“He’s so far out he’s in, man!”
Tommy Chong
If you are like many in
this country you don’t need to bug out because you are already there. The problem
is that while many who live in rural or semi-rural areas are in the right
position geographically, they are not quite there mentally or item-wise with
regards to preparedness.
This article will address
common obstacles to be overcome with regards to preparedness, sources to obtain
useful items, the philosophy behind this sort of planning, and a detailed list
of basic necessities. As always, this
will be done with an eye towards frugality.
There is a fantasy belief
that permeates our society. It is a firm belief that nothing can really go
wrong, that if it does it will be readily repaired by the government, and that
nothing can go wrong that can’t be fixed.
The stock market crash of
1929 should serve always to remind people that not only can things go horribly
horribly wrong, but that government attempts at rectification may in fact
prolong the problems, if not exacerbate them. In a truly bad extended
situation, the agents of the government may themselves become nothing more than
brigands.
The reality of life
changing radically for a prolonged period is not that of a post nuclear
holocaust, it ism most like that of a
catastrophic economic collapse. There is more to be feared from well meaning,
or not so well meaning, financial gurus than there is to be feared from any
ICBM. The economic waves caused by the September11, 2001 attack should
illustrate this point quite well. A small number of people were killed, but
they were in very important positions economically as were the companies they
worked with. The economic impact was huge in comparison to the attack.
The greatest problem in the
event of wide spread societal disruption will be the supply of food. Most
supermarkets have about a two-day supply on hand. Without constant resupply
from distribution centers that will disappear quite swiftly. Add in panic
buying and it will be gone even quicker.
In 1929 the USA was
principally an agrarian nation. Even if all else failed we could feed
ourselves, no matter what the national economic situation. Following 1938 there
were no more native deer stocks left in Georgia. They had all been killed to
feed people. The average American doesn’t hunt and can’t farm. Keep that in
mind as you read this guide.
In 1998 the US Marine Corps began “training
exercises” in every major US city. The exercises consisted of small groups of
USMC and US Navy officers and senior enlisted men plotting artillery fires.
They went to each town and picked out easily defensible buildings with good
visibility as pre-planned observation points. The number one choice was almost
invariably a multistory parking garage in close proximity to the poor section
of town. They then plotted certain intersections for fire. Why? The Y2K bug.
There were fears that the Y2K bug would disrupt the food supply and that riots
might ensue. The plans were to use CS gas to disperse riots. This wasn’t any
great mystery to anyone who read the interviews done with these men. I read
similar interviews in Atlanta, New Orleans, and Jacksonville, FL. They all read
in a very similar fashion. They said they were doing it as a training exercise
for possible deployment. So why do it in every city? And why not on a military
base? Eventually the truth came out.
What is the underlying
message behind the US government planning to deal with widespread civil unrest
with artillery? That they recognized the fact that the average American can’t
feed himself, and they knew there would be violent riots when the food supply
was found to be insufficient.
The concept that anyone can
be completely self sufficient is a fantasy, and that is not what this article
is about. Even in prehistory there is archealogical evidence of trade with
distant places, and anyone who has ever seen a recreation of an ancient
metalsmith’s work area has seen the obvious evidence that skills have to be
specialized in order for society to function. Traces of nicotine and cocaine
can be found in the cloth wrapping of Egyptian mummies. Roman coins and Norse
stelae have been found in the New World as have Chinese coins and inscriptions.
The frontiersmen who pushed west in the US during the expansion period from the
early 1700s to the late 1800s didn’t make their equipment. They purchased and
traded for what they had. No one has all the skills, the time, or the energy to
make everything they need. The division of labor is important from the point of
technological, economic, and intellectual growth of any society.
The idea behind this
article is to give the reader some ideas and to act as a basic guide to allow
him to weather a severe catastrophe, economic or otherwise, in a successful
fashion. We intend with this article to provide a guide to allow the reader to
have on hand a basic store of written knowledge, dried goods, and supplies to
allow a family of four to live at an acceptable level of comfort for a minimum
period of two years, whereupon it is hoped that trade will have somewhat
recovered.
It Is strongly suggested
that the reader get a Sam’s Club, a Costco membership, or something similar
before embarking on this endeavor.
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2004 BOB-Oracle.com
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