not bothering to stop what I was doing in order to swing my feet and regain the circulation in my toes. My route had taken me to lower elevations in the warmth of the midday, and the snow had been quite wet, soaking through my old leather ski mountaineering boots. It was a clear night as I was pitching my tent, and the temperature had dropped to well below zero. Figuring I would soon be inside my sleeping bag, boiling a hot pot of tea on my camp stove, I did not pay attention to my numb toes. Turns out I froze the last half inch of my big toe. It blistered up, became quite sore, and turned black. I eventually lost my toenail and a large hunk of blackened flesh peeled off the tip of my big toe, but I did not need any surgery or have to deal with infection problems, so I consider myself lucky, having learned a valuable lesson that could have been a lot worse.

Warning Signs of Hypothermia

Hypothermia, and its evil twin, hyperthermia, are both very dangerous life-threatening conditions. The human body is designed to function within a relatively narrow core body temperature within a few degrees of 98.6°F (37°C). When the body’s core temperature rises a few degrees above this, hyperthermia (overheating) occurs, and when it drops a few degrees lower, this condition is described as hypothermia (overcooling). When left uncorrected, either case can rapidly lead to impaired mental and physical performance followed by death. When people die in the wilderness due to either overheating (hyperthermia) or overcooling (hypothermia), their cause of death is usually referred to as “exposure”.
Recognizing the signs and symptoms of hypothermia is extremely important. Most people who died of exposure probably had ample time to recognize the situation, and may have been able to do something about it had they realized what was going on. The following are warning signs of hypothermia:

  • Shivering
  • Decreased awareness and inability to think clearly
  • Numbness, especially in the extremities
  • Pale skin color and skin cold to the touch
  • Poor dexterity

As hypothermia advances, and the body core temperature approaches the “death zone”, the following symptoms may occur:

  • Apathy
  • Feelings of blissful warmth
  • Sleepiness and the desire to lie down and take a nap
  • The victim may start to feel hot and start shedding clothes
  • Difficulty or inability to walk
  • Slurred speech followed by inability to speak, or speech not making any sense whatsoever
  • Ashen cold skin, looking like a corpse that can still move a little
  • May or may not have waves of uncontrollable shivering

Treatment for hypothermia:

  • It is absolutely critical that core temperature be raised as soon as possible.
  • Monitor pulse and breathing. Give victim artificial respiration, or CPR, if necessary.
  • Get the victim out of wet or frozen clothes and immerse in a warm bath (not hot, optimum is from 102°F-105°F/39°C-40.5°C), if available. Change victim into dry warm clothes. Alternatively, wrap victim in pre-warmed blankets.
  • Drink plenty of hot liquids, such as tea, coffee, or simply just hot water.
  • If prior options are not available, have a warm person crawl into a single sleeping bag alongside the hypothermic victim for body heat transfer from the warm body to the hypothermic body. NOTE: Simply placing a hypothermic victim inside a sleeping bag by themselves is usually not good enough, since their body will at that point be pretty much shut down and not generating enough body heat on its own to rapidly restore correct body temperature.
  • Seek medical attention— hypothermia is life threatening, so time is of the essence!

Pat’s Product Review: Blackhawk’s Gideon Knife

I believe I first started writing about knives for Knives Illustrated magazine back around 1994. Since that time, I’ve probably had the opportunity to test literally thousands of knives, both fixed blade. folders, and out-the-front knives. Most knives I’ve tested are really pretty good blades. If something is junk, I just won’t waste my time writing about it because folks don’t want to read about junk! Once in a while, something new catches my eye, and I sit up and take notice, when it comes to knives.

Blackhawk Products caught my eye with their Gideon drop point fixed blade knife. I’ve designed several knives over the years, and they have all been fixed blade knives, of the survival or combat style, so I know a little something about designing a good knife. I have one sitting here on my desk that I co-designed with custom knife maker, Brian Wagner, at Okuden Knives – that we are attempting to do a collaboration with a big knife company, in order to get it into the hands of consumers at a reasonable price. We call it the OC-3 for lack of a better term, because it is our third collaboration together.
 
The Blackhawk Products Gideon is one of those smaller fixed blade knives that has perfectly flowing lines from the tip of the blade to the butt of the knife. It just seems to “sing” if you ask me – it feels great in the hand, and many people have handled my sample. I think the first thing that catches your eye on the Gideon is the handle design, it’s made out of G-10 and this is some seriously tough material – almost indestructible. However, it’s not just the material itself, it’s the curve of the handle and the sculpted design that catches the eye, that feels “oh-so-nice” when you hold it in your hand. There is also a somewhat pointed skull-crushing pommel on the end of the knife, with a lanyard hole in it.
 
The blade material is AUS8A, one of my all-time favorite stainless steels for knives – it holds an edge a good long time, and its easy to re-sharpen as well, and pretty darn corrosion resistant . On top of it, this steel is one of the more affordable stainless steels on the market. Value! The 5-inch black Ti-Nitride coated blade design flows, and there are also two holes at the base of the blade for tethering the blade to a pole for use as a weapon or for spearing fish – I’ve done it before – not with this knife, with with others, and it’s a lot of fun spearing fish instead of just using a fishing pole. Something to think about in a wilderness survival situation. There is also an additional finger groove in front of the quillion that provides an additional grip area for choking-up on the blade for close up work, like in caping big game, and for more control when cutting. the overall length of the knife is 10.250-inches – and the knife is a total brute!
 
When dealing with a wilderness survival situation, where you aren’t able to get resupplied with gear, you want the toughest gear you can find, you can’t afford to have equipment failure in the field. The Gideon won’t let you down, this little knife is brutally strong and the blade is very thick – real thick! This is the proverbial sharpened crow bar, that we’ve all heard so much about. However, unlike some other “sharpened crow bars” the Gideon is very graceful in design and the way the knife feels and handles. If a knife doesn’t feel good or “right” in my hand, I won’t use it or carry it. There is also a slight upward rise on the top of the knife for placing your thumb for use in the fencing grip, too. An injection molded sheath, with Nylon and mounting plates set-up for PALS/MOLLE or in a drop leg platform helps you carry the Gideon.
 
My Gideon sample came hair-popping sharp right out of the box, something you don’t get with some knives – I’ve had a good number of custom knives pass through my hands over the years, and there are some companies and custom makers that don’t put a really keen edge on their knives for some reason. I don’t understand this, a knife is a tool, that is supposed to be sharp in order to get the most benefit out of it. Blackhawk did a great job on the Gideon – it came super-sharp, and held an edge a good long time.
 
I put the Gideon through a lot of testing, more than my usual routines. I did a lot of chopping – while the Gideon worked as a chopper, the blade and overall length of the knife is a bit too short for this task, but it worked if I put some extra effort into it. I used the Gideon to split wood – using a big piece of wood, to pound the Gideon through another piece of wood – and the knife held-up just fine. There were some rub marks on the Ti-Ni coating, but that was it. I used the Gideon as a throwing knife, but the balance wasn’t there for this chore, and I never did get it to stick in a target, tip first. I did however, note some serious indentations in the target from the skull crushing pommel. The pommel’s design can easily crush a skull, with a downward movement – so this is something to think about – you don’t have to just cut or stab an attacker, you can put them out of commission by cracking their skull open – a last resort method of self-defense.
 
I used the Gideon for all manner of kitchen chores, and the edge never dulled – even cutting cardboard boxes – which really dulls and edge, didn’t affect the sharpness of the Gideon. I whittled on some wood, and finally the blade’s edge started to dull, but it was still very useable. I also stacked cardboard and “stabbed” the Gideon into it – and it easily penetrated the full length of the blade – the knife’s point and the sharpness of the blade helped in this regard, as well as the shape and contour of the handle! I’m not sure who designed the Gideon, there’s no info on the Blackhawk web site, but whoever it was, did a great job on this knife.
 
I also pounded the point of the Gideon into a tree and snapped the knife out sideways…no damage to the tip of the knife at all. I said the knife blade was thick – it is, but it is strong, too! I’ve tried this same test with some other well-known fighting knives over the years, and the tipped either bent or completely snapped off – either the blades were too thin or poorly heat-treated causing the tip to fail. Not something you want in a combat or survival situation. The Gideon won’t fail you.
 
As a bit of a Bible scholar, I know a little bit about Gideon in the Bible. And, the name means “Destroyer” or “Feller of Trees.” Gideon was one of the Judges in the Old Testament. So, the name Blackhawk Products gave this new fixed blade seems to fit…now, I wouldn’t want to try and fell a tree with the Blackhawk Gideon, but it might just do to fell an attacker or destroy him, or save your bacon out in the wilderness, too.
 
I like to save the best for last, whenever possible. The Gideon has a full-retail of $129.99 and for what you get, this is one of those best buys in my humble opinion. (They also make a Gideon tanto point variant.) You are getting a very well designed fixed blade knife, that is made from top materials, from a company that backs-up all their products. Blackhawk doesn’t make any junk – they can’t afford to, many of their customers are military and law enforcement and they demand and need the best of the best. The Gideon won’t let you down – they are a bit hard to find right now, but you can find one, and if you do, lay claim to it.  – SurvivalBlog Field Gear Editor Pat Cascio

Plan B: Key Phrases to Memorize for Citizens’ Reservation of Rights

I’ve posted numerous articles and links in SurvivalBlog that emphasize the importance of remaining silent whenever you are contacted by law enforcement officers. I strongly recommend that before reading the rest of this post, you take the time watch this lecture: Don’t Talk To The Police, and take it to heart.

I’ve heard from several readers who say that that they’ve been pulled over by police officers on “fishing expeditions”. The officers refused to let the motorists go, even though it was obvious that no crime had been committed. These readers did everything right. They presented their identification and proof of insurance, and repeated: “On the advice of my attorney, I am exercising my right to remain silent and I do not consent to any search.” This has to be repeated over and over.

The officers pressed on, with all their usual tricks, to try to get the motorists to agree to an unconstitutional search. Repeated queries were made, with the words: “Officer, am I free to go?” Finally, after more than an hour, a supervising officer would arrive on the scene, and the entire litany would then be repeated, for the umpteenth time. Then they were finally allowed to continue their travel. This is real fun in southern states when the outside temperature is 100 degrees F and the temperature inside your car is even higher.

So what if an officer persists? What if it goes on for more than an hour? At that point, depending on your patience or the volume of your bladder, it might be time for Plan B. Here is what I recommend:

1.) Keep your hands in view, preferably resting at the classic “10 and 2 o’clock” position on your steering wheel. To make the officer feel more at ease, leave your hands there throughout the encounter unless specifically ordered by the officer to move them for some specific reason.

2.) When the officer approaches your window–or the passenger’s side window, depending on the situation–roll the window down a crack and slowly and without and sudden movements hand him your driver’s license, registration, and proof of insurance. If you are a CCW permit holder, then also hand him your CCW permit at the same time as the other paperwork, and tell the officer: “I am obliged to tell you that I am a concealed carry permit holder and that in accordance with the concealed carry law of ______ (state) I am carrying a ________ pistol/revolver/whatever, located ___________.”

3.) If a traffic citation is issued, read it and then ask: “Am I free to go?” If you are told “Yes” then go. Don’t stick around for any debates, lectures, or pleasantries.

4.) If the officer asks you any questions, say: “On the advice of my attorney, I am exercising my right to remain silent and I do not consent to any search. Am I free to go?”

5.) If the officer start playing fishing expedition games to try to trick you into consenting to a search, simply repeat: “On the advice of my attorney, I am exercising my right to remain silent and I do not consent to any search. Am I free to go?”

6.) Repeat this as many times as necessary.

7.) If this goes on for more than 20 minutes, then add the phrase: “You seem to be unreasonably delaying my freedom to travel. Please contact your supervising officer. Will you please do so?”

8.) If, after an hour you still cannot get permission to proceed, I recommend that you ask: “Officer, may I contact my attorney?” If permission is refused, of if you do not have a cell phone with you or you are not in a cell phone coverage area, then you will be in a bit of jam. Then, and only then, I recommend that you politely elevate the encounter with another series of questions:

A.) Ask: “Officer, please explain why you are arresting or detaining me?” He will probably answer: “You are not under arrest.”

B.) Then ask: “So, am I free to go?”

C.) If the answer is still no, then ask: “Officer, I need to ask you: Are you familiar with the legal standards of Probable Cause, Reasonable Suspicion, and Plain View?” He will probably answer: “Yes I am” or perhaps: “What, are you some kind of an attorney?”

D.) Then ask: “Do you have Probable Cause to believe that I have committed or am about to commit a criminal offense?”

E.) If the answer is no, then ask: “Am I free to go?” If the answer is no, then ask: Then ask: “Do you have Reasonable Suspicion to believe that I have committed or am about to commit a criminal offense?”

F.) If the answer is no, then ask: “Am I free to go?”If the answer is no, then ask: “Is there anything that you see on my vehicle in your Plain View that would lead you to believe that I have committed or am about to commit a criminal offense?”

G.) If the answer is no, then ask: “Am I free to go?” If the answer is no, then ask: “Is there some new legal doctrine or standard that I am not aware of that would give you cause to detain me? Please explain.”

H.) If the officer gets obstinate and orders you out of your car, and declares that he (or they) are going to conduct a search or you witness them initiating a search, or they tell you to wait while a K-9 unit is being be summoned, you should ask: “Officer: Are you familiar with the Fruit of the Poisonous Tree legal precept? I must warn you that this is an nonconsensual and unconstitutional search and that anything that you might find will not be admissible as evidence. I must insist that you cease this search. By continuing, you are opening yourself up to litigation and I will not hesitate to sue both you personally, and your Department. Because you are proceeding with a clearly unconstitutional search you will not benefit from any immunity. “

Memorize these phrases, and their sequence. Beyond them, I don’t know what else I can recommend.

Note that almost everything that I have recommended that you say should be IN THE FORM OF A QUESTION. This keeps the officer on the defensive at all times.

May God Bless you, in your travels. Be safe out there! – JWR

Letter Re: Advice on Joining the Canadian Army

Hello James,
 
Over the last number of months I have really enjoyed reading articles on your survivalblog.  I like to thank you for all the good and commonsense information.
 
What are your thoughts on joining the army?  I have a 16 year old son who has his mind set on joining the Canadian armed forces.

I like the fact that he is willing to serve his country, but as a Christian is it wise to expose yourself willingly to crude and foul language and other foul behavior. I spoke to a Canadian veteran and told me that you are as a Christian on an ”island” on your own with few exceptions. (Those who claim to be Christian but their daily living shows otherwise).
 
With all the developments in your country (police state? financial collapse?) Canada is surely not far behind. Any advice will be greatly appreciated. Regards., K.

JWR Replies: That is a tough question.  But I do have some recommendations.

First, he should be at least 19 and well-grounded as a mature Christian before he enlists.  Younger and less discerning recruits are more likely to succumb to peer pressure and fall into sinful, self-destructive patterns.

Canada announced the end of combat operations in Afghanistan in 2011, but there are still about 1,000 Canadian troops there–mainly trainers for the Afghan army.  Deployments to Afghanistan are still a possibility if you son goes active duty.

I’d recommend that your son join the Army Reserve, directly.  This way he will get the same valuable training that he would receive as an active duty soldier, but he’ll be safer and probably happier. The Reserve units probably won’t get called up in the event of a major economic collapse. And even if they do, they will probably stay close to home.

Do some checking and find out the branch specialty of your local Reserve unit.  If it is not Infantry or Transportation, then he’ll probably be quite safe, even if his unit unexpectedly mobilizes and deploys to Afghanistan (or elsewhere.)

If he finds that he really enjoys it, then your son can always transition of active duty, later.

Letter Re: U.S. Army Recipes Available Free Online

Jim,
I have been building a library of preparedness-related documents to store on a DVD data disc. In my search for cooking recipes, I found this web site: U.S. Army Quartermaster Corps School: Food Service Publications & Links

The page contains a link to a ZIP archive of recipes use by the Army — about 100 MB of indexed recipes of all types.

A direct link to the ZIP file is here.

Watch ‘Yer Top Knot and Keep Your Powder Dry, – The Wyoming Geezer

Letter Re: Report on the Dulles Gun Show

This afternoon I went to the 3 day gun show (Friday 3-8 and all day Sat, Sun) which began on Friday at 3PM.  Being retired it was easy for me to go but clearly a very large number of people left work early to get ahead of the Saturday morning crowds.

So we all got the Friday afternoon crowd instead!

Parking in a disabled slot, a gentleman in security noted that I was a 100 percent disabled Veteran and allowed me to walk straight in rather than wait in either of the two lines which went at least 500 meters in either direction.  The line was far bigger than I’ve ever seen.  It was astonishing!

Once in the door the line went straight to the back where the ammo dealers were.  The dealers were advising people to not even shop for themselves but to simply line up for the cash register and tell their staff what ammo they wanted and it would be handed to them as they waited for their turn to pay.  No mention of brands, just calibers and quantities.  

It reminded e of the old Soviet Union and people lining up to buy shoes.  “I’ll take a case of .223, five boxes of .45 ACP and three boxes of 9mm and a box of .38 Special if you have it.  They would move along the line and await their ration and turn to pay.

Everyone bitched about the prices and the profiteering but few left the line.  They just adjusted what they were willing to buy or what they were willing to spend to match the new reality.  

Shooter grade ammo in .223 and.308 was a buck a round!  AK ammo was only slightly less.  And that was the price by the case!  A 1,000 round case was $1,000.  No negotiation.  No discount.

I bought two ammo cans of Lake City GI issue M2 ball .30-06 in en bloc clips to feed my M1 Garand rifles for a comparative bargain price as most people were in a feeding frenzy for the modern stuff.  Luckily I had stocked up before the election so I just shook my head and figured I’d wait for the furor to die down in a year or so.

Magpul PMAGs were averaging $50 to $60 each. As low as $45 if you bought in quantity or were a regular customer of the dealer.  [JWR Adds: These magazines were selling for as little as $11 wholesale and $16 retail, just before the frenzy.]

Genuine AK mags were $60 bucks each.  Perhaps somebody had them at a better price but I never saw them except for the cheap plastic junk.  

Cruddy old metric FN FAL mags that had sold for $4 each were $20 each.

I brought along a marginal quality Vulcan flat top AR and it was quickly snatched up for $1,600 within minutes of my walking in the door.  Most people were asking $2,000 for ARs but mine was an off-brand and a plain Jane version which I didn’t really like.  Besides, I have a half dozen better ones at home so I was happy to unload it for a hefty profit.

Oh, just so you understand, people were BUYING.   Why?  

Because they knew that on Saturday most dealers would be sold out and there would be nothing at any price.  It reminded me of the panic before a blizzard hits when people strip the stores.

Most buyers said they believed there would be a ban and or confiscation.  Some said they were expecting an economic and society collapse.  A few said they believed we were about to have all of the above and it would cause a civil war between the Constitutionalists and the Federalists.

Best Regards, – Gunwriter

JWR Replies: Reader K.A.F. recently sent me the link to article that dovetails with comments, nicely: SITREP.

Recipe of the Week:

Cynthia C.’s Carrot Cake

Here is a very good and easy from-the-pantry recipe for Carrot Cake made with canned carrots.

2 Cups flour
1 Cup sugar
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp ground allspice
2 tsp ground ginger
1 egg (or 1 heaping tsp soy flour with 1 tsp of water)
1 cup raisins
1 can sliced carrots- NOT drained
1 snack cup of pineapple bits -optional (drain but retain juice in case batter is dry)
1/4 cup chopped walnuts nuts- optional
1/2 Cup oil

Put the carrots in a large bowl and mash a bit with a fork or pastry cutter. (to look like shredded carrots)
Add dry ingredients and raisins (and pineapple & nuts if using) and mix well. (The carrot liquid should be enough but if batter is too dry add a bit of the pineapple juice or water)

Grease a 10 inch cast iron skillet and put the batter in it, cover and cook on low heat about 30-40 minutes. 
If desired, when cool, drizzle with confectioners sugar icing.  It is delicious!

Chef’s Notes:

I have also baked this in a 350 degrees oven in two 6″ cast iron skillets and made it up as a layer cake with cream cheese frosting.

I baked it for about 25 minutes and checked to see if it was done. Your mileage may vary, depending on your oven.

Useful Recipe and Cooking Links:

Best Canned Food Recipes

Canned Chicken Recipes

Currently Available as Free Kindle e-Books:

31 Leftover Ham Recipes

The Compleat Cook: Expertly Prescribing the Most Ready Wayes, Whether Italian,Spanish or French, for Dressing of Flesh and Fish, Ordering Of Sauces or Making of Pastry (from 1658!)

I’ll Have The Soup And Salad

Do you have a favorite recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? Please send it via e-mail. Thanks!

Economics and Investing:

Top Marginal Tax Rate Now Exceeds 50% in California, New York, and Hawaii

Venezuela Sharply Devalues Its Currency

Jim W. sent this: Days After Freezing Prices, Argentina Bans All Advertising

By way of Professor Paul Caron’s TaxProf blog: Tax Hikes Backfire, Greece’s Revenues Plummet

Items from The Economatrix:

$5 Gas Hits California

US Postal Service Ends Saturday Delivery In August To Save Itself

Are Junk Bonds Warning Stocks Are About To Fall?

Odds ‘n Sods:

Are you researching potential retreat locales, and want to know if a building code exists, or if building permits are required? (In many counties in western states, no permits are required, outside of city limits.) Here is a great resource. Oh, and speaking of retreat locales, check out the newly-expanded listings at our Survival Realty spin-off site.

   o o o

For those looking for HK91-compatible magazines, I found a company that actually has a pile of them in captivity: G3Magazines.com

   o o o

More bad civil rights news: DHS Watchdog OKs ‘Suspicionless’ Seizure of Electronic Devices Along Border

   o o o

Some more trigger-happy cops details have been revealed in Southern California.

   o o o

I’m in need of a law book, to begin some legal research. Would any SurvivalBlog readers have a spare used copy of
American Jurisprudence 2d – Volume 16 (Conflict of Laws to Constitutional Law 1-359). And perhaps also a copy of Volume 16A, as well? I’d prefer copies including the most recent update “pocket parts”. I’d be happy to pay the current market price, or work out a favorable swap. Please e-mail me if you do. Thanks! – JWR

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“I’ve traveled the world twice over,
Met the famous; saints and sinners,
Poets and artists, kings and queens,
Old stars and hopeful beginners,
I’ve been where no-one’s been before,
Learned secrets from writers and cooks
All with one library ticket
To the wonderful world of books.” – Janice James

Notes from JWR:

For my readers in the northeast: I hope that you were ready for the big winter storm, which is dumping record snowfall. Please help your neighbors who didn’t plan ahead.

—

February 10th is the birthday of Zvi “Zvika” Greengold (born 1952), a Centurion tank commander who was one of Israel’s most notable heroes of the Yom Kippur War. He was awarded Israel’s highest decoration, the Medal of Valor.

—

Today we present another entry for Round 45 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) B.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be 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, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear, E.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value), and F.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo. and G.) A $200 gift certificate, donated by Shelf Reliance.

Second Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training. Together, these have a retail value of $589. C.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. D.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300, E.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials and F.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) 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, C.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, D.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value. E.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value), and F.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 45 ends on March 31st, 2013, 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.

A Prepper’s Guide to EMP, by Chris C.

Those of us who frequent this web site, the prepper community, prepare for a host of potential crises that may befall our nation.  Some are more likely than others, but most share a common background when it comes to being prepared for them.  The event of an EMP strike, however, requires some very specific knowledge and safeguards.  This is a serious enough issue that a study was commissioned by congress several years ago, which found that the threat was real and that we were woefully unprepared. This essay will provide a brief description of the event itself with some supporting history, discuss the likelihood of such an event occurring, and finally go over the potential impact of an EMP strike with recommendations for preparations.
What is an EMP?

EMP stands for Electro Magnetic Pulse, a powerful burst of electromagnetic radiation that interacts with the Earth’s atmosphere and creates a wave of electrons that travel outward at the speed of light.  This “pulse” lasts only milliseconds, but the magnetic field that it produces creates a powerful electric current in conductive material through the Faraday principle.  There are actually three components to an EMP, but only the first, called the E1 wave, is considered a threat.  (The E2 mimics disruption by lightning and is comparatively easy to shield against, and the E3 phase is similar to a solar flare but would typically not reach the ground in a high altitude burst.)

This type of energy occurs naturally in the form of solar flares, but can also be man-made in the form of a nuclear burst.  While a solar event is possible, and strong examples have occurred in the past, it is typically much weaker than a weapon-based pulse, which will be the focus of this article.  EMP energy travels in line-of-sight, so ground bursts actually have much more localized effects.  The most damaging type of strike for EMP production occurs at altitudes of 40-400km above the surface of the Earth, where line of sight extends for thousands of square miles.  At altitudes such as these there is no blast damage, fallout, or even dangerous radiation.  Certainly these are the immediate and disastrous effects of a detonation near the ground, along with the now universally known mushroom cloud.  Why, then, with this kind of damage potential, would someone choose to exploit the EMP effects of a nuclear blast rather than the direct destruction?  Read on…

EMP- The early years:
EMP was discovered by accident to be the byproduct of a nuclear explosion.  In early tests, recording instruments located miles from the blast were destroyed by energy that traveled through cables and power lines, and in some significant early tests there was a demonstrable “practical application” component for EMP production and use.  Many people are familiar with the two historical examples of nuclear tests that resulted in measurable damage from an EMP.  The first is the 1962 American hydrogen bomb known as Starfish Prime, detonated 400km above the Pacific Ocean, and estimated at 1.4 megatons in yield.  The effects of the EMP component couldn’t be accurately measured since many of the instruments maxed out their readings, but the effects were felt 900 miles away in Hawaii.  300 streetlights were knocked out along with the phone exchange and many alarm systems.  It also crippled 1/3 of the satellites then in orbit, including some early communications models.  If this doesn’t sound severe, remember several key things about this test:

  • It was intentionally detonated over the ocean far away from any landmass
  • The Earth’s magnetic field at that location actually minimized the effects because it was located far from the poles
  • The electronics of the 1960s were very simple and robust compared to the circuit boards and microprocessors used today.  Cars were not fuel injected, there were virtually no computers, satellite communication was extremely limited, most electronics were vacuum tube based, and cell towers were non-existent.

The second test of note was a Soviet air burst in a series known as test 184.  It was “only” a 300 kiloton burst, but it took place over sparsely populated Kazakhstan.  The EMP from this blast caused a massive voltage surge in an underground power line, started a fire in the power station and burned up several generators that were not even connected to the grid.  (Presumably due to the lengthy copper winding present in generators that would mimic a long power cable as far as current induction.)

Bear in mind that neither of these tests were tailored to generate EMP, and note the difference in the size of the warheads.  As further research revealed, the size of the yield is not proportional to the EMP energy released.  Smaller warheads are in some cases more lethal in this regard than the big ones, and weapons have since been engineered to maximize EMP production.

So, what’s the point?
The intent of the history above is to demonstrate that the EMP generated by a nuclear device is not just theory, and that it acts as a force multiplier.  During the cold war we had thousands of nukes designed to literally destroy an enemy’s ability to wage war.  If they had been employed, we could have leveled nations and left nothing but a smoking ruin.  Now, with the SALT treaties and efforts to limit nuclear proliferation, only a select few nations have nuclear weapons and with few exceptions, none have more than a handful.  Compared to the still-impressive might of the American nuclear arsenal, small players such as North Korea, Iran, or even well funded terrorist cells might only be able build, buy or steal a small number of weapons.  Two or three would probably be the most they could field.  (Make no mistake, there are weapons available; by most accounts there are over 100 missing Soviet weapons, many of them the small “suitcase” variety of tactical nukes.)  With ground bursts they could clearly decimate our largest cities, kill hundreds of thousands and cause trillions of dollars in damage.  But, if they were to employ even small nuclear weapons in a high altitude burst, three bombs could literally cover most of North America with an EMP burst.  With a design intent similar to the neutron bomb, there would be little to no physical damage done by the actual nuclear blast.  In fact, from a high enough altitude there wouldn’t even be a sound, just a bright flash if you happened to be looking in the right direction.  The damage they are capable of makes ground burst weapons and dirty bombs seem like an almost welcome alternative.

Okay, it sounds bad, but it’s not like this would ever happen…
The reality is that during the cold war, no one fired off a weapon because it would have been immediately apparent who was responsible (through missile launch tracking), and the retribution that America and her allies would have delivered was too awful to consider.  We knew who the bad guys were, but more importantly they knew that we knew and it kept everyone honest.  Even if they had destroyed Washington and all of our land based missiles, we would have had enough warning to alert our airborne SAC bombers and the Navy’s ballistic missile subs, which would have delivered more than enough counterstrike to make the whole thing an exercise in futility.  The old policy of mutually assured destruction really did have merit and it kept an uneasy peace, but the world today is completely different.  We now face an enemy who is difficult to put a face on, impossible to identify, and hates us for no other reason that the fact that we are a nation of free infidels.  Muslim terrorists are unlike anyone else we have fought, and our nuclear deterrent is from their point of view no deterrent at all:

  • They have demonstrated the desire and ability to kill Americans and cripple our country whenever and wherever possible.  Two attacks at the World Trade Center, embassy bombings, The USS Cole attack, and countless smaller events prove that they have the will and can execute complex and lengthy planning.
  • Muslim terrorists have no compunction about dying in the process of the attack; in fact that is their ultimate goal.
  • Those that subscribe to Sharia law believe that it is their duty to convert or kill non-believers
  • Terror groups have now linked with other countries to expand their capabilities and global reach, and we have no shortage of detractors around the world.  There is evidence of communication between Islamic terrorists and Mexican cartels, as well as between Iran and North Korea.

It goes without saying that most of the world’s Muslims have no interest in this, but those that do are sometimes well funded through oil-rich state sponsors.  As mentioned above, there are many unaccounted for weapons from the old Soviet Bloc.  Several countries were left with nuclear weapons when the Bloc broke up, including Armenia, Kazakhstan, Belarus and Ukraine.  Many of them are poorly inventoried and protected, meaning that if they were stolen there is some doubt that the theft would even be noticed or reported.  There is also a strong possibility that they could be sold by cash-poor nations or even individuals to unscrupulous customers.  State run nuclear programs are also not above suspicion;  China, Pakistan and North Korea all have weapons that could find their way into the wrong hands.  In the event of a ground burst detonation, it would take some time to analyze the residue and try to determine the origin of the bomb.  In the event of an air burst EMP strike we may never be able to determine who was responsible.  As we will shortly see, this type of attack has far-reaching consequences that would be far more disastrous than even a detonation in one of our largest cities. 

The delivery method of such an attack is not nearly as complicated as you might think.  Ballistic missiles are expensive, complex and highly technical, as is evidenced by the failures of North Korea to build and launch one in the past few years. The delivery system for an EMP strike does not need to be nearly so precise.  In fact, it might be the simplest part of the entire thing; certainly much less so that building or acquiring a nuclear weapon.  As we will see when we begin discussing the effects of the pulse, the EMP is not a surgical strike.  In fact, it could conceivably be hundreds of miles off course when detonated and still cause massive levels of damage.  If multiple weapons were used to provide overlap, accuracy becomes even less important.  Here are some of the potential methods for lofting a weapon to the appropriate altitude for a successful strike.  For maximum results a high altitude of 40-400km is ideal, but even a burst at lower altitude will cause damage for hundreds of square miles.  If an attack were to include the Eastern seaboard of the US, or the Pacific coast, tens of millions of people would be affected.

  • High altitude balloon
  • Jet aircraft; i.e. a chartered business jet
  • Medium range missile launched from a ship
  • Low satellite orbit

If the methods above seem a little odd, remember that we are dealing with a “simple” nuclear device.  It does not require a complex targeting system, a military aircraft, or any type of specialized delivery system.  Iranian Shahab-3 missiles, purchased from North Korea, and others in development might be candidates.  Also, North Korea just last month put their first satellite into space and Iran has similar ambitions.  While these two options are reserved for nations with substantial funding, balloon delivery and chartered jet are within the range of virtually any group.  This may seem farfetched, but the weapons and the delivery systems already exist, and there are plenty of groups who would be happy to employ them.  This is not science fiction, and is well within the realm of possibility.
So what happens when it goes off?
The impact of an EMP strike on modern society is open to a great deal of conjecture.  The last tests, mentioned previously, were in 1962 and the technology of today is vastly different.  Broken down simply, an EMP has the potential to affect the following:

  • Electrical power generation
  • Communication
  • Transportation
  • Microprocessors

There are many subsets of the four categories above, which will be examined below, and it is important to remember that they are all interrelated.  For example:  Your power has gone down due to an EMP strike and you need replacement parts to get it up and running.  The problem is that you need power to manufacture replacement components, a method for conveying what exactly you need, and the transportation to bring the components to your plant.  As a more local example, with no communication you can’t call and report a fire, the water pressure at the hydrant isn’t maintained because the pumping station has no power, and the fire trucks may not be functional anyway.  A blow to any of the four will adversely affect the other two. 

The E1 component of an EMP is a powerful magnetic wave, and it creates a massive voltage spike in metal components.  The energy is measured in volts per foot, so longer the metal, the more power is generated.  This means that long high-tension transmission lines could generate huge amounts of power, which would blow transformers and cause severe damage to power generation plants.  Let’s break down each of the above three broad categories and see how they would impact life in these United States.

Power generation:
Right now when the power goes out it’s annoying, and we sit and fume for the few hours it takes to replace a downed line or transformer knowing that American Idol is coming on.  An EMP has the potential to knock out virtually all of the power plants and transformers within line of sight from the blast.  (Remember, from an altitude of 40-400km, or up to 250 miles, “line of sight” only ends at the curvature of the earth.  An airliner only flied at 6-7 miles high, so imagine the vast area that line of sight covers from that vantage point).  There is evidence to suggest that the E1 pulse, which travels at or near the speed of light, would not be stopped by most surge protectors, meaning that much of the standard lighting protection equipment would offer no shielding.  Imagine the casualties in the immediate aftermath.  Hospital life support systems would shut down; even those with underground generators that might avoid destruction only have a fuel supply sufficient for a few days.  During the colder months people may freeze to death without heat in as little as a few days.  Food rapidly spoils.  Gas stations can’t pump gas even if the vehicles are operational.  All of the automatic monitoring and management of utilities, gas and oil pipelines, infrastructure down to the traffic lights.  Telephone exchanges and standard radios are useless, as is anything that you plug into a wall.  What could be worse than having all the power out in an instant… and not being able to find out what happened.  No internet, no cell service, no phones.  The water treatment plant is shut down and your toilets may back up.  Depending on where you live, you may immediately lose water pressure when the pumps go down.  As mentioned, there is no firefighting capability and fires which would have been easily contained now rage out of control.  Instead of one townhouse with a small fire, the entire row burns to the ground, or the entire apartment building, high-rise, etc. 

Communication:
Many of us don’t appreciate our modern communication network, which is heavily satellite based.  While an EMP wouldn’t take out satellites beyond the curvature of the Earth, those within line of sight are at risk.  Also knocked down would be cell towers, relay stations, computers and servers, etc.  There is some debate over whether or not small transistor devices such as two way radios would survive, but even they would provide a very limited range for communication.  Some military hardware is hardened against EMP, but only a small percentage of it.  With no comm systems intact you cannot call for help, check on your family, organize relief efforts, or even find out how extensive the damage is.  The pony express may make a sudden resurgence in popularity.  Satellite damage will also preclude the use of GPS systems and national defense, and with the damage to the power grid and transportation systems it will not be easily repaired.

Transportation:
The effect of an EMP on our national transportation system is up for some debate; it could range from severe impact to negligible damage and there is no easy way to test the theories.  Since this is a forum for preparedness and survival, we will examine a worst case scenario.  Aircraft are one of the biggest unknowns in an EMP; they are designed to absorb lightning damage but as mentioned above, the E1 pulse is faster than lightning and may “leap over” the standard safeguards.  If this is the case, then aircraft would literally fall from the sky.  Modern jets do not glide well at all, and most require computers for operation.  The loss of life would be heavy, not just from passengers being killed but from the aircraft on approach and departure crashing in populated areas and the fires that would result.  Remember the comment above about lack of firefighting ability?  Even a single airliner going down could burn massive areas of a city.  Trains would likely cease to function as well, since most of the controls are computerized and in some cases they are powered by electricity from an external source.  Trains carrying hazardous waste that are unable to stop in time or divert to side tracks could be catastrophic. Cars and trucks are the biggest question mark in this equation.  While most cars produced since the late 1980’s are computer controlled, the electronics are fairly robust.  It is possible that they may experience a brief problem or not function as well, but many may keep driving even if in a limited capacity.  Older models and carbureted vehicles would probably fare much better.  Generally the simpler the ignition system, the less likely the vehicle would be incapacitated by an EMP.  Many motorcycles, ATVs, riding mowers, etc would likely continue to function.  The good news is that even in modern cars the computers are simple and may retain some functionality.  Vehicles parked underground in concrete parking structures may be shielded from a pulse and continue to function.  In the final section, we will mention a few steps that might keep your car running.

Microprocessors:
Virtually everything electronic today has some form of microprocessor control.  Obviously if the power is down then this is a moot point, but what about the large number of battery powered devices that rely on these controls?  The short answer is that no one is sure what will happen.  Think for a moment about the devices that you may be relying on as part of your preparations that could cease to function:

  • LED lights
  • Electronic optics (EO Tech and Aimpoint are most common)
  • Two-way radios
  • Small battery powered radios
  • Portable computers (Meaning that documents saved might not be accessible even on the hard drive.)
  • Home standby generators with automatic controls
  • Some medical devices such a pacemakers

So what are we supposed to do?
With all of the above in mind, how do you prepare for an event that creates an EMP?  There is not much that you can do to preserve the integrity of your local power grid and communications systems, but you can prepare some obvious backups.  The problem then is how do you shield your power supply, communications, transportation and microprocessors from the pulse when it happens?  What are the first steps you should take to stay ahead of the curve and secure your family?  We will break down your areas of concentration into several categories and dig a little deeper into each one.  The good news, if there is any, is that an EMP is an instant event and you don’t have to worry about overreacting or convincing your family that there is a problem.  In fact, you will have several critical hours, (maybe even days), where the rest of the neighborhood/town/city is trying to figure out what the hell just happened.  (That said, there may be a small benefit to waiting for a brief time before repairing things.  Earlier we talked about the potential for several weapons to be employed and an overlap of affected areas; if another weapon is detonated 15 minutes after the first and you have just fixed your car or taken your secured items out, it will require another fix or potentially ruin your sensitive items.)  Remember, there are no phones, no TV, no internet and most of the population in classic fashion will be sitting on the front porch cursing at the government and wondering when someone is going to come out and fix this for them.  In this case more than most, forewarned is forearmed, and reacting just a little quicker than the population at large can make the difference between life and death.  The primary focuses are going to be the same that we talked above previously; power, communication, transportation, and some concern for microprocessors, with the addition of these:

  • Water
  • Food
  • Security
  • Heat

Let’s go through the list and see what we can do to mitigate the effects of an EMP event both before and immediately afterward.

Transportation:
If you have a bike, you have EMP proof transportation.  Unfortunately you won’t have an advantage over everyone else with a bike.  If you have access to a motorcycle, ATV, or older carbureted truck, it will probably keep on running or at the most require a new ignition box.  If you have a new vehicle, try the following before abandoning it:  First, examine the fuse box and replace any that may have been blown.  (It is not a bad idea anyway to carry extra fuses and relays with you.  For EMP protection, wrap them in a paper towel and then in foil.)  Before you replace them, disconnect the power cable from the battery and leave it off while you work with the fuses.  Most automotive computers have a “reset” function where removing the power supply for a few minutes will cause a re-boot when you energize it again.  If the computer or key sensors have been destroyed by the pulse this will not help, but most systems are also designed with the ability to operate to a limited degree without full capability.  This is why bad sensors may cause a dash light to illuminate, gas mileage to decline or the emissions test to fail but won’t actually cause the car to stop running.  Once the fuses and relays have been replaced connect the battery and try to start the vehicle.  If it runs, great!  If not, grab your GHOB and anything useful in the vehicle and start walking home.  As a side note, security will rapidly become a problem so if it is legal for your to carry a weapon in your car, this is a compelling reason to do so.  It may be a long walk home.

 

Water:
This is the time to fill all of the bathtubs and every other container that you own with water.  The generators at the pumping stations and treatment plant may or may not work; you may only get whatever water is currently in the pipes and can be drained by gravity.  Don’t trust the quality of it either, treat and filter like you would water from any suspect source.  For filtration, a gravity-fed unit like a Berkey is preferable to something requiring a lot of manual labor or electricity.  Make sure you have this prior to the event, since you won’t be placing any online orders for the time being.  Take your water very seriously; simple infections can be deadly with no medical care, and many people will drink from the faucet out of habit not realizing that the treatment plant many not be functioning.

Food:
We all know that grocery stores only have a few days supply of food on the shelves, so with the power out and transportation crippled it won’t last long.  If you are prepared, you can capitalize on the slow reaction of the rest of the population to fill in any gaps in your supplies.  Take whatever transportation you have and get to the grocery store, now.  I’m talking about minutes after it happens.  Bring your credit cards and cash, and if possible go to a smaller store rather than a big chain.  Even though the power is out, smaller stores often still have manual credit card devices that create an imprint of the card.  I am not suggesting that you defraud anyone, and when the power comes back on (eventually) you will absolutely be responsible for any charges.  It certainly beats the hell out of starving to death though, so stock up on canned goods, bottled water, first aid supplies and non-perishables.  If the store doesn’t have a manual credit card machine use whatever cash you have on hand, but you probably won’t be bartering with gold and silver at this point.  No one will be all that worried at first and assume it is just a large power outage, so when you try to pay in old dimes don’t expect them to go for it.  Go to as many stores as possible and stock up; with manual machines in use you won’t hit any credit limit.  Crank up your old Jeep, find a trailer, and go shopping before the barbarian hordes arrive.  When you get home, use up all of your refrigerated items quickly.  Cook your refrigerated meat over charcoal to save your propane for heating and boiling water later.  Thaw your frozen meat and salt and dry it, and plant your garden now.  Don’t wait; your supplies won’t last forever.  If you live in an area with game and fish, start shooting deer and spend time fishing, preserving the meat by drying and salting.  Once reality sets in, there won’t be a deer to be found.

Microprocessors:
Virtually everything now is controlled by some sort of circuit board or microprocessor, which may be at some risk from EMP damage.  Protecting them is easy; it just requires some forethought on your part.  The best way is to place them in a Faraday cage, which channels the electric current around a metal enclosure and shields whatever is inside as long as it is not touching the metal.  The best example is a microwave oven.  It is designed to contain radio waves, and you can usually see the metal mesh in the door.  A gun safe also works, as long as there is no metal contacting the objects inside.  Any metal enclosure will work, even mesh as long as the holes are small.  You can build them yourself use existing metal cabinets, etc.  Store anything in it that you want to survive an EMP pulse.  Medical monitors, LED flashlights and weapon lights, holographic and laser sights, two way radios, small AM/FM radios, etc.  Remember that GPS will be useless if satellites are down and so will cell phones since the towers will be knocked out.  If you have a laptop with critical documents on it try to keep printed copies on hand since you probably won’t be able to access them later.  (You might even consider printing out articles like this from this web site and keeping them in a binder, along with your food storage details and supply lists.)  A steel storage building may also provide some protection, so if your ATV, old car, generator, etc are inside they may fare well and not require any repair.  Home standby generators are generally located inside a steel enclosure, but are connected through a transfer switch to the home; there is no clear evidence one way or the other to suggest whether or not they would survive a strike.

Security:
It is safe to assume that the days following an EMP strike will be filled with examples of society at its worst.  People on life support or even those that use pacemakers will be first wave of the dead, along with those killed in fires and accidents.  A progression of disease, injury, starvation, dehydration and predation will kill many more.  It will begin with simple looting, robbery and rape as criminals realize that no one can call for help and the police are overwhelmed and can’t respond.  As the days pass and they realize that there is no food, expect gangs to form and scour the area for resources.  Expect authorities to attempt to confiscate fuel, weapons, and food; resist if possible and with deadly force if needed.  Prescription medication will be unavailable, painkillers will be stolen almost immediately and refrigerated drugs like insulin will spoil.  Suicides will increase exponentially as will violence as hundreds of thousands on anti-depressants and anti-psychotics run out of their meds.  Prisons will likely be emptied of all but the worst offenders since the guards will leave and food will quickly run out.  Lack of basic necessities makes for desperate people, and desperate people are capable of anything.  It will start in the cities, where there are not enough resources to support even a fraction of the population once the transportation system is crippled.  High rise buildings with no power cannot pump water to the upper floors, creating an immediate crisis.  From the inner cities it will spread, as the inhabitants flee looking for resources.  They will swarm over the suburbs and into the rural areas, mistakenly believing that they can “live off of the land” or that the countries rural areas have food to spare.  Many people have no appreciation for the process by which food gets to the table, and the fact is that without modern irrigation, fertilization and harvesting only a small percentage of the grain and livestock will actually be turned into food.

A bug-out shelter in Wyoming is a great idea, but not if you can’t get there, so the odds are that you will have to secure your home.  This is not the place to discuss the ideal types of weapons to use.  What is more important is that you are armed, stocked with plenty of ammunition and spare parts, and most importantly have the training and will to use what you have.  If you have stockpiled food, have a generator running, and are driving a functional vehicle, you will certainly be a target.  Your best defense is to look innocuous; keep to yourself, don’t flaunt what you have, and if possible try to surround yourself with like-minded people so that you can support each other.  Run your generator only at limited intervals and try to muffle the exhaust as much as possible.  There are plenty of resources on fortifying your home; do your research now.  Even plywood sheets over the windows can provide a degree of protection and on most houses can be cut ahead of time and kept on hand to prevent storm damage anyway.  To survive an EMP you will need to have a one year plan as a minimum, and you really can’t have enough food, fuel and medical supplies.  Remember that you will attract friends and family in the area, and take on additional dependents at your own peril.  The food that will feed your family of four for a year will feed eight for six months and twelve for only four months. 

This is just theory, but no one can deny that the possibility exists for an EMP strike and that it is in fact more likely that many other types of disasters.  They key to surviving will be to plan ahead, rapidly identify it when it happens, and then work the plan.  Remember, there is a North Korean satellite in orbit right now and the Iranians have recently practiced launching ballistic missiles from ships.  It may not be as far-fetched as you think.

Letter Re: Dealing With Biting and Stinging Insects

Dear James,
Those of us who live in the Southeast are constantly dealing with ticks and chiggers.  Sometimes the old-timers have the best ideas.  We were told that ticks and chiggers hate Vick’s VapoRub.  It really works!  Before getting dressed, rub the Vick’s VapoRub on the back of your knees, your ankles, and anywhere else you know they are going to go.  

But we found there are two more things you need to do to repel ticks and chiggers.  

1.  Wash your clothes in this recipe.  Most of the conventional laundry detergents, and fabric softeners have heavy perfumes.  Bugs are very attracted to perfumes!  

2.  Use unscented soap, preferably homemade, or soap that is scented with only real essential oils and not synthetic perfumes.

A doctor told a friend of ours if you find a tick on you that is having lunch and you can’t get it to let go, smear Vick’s VapoRub all over the tick.  The idea is that if the tick will let go first then you won’t have to dig half of the tick out later or risk the spread of infection.  This truly works but it just might take a while for the tick to let go.

Our family spent several days hiking in the Southeast woods in the summer, looking for bug-out property.  The first day we followed all the rules above for combating ticks and chiggers.  The following day, no one in our family had any signs of ticks or chigger bites.  

This protocol worked great for days.  Later that same week, a dear family member offered to wash our clothes and, of course, it was washed in conventional detergent loaded with synthetic perfumes (it happened to be a very common, well-known brand of laundry detergent).  After hiking, the next day, we had chigger bites all over our body!  The Vick’s didn’t even help!  We thought we were going to be scarred and it took weeks to heal.  After this laundry incident we realized the importance of doing all three steps together.  It does make a difference!

Happy Hiking! – Suzanne from the Southeast