Letter Re: How to Stock up on FDA-Approved Prescription Medicines

Mr. Rawles:
I have been a registered pharmacist for 34 years. Most drugstores and insurance companies allow you to get up to a 90-day supply of prescription medications at a time. The “Refill-Too-Soon” edit, which is what prevents you from getting a prescription right after getting another one for the same drug filled is usually set at 75% of the days supply.

For example, if you are taking a high blood pressure medication once a day, then a 90-day supply is 90 pills. Seventy-five percent of ninety days is sixty-eight days. Therefore, if we use April 1, 2010 as the day you first fill your prescription for a 90-day supply and allowing 68 days to get a refill we come up with the following schedule:

04/01/10
06/07/10
08/14/10
10/20/10
12/27/10
03/04/11

This refill schedule will result in you getting a 540 day supply in only 338 days. Keep in mind that if your physician only allows for 3 refills, you would need to get a new prescription before your fourth refill.

However, many people can not afford to pay their co-pay for a three month supply at a time, even though the cost of the medicine is less for one ninety-day supply than it is for three fills of thirty day supplies. This strategy will still work for a 30 day supply. Your 23 day (seventy-five percent) refill schedule would be as follows:

04/01/10
04/24/10
05/17/10
06/09/10
07/02/10
07/25/10
08/17/10
09/09/10
10/02/10
10/25/10
11/17/10
12/10/10
01/02/11
01/25/11
02/17/11
03/12/11

This schedule will allow you to get 480 days worth of medicine in just 345 days. The same caveat about refills applies. If your doctor only writes for 11 refills, then you will need to get a new prescription before your 12th refill.

Four Letters Re: Building Your Kits for Survival

James,

I read with great interest the piece by Jeff M. on building kits. I was kind of taken aback by his statement “I just won’t be one of those guys who carries a purse”. I guess in these days I need to understand what a purse is because I am a professional person who goes to meeting all over the state in a suit and tie and I always have what my family calls my purse with me. I carry an old trusted backpack that contains my laptop, but also carries all of my immediate survival needs (knife, first aid, water, food, compact 2 meter ham radio etc.) These days no one bats and eye when you carry a backpack, it is really quite the norm. I also carry in my car a Maxpedition Fatboy concealed carry bag, which I bring with me depending on the situation. I just think it is funny that someone would sacrifice security and protection because of the perception that they were carrying a purse, I guess I am secure enough in my masculinity that if the only option was to carry a purse, I would carry an actual purse to keep my essential gear with me.

Keep up the good work, what I have learned on this site is invaluable to me. – Mike in Oregon

Greetings,
I would like to first commend Jeff M. for his great post on the various survival kits. I would like to add that there is another important survival kit that should be considered: The I’m Never Coming Home (INCH) pack is a kit that you would use in event of TEOTWAWKI if you were forced to abandon your home. Usually consisting of an internal framed pack with everything you would need to survival for the long term. This includes shelter (usually a backpacking tent), sleeping bag, sleeping pad, stove, stove fuel, mess kit, food, water, and many other items essential for survival in the post-apocalyptic world. This kit can be added on to the contents of your Bug Out Bag for more versatility if you already have some of the required items.

Strength and Honor, – Ryan S.

Mr. Rawles –
Reading this gave me some good ideas, but also made me stop and take inventory of what I currently do. Here are the contents of my kits as of this moment. Maybe someone will in turn get some ideas from what I do.

The most important safety item is between your ears. Being alert, not going places you should not, situational awareness, planning for emergencies ahead of time, getting all the training you can, all depend on your using your brain, eyes, and ears.

Every Day Carry (EDC) – Every time I leave our house all of this is either in a pocket, on my belt, or in my pouch (worn over my kidney, not in the rear). Items are arraigned so loss of any one item such as my wallet, will not leave me without cash, ID, or credit card. personal identification – Driver’s License, concealed carry permit, Sheriff department volunteer ID (it is amazing how few notice it is a volunteer ID
not a regular department ID), Passport card (this is a valid USA passport usable for ID, but in a card format) assorted ID – medical, dental, AAA, Insurance agent, auto insurance, CPR, card credit cards – American Express, Discover, VISA, MasterCard – 99% of the time I only use the two cards that give me cash back, but I have the other two on me in case my primary cards are not accepted – if you can’t pay the card off in full each month, don’t use the card! Sash (nothing larger than $20 bills – try to get a taxi driver or other small business to accept anything larger!), change (minimum $15 for vending machines & tolls), checkbook cell phone – the most important safety tool I carry – Do you know how to send and receive text messages? They will get through when voice messages will not.
Keys – house, cars, office, spare car key
Medications – prescriptions, Anti-Diarrheal
Knife – Swiss Army knife – in checked luggage when flying
Multi-tool – Buck Tool – in checked luggage when flying
Personal protection – handgun & spare magazine – when flying this gets left behind
Keychain based tools – S&W screwdriver
Pocket PC eWallet (great program, keeps all my important data 256 bit encrypted, and synced between the Pocket PC, laptops, desktops)
Panasonic DMC-ZS3K pocket digital camera, in a leather case from Wal-Mart – wonderful very small camera with 12x optical zoom – fits in my pocket with my wallet.
Quark AA2 LED flashlight – learned about this here on SurvivalBlog – a great flashlight – can serve as a backup headlight for your car, not great but good enough to get you home.
Ear plugs
Pen & pencil
Napkins

Rolling computer bag – I need a laptop for work and for personal communication (e-mail, Skype, Vonage softphone) so this goes most places with me. All of this fits in the Wenger rolling computer bag.
PackSafe security kit – wonderful system that allows you to lock a bag to an unmovable object in a hotel room for security
Laptop with accessories (AC supply, mouse, headset, USB flash drives, USB hard drive, 30′ Ethernet cable, memory card reader, cell phone tether cable, pocket PC VGA & USB cable, camera cable, camera charger)
Totes folding umbrella
Yaesu VX-7R 4 band ham radio (muti-band receive including AM, FM, and Weather bands), antenna, DC cable
Reading glasses, & repair kit
Pads & notebook, envelopes, address labels, stamps, business cards
First aid – bandages, Neosporin, vitamins, medicines, back scratcher, dental floss, Ziploc bags (Ziploc bags are your friends!)
Boy Scout signal mirror
Assorted wire ties
Pens, pencils, extra leads, eraser, highlighters
Laser pointer, AA cells
Comb, inflatable travel pillow, eye shades
Spare car key, ear plugs, AC outlet tester
United Airlines comfort kit – socks, toothbrush & paste, body lotion, Kleenex, eye shade – they give this to you on long flights in business class
Note from doctor about my walking stick – helps me get through security check points with my stick, handicap parking registration, ID holders (for Sheriff department ID to get through road blocks)

Car – the second most important safety item – particularly for someone like me who can’t run well – it is your tool to let you G.O.O.D. and back home.
Make sure you have good tires, brakes, wipers, and have kept the gas tank at least half full.
spare tire & factory jack/tool kit – what the car came with.
2 quarts oil stored under hood – found a good spot to store this, and wish there was space for the ATF and washer fluid as well – this location keeps it where you need it and out of valuable storage space in the trunk.
Coat, Gore-Tex lined leather gloves, hat – always in the back seat of my car windshield sun shade
Ice scrapers, snow brushes – my normal commute is 30 minutes, but in a snow/ice storm I have had to stop to clean the windshield every 5 minutes.
napkins & Kleenex
2 – 1/2 liter water bottles
Disposable camera
Magnetic mount ham radio antenna
Jumper Cables – heavy duty

Shooting bag in trunk – bright colored, zippered (got this tip from Lt. Col. Dave Grossman – if you ever need to use your handgun, you may need more supplies than you will carry – so keep them in a brightly colored closed bag in your trunk – you can send someone with a spare car key to fetch this if things go bad)
100 rounds high grade carry ammo
100 rounds practice ammo
Spare magazines
Shooting glasses
Gentex 1030A active hearing protectors (Wolf Ears) – learned about these from Massad Ayoob – lets you hear (in full natural stereo) better than the unaided ear, while protecting your hearing from firearms noise – never mutes even for a second – in great demand for SWAT teams and the military.

Cloth bag in trunk
2 pairs leather/cloth heavy duty work gloves
Rain hat
Cell phone headset
Cell phone DC power cord
Laptop DC power cord
Ham radio DC power cord & belt clip
Felt tip marker

Milk crate in trunk – I am amazed that all this fits in the crate, but it does and keeps it organized and out of the way of other things I may put in my trunk.
Gallon windshield washer fluid
Quart of ATF
Spray can of WD-40
Large roll duct tape
Roll of packing tape
1/2 liter water bottle
Rag
County Emergency Preparation Guide Book – very well done, and has all the important contact info.
Craftsman 1/4″ drive socket sets, metric & English
Small case with folding umbrella, flashlight & batteries, tire pressure gauge,
Pen, pad, and tools I added
Larger case with DC air compressor, duct tape, folding shovel, Accident
Report kit (disposable camera, tape rule, chalk, pen, accident report form), first aid kit, multitool, triangular reflector, emergency poncho, emergency blanket, work gloves, bungee cord, assorted wire ties, Battery terminal washers, Craftsman 3/8″ drive socket wrench sets, metric & English, & screwdrivers Phillips & regular.

After taking inventory, I see places that need improvement, but my kits are always changing.

I hope some others get some useful ideas from my lists. – RAR

 

Jim,
Whenever I check in to read and catch up with SurvivalBlog, I try to think of something new I might contribute . I routinely fail, since your site is so encyclopedic on the topic of survival and family preparations.

However, I think the following might be helpful to many of my fellow readers.

As a first responder medic for a rural Volunteer Fire Department I have a belt that I can grab on my way out of the house when we get a call. It’s the same belt some police officers use as an “inner belt”. About 1.5 to 1.75 inches wide that fastens with Velcro . it has just the right stiffness to allow me to comfortably carry a nice load. I just wrap it around me – outside my pants belt loops – and have hands free carry of a multitude of trauma material, gloves, CPR shield, and other medical and “on scene” material such as flashlight, multi-tool, etc. Total weight is about 4 pounds. This is stuff I may need immediately at hand so I don’t have to go through our large bag kits.

It has occurred to me that for some who work in offices, plants, stores etc, this system can convert nicely for a “get back home or to safety” survival kit. While you can choose to keep a small pack at work or in your car, having all the essential survival tools and material on a pouch belt that you can quickly wrap around you will ensure that you don’t drop it or lose it along the way as you could a bag or small pack. This method also allows the weight to be carried on your hips, not in your hands or on your shoulder.

All the various size pouches can be found on Amazon.com or CheaperThanDirt.com or similar sites. just do a search for pouches and build your own belt kit. Everything goes in a nylon pouches with Velcro closures. In constructing mine I use nylon pouches of different sizes that ride on the belt. My belt kit has headlamp, extra AAA batteries, very small water bottle with purification tablets, 2 energy food bars, 2-strap respirator, small trauma kit, head lamp, medical gloves, leather work gloves, a few band aids & several blood stopper trauma dressings, one white wash cloth, antiseptic wipes, Neosporin, small pill bottle with aspirin, Advil, Imodium AD, antacid tabs, 50 feet of parachute cord, disposable “medical” flashlight, disposable lighter, fire starter material, and some other odds & ends. I even have an emergency Bivvy Sack from Adventure Medica. They really work well and I have used them to keep people warm when we have outdoor medical emergencies in the winter.

I highly recommend using many small pouches rather than a few larger ones so you don’t have to rummage through larger fanny pack size pouches to find what you need. Using many smaller pouches will also keep the profile of your belt pack thin and allow you to more evenly distribute the weight.

Again, the benefit is that you are hands free when carrying your kit and all weight is distributed on the hips. Very hard to lose anything . When was the last time you lost a belt? Okay, you may look like Batman, but worn under a jacket or with your shirttails out, your belt kit will be invisible, organized, at your fingertips and light weight. – Marc N. in Alabama

Economics and Investing:

GG sent this Wall Street Journal article: Public Pension Deficits Are Worse Than You Think

Reader S.M. sent us some more evidence that the US is slipping towards the edge of a bond rating downgrade by Moody’s: Obama Pays More Than Buffett as U.S. Risks AAA Rating. Also, further economic difficulties with managing growing public debt: Lipsky Says ‘Acute’ Debt Challenges Face Advanced Economies.

Items from The Economatrix:

Agora Financial’s Five-Minute Forecast

Court Says Fed Must Disclose Bank Bailout Records

A Salon opinion piece by Gene Lyons: It’s Time for Wall Street to Pay

Health Care Companies Pull Stock Market Higher

Oil Edges Lower, Extending Friday’s Losses

Spain Approves Bill to Overhaul Economy as Jobless Rate Hits 20%

Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader Greg C. wrote to mention that Wiggy’s is continuing their 20% off sale on sleeping bags, with free shipping. Order soon, since they rarely extend their sales into the backpacking season!

   o o o

Frequent content contributor Brian B. sent this: There’s a new buzz in gardening; With honey bees in decline, stacking-tray ‘condos’ attract mason bees that will pollinate fruit trees

   o o o

“Oxy” sent us this from The Wall Street Journal: Cartel Wars Gut Juárez, a Onetime Boom Town

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Five percent of the people think; ten percent of the people think they think; and the other eighty-five percent would rather die than think." – Thomas A. Edison

Notes from JWR:

A slim majority of the congresscritters voted late on a Sunday night to pass the ill-conceived socialized healthcare legislation package into law, despite a huge public outcry. (And contravening the long-established rules whereby conference committees must create identical legislation for both the House and Senate.) So they shouldn’t be surprised when We The People will find them no longer fit to represent us. I anticipate massive non-compliance with the new scheme, and routs of Democrat incumbents in the next three elections. (Not a single Republican voted for the bill.) There may be some brisk business in tar and feathers on the banks of the Potomac.
Attention Bureaucrats: Go ahead and send me my noncompliance fine bill for $695, because I’m not signing up!

—

Today we present another entry for Round 27 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round will 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 between $500 and $600, and B.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees, in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $392 value.) C.) A HAZARiD Decontamination Kit from Safecastle.com. (A $350 value.), and D.) A 500 round case of Fiocchi 9mm Luger, 124gr. Hornady XTP/HP ammo, courtesy of Sunflower Ammo. This is a $249 value.

Second Prize: 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 $350.

Third Prize: A copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, from Arbogast Publishing.

Round 27 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.

Who is On Your Team?, by G.

In the last year, I have been on my latest “life journey”, wherein I have rediscovered preparedness. During my college years, my friends in engineering school and I discussed Y2K and possible outcomes. Obviously a bunch of electrical engineering students had no idea what would happen. But it did give me pause. What if the worst case situation occurred? What would my parents and I do? (I lived at home throughout college to save funds.)

On a limited budget, and even less knowledge, I did recognize two primary needs: water and firearms for self defense. Working at an internship gave me a few bucks more than most students, so I made use of it. We purchased over 100 gallons of bottled water and I purchased my first firearm—a Mossberg 590 shotgun. I soon supplemented it with a SIG-Sauer P228 9mm pistol and about a thousand rounds between the two—not much, but better than nothing. You don’t know what you don’t know, right? We, like many people stayed up until midnight on December 31st and breathed a sigh of relief.

Fast forward to Fall of 2008—current events dictated that we were in for challenging economic times and possibly quite a bit more. A trusted friend and I started discussing possible scenarios and what our reactions would be. Through a circuitous path, I found SurvivalBlog last Fall and was instantly hooked. When I discover a new topic of interest, I am a knowledge sponge. I have read dozens of books on survival as well as accomplishing “Level 2 Preparations” as described in the “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course. Preparedness seems to be as deep a topic as engineering or my other passion, creative real estate investing. Among the easier things to do such as store ammo and properly bucket food, there are more dynamic pursuits such as putting together like minded individuals for support and growth. One of the biggest questions you have to ask yourself is, “Who’s on my team?”

My previously mentioned friend and I have discussed a multitude of different potential issues, everything from Grid Down to Invasion to Martial Law to short-term weather-related disasters and earthquakes. As the incident increases in magnitude, the less likely it is to occur compared to the more common, less long-term challenges. We are both preparing for the more likely scenarios first. But we do talk about the “Big One.” If TSHTF, who are we going to have join us? Who’s on our team?

We have two other gentlemen that we are encouraging to start deepening their larder, consider alternative heating sources and get firearms and medical training. They would be at the top of the list for our team (along with their spouses and two children apiece) as we are all friends and share similar interests and faith. Progress isn’t what we would hope for with them in the preparedness department however. One of the benefits they bring, in addition to their unique skills, is that much of their extended family lives outside of the state or even a few states away, so there is little to be concerned with in the stragglers department. (BTW, I would love to see children being a part of the G.O.O.D. plan in one of the two upcoming “Patriots“ sequels—their unique evacuation requirements and challenges were absent in the first novel, and rare is the eight year old that can cover your flank with an AR-15.) Their skill sets bring depth and breadth to our group and we hope they kick it into high gear shortly.

A bigger problem concerns my friend’s family. His immediate family (wife, son and daughter) are fully on board and are not a problem. His other two sons from a previous marriage (and his nutty ex-wife) will be more of a concern. His adolescent boys have had a few scrapes with the law and generally have a “me-first, no one else matters” attitude. Not people you want in your foxhole. Hopefully the seriousness of a TEOTWAWKI situation would scare them straight, but I don’t typically overlook serious character flaws—especially when it’s a matter of life and death. What does he do with them? Give them a GPS and tell them not to show up empty handed? What about my friend’s Dad and his girlfriend? They have plenty of greenbacks, but it is unlikely they are using those to make preparations or purchase useful supplies. It is likely both extended groups will not bring any goods with them—only more mouths to feed and little in the way of skills. My friend’s mother-in-law and her husband are another consideration—are we going to drag them along too? You can see the problem developing.

A bigger problem yet concerns my extended family. As I am an only child, I have a responsibility and duty to my parents. They taught me a bunch about finances (mostly what not to do) and so I will likely need to double my efforts to cover them. I am fine with that, as they sacrificed a lot for me in the past. My aunt, uncle and grandma all live in a major city a few hours away. I fear they would be gobbled up in the ensuing mess that comes with living in an urban setting during a disaster. I can see them trying to stick together, but they are all aged and my uncle’s 30 years police experience only becomes more useless with each passing year as he loses his abilities. As I am very close with all them, this one hurts. They are at least making some preparations, but they struggle with the status quo syndrome.

What about my wife’s family? We live near her parents, but all three of her siblings and their families live 20 minutes away in a mile radius with one another. I have tried to point them on the path of preparedness by asking probing questions during holiday meals and birthday celebrations. They seem uninterested. “Since things have always been this way, they will never change” is the feeling I get from them—status quo syndrome strikes again. They refuse to purchase even a shotgun because, “Everyone else in our county has one—we’ll be fine”. I have discussed this with my wife and the intuitive answer is for them to band together. Eight extra adults and as many children would destroy our food supply. They are on their own, although I would consider dropping off a few 5 gallon pails of food on the way out of town along with a spare firearm.

It’s pretty obvious that you can not keep inviting all kinds of friends and family to a retreat type of situation. The NFL San Francisco 49ers [professional football] team of the 1980s and early 1990s stands as a model franchise. One of the reason they were so good is because they were ruthless. They had no problem cutting or trading three of the best players to ever strap on cleats: Ronnie Lott, Jerry Rice, and the man who won four championships for them–Joe Montana. They knew when to make the tough cut and had no qualms about including only those that would make their team a winner, or discarding those who’s time had passed.

Knowing who to include and who to exclude, is critical to your team’s success. It is not an easy decision and not one you should consider lightly. Those you exclude could very well die off in a long term SHTF disaster—possibly in a very horrific manner. Those you include could make you wish you that had died off in a long term SHTF disaster if you don’t select carefully. Not including family and close friends may be akin to a death sentence. Are you going to be willing to make that tough cut? These are questions that are best answered now, rather than later. The best ounce of prevention in my mind is to gently encourage friends and family to make some preparations themselves. Use real life illustrations like [the earthquakes in] Haiti, Chile, and other current events which can occur here. It is evident that removing responsibility from people for their own well-being is a catastrophe. Take a look at our culture at large to verify this.

With any group in a long-term situation where you will be living with people you are not familiar with, you will need to set the rules pretty early. This applies to the kids, as well as the adults. We as a society have too much time on our hands—this explains all the stupidity that has been evident in our society in the last 40 years. In a post SHTF scenario, there will be no time for whining about fairness, complaining about life or any other idiocy. Survival is a full-time job with no vacation time or holidays. Children constantly fighting, women being catty or male bravado needs to be addressed immediately. Clear leadership is never more critical. If my friend’s ex wife gets out of line in that circumstance, I need to be the one that explains the situation to her and makes sure she knows it’s my way or the highway since I actually bothered to store food, fuel and ammunition. Similarly, if one of my extended family does the same, I will rely on my friend to take care of it. I don’t consider this passing the buck, but using relationships to solve the problem. Make this easy on yourself by forming your group now and regularly getting together for meals, training and just plain getting used to one another. As with any area of preparedness, it is best to find out now where the holes are in your plan rather than later when your life may depend on it. Ignoring the difficult decision doesn’t make them any easier. – G., Behind Enemy Lines in Illinois

Letter Re: Semi-Anonymous Internet Access

Dear Editor:
Is using a laptop with wi-fi from the library etc any better (in terms of OPSEC) than having a home Internet connection? We disconnected from our satellite ISP from home a while ago and now only go online from assorted wi-fi connections when we get to town. But is this any safer? What else should I be doing to keep a lower profile? Thanks, – Jeff T.

#1 Son Replies: There are several ways that you can be identified over the Internet. First is though your IP address, and more significantly, through your Internet service provider (ISP). Information on every site you visit and every email you send is potentially recorded and available to an intrusive government.

The other major weakness is through your email and other online accounts. Gaining access to your email, FaceBook, Internet forum, Amazon, eBay, PayPal, bank, or AOL/Microsoft Instant Messenger (IM) account would provide a trove of information to any snoopers. Who you talk to, what you’ve said, bought, and what you’ve read. You must keep in mind that anything said over the Internet is potentially vulnerable to being intercepted, even many years after the fact.

Overall, achieving genuine privacy on the Internet is very difficult. If you don’t use the Internet at home, then investigations might instead just be directed at your e-mail account. However, if you are under a severely restrictive, technically capable government, public Internet access could be a useful tool for circumventing censorship. But for real security doing this, you should buy a dedicated a laptop computer for this use. If you are in a really draconian situation, then buy a used laptop with cash. Do nothing that would identify that computer with you. Don’t use it to log in to your e-mail account or use your home Internet connection. Use public Internet connections, and use it strictly anonymously. This computer will be what you use for visiting controversial web sites, political writing, or sensitive communication. Keep it completely separate from your family and public life, so what you say with it cannot lead back to you. Any access of the Internet through an ISP leaves an audit trail! Leave completely separate Internet fingerprints for your public and private lives! (Addenda: Ben in Tennessee wrote to remind me that computers have unique Media Access Control (MAC) addresses. These MAC addresses can be combined with the IP Address to link the traffic on a network such as the Internet to your network card and thus your computer.)

At the present time, this level of COMSEC applies only in a situation like that in Cuba or mainland China, where censorship is rampant, and there might be repercussions for speaking out against the government. Short of this, in situations where you don’t have to be totally anonymous, follow common sense. Use strong passwords. Consider very carefully anything you type or do. Anything can come back to haunt you. Use pseudonyms and secondary e-mail addresses for anything controversial. (It takes just a couple of minutes to set up a Hotmail or gmail account. You can establish and then discard them after very brief use.) Don’t use the same e-mail address that you give to friends and co-workers to register on preparedness or political forums.

Keep in mind that the lynchpin to your online identity is your e-mail account. Once someone gains access to your e-mail account(s), then they can gain access to most or even all of your various web accounts. Just think how many times that you’ve had to be reminded of your passwords via e-mail.

Letter Re: Infoworld’s Take on IT Doomsday Scenarios

James,

The magazine Infoworld is a fairly trusted source in the information technology (IT) field. They recently posted an article titled, “Tech apocalypse: Five doomsday scenarios for IT”.

Here is a quote:

“What could happen [from a wide scale EMP attack]: Workstations? Dead. Data centers? Gone. Cell phones might still work, but the cell towers probably won’t, rendering them useless. Your car won’t start. A large enough attack will also shut down automated controls at power substations, leaving everyone in the dark. Think pre-industrial revolution days. In our scenario the New York Stock Exchange shuts down, causing shock waves to reverberate throughout worldwide markets.”

That is not bad for a mainstream IT magazine, though in this scenario they downplay the aftermath. in my opinion. However, they call it “higher than you might think” when talking about chances of this happening.

Their description of the effects of a massive coronal ejection (their last scenario) is pretty good, with a prediction of a recovery time of 4 to 10 years, if at all. – MP

Letter Re: Another Experience with Stockpiling Nickels

Dear Mr. Rawles,

I thought I would drop you a note on my experiences in attempting to collect a significant volume of nickels. After seeing the Coinflation.com site and some of your articles and hearing about the changes being made by the US government in what materials are allowed to be used to make nickels, I decided to take your advice and start collecting. I decided to obtain $1,000 worth to start with, so I went to my local credit union and walked up to the teller and asked what their policy was on obtaining large volumes of coins. She said that they have to pay for shipping of coins and that they order coins twice per week. They also ship their bulk coins that they collect in the coin counter they provide for their members to a company that counts and rolls and sells the coins back. She described the coin service they use. So I asked if they had any coins that they were going to have to pay to ship to the coin processing company that I could buy at face value so they could save money on the processing fee. She was happy to sell me a $200 bag of nickels, unrolled and only counted by their coin counting machine. I accepted that, bought the nickels and took them home. 4,000 nickels in one bag is not lite but it looked worse than it was for carrying.

I thought this solution seemed easy enough so I started dropping in at the credit union once or twice per week. At first they said they didn’t have any bags of nickels for me to buy and then after about two weeks they told me they weren’t allowed to sell me bulk nickels anymore and that their manager told them it was not allowed. I found this to be a little annoying, after all I was trying to help them to save processing fees by buying the nickels in a $200 bag so they didn’t have to pay the shipping for the nickels. I considered my options at this point. I wanted to find the least painful way to get this situation resolved so I thought I would call up the Vice President of the branches in the area and complain. I realized this was excessive and thought I would try calling up the manager of the branch first. Maybe he was a reasonable man. I was disappointed to hear him tell me they had recently had a meeting and established new rules for coin purchasing. The rules outlined that each non-commercial member was only allowed to purchase $20 to $30 worth at a time on a basis of once or twice per week. I explained that I only needed $800 worth and that if I buy $30 worth twice per week it would take me a little over one year to obtain my goal of $800 more worth of nickels. I then stated that this was really over burdensome. He countered that he anything more would cost them too much money. He asked when I would be bringing back the nickels and putting them through the counting machine in the lobby. Then he explained that they have been having problems with some of their members buying large volumes of nickels, sorting them and returning the bulk of all the low value coins while keeping all the coins that sell on eBay to collectors. I responded by promising not to bring back any nickels and that I simply wanted to store them. I would only bring them back if I became unemployed and foreclosed on my house and desperate to spend the money. He still resisted and told me that this was their policy and he had to follow the rules as they were given by the senior management of the Credit Union. I persisted and asked if he would please request an exception to the rules this one time so that I could obtain $800 worth of nickels and that I would be willing to pay a small fee to obtain them if needed. After waiting about a week he called me up and told me they were willing to grant my exception to the rules if I paid a one time $25 fee and promised not to bring them back and put them in his counting machine. I did some quick calculations and decided this was a reasonable solution and accepted. We setup a schedule and they have been calling me twice a week to pick either 1 $100 box or 2 $100 boxes for a total of $300 worth per week. I now have $600 worth of nickels in my safe and am on track to have my goal reached within a little over one week.

Thanks for all your help and advice and hard work on your blog. – Max

Economics and Investing:

G.G. liked this piece at The Daily Beast: America’s Debt Gets Scary

Greg C. suggested this blog article that has some serious implications: The Most Important Story that the MSM, Fox News, Glenn beck, and Others Will Not Cover.

Flavio sent this linkio: Retail Sales Fall.

Here is a real Economic Indicator: Box makers wait for signal of economic growth (Thanks to Mike A. in Ohio for the link.)

Items from The Economatrix:

Stocks Fall on Worries Regarding Greek Debt Return

The Four Cities that Best Weathered the Recession (As if the “recession” were in the past?)

Germany and France Split Over Solution to Greek Debt Problem

When Credit Falls and Equities Rise, Stock Investors Beware

Odds ‘n Sods:

More than 20 SurvivalBlog readers forwarded the link to a New York Times article on potential cyber attacks on the US power grid: Academic Paper in China Sets Off Alarms in U.S. Meanwhile, we read: Electricity disruptions a growing threat. (Thanks to Brian B. for the latter link.)

   o o o

Observations from the mainstream media on societal decline and collapse: In the Soviet suburbs of Hell and the blasted avenues of Mogadishu, I saw what our society could become.

   o o o

Smoky the Bear Big Brother: US Forest Service admits putting surveillance cameras on public lands. (A hat tip to Chad S. for the link.)

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"So this is how liberty dies: with thunderous applause." – Natalie Portman as Padmé Amidala, Star Wars: Episode III, Revenge of the Sith (Screenplay by George Lucas)

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 27 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round will 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 between $500 and $600, and B.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees, in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $392 value.) C.) A HAZARiD Decontamination Kit from Safecastle.com. (A $350 value.), and D.) A 500 round case of Fiocchi 9mm Luger, 124gr. Hornady XTP/HP ammo, courtesy of Sunflower Ammo. This is a $249 value.

Second Prize: 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 $350.

Third Prize: A copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, from Arbogast Publishing.

Round 27 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.

Building Your Kits for Survival, by Jeff M.

There are many different ways to go about preparing for tomorrow. One method that has really worked out well for me so far is kit building. Kits focus your attention on one specific area at a time, and bring into focus the strengths and weaknesses in your planning. There is something of a natural progression to it; you can start small and work up to bigger and better as you develop the means and know how.
This is intended as an overview of the concept; details for specific kit building can be found all all over the web.

EDC (Every Day Carry)
The Everyday Carry (EDC) is a “kit” that you keep on your person at all times. What it consists of is entirely up to you, and based on your personal needs. Universal items (Prep minded individuals or not) are personal identification, credit cards, cash, cell phone, keys, medications. More specialized items are knives and multi-tools, personal protection, keychain based tools, fire making devices, flash drives with important personal info. My EDC is split between my key chain and my wallet, is not cumbersome in the least and I am extremely happy with the system. For your EDC balance the things you would never, ever, want to be without, under any circumstances; with what is practical to carry. I just won’t be one of those guys who carries a purse.

PSK (Personal Survival Kit)
The Personal Survival Kit (PSK) is meant to be a small supply of materials to help you survive a few days if stranded or separated from a safe place. It does not have to be expensive, large or all inclusive. This is an area to expand on your EDC and give yourself a fighting chance. The survival basics must be addressed here: Shelter, Fire, Water, Food Gathering, Identification, Navigation, Signaling for help. My kit fits into an old military surplus three-magazine ALICE Pouch, and probably cost around $40 to build. It goes with me on hunting, fishing, hiking and off road trips.

24-Hour Kit (GHB)
The Get Home Bag fills the gap between PSK and the fairly large 72-Hour Kit. A typical School sized backpack will fill the bill nicely. Include Food and Water, Clothing, a Blanket, a Tarp, Personal Hygiene products. It may be more or less than 24 hours; build yours around the maximum timeframe it may take you to get home from the farthest you usually travel from home. For most of us, this kit is probably best left in your vehicle, and need not be overly expensive. In fact, many items can be found or re-purposed for next to nothing.

Car Kit
The Car Kit may be the most overlooked, yet useful, assemblage of goods you can put together. Something as simple as a flat tire can leave you stranded literally anywhere. Items such as Jumper Cables, Fix-a-Flat, Air Compressor, Flashlight, Fire Extinguisher, Water/Coolant, Oil and tools can be stored in a toolbox or, as in my case, an old gym bag.

72-Hour Kit (Bug Out Bag)
“They” say three days is about how long a person can expect to wait for rescue, or help to arrive after a natural disaster. It would make sense to build a semi-comprehensive kit to last a person (or family) 72 hours. It would make even more sense for this kit to be portable, in case evacuation in called for. This is where the concept of a Bug Out Bag comes in. Whether you have a place to “bug out” to yet or not, a good sized backpack prepared to support you and your family for 3 days is a good idea. The size of this kit will allow you to include bigger and better items like sleeping bags, cookware, food and water. A weapon and ammo should be considered. One pack per family member is a good idea. Don’t forget to pack comfort items like sweets and stuffed animals, especially if you have little ones! While any old backpack will do, military surplus Alice and MOLLE packs will probably hold up better and are very affordable.

First Aid Kits
Store bought First Aid Kits can be good, but are rarely comprehensive and never tailored to individuals. A good plan is to buy a large kit and then add to it with medications and other items where lacking. First Aid Kits should be in each vehicle and Pack/Kit you have, as well as the home.

Disaster/Earthquake Kit
We live in earthquake country, and so have an “Earthquake Kit”. For us it’s a plastic tub in a closet with food, water, radio, flashlights, blankets and clothes. It should be enough to last you a few weeks if supply routes are cut off, and you want to work up to a two month store as a benchmark.

Future Trade Goods
It might not be a bad idea to begin storing up what may be “Future Trade Goods”. That may be .22 caliber and other common ammo, tobacco, alcohol, spices, seeds, bleach, canned goods. Things that are fairly cheap and easy to find, but could become very valuable when unavailable. Somehow, I don’t think the average man is going to be all that interested in a sack of old Nickels, he wants something he can use.

These are just a few examples of some of the kits commonly assembled. You can create sub-kits for more specific tasks such as Water Purification, Food Gathering or Self Defense, it’s the concept and practicality that I like. It helps you look at your preps in detail and iron out the problems. You get to know each and every component and how to use each of them. The end product is a good modular system you can build on and modify as needed, and the peace of mind that you are making progress and prepared for whatever may come your way tomorrow.