Odds ‘n Sods:

Frequent content contributor Kevin S. sent this: Vegetable gardening: Raising the bed improves your odds.

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Britons! Time to Vote With Your Feet. Court Rules Christian Beliefs Harmful to Children. (Our thanks to J.M.B. for the link.)

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Chester sent us a link to a fascinating YouTube clip about a high-power air rifle that was used by the Lewis and Clark expedition. (OBTW, there are some modern high power air rifles. But unless you reside in a country with draconian firearms restrictions, an air rifle should be considered an adjunct rather than the centerpiece of your survival battery.)

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Russians prepare for konéts svéta: Survivalists stock up for End of Days.

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Hoping for a groundswell of public support: Nathan Fillion and Firefly‘s writers are ready continue the show. And here is a related article with some other details, over at Wired. Go, Joss, go!

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World’s sixth mass extinction may be underway: study

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found: surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him.

Thou [art] my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.

I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.” – Psalm 32: 6-8 (KJV)

Note from JWR:

Today we present another two entries for Round 33 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) 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 B.) Two cases of Alpine Aire freeze dried assorted entrees, in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $400 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A 250 round case of 12 Gauge Hornady TAP FPD 2-3/4″ OO buckshot ammo, courtesy of Sunflower Ammo (a $240 value), and E.) An M17 medical kit from JRH Enterprises (a $179.95 value).

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value courtesy of Next Level Training. B.) 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, C.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and D.) 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.) , and B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value.

Round 33 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Lessons From Christchurch: Urban Earthquake Preparedness and Survival by Alex F.

Let’s be honest. Thinking about the end of the world is kind of fun. If it weren’t, there wouldn’t be so many post-apocalyptic novels, movies and television shows. Preparing for a relatively slow-moving Armageddon like a civil war or pandemic demands a lot of shopping which is an enjoyable pastime.

However, as the grieving citizens of Christchurch, New Zealand attest, the most likely threats are also the most sudden, the least glamorous, and not fun at all. TEOTWAWKI may or may not happen in our lifetimes, but almost everyone has to deal with a natural disaster at one time or another.

While all natural disasters can be intensely destructive, none gives less warning than the mighty earthquake. Even such terrifying Acts of God as tornadoes and volcanoes give some signs of their impending arrival; earthquakes do not. According to a friend at a local university’s Geology department, the most sensitive seismic instruments currently in use give no more than five minutes of warning of a major earthquake: enough time for the Geology department to seek cover, but not enough for them to warn anybody else.

Like most people who live on “the coasts” of North America, I live in an earthquake zone. In my city, it’s not a matter of “if” an earthquake hits, but “when.” Troublingly, we’re actually several decades overdue for a major quake. Under normal circumstances, it’s easy to marginalize this threat, but the devastation in Christchurch underscores just how vulnerable those of us in metropolitan areas are to a severe seismic event.

Based on what happened in New Zealand (which, unlike Haiti, had fully developed, modern infrastructure), I have attempted to glean as many useful lessons as possible about the realities of urban earthquakes, and to factor those lessons into my overall disaster preparedness planning. Since an earthquake represents somewhat of a worst-case scenario, I believe that my conclusions would be useful for anyone interested in preparing for a situation that might leave him or her cold, wet, hungry, thirsty, injured or in the dark.

First, a disclaimer: I am not a veteran survivalist. I’ve lived through a major hurricane and its aftermath, and I’m highly motivated to do everything I can to ensure that my loved ones and I are at least in a better-than-average position when the next unpleasant event happen. But, when it comes right down to it, I am a moderately well-informed, largely untrained, middle-class, city-boy, living with a wife, two (soon to be three) kids, a dog and two cats in a 900 square foot home. I don’t have the cash, space or know-how to implement much of what is suggested by preparedness experts. I’m learning fast, but I’m not there yet. Therefore, since I have no reason to believe that the Schumer will wait until I’m ready before flinging itself at me, I have developed a somewhat unorthodox approach to preparedness. I don’t claim that it’s better than anyone else’s system, only that it works for me, and that it might work well for some others. More about that in a moment.

First, let’s look at the bad things that happen during a severe (Richter scale 6 or higher) earthquake:

– Collapse of numerous buildings, roads and bridges, as a result of shaking and liquefaction (soil with poor drainage can basically turn into soft mud during an earthquake);

– Multi-car accidents, bus crashes, etc.;

– Immediate spread of uncontrolled fires, as a result of damage to electrical and natural gas lines;

– Severe flooding caused by tidal waves and cracked water/sewer pipes;

– Large dust clouds from destroyed buildings.

During the actual quake, there’s not much you can do, aside from try to get under a table or doorframe if you’re inside. [JWR Adds: Tables get squashed. As my friend Paul pointed out, the current advice is that the best survival location is to lay next to a non-compressible object. Stacks of paper or books are good–anything that is truly solid.] Or pull your car over, if you’re on the road. The host of “Man vs. Wild,” when asked for advice on earthquake survival was quoted as saying “The truth is, a lot of it is luck.”

The worst-case scenario would be that this would happen in a coastal city, during a weekday, in winter, at high tide. It is especially important to teach your school-age children to ignore a fire alarm, and get under their desks until the initial quake ends. Getting detention is better than being crushed in a collapsing stairwell because some idiot pulled a fire alarm.

The immediate after-effects of a major quake would be as follows:

– Loss of utilities: water, sanitation, electricity, possibly telephone;

– Stranded and separated family members stuck at work, school, etc.;

– People buried or pinned in rubble;

– People with concussions, fractures and crush injuries;

– People beginning to experience hypothermia;

– People in respiratory distress from smoke and dust.

In this scenario, you and your loved ones would likely not be together, and you might not be able to reach them, either physically or by phone. Furthermore, unless you happened to be near wherever your emergency supplies are stored (and they weren’t buried under a collapsed building), you would only have access to whatever you had on or near your person.

Now, if you survive the initial quake, and you’re not trapped, you need to get outside before the aftershocks hit, preferably to some open area with solid ground where nothing is going to collapse on you, and you’re not going to fall into a fissure. To me, that sounds like the middle of the nearest parking lot.

Of course, it goes without saying that any type of medical/emergency response knowledge is wonderful, if you have it. One doctor in Christchurch saved a pinned man by performing a double leg amputation, using only a Leatherman and a hacksaw.

The training question has been well covered by other writers, so I’m not going to get into all the many things we should all learn how to do, except to mention that, in Christchurch, 14 people escaped from a high rise building with a collapsed stairwell because one of their number happened to be a mountaineer, and happened to have enough rope on hand to belay his compatriots the 60 feet to safety. Belaying isn’t usually high on the list of survival skills, but you can learn it in a day, and if you have the opportunity to take a class at your local park or climbing gym, it’s definitely worth it.

Once the earth stops moving, the aftermath begins. Almost immediately, burglary and looting will begin, including by criminals posing as government employees. As if this weren’t bad enough, the following 24-48 hours will add the following risks:

– Dehydration from lack of potable water;

– Onset of shock from injuries;

– Disease from spilled sewage, garbage, and flood water;

– Infection of wounds;

– Premature births and heart attacks;

– Hypothermia/frostbite;

– Overloaded or triaged police, fire and medical services.

During the initial 24-48 hour window, your first priority must be to secure your own safety. If you’re bleeding heavily or otherwise walking wounded, you’re not going to be much help to anyone else. Crush injuries are particularly dangerous, because they can easily become infected, shattered bones need surgery to repair, and bone fragments can migrate to other parts of the body and cause additional problems. If you’re seriously hurt, you need to realize that this is the kind of situation in which you might actually die. Don’t be a hero; you need to drag yourself to the nearest hospital. Even though you might be standing outside for several hours, it’s your best chance at surviving.

If you’ve patched yourself up, and you have a family, your next priority must be to locate and rendezvous with your loved ones. Based on the geography, distance, road condition, and people involved, this may mean walking (running) or using a bicycle to get where you’re going. Having an established meeting place already decided on is a good idea. If you have young children, you may want to plan on meeting your spouse at the kids’ school, since that’s where you’ll both probably head anyway!

Speaking of spouses, I think it’s important to make preparedness accessible for family members who may not be particularly interested in it. Packing a small emergency kit for a spouse and putting it in the trunk of his or her car “just in case” is neither invasive nor pushy, and if you are separated from each other by a disaster, it will give you piece of mind to know that they won’t be completely unprepared.

At this point, I’d like to introduce my general approach to kit preparation, which is threefold: first, I apply the Pareto Principle; second, I categorize supplies by priority level rather than by type; and  third, I minimize redundancy.

1) The Pareto Principle. Also known as the “80-20 Rule,” this pops up in all sorts of unlikely places. In 1906, the Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto observed that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population, and that 20% of the pea pods in his garden contained 80% of the peas. Since that time, the ratio of 80:20 has been applied to every imaginable relationship, with varying degrees of success.

In my case, I estimate that approximately 80% of the time, I only use 20% of my gear. To put it another way, the classical approach to “being prepared” is to prepare for every possible situation; my approach is to prepare for only the most probable situations, with the understanding that what I lose in potential preparedness, I gain in mobility and compliance. I simply cannot carry around everything I would need to survive every conceivable disaster. I can, however, keep a small Ziploc bag of high-priority supplies in my satchel, along with my papers, laptop, etc. The farther afield I’m going, the more supplies I carry, but in every circumstance, I’m taking only what I am most likely to need.

2) Grouping Supplies By Priority Invariably, emergency supply lists are broken down into categories like “medical” and “tools.” That’s fine for shopping, but it doesn’t work so well when it comes time to actually pack things into kits to carry around.

So, I’ve made lists that I call: Level 1 (everyday carry); Level 2 (day trips); Level 3 (overnight trips); Level 4 (camping/established emergencies); and Level 5 (home storage – the only level at which I separate the list into “medical supplies” and “non-medical supplies” for the sake of clarity).

As an example, the Level 1 kit lives in the bag that I usually carry with me wherever I go. Level 2 stays in the trunk of my car. If I’m taking the kids to the park, I’ll throw the Level 1 bag and the Level 2 bag into a backpack and carry it around with me. If I have to stay overnight somewhere for work, I’ll put the Level 1, 2 and 3 bags into a duffel bag, and I’m almost entirely packed. If we’re going camping, I pack the 1, 2, 3 bags into a large backpack, along with the Level 4 supplies. If we were to G.O.O.D., then the Level 4 would be my bugout bag, and I would load as much of Level 5 into my car as I could.

3) Redundancy is great in theory, and a real hassle in practice. Not only is it expensive to have duplicate sets of gear in various places, it’s difficult to keep track of what’s where, what’s missing, etc. Therefore, my kits are modular: Level 2 does not include anything that is in Level 1, Level 3 does not include anything that is in Level 2, and so on. Is it a little scary to have all my eggs in one basket? Yes, but it’s a calculated risk. I’d rather know exactly what I have and where it is than have a disorganized mess with too much of what I don’t need, and not enough of what I do. (I speak from experience here: when I went to organize my existing kits into my new system, I discovered that I had 30 reusable Ace bandages and 1 bottle of water. Less than optimal.) Of course, I do have duplicate items, I just put them in separate kits. So, for example, my wife drives around with a small bag in the trunk of her car that contains a Level 1 and Level 2 kit, and my sister-in-law has a Level 1 kit in her backpack along with her college textbooks. That way, if my family is separated when something bad happens (say, my sister-in-law is watching the kids while I’m out of town for work and my wife is out with a friend), we all have the items we’re most likely to need, right then and there.

Without further ado, here are my lists, as they stand now.  Please note that these lists are in a continual state of flux. I add, subtract and move items around as I gain experience and knowledge, so by no means should these be taken as anything other than a point of departure for your own efforts. I hope that they will be useful to you, whether you live in an earthquake zone or not, and I welcome any feedback or constructive criticism.

Modular Packing Lists

Based on the premise that 80% of the time, you only use 20% of the gear you’re carrying, I’ve come up with these lists for modular groups of supplies. This list bears little resemblance to typical “emergency” lists, because those lists try to take into account every possible situation, and are generally sorted by type (e.g. clothes, toiletries). These only take into account the most probable situations, and are sorted by levels of portability/importance. Furthermore, I think it’s important to use the same kind of stuff during emergencies as you do normally, so that everything is familiar to you.

Level 1 – Daily carry. These items (aside from the water bottle) can easily fit into a ziploc bag, which can be transferred from briefcase to backpack to coat pocket, as the situation warrants. This will suffice for most issues that arise in day-to-day situations. If traveling by commercial aircraft, omit “contraband” items, such as the pocket knife. Otherwise, this small packet will give you everything you’re likely to need to get through a situation that leaves you moderately (but not severely) cold, wet, dark, hungry, thirsty or hurt. Bottle of water Snack bar/granola/beef jerky Flashlight (LED bulb) Pocket knife/multi-tool Cash (approx. $100) Band-aids, assorted sizes Antibacterial ointment (Polysporin, Bacitracin, etc.) (small tube) Athletic (“Ace”) bandage with velcro closure Hand sanitizer (small bottle) Wet wipes (individually wrapped in plastic, not paper) Napkins/paper towels Matches (small box in a ziploc bag) Folding poncho Emergency “Space” blanket Dust mask Deodorant (Why is this on my Level 1 list? Because realizing you forgot to put deodorant on definitely could constitute an emergency.) Individual needs: e.g. sanitary products, prescription medicine

Level 2 – Day pack These items can easily fit into a light backpack. This will suffice for trips to the beach, day hikes and hunting trips, etc., as well as for urban/suburban stranded-overnight scenarios. If you are responsible for others (e.g. children), adjust accordingly. Additional Water Sunscreen (small tube of SPF 30 or higher.) Bug spray (small, non-aerosol container.) Calendula ointment (for stings or burns) Light sticks More snacks Dry pair of socks and underwear in ziploc bag Hat Camp Towel Rolled gauze Cohesive bandage Athletic tape Israeli Battle Dressing (“IBD”) Vinyl “exam” gloves Small bag for trash

Level 2B – Car Kit If traveling by car, you may wish to pack the following items: Jumper cables Can of “Fix-A-Flat” Extra pair of work boots/hiking shoes Cooler containing: ? 5-10 lbs of ice ? Bottled water ? Bottled/boxed juice ? Fruit (berries, sliced apples, etc.) ? Hard-boiled eggs ? Sandwiches

Level 3 – Overnight Travel Aside from the clothes, these items can easily fit into a ziploc bag or standard “toiletry” kit bag. Toothbrush Toothpaste (travel-size tube) Mouthwash (travel-size bottle) Dental Floss (small canister) Soap (Ivory, 1 bar) Shampoo (travel-sized bottle) Razor with extra blade Talcum powder (small bottle) Complete change of clothes (1 set) ? Underpants ? Socks ? T-shirt ? Long-sleeved pullover ? Hooded sweatshirt ? Jeans Sleep clothes (1 set)

Level 4 – Camping/Short-Term Emergency These items can be packed into a plastic tub or large backpack. Again, items are not duplicated, so you would also pack the Levels 1, 2 and 3 kits. Tent (ultralight, or “pup” style) Sleeping bag or blanket Toilet paper (biodegradable) Mess kit Canned/dried food Water Folding “Sterno”-style camp stove with fuel Disposable plates, cups, cutlery Roll of paper towels Handgun with ammunition Duct tape Hatchet Large trash bags

In addition to portable kits, it is advisable to prepare two larger kits for storage at home.

Level 5A. Medical Supplies Lots of band-aids Steri-strips Hydrogen Peroxide Antibacterial ointment (Neosporin, etc.) Alcohol swabs Disposable vinyl “exam” gloves (several boxes) Extra-strength Advil/Tylenol Children’s Advil/Tylenol Antibiotics Gauze (lots) Alcohol Wipes Cohesive bandages Israeli Battle Dressings (IBD compression bandages) Medical Manual (Merck Manual or equivalent)

Level 5B. Non-Medical Supplies Cash money Canned food/emergency rations Candles & Matches in waterproof bag Heavy duty flashlights with extra batteries Gasoline (approx. 5 gallons) Laundry soap More Water More bar soap More wet wipes More light sticks More trash bags Portable toilet (toilet-seat-bucket lid, etc.) More biodegradable toilet paper Basic hand tools Folding shovel Chainsaw Shotgun with ammunition Handgun with ammunition Rifle with ammunition Passport Gold/silver bullion coins

Food Storage Extremes – Avoiding the Expensive Pitfalls, by John L.

There are two extremes that you should avoid:

1. The Clueless Yuppie – The Yuppie typically has one jar of olives and half a case of Diet Pepsi in his refrigerator on average,e at all times. He has no Cash/Silver/Gold in the house, relies entirely on credit/debit cards, eats out all the time, and does not know how to cook. He would face instant starvation in normal times if he could not rely on restaurants or if the power went out and he could not use his cards. If he has a medical condition that requires prescription medications, he refills it only on a monthly basis and only when he is about to run out. He either has a sports car with no carrying/hauling capacity at all, or a breakdown-prone piece-of-Schumer-car guaranteed to fail at the worst possible moment.

2. The Deluded Urban Survivalist – Has dozens of 5-gallon buckets of wheat, lentils, rice, and beans in his garage or basement. Along with hundreds of cans of soups, canned vegetables, Emergency Rations, MREs, bottled water and toilet paper. He has never eaten or even attempted to cook with any of his “survival food”. He has enough “food” to last several years. It has never occurred to him that transporting his stored food may be necessary/impossible.

The Clueless Yuppie is in sudden dire straights in the most routine, predictable, foreseeable circumstances.  If the power goes out due to a simple winter storm, his cards are useless to buy food with and despite his wealth he never uses or has any cash. Even if he had some food in his pantry, he has never cooked anything in his life and would only burn/waste/ruin any food items that he might possess.

The Deluded Urban Survivalist is awaiting and “prepared” (he thinks) for an event that can never and will never occur. Let us consider; What event or events would result in you or your family being unable to buy sufficient food for more than 3-to-6 months yet not be so bad that you can loiter there [in a heavily-populated region] for several years? Would this event or events not also result in the complete breakdown of social cooperation, law, order, employment, banking etc? After starving for several weeks or months wouldn’t all of your neighbors, townspeople, co-workers, employers have fled (diaspora) to another city or state or region or country or be dead by now? Are you going to stay in your home alone in the dark and slowly eat your food for several years in the middle of the “disaster zone”? What if your extended family shows up at your house as refugees? Friends and church members? Are you going to let them all starve/flee while you continue to slowly eat from your massive food pile? When the starving beggars and/or anti-hoarding police arrive are you actually going to shoot them to defend your food pile, really? Come now, this is real life, not a B-movie.

The Deluded Urban Survivalist has also chosen the absolutely wrong food items to store which is why I wrote this and which we will get to in a minute. First, let us consider some actual disasters/circumstances under which having some food stored is of benefit to you and others:

Natural Disasters – Hurricane/Blizzard/Earthquake/Flood/Tsunami/Volcano/Drought/Firestorm/Power-Outage/Meteor/Solar-Flare/Heat-Wave. Man Made Disasters – Epidemic/War/Invasion/Terrorism/Arson/Rioting/Looting/Crime/Hyper-Inflation/Famine/Radiation/Poisoned-Water/Contaminated-Food/Job-Loss/Eviction.

In all of these scenarios the ability to hunker-down until conditions improve or quickly evacuate is vital. Neither the ability to Evacuate Nor the ability to Hunker-Down alone is sufficient. For this reason, it is of paramount importance that your contingency food storage be portable (by vehicle), long-lasting, affordable, practical, and easy to prepare.

First it is of paramount importance that you be aware of what not to buy and why:

1. Wheat – Wheat requires special storage conditions, an effective grinder to turn it into flour, raising ingredients to turn it into bread, an electric or gas oven or bread machine to properly bake, etc. Many online web sites recommend storing wheat because it appears on lists that are over a hundred years old (case-in-point the Mormons). In a crisis situation, the logistics of turning stored wheat or flour into bread is simply impractical.
2.  Five Gallon pails of anything (Rice, Lentils, Beans, Pickles, Mayonnaise, et cetera) or #10 Cans of anything! If a family of four cannot consume it all in one sitting then the rest will spoil due to lack of refrigeration. Buying in bulk deceives you into thinking that you are saving money, but you won’t be.
3. Canned soups, Canned vegetables, Canned or Jarred Sauces, Bottled Juices – Water is very heavy, very bulky, the enemy of food enzymes and longevity, and contains no calories.
4. Bottled water – It is infinitely more useful/practical to have (and use regularly) a water purifier(s) and a few 5-gallon storage containers.
5. Anything marketed as “survival food” , whether it be Costco Emergency Food Kits, MREs, Coast Guard Emergency Rations, Food Storage Kits, etc. If you can’t find it in your grocery store or don’t eat it regularly then don’t buy it. There is an old saying: “Store what you eat and eat what you store.” A crisis is not the time try to learn-how-to-prepare/what-other-ingredients-do-I-need food that you have never prepared and never eaten and do not know if you like or hate.

Next it is important to acknowledge what can’t/shouldn’t be bought ahead of time [because of short shelf lives], and that will have to be purchased in the possible hyper-inflationary future (hopefully with hyper-inflated Silver )

1. Fresh produce – Fresh Vegetables contain enzymes without which it is impossible to effectively and properly digest stored food. (Dehydrated Vegetables can be bought ahead of time and retain most of their enzymes). Fresh vegetables can be grown in a garden, but a garden cannot be evacuated. [JWR Adds: But a sprouting kit can be!]
2. Fresh Fruit – Fresh Fruit is vital to health and one of the most neglected and least bought items in the grocery store. Some dehydrated fruit in the form of trail mix is a good idea.
3. Eggs, Cheese, Sauces
4. Bread

Now for the point of this article, what to buy. You will notice that these items are:
1. Low in water content
2. High in calories
3. Compact, Lightweight, portable
4. Practical, typically requiring only the addition of hot water or a little cooking oil to prepare.
5. Long lasting (easily several years if also stored in a vacuum bag in a cool/cold room) – I highly recommend buying a FoodSaver Vacuum Sealing system. The plastic bags give the added protection to stored food against flood, insects and vermin. Most of your stored food should get this extra protective treatment.
6. Inexpensive – if the average person can’t afford it, it is not practical.
7. Delicious – This is very important. Many people make the mistake thinking that they will be happy and grateful to eat anything in a crisis situation. History shows conclusively that this is not the case. You will want comfort foods more than ever.
8. Work in numerous recipes. It is very important that you have recipes and a meal-plan with good variety planned out before you go to the store.

My Recommended List:

Peanut Butter – Any size up to 48 oz. Skippy or JIF, don’t get fancy. If Oil is floating at the top of the Jar then it is probably an organic-health peanut butter, don’t bother. Nutella – made from Hazelnuts, Cocoa, Sugar, and Palm Oil (mainly) this spread is excellent. Jelly in small Jars – Jelly is like condensed dehydrated fruit that doesn’t need re-hydration. Small Jars are important to avoid spoilage. Get several kinds in flavors that you like. Crackers – Wheat Thins, Nabisco, Saltines, etc. The Entire box can be placed in a vacuum bag and sealed. Trail Mix – stored in independent serving sizes in a vacuum bag.

Rice-A-Roni/Pasta-Roni – a variety of flavors that you have already eaten and know you like. – Vacuum Pasta Side Dishes – In Pouches Dry Pasta, Dry Macaroni, Dry Egg Noodles, Ramen, Noodle bowls Flavored Mashed Potato Packets – that only require the addition of hot water to prepare. Instant Scalloped Potatoes Instant Stuffing Dehydrated Hash Browns – Costco typically carries these. They require hot water and a little cooking oil to prepare. Instant Rice – store this in a vacuum bag. Hamburger-Helper/Chicken-Helper/Tuna-Helper

Canned Tuna – (preferably in oil) for use in casseroles Canned Chicken – for use in casseroles and with Rice-A-Roni and Pasta-Roni products. Corned Beef – as a substitute for ground beef in your recipes, such as Hamburger Helper Spam – Only if you are a spam enthusiast and regularly eat recipes with it.

Macaroni & Cheese – Buy Kraft brand, do not try to “save money” buying a cheaper brand. The quality/edibility of other brands is terrible. Velveeta Cheese – Don’t buy “reduced fat” Velveeta. But the real thing. Seasoning Mix Packets Dry Soup Mixes Beef/Chicken Bullion Cubes Dehydrated Milk Pouches – be sure to get the small boxes that contains pouches, not the large boxes with loose milk powder inside. Dehydrated Milk is necessary for recipes that call for small quantities of milk (such as Macaroni and Cheese).

Pancake/Waffle Mix – get the “Just Add Water” kind, not the “Add Water, Milk, and Eggs” kind. Brownie Mix – get the “Just Add Water” kind, not the “Add Water, Milk, and Eggs” kind. Cake Mixes and frosting – Like Candy, Cake Mixes are derided by those who see cakes as a luxury. Pie Filling – Pies are the ultimate comfort food and are worth the small amount of water weight that comes with their ingredients. Cooking Oil, Shortening – for frying and for use with Cake Mixes Olive Oil – In small 1-liter or 1/2 Liter bottles Butter – Canned Butter is available and recommended, but common Butter sticks take a while to spoil if refrigeration is unavailable.

Honey – Honey stores forever, is a great sweetener, high in calories, and requires no preparation.  But it in small squeezable dispensers, nothing bigger than 24oz. Sugar – for baking cakes/pies, sweetening coffee. It is a great calorie/morale booster. Maple Syrup – to go with Pancakes/Waffles.

Coffee, Tea – Can be stored in a vacuum bag. Coffee should not be ignored or thought of as a “luxury item” if you drink coffee regularly. Candy – Chocolates and Hard Candy preferably. Candy is the most neglected food storage item. It stores very well and is key to good morale. Once piece of candy with every meal in a crisis situation can be worth its weight in gold for moral-boosting.

Vitamins – a Multivitamin, Vitamins C, D, E and B-12 complex. These 5 vitamins taken once/week will ward off most nutritional deficiency diseases, and plug any gaps in your nutrition profile. Aspirin/Tylenol/Motrin/Bayer/Ibuprofen/Benadryl – Benadryl (Diphenhydramine) is an antihistamine that can also double as the perfect sleeping pill. Nyquil/Dayquil/Alcohol – for Medicinal/Morale uses. Vodka is the most versatile hard liquor; it will mix with just about anything.

I have not mentioned individual spices or condiments because in a [short term] crisis situation, these would be the last thing to disappear. That is not to say they aren’t important.

The Big Picture

As I’m writing this, tens of millions of American families are in the midst of a crisis situation. It is not the kind of crisis that makes a great disaster movie, but it is as real as a heart attack. I am speaking of course about the massive Job-Loss and Foreclosure-Eviction crisis. Let’s engage in a reality-check to see how our preparations could help or hurt in this “mildest” of disasters.

1. You and/or your spouse have lost your income/purchasing-power due to Job-Loss or Inflation. Welfare/Pensions/Unemployment/Disability/Food-Stamps/Whatever-it-does-not-matter checks are not enough. You don’t have enough money to buy food for the children. You stop paying your mortgage/rent in order to eat (which has to have priority). Eviction proceedings usually take at least several months. You have enough money now that you aren’t wasting it on your mortgage/rent to feed your family and to make some preparations.

2. The police arrive at your house/apartment to evict you and your family. Your two next-door neighbors the Clueless Yuppie and the Deluded Urban Survivalist are also evicted on the same day. a. You load what is left of your food storage into the back of your truck, SUV or trailer in a couple of minutes. b. You notice the police are having great difficulty moving the Deluded Urban Survivalists food storage out into the driveway. Several tons of weight have to be moved by hand-truck just a few feet but even that is a daunting task. The Deluded Urban Survivalist’s wife is calling him an idiot for wasting all that money on food that could have kept a roof over their heads or a car that works, and will now be stolen before dawn. c. The Clueless Yuppie’s wife is shocked at the speed with which disaster has struck her household. Why, just last night the family went out to eat at P.F. Chang’s and now the debit cards won’t work and they don’t even have enough cash for the McDonald’s dollar menu, or for the gasoline to drive across town.

3. Now that you have been evicted, your only choice for shelter/employment is Diaspora. You must move in with a relative in a spare bedroom, or perhaps a good friend has a big house with a spare bedroom for a few hundred dollars a month. Your relatives may be in another city, state, region or country. I hope you have saved up enough cash or silver to pay for gas. You have to find a new job and it does not matter how far away that new job is. At least you know that you won’t go hungry for at least a few weeks or months. That should be enough time. If it isn’t then extra food wouldn’t have helped anyway. You would have been forced to leave it behind.

JWR Adds: I disagree with one of the basic premises of this piece. It disregards the wisdom of relocating to a lightly-populated rural area before a crisis. And for those that are “stuck” in the cities or suburbs because of work or family obligations, it also discounts the importance of pre-positioning the majority of your storage food at a safe haven. (It could be tucked away in a hidden compartment in a dedicated retreat, or stacked in the basement in the full-time home of a country cousin.)

I also take exception the author’s misguided assertion that wheat is not worth storing. Even without a wheat grinder, it can be soaked into wheat berries, or sprouted. I don’t look at the 2,000 pounds of wheat in JASBORR as a “waste”. Rather, I look at is as several thousand breakfasts, even it is never ground into flour.

I do agree with the author’s emphasis on eating the foods that you store. There is a learning curve to cooking with storage foods. Get past that and work all the kinks out now, while the stress is minimal, not after the balloon goes up! By doing so, not only will you be eating less expensively, but you will also be rotating your storage foods, thereby minimizing waste.

Lastly, John L.’s mention that large containers should be avoided applies only to wet-packed foods! If you don’ finish everything in a #10 can or in a five gallon pail of a dry-packed food, you simply snap on a plastic lid and prominently mark it “Use This First!”. With that method it will be consumed long before it spoils.

Letter Re: Gaining Key Rifle Skills Via the Appleseed Program

Mr. Rawles,

I’ve been reading your blog for quite some time now and have gleaned tons of useful information to prepare my family for many different situations. I live in hurricane country, so while the likely hood of a total collapse of our economy might be small, the possibility of another Hurricane Katrina event or worse is not.

With the weather starting warm (here in the southeast anyway), I started thinking about shooting skills. I had grown up with rifles and shotguns, so in the past I have been focused more on pistol skills. This spring I took to the rifle range and was dismayed to find that my rifle skills were horrible!

With that in mind I started looking for training. Everything I found was either far away (can’t take time off work), expensive, or both. With one exception — I found the RWVA web site and the Appleseed Program. I noticed that they advertise in SurvivalBlog,. but thought that they deserve another mention in the blog.

I registered myself, and my wife — and managed to get my brother in-law to go too. At $70 (plus range fees) for each of us guys and the wife’s fee being only $10 (range fees only) I felt that anything we came away with was a plus — and boy was I pleasantly surprised!

I cannot speak enough about what a value this is for anyone needing to improve their rifle skills. For that $70 I got two solid 8 hour days of instruction. I also got some history of the Revolutionary War thrown in, which served as a pleasant and interesting way to break up the shooting day.

They covered basic safety procedures — they are big on making the event safe. All of the shooting is done at 25 yards, with target size simulating longer distances. This made it easy for me to use my .22 rather than having to bang away with my .308 for two days straight. We covered prone, sitting/kneeling, and standing (offhand) shooting positions and transitions between the positions. We also covered how to shoot by the numbers — i.e. sight picture, sight alignment, breathing, trigger squeeze, etc. And for the first time ever I was taught the proper use of a sling. Over the weekend, I shot about 400 rounds of ammo, in a much more controlled manner than I would have ever achieved at the range by myself.

At my particular event there were 11 shooters to 4 instructors, which led to a terrific ratio. The instructors were great too – everyone was very courteous, very patient, and very knowledgeable. The event is non-partisan and non-political which makes it easy for people from all vantage points to take part.

To say the training that I got was worth 10x what I paid would be fair. My wife unfortunately could only attend the first day, but the training and special attention she received was priceless – I could never have taught her the basics so well in many months the way the female instructor was able to relate the information to her in that one day.

One last point to consider is that by attending an Appleseed event and either joining the RWVA or another club you are qualified to purchase a rifle from the CMP — and that means shortly I will have my very own M1 Garand shipped directly to my doorstep.

With Regards, – Charles P.

Economics and Investing:

Charley S. pointed me to an opinion piece in The New York Times on the silver market by William D. Cohan: A Conspiracy With a Silver Lining. We are witnessing a market that is so hot, and that has taken so many mainstream market pundits by surprise that they finally realize that it is time to mention alternative media sources like Silverseek, 321Gold and Seeking Alpha. I’ve been quoting and linking to these site since 2005. All that I can say to the mainstream media is: “Well, better late than never!” Here’s a thought to ponder: How many times does someone have to be right before they stop calling him a “Contrarian Investor”?

The Daily Bell editors ask: Will Euro Failure Usher in World Currency?

J.B.G. sent us a link to a videotaped interview of Niall Ferguson: Oil could reach $200

G.G. sent this: U.S. Postal Service faces cash shortage by end of year

Items from The Economatrix:

Celente:  There Is No Recovery–It’s A Coverup

Printing Enough Money To Buy The World’s Silver (The Mogambo Guru)  

Fear, Inflation And Debt  

Dead Nation Walking

Odds ‘n Sods:

Some additional BATFE Gunwalker scandal details: More on the murder of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry. I’m glad to hear that CBS News is following up on this with another segment. (Thanks to “Word” for the link.)

   o o o

Reader W.P.R. noted that on Wednesday, Wyoming became the fourth state to recognize the right to concealed carry without a permit. (They joined Vermont, Alaska, and Arizona.) I expect that Colorado, Idaho, Montana, South Carolina, and Utah will soon follow suit. Please contact your state legislators, and encourage them to introduce or co-sponsor similar legislation.)

   o o o

I was doing some web wandering, and I learned that science fiction novelist Algis Budrys had passed away, in June 2008. I suppose that I didn’t hear about his death back in Aught Eight, because I don’t subscribe to any of the science fiction anthology magazines or fanzines. I just now read this obituary. This is the sort of sad news that evokes those “Gee, I would have really liked to have met him” thoughts. 🙁 Our mortal lives are much too short. Algis Budrys wrote one of my favorite survivalist novels, the unforgettable Some Will Not Die. I highly recommend it.

   o o o

The folks at Safecastle recently sent me this update: “Late yesterday, March 3, Oregon Freeze Dry, the parent of Mountain House, shut down its remaining can-dealer network until further notice in order to try to get a grip on their overwhelming backorder situation. It will likely be several months before we can offer Mountain House cans for sale again. Pouches remain available, though for how long is uncertain.” Meanwhile, I heard from Ready Made Resources that they go the same notice from Mountain House, but that they’ve been told by Alpine Aire that their foods in #10 cans are still available, with just a 3 to 4 week delay before shipment. Whichever brand you choose, I strongly recommend that you quit dawdling and stock up, before the nation’s freeze dried food market gets completely overwhelmed. And I can vouch for the trustworthiness of all of the current SurvivalBlog advertisers. (Several of them sell Mountain House and Alpine Aire long term storage foods.)

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called [thee] by thy name; thou [art] mine.

When thou passest through the waters, I [will be] with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

For I [am] the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt [for] thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee.” – Isaiah 43:1-3 (KJV)

Notes from JWR:

Today (Friday, March 4th, 2011) is Book Bomb Day for the new book Surviving Off Off-Grid: Decolonizing the Industrial Mind. It was written by Michael Bunker, a Plain (Amish-associated) man that lives at a Christian Agrarian community in Texas. I haven’t yet read the book, but according to the reviews, he has a wealth of knowledge about living without electricity. (I heard about the book release event at the last minute, which places me at a disadvantage.) One reviewer described the author: “Michael Bunker is a colourful character. He’s like John Wayne, John Calvin, Grizzly Adams and Thomas Cromwell rolled into one Texas-sized individual.” Somewhat ironically, the book is also available via Kindle. (The latter, for just $6.99.)

Update: Michael Bunker’s book ranking jumped from around #1,200 (last night) to #36, when I last checked!!!

—

Today we present another two entries for Round 33 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) 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 B.) Two cases of Alpine Aire freeze dried assorted entrees, in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $400 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A 250 round case of 12 Gauge Hornady TAP FPD 2-3/4″ OO buckshot ammo, courtesy of Sunflower Ammo (a $240 value), and E.) An M17 medical kit from JRH Enterprises (a $179.95 value).

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value courtesy of Next Level Training. B.) 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, C.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and D.) 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.) , and B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value.

Round 33 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Food Storage Options for Vegetarians and Vegans, by Amy B.

As I have started my basic food stash, I have noticed that many plans do not have any options for vegetarians or vegans. I have been vegetarian for over 23 years, and while, in a true long-term emergency I would have to eat meat, it would require me to start slow, as to not make myself ill. It’s pretty difficult to go from eating no animal products to eating meat overnight. My body would need time to get used to it and develop the enzymes I have lost over the years to digest the meat protein well. With this in mind I have compiled a list of good storage items geared toward a vegetarian diet. Having this food in storage would give one time to acclimate the body to eating meat, and would keep one well nourished as well. I have omitted from this list the obvious (peanut butter, rice and beans, vitamins etc.) in the interest of keeping it concise. Everything on this list stores very well.

I have focused this article on whole grains, rather than canned foods, but there are many options out there for canned supplies. (See the list of links below) A walk down your local health food stores aisles will give you a lot of ideas. Many freeze dried food companies have vegetarian options available as well. I tend to eat whole grains in my daily living, so this is what I have focused on for storage. I believe that even if you do eat meat, exploring some vegetarian options is not always a bad thing. In case of Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP), for instance, it can really stretch a pound of ground meat.

All prices are from my bulk food ordering catalog as of February 2012. Shop around and you may find better prices. I also encourage anyone to try these first, and experiment, to make sure you like them before you buy a massive amount. I am not a nutritionist, but have eaten these foods for as long as I have been vegetarian, and know they are good protein sources. These are things I enjoy eating often. I do recommend reading up on vegetarian nutrition if you haven’t already, I can’t stress this enough.

I have added a small selection of resources and links, including information on a few cookbooks that I think are must-haves. On the subject of books and recipes I definitely recommend finding recipes, cookbooks, and blog information about traditional meals of less developed countries. Many recipes from parts of Africa and India are, if not outright vegetarian, easy to make vegetarian. Less developed countries don’t always have the luxuries of refrigerators, etc. that we do, and the food is made with whole grains and vegetables. The recipes are often easy to prepare and cook, and are a nice way to experiment with foods you have stored.

Textured Vegetable Protein
Stored as bought it will keep for up to one year, if oxygen absorbers are used it can keep for 15-20 years. When hydrated 1 cup of dry equals 2+ cups of rehydrated. Textured Vegetable Protein is great for making taco filling, adding to soups, making veggie burgers. The omnivores in your life can use it to stretch ground meat (use 1 part TVP to 2 parts meat.) A little goes a long way, and it takes on the flavors of whatever you put it in. I have seen it for as little as $1.65 a pound.

Vital Wheat Gluten Flour
This has a shelf life about two years and can be used to make seitan [for those than tolerate gluten in their diet.] 2 cups will make 1+ pounds of seitan. Seitan is a fantastic vegetarian protein source, and is absolutely delicious. It is very easy to make. This can also be added to whole grain breads to make them rise better. I buy this for about $3.60 a pound, which seems like a lot at first, but it makes an enormous amount of seitan. The downside to making seitan is that it takes about a half hour of simmering time, but it is very versatile, can be made to taste a lot of different ways, and is packed with nutrients.

Quinoa
Quinoa is wonderful and very nutritious whole grain that stores far longer than most whole grains without going rancid, and is very versatile. It cooks quickly, has a ton of great vitamins, and can be used to make flour as well. It is currently at about $4 a pound.

Nutritional Yeast
Nutritional Yeast stores well for at least one year, possibly longer as long if it stays dry. It has a lot of B vitamins, which are often difficult to get in a vegan diet. Some people hate it; I absolutely love it and use it on everything.

Beans/Seeds for sprouts- Garbanzo, Pea, Adzuki and Mung
Sprouts (especially the ones above) are high in protein, easy to digest, very easy to grow, and contain a host of vitamins that could be difficult to get in the dead of winter. Plus you can sprout anywhere. On longer camping trips I have even been able to grow them on the go, you don’t need fancy equipment at all. You can find places that sell mixes online for about $3 a pound.

I buy my garbanzo beans for about $1 a pound from my buying club. You can also make hummus with cooked garbanzos. It’s a good source of protein and if made with sesame seeds, is a complete protein. (Plus, it’s delicious and easy to make!)

Sesame Seeds
Rich in proteins, delicious as a spice, and versatile to work with, sesame seeds are one of my favorite. If you get the un-husked, darker colored kind they stay good for several months. The hulled kind can turn rancid. When toasted they add a great flavor to stir-fried foods and bread. Use a paste made from them in hummus and make sesame seed butter out of them. They are about $5 a pound, but a pound is a lot of sesame seeds and will go a very long way.

Soybeans
Soybeans are inexpensive (about $1 a pound in bulk) and can be made to make your own tofu, tempeh, soy milk, soy flour. You need a certain set of skills and equipment to make your own soy products, but boy is it delicious when it is homemade. See The New Farm Cookbook listed in the resource section for information on making your own soy products.

Lentils
These are legumes that are inexpensive, cook quickly, and are delicious. They are a great change from pinto beans, and are very easy to prepare. They are iron rich, and full of other vitamins and minerals. Did I mention they’re delicious? They have lots of flavor and easy to combine with other foods for a quick meal. They are about $2 a pound.

Spices and Dried Herbs
Nothing can jazz up a simple meal of rice and beans better than herbs and spices. Trust me, as a single mom, I have eaten a lot of rice and beans, and I quickly found that having a large variety of spices makes everything better. I grow and dry a lot of my own herbs, and buy in bulk or at Indian grocers what I do not or can not grow. They store well, in general, and can be used to spice up everything. While some may seem expensive, most are not. Many herbs grow wild or almost wild and can be foraged and dried.

If you live near an Indian grocery store, by all means check out their spice selection. I have found that I can get familiar and not-so-familiar species far less expensively than at my local chain supermarket. Any “ethnic” food stores often have a surprising selection of inexpensive supplies that really can change a whole meal.

Resources and Links:

The More-With-Less Cookbook is one of my favorite day-to-day cookbooks. While not strictly vegan, it has some fantastic recipes that use whole grains. This is a great way to experiment with your grains before you need to have that knowledge in your head!

PrepareWise.com. Good info on using TVP.

The Vegan Unplugged Pantry Cuisine Cookbook. I do not have this book yet, but it is next on my “to get” list! Their blog is great and has some good recipes.

Worthington and Loma Linda foods. These canned foods have been around forever, and the ones that I have tried I have really enjoyed. While processed, they are a great alternative to cans of tuna, canned meats, etc.

McDougall’s foods are vegan, and store well. The soup cups are very light, I use them on camping trips. They are very filling.

The New Farm Vegetarian Cookbook by Louise Hagler.
ISBN-10: 0913990604. This is a fantastic resource for making your own soy milk, tofu, and other vegetarian staples from scratch. It’s very helpful for beginners in vegetarian cooking, and has fantastic recipes for using TVP, tempeh, etc.

The TVP Cookbook: Using the Quick-Cooking Meat Substitute by Dorothy Bates
ISBN-10: 0913990795. This is a very in-depth cook book on using TVP.

Diet for a Small Planet by Frances Moore Lappe
ISBN-10: 0345321200. This is a essential book about vegetarian nutrition and how to effectively use the proteins available in whole grains. I recommend this book to everyone, not just vegetarians, as it is full of sound nutritional advice.

JWR Adds: I discourage assembling a food storage program that is heavy in TVP. Some studies show that it is not healthy, especially for men.

As with all storage foods, it pays to buy grains and legumes in bulk. Even with the additional cost of shipping it is less expensive to buy from storage food vendors than from local health food stores.

A Surgeon’s Advice to Preppers, by Swampfox, M.D.

As a reformed Christian and novice “prepper”, I am so glad to have found your blog and all the informative material that it contains.  With your help, I am becoming prepared for the hard times that I believe are imminent. I am a general surgeon practicing in the southeast.  Your writings have caused me to think a lot about the logistical vulnerabilities that exist in our health care system and how drastically surgery would change if/when Schumer hits the fan.  

The Coming Instrument Shortages

Many instruments and most of the supplies that we use for routine operations are disposable.  Hospitals typically keep no more than one or two weeks worth of surgical supplies on hand.  Any interruption would be devastating to the continued provision of surgical care.  Surgeries that require general anesthesia would be very problematic if not impossible. In such a scenario, Haiti and Zambia may be better positioned to provide basic surgical services than our “advanced” US hospitals because they already live by the principle of “use it up, wear it out, make do or do without.”  In the third world, they routinely re-use things like surgical gloves, drapes, and suturing needles (after properly cleaning and re-sterilizing them.)  In America, we have far too many government regulations and trial lawyers for us to re-use anything.  Most things here go to the landfill after a single use.  It seems that Haiti and Zambia are poor countries while we are “rich and increased with goods” (Revelation 3:14-19).  We have no need to be frugal in the US.  There is no monetary crisis coming, no unsustainable deficits, no federal Ponzi schemes ready to burst.  No, no.  Nothing to see here.

Wound Closure

Having read several articles on various web sites regarding medical preparedness and wound care that are unrealistic, if not harmful, I was prompted to send a few comments regarding the virtues of “wet to dry dressings.”  In managing a traumatic wound in a TEOTWAWKI scenario, your readers should keep in mind that most wounds can be left open without causing any problems whatsoever.  A fresh wound is one that is 1-2 hours old.  The longer the time between wound creation and closure, the more bacteria the wound is exposed to, the greater the chance of infection if closure is attempted.  Right now with health care functioning fairly well, I never close a wound that is more than 6 hours old no matter how clean it appears as the risk of infection is prohibitive.  If a wound is simple (a clean cut rather than frayed skin edges), fresh, and free from gross contamination, it can be copiously irrigated with saline (do a web search and print the recipe) or clean water, numbed with lidocaine injections, and sutured up.  If there is any doubt, then leave it open and start a wet to dry dressing using gauze moistened with saline.   Wounds with gross contamination such as the presence of dirt, leaves, or feces should always be left open even after cleaning them thoroughly.  All bite wounds should be left open, especially human bite wounds as these are perhaps the dirtiest.  Nearly all wounds in the body can be safely managed this way.  The chief advantage of suturing a wound closed is that the scar will be more cosmetically appealing than the scar that will be left if the wound closes slowly over time with wet to dry dressings.  Closing the wound will also obviate the need for painful daily wound packing (the dressing changes stop hurting after about a week). Suturing the wound can make you look like a hero, but the patient may be placed at unnecessary risk by doing so.  Don’t hesitate to leave it open and pack it with gauze.  Nobody will care what the scar looks like if the grid is down.  If a wound is sutured and later becomes infected, cut the sutures out, open the wound with a clean (preferably gloved) finger to its depths, and begin wet to dry dressing changes.  It will usually heal fine once you let the pus out.

Large abdominal wounds that go down through the muscle and fascia would be difficult to close without general anesthesia.  Anyone trying to close such an abdominal wound would risk injury to the underlying bowel, creating a bigger and smellier problem.  Leave it open and do wet to dry dressings.  This may result in a hernia forming, but the hernia can be fixed years later when order is restored.  Extremity wounds involving muscle, fascia, and tendons can safely be left open.  Muscle and facial injuries almost always heal without functional deficits.  Tendon repairs can prevent functional deficits, but are probably beyond the ability of non-surgeons.  Most tendons can be repaired at a later date.  “Sucking chest wounds” which go down into the chest cavity exposing the lung would likely be fatal in a TEOTWAWKI scenario so I will not elaborate on the three sided dressing that ATLS recommends.  Open skull fractures would be un-survivable without a functioning hospital.

Gastrointestinal (GI) surgical cases such as colon cancer resections necessarily cause limited contamination of the incision resulting in frequent post-operative wound infections in spite of antibiotics.  If the incision becomes infected a week after surgery, we remove the sutures, open the wound widely with a finger, and start wet to dry dressings.  In operations done for ruptured appendicitis or diverticulitis where there is gross fecal contamination, we leave the incision open from the start and begin wet to dry dressing changes immediately.  I have seen thousands of wounds close using this method.  The wounds typically heal in 3-6 weeks, usually without incident.   The wound should be packed to its depths daily with plain gauze moistened (not dripping) with saline solution.  This provides an ideal environment for healing resulting in granulation tissue formation.  Any devitalized or infected tissue sticks to the gauze as it begins to dry and is removed when the packing is changed.  Granulation tissue fills the wound causing it to get shallower over time.  Each day the wound requires less gauze.  The skin edges begin to close from the sides.  The depths fill in, the edges draw together, and the wound closes leaving a wide scar.  It may sound fictitious, but I have seen wounds close in this fashion that were big enough to hold a 25 pound sack of rice.  Leaving the wound open and performing wet to dry dressing changes greatly diminishes the risk of infection.  Antibiotics are unnecessary in treating most wounds that are left open.  Necrotizing (so called “flesh-eating”) bacterial wound infections will be fatal in TEOTWAWKI.  Leaving wounds open will greatly reduce the chances of necrotizing fasciitis.

Contrary to some things I have read, gauze sponges do not stop bleeding.  We could not live many days without a functioning clotting system.  It is the clotting system that stops almost all bleeding vessels.  Large veins or arteries may not stop on their own.  Direct pressure with a finger or two can stop bleeding from almost any vessel outside of the abdominal or chest cavity where direct pressure cannot be held.  Hold pressure for 20 minutes by the clock (no peeking) and most small and medium sized bleeders will stop.  Large vessels (bigger around than a pencil) may take an hour. Once the bleeding is controlled, get the patient to a surgeon (or get a surgeon to the patient) when feasible as a large vessel has a high risk of re-bleeding in the subsequent hours/days.  If none is available, two weeks of complete rest, a snug ace wrap, and a gentle dressing change each day is the best that you can do.  Penetrating wounds to the abdomen or chest cavity with associated large vessel injury would be fatal.   

Ligating (dividing and tying off) injured blood vessels is doable, but attempting it without a lot of previous experience can make the bleeding worse.  It should be attempted only if direct pressure for an hour has failed to stop the bleeding.  If the vessel is visible in the wound, clamp it with hemostats above and below the bleeding point, divide the vessel with something clean and sharp, and tie off both ends with suture (easier said than done).  Sometimes a torn vessel retracts into the surrounding tissue making it difficult to find for ligation.  A figure of 8 suture can be done in such a circumstance.  Imagine a square postage stamp with the retracted bleeder at its center.  Insert the needle at the top left corner of the stamp.  The needle should travel in an arc deep through the tissue and exit at the bottom left corner of the stamp.  Pull extra suture through such that the tails are long enough for tying.  Next, insert the needle at the top right corner of the postage stamp passing it deep through the tissue such that it exits at the bottom right.  When the knots are tied the suture will cinch down around the hidden vessel and stop it from bleeding.  I recommend that you do a web search on “figure of eight suture” to see a diagram or video to make this technique clear to you.  (One video shows this technique used for skin closure.  I’m describing a figure of eight suture down in the wound under the skin where the bleeder is.)   It can be a very useful technique in a pinch.

Trying to repair or reconstruct an injured blood vessel would be unnecessary and dangerous even for a surgeon in TEOTWAWKI except in rare circumstances.  The redundancy [of “dual supply”] that God gave our bodies makes it possible to ligate most blood vessels (even large ones) with few if any adverse consequences.  We should learn from our Designer (Romans 1:19-20).  A tourniquet can be used briefly to stop major vessel bleeding as a bridge to surgery, but a finger usually works better if you can spare a person to hold pressure.  Tourniquets are necessary in badly mangled extremities as there would be more bleeders than available fingers, but such a severe injury would likely be fatal in TEOTWAWKI.  Keep in mind that limb amputation in the 1800s performed by the best surgeons of the time had a 50-90% mortality rate.  Also consider the fact that a surgeon in the 1800s was far better prepared than a modern surgeon would be in a societal collapse.

Your readers will do well if they stock up on lots of 4″x 4″ and 2″ x 2″ gauze sponges as well as rolls of Kerlex gauze.  Remember that gauze is woven cotton thread, not the stretchy, synthetic stuff that some manufacturers call “gauze.”  Wide tape such as 3″ Medipore works well for most wound dressings.  ABD pads come in handy as they are very absorbent and are used to cover the wet to dry dressing before taping it down.  Make sure to get some 4″ Ace brand (or similar) wraps.  Get the ones with Velcro strips on the end.  These elastic wraps can be used instead of tape on an extremity to hold the dressing in place.  They can be useful in bleeding extremity wounds to tightly wrap the arm or leg to help with stubborn oozing after the dressing is applied.  

I recommend getting some Vaseline impregnated gauze or Xeroform which are non-stick dressings good for superficial abrasions (scrapes) and burns.  Each family needs a gallon of 4% Chlorhexidine gluconate (Hibiclens or other brand) in case community acquired MRSA infections continue to plague us.  It can be used as skin preparation for wound closure, but may be more useful as treatment for MRSA colonization and infections.  Finally, make sure that you and your kids are current on tetanus shots, hepatitis, and other vaccines.   Hopefully, by leaving all but the cleanest and freshest wounds open and pre-forming wet to dry dressing changes, more of your readers will be spared the risk of a serious wound infection in TEOTWAWKI.

Letter Re: Storing Dry Hypochlorite Bleach

Dear Mr. Rawles –
Regarding the recent post on “Forever Preps”….

“Forever Prep #3: “Dry” Bleach This has often been covered by various sources on SurvivalBlog, but so-called “dry” bleach (pure Calcium Hypochlorite) lasts forever. If you go a little crazy and buy two 25 pound boxes of it from a big box store, you can make a solution that can purify about 4 million gallons of water! And, by the way, this Forever Prep is also very cheap (about $45-$50 for 25 pounds) and takes almost no storage space.

You must store dry bleach extremely securely if you have even a remote risk of an unauthorized person gaining access to it. A child or pet could be fatally poisoned by only a small amount of calcium hypochlorite. You could also get sick if you don’t use it appropriately to purify water with the correct chemistry. I store my containers in their original packaging in a metal locker, with high visibility instructions and warnings all over the inside of the locker and secured to the buckets themselves in waterproof plastic sleeves. JWR has posted the correct mixing ratios for use. (See the SurvivalBlog archives.)”

I have to add something to these comments: It is important to know that calcium hypochlorite emits corrosive vapors over time, just sitting there on the shelf. These vapors have amazing penetrative properties. The vapors will rust steel with a vengeance. I noticed some nearby canned food, which usually will sit in like new condition on a shelf not far from the “dry bleach” completely coated in rust after just a four months. The vapors went right through a new, still sealed package of disposable lighters. They are completely rusted, still “new” inside their unopened package. There were saltine crackers and other boxed dry foods kept in the same cabinet – all tasted funny and “off” although they too were stored sealed, new in the original packaging.

Keep all dry bleach completely sealed in an airtight container that is non-porous. Glass and metal come to my mind… if one could find a metal that would not corrode. I can tell you for a fact that ordinary ziploc bags do not qualify as non-porous. All of my issues cited above occurred while the dry shock was sealed inside not one but two ziploc bags. Poly 5-gallon buckets are no good either, I understand, as there are pores in the plastic that vapors will penetrate over time. I would think Mylar could be okay but I will defer to other’s expertise on that matter. Hopefully this info can keep someone else from learning my lesson the hard way – and save themselves the loss of a cupboard full of stored food and tools. – Rusty in California

Economics and Investing:

State Worker Retirements Soar Across the Country

Gonzalo Lira: The Dollar, and The Next Ten Days. “The next ten days will be key: Will the dollar spike up? Become the safe haven of everyone fleeing from the world’s troubles? Or will the dollar nosedive, the first big step down in its death spiral?”

James Turk – The Dollar Collapse Will Shock the World

G.G. suggested this piece by Michael Pento: It’s Taps For the Still Weakening Dollar

Items from The Economatrix:

February Retail Sales Rise In Most Categories  

Oil Jumps Above $102  

Bernanke Sees 200,000 Hit to Jobs From Budget Cuts