Category: Preparedness

Preparedness On The Fly II: Complete Nutrition I

Preparedness On The Fly II: Complete Nutrition II

Preparedness On The Fly II: Health

Of Interest

*****

If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, which include moving to the SW, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo or drop me a line to discuss other methods. Getting hit by lightning is not fun, and it is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.

Preparedness On The Fly II: Health

The last two posts have focused on nutrition for the long term, now we need to look at one final component to ensuring your health: medications. I’m going to include OTC in this as well, as they are going to be more important long-term than you may realize.

One result of getting hit by lightning is that I now take an impressive array of supplements and medications. Not as many as some, but I went from a couple of antihistamines to several cardiac-related drugs. The good news is my blood work and blood pressure (which was the truly nasty thing post-strike) are doing very well. Which means I want to maintain that as much as possible.

The problem is, between costs and insurance, I’m limited in how much of a stock I can build up for emergencies. Doesn’t mean I’m not working to do so, but it is limited. One would hope federal officials would release renewals of such in the face of nuclear or other disaster, as DeSantis did in Florida before Ian, but competence is not a hallmark of our so-called elites and elite institutions.

What you can stock up on are your OTC medicines including but not limited to: anti-diarrhea, anti-nausea, antacids, cold/flu, etc. If you have allergies, stock up on antihistamines. Whatever the condition, if there are OTC meds that can work for it, get them. In terms of first aid, get bandages, ointments, cleaning supplies (betadyne, etc.), burn bandages, etc. In a true disaster, such things are worth their weight in gold.

Also look into a good trauma kit or kits (every bugout bag should have one as well as basic first aid) as in a disaster the likelihood of major trauma rises rather significantly. A small kit that can easily be carried on you at all times is a good idea, especially if you do carry concealed. Also comes in handy for car trips given accidents.

Don’t forget foot care as well, as in a major disaster if you have to do the bugout boogie the odds of you having to go shank’s mare at some point is pretty good. Moleskin can be your friend, along with foot powders and other delights. Always take care of your feet before, during, and after any disaster.

In addition to instruction if at all possible, be sure to pick-up some good self-help guides. Many decades ago I came across a book called (I think) ‘Be Your Own Wilderness Doctor’ and it was focused on backpackers and others who could find themselves deep in the wilderness in the days before cell and sat phones. It basically covered how to do enough to get by and stay alive until you could get to real medical help. Guess what. In a major disaster your ability to get to real medical help is likely to be very limited. Find the modern equivalents and keep them with you.

Before I forget, invest in good freezer bags. Store important books and documents in them, and put multiple bags into a larger bag for redundancy. When I’ve backpacked or even traveled, I tend to pack everything I can in high-quality storage bags as caca occureth at the best of times. If something leaks in the luggage, if something leaks onto my luggage and it’s not as waterproof as claimed, or if it simply rains, my gear tends to stay dry and clean. FYI, I’ve been paranoid enough to augment the bags with wet-boxes of various types just to be safe, particularly with documents and copies of critical documents.

Now, let’s approach a potentially delicate matter. Consider what’s below as an intellectual exercise on creating a backup plan for your first few backup plans. This is not recommended for any reason other than as an intellectual exercise.

First up, if you’ve waited until the last possible minute and are doing the boogie, don’t stop for any reason until well past minimum safe distance. I don’t care if they are giving away free gold, ice cream, drugs, or anything else, it is not worth your life. Move out!

Now, once you are past minimum safe distance, and/or the disaster has occurred, and if you are relatively safe at the moment, you may want to plan to consider the possibility of breaking the law. Let the idiots loot the appliance stores and grab the televisions, if you loot anything, let it be a good hardware or camping store, and a pharmacy or doctor’s office.

Forget the junky’s dream, concentrate on what you need: the prescriptions for you and yours; local and other anesthetics along with basic surgical supplies such as scalpels, sutures, etc.; antibiotics; anti-diarrhea and anti-nausea medications; pre-natal items (Pro-tip: in disasters large and small, humans procreate and there is a boom in births about 9-10 months after. Be prepared); gabapentin and other non-narcotic pain meds; and, only if room and time, heavy-duty pain relief. If there are field medications, as in what you might find in a combat medic’s bag, grab those.

At a hardware or home supply, respirators and masks are a good start along with plastic, tape, and related. Camping and sporting goods, look for more filters for your water system and other gear that will help ensure your long-term survival.

Hopefully you will never need to even consider doing anything like this, as you have planned ahead and the civil authorities will have released stocks and done what is needed to help you deal with the disaster. However, it’s always good to have a backup plan to the first few backup plans and doing the above is just that: a mental exercise to create a backup plan that is hopefully well down the list even as an intellectual exercise.

I will say this as well. We’ve talked a bit before about the desirability to have a group of good people with whom to rally and/or bugout with at need. Consider that having a good GP, surgeon, surgical or similar nurse, EMT, former/current combat medic, or other competent medical professional as part of that group is a very, very, good idea. Have the chance to add such during a bugout? Take it and them.

Also, as you are doing the above purely intellectual exercise, consider the following as well. If the location of a doctor’s office or pharmacy is defensible and offers the needed levels of shelter for the situation, consider making it a temporary or long-term base. If there are people there, offer to help take on security and other duties and see if they are willing to partner or join in. If not, move on.

Moving on from purely intellectual exercises, stock up on the OTCs, and work the rest as you can. Just keep in mind that the health/medical supplies you have may be all you have for a very long time. Make your supplies both count and last.

Preparedness On The Fly Series

Preparedness On The Fly II: Complete Nutrition I

Preparedness On The Fly II: Complete Nutrition II

Of Interest

*****

Preparedness On The Fly II: Complete Nutrition II

Picking up on yesterday, let’s consider what happens if you did get a year’s worth of wholesome food put away, but the year is about up. A similar situation is if you didn’t get a year’s worth of food put away and are having to scrounge or otherwise depend on outside sources of food. In all cases, the health of you and yours depends on getting the right amount of those 72 trace elements I mentioned yesterday, as well as the 9 essential proteins your body can’t make for itself.

The answer lies in supplements, which is to say vitamins, minerals, and other products that will help you get anything you miss in food. Yes, you can find supplements that claim to provide all you need for those 9 proteins, but it’s not really a good idea to bank on that. Supplements can, however, give you all those trace elements you need for health.

Trust me when I say that there are those out there who will cheerfully recommend any number of protein powders and supplements to replace meals. Some may even work for values of work. I will guarantee you that those recommending them, as well as the people who create/sell them, can and do make a lot of money off of them. Caveat Emptor!

There are a lot of supplements sold that claim many things, but those things may or may not be verified. There is more regulation than many will admit (more on that in a bit) but there are still some who may be peddling snake oil. My favorite is still the calcium supplement sold that did indeed have several hundred times the amount of calcium of any other supplement. Only thing was that it was a form of calcium that could not be absorbed by the body…

There are all sorts of supplements sold for any ailment or problem out there. Thing is, when you boil it down, any given supplement will only work for about a third the population. I’ve had doctors who took that fact and decided that supplements wouldn’t work period. Change doctors. Seriously. For me, I have tried a number of supplements over the years, and looked for results in bloodwork. No results, no more of that supplement. Currently, I take a couple of things that I am not sure really do much. But, my bloodwork right now is some of the best in my life, so neither my doctors nor I want to rock the boat so I continue to take them. That said, any stocking I may or may not do reflects what we know works versus what we are not completely sure works.

For survival, you really need to be focused on those things that provide you trace elements and other compounds you might not get from tight rations. Things I will recommend: a good multi-vitamin, Vitamin C, and Vitamin D.

A good multi-vitamin gives you most of those trace elements in the recommended daily amount. Go generic and you can get a multi-year supply for a reasonable amount. No, it’s not perfect but it gets you most of the way there. Yes, right now you are urinating most of it away. In a survival situation you likely won’t be. You will be glad to have it.

Why Vitamin C? Scurvy for one thing. In a true disaster, Vitamin C can end up in short supply in your food (or lack thereof), which can and will result in scurvy and other delights. Just ask the British Navy, who finally figured out that a lime a day kept the doctor away. Again, inexpensive and can prevent a number of health issues.

Why Vitamin D? You may or may not be getting much sun for a while in a nuclear war or similar disaster. Low D-levels have been found to be linked with a host of medical issues, and no one wants to see rickets and other delights return. Again, D3 is inexpensive and can prevent a number of other health issues.

What else do you need? You really need to sit down with your doctor to work that out. It’s times like these that I truly miss the sadly defunct Doctors for Disaster Preparedness. In the madness of the peaceniks towards the end of the Cold War, there were doctors who said it was immoral and just plain wrong to prepare for a nuclear war (or any other disaster). Thus was DDP born in counter, and it was a very good organization who’s members could and would help you prepare. If you trust your doctor, get with them and ask what you should look at getting and taking.

For example, I take a particular fish oil capsule because of the changes in my bloodwork once I started taking it. My cardiologist is not Miss Merry Supplement Supporter in some respects, so when she looked at the previous results, looked at the current results, and simply said “keep taking it!” I paid attention. It’s also one that I need to do a better job of stocking as it is expensive (by my standards). It is also dependent upon imports.

Which is another reason you want to stock up now. I think many Americans would be amazed at how many food items, supplements, and pharmaceuticals come in whole or in part from overseas. Particularly China, where the CCP are assholes. As I noted the other day, stock up now on items that are imported, like coffee, chocolate, and — in this case — supplements. Get them now and get several years worth of each for each person. Even if we miss having a nuclear war, there are other things afoot and you are quite likely to not just be glad to have them, you may well need them as much or more than for a nuclear war.

The other reason to stock up now is that the same people who brought you the useless and destructive lockdowns, ineffective masking, and so many other delights now want to regulate supplements. The initial goal is to expand FDA oversight (and when has that not creeped, or even galloped, into more regulation???) of supplements in order to protect consumer health and safety. That latter phrase is getting right up there with “it’s for the children” as a sign of bad legislation. What it is saying is that you are too stupid to research and choose wisely for yourself, that you need to depend on your betters to decide for you what you should take or when. There are already some in Congress who have indicated that they would like to see supplements not only more tightly regulated, but even turned into something that requires a prescription. Stock up now, and remember the first rule of Preparedness Club.

Do I wish I had more stocked up? Yep. Feel free to hit the tip jar, it would be very much appreciated. Do you need to stock up? My magic 8-ball says yes, might want to check yours.

By the way, if you aren’t comfortable talking with your doctor about supplements and preparedness, aside from considering a new doctor, look into talking with a different doctor, PA, or even a good nutritionist about what will work best for you.

Preparedness On The Fly Series

Preparedness On The Fly II: Complete Nutrition I

Of Interest

*****

Preparedness On The Fly II: Complete Nutrition I

If the site is slow loading or you’ve had trouble getting through, my apologies. We are experiencing growing pains as I move from regular blog to high-traffic blog. Working on it, feel free to hit the tip jar to help me keep going and upgrade the site. Your gifts truly do make the difference. Working on adding a mail-in option, GabPay, others; if interested in mail-in for now drop me a line.

Let’s face it. For most disasters, up to and including hurricanes and earthquakes, you really don’t need to be thinking a huge amount about nutrition. Between what you have stocked up in the pantry and any emergency rations you have on hand, odds are you are going to be able to eat balanced meals for the duration if you have prepared. After all, you have food, water, alternate lighting sources, and alternate cooking sources; plus, in most cases, you are talking restoration of power and such within about four weeks. Not always, but in general.

While weapons are the third rail for many discussions on preparedness, getting into nutrition and the disasters that need you to consider it is also one of those things that drives people away. After all, the government is there and will rescue you and any talk of any disaster that would require looking ahead for a year or more is just some sort of preparedness/survivalist/right-wing/libertarian/other fantasy/wet-dream. I wish it were.

While nuclear war is indeed one of those scenarios that means you need to be looking at a year or more of getting by on your own, it is not the only one. Modern logistics is built around the idea of “just in time” deliveries. Your local grocery no longer has a huge storage area in back because instead of every week (or longer), the truck(s) come 2 or more times a week. They don’t keep a week or more of X in stock because they only need to keep about two to three days worth on hand total. Smaller footprint, saves money, reduces inventory hassles and paperwork, and a few other things.

We depend on ships that use Bunker C or similar to get raw materials or products from overseas to the U.S. Then, we depend on rail for a large amount of transport, and guess what most locomotives use for fuel: diesel. That which is not transported by rail is transported by trucks, which again use diesel. Planes do carry a good bit, but it is rarely food or other items but rather finished products for the most part. It really is fascinating to look at the breakdown of what goes how, and when. Again, though, planes are dependent upon specialty fuel.

The thing is, we get the raw materials to plants where they become products. We get products and ship them to where they are needed, using one or more large distribution centers along the way. Some of these are not just one building, but huge warehouse complexes that depend on computers and automation to track and move the contents. Even more amazing is that in some of these complexes the contents can completely turn over in as little as a day in some cases. From the large centers things can go to smaller centers but quite often they go directly to the final destination.

The dance that is modern logistics truly is amazing. It is a very intricate mechanism, and the problem with intricate things is that it does not necessarily take much to jam them up. For example, automation and computers drive the system, much less make it possible to move the products. Without computers, hand-helds, and other systems, nothing moves. Loss of electricity, malware, and other delights, and nothing moves. Without diesel and other specialty fuels, there is no way to move the goods. For that matter, without the fertilizers (some key ones require oil to produce) there would be no crops, and without the specialty fuels there is no way to pick and prepare the crops, much less mine or otherwise produce raw materials. Given the system, if it goes down for a few days to a week, it could take months (or longer) to get it back up and running again. Just look at the continuing problems getting stock after the lockdowns as but one example.

To cut things short, there are a number of things that can happen that disrupt the logistics chain. Nuclear war, loss of fertilizer and such overseas, fuel problems (cough, diesel, cough), a transportation strike (cough, railroad strike, cough), or other disaster that impacts fuel, electricity, or the ability to move the products, and things can get interesting. Combine “normal” disasters (much less human stupidity, particularly political stupidity) into the mix, and things can get very interesting.

Which is why for advanced preparedness you need to have some basic knowledge of nutrition. That knowledge can help you prepare to ride out a longer-term disaster as best possible.

At the most basic, the human body needs about two liters of water a day (at rest, directly and from food) to survive, along with about 72 trace elements and 20 essential amino acids in about 1200-1400 calories a day (you can survive on less, 600-800, but not recommended if you can avoid it). Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins, as well as a good bit of the human body. Our body can actually produce 11 of the essential amino acids we need to survive and thrive, but we need to get the remaining nine through our diet.

Now, there are foods that contain complete proteins, that is they have all 9 of the essential amino acids needed by the body. When you eat fish, poultry, dairy, eggs, and meat you are getting complete proteins. In grains, quinoa is a complete protein.

You can also “mix and match” to get complete protein. For example, legumes with rice can do the job, but if you mix legumes, a veggie, and a grain, you can as well.

As I’ve noted before, just as there is no one magic list for preparedness, there is no one perfect recipe for nutrition. You have to find what works for you and any known dietary problems or needs. Now, when I say dietary problem I mean a diagnosed medical condition, not that you hate X, Y, or Z or avoid them because of virtue signaling. While I find low-carb works well for me right now, in an emergency I’m an omnivore and will eat whatever I have to ensure proper nutrition.

If you have the storage to do canned goods and the like for a full year, go for it. If you don’t, look at dried legumes, whole grains, and similar items that will have a long shelf life and not take up huge amounts of room. Keep in mind, however, that dried legumes can take a lot of processing and can’t be eaten raw. Most grains, however, can be eaten raw or moderately processed. Also, space being at a premium, keep in mind that the pouches of tuna are pretty much a meal for one — and if inside hunkered down you really may only need one meal a day.

Some other things to consider. There is a good argument to be made for getting canned tuna in oil, as you need a certain amount of fat to survive each day. I’ve also heard good arguments for tuna in water as that water will stretch out your water supply. I will also note that while six medium to large moths can get you the required amount of fat for a day, it’s much more pleasant to get that fat from other sources.

As for those 72 trace elements, stocking up on Himalayan pink salt can help as you need salt, and that salt has traces of about 60 or so of those trace elements. Every bit helps, and the more you get from food the less you have to come up with from elsewhere. Supplements may be a topic for tomorrow, especially since the lockdown crowd is now wanting government control over all supplements and to make them a prescription item.

The other thing you need to consider is gardening. Indoor, outdoor, whatever. Yes, you do need to look at doing this to ensure a supply of veggies as well as ensuring proper nutrition. Buy seeds now. Put them away. Remember how Michigan banned the sale of seeds during lockdown, so get them now and remember the first rule of preparedness club. You will be amazed at what a well-planned garden can provide you. Done inside under the right conditions, you can do at least some things year round.

Plan now. Buy now. Prepare now. Being prepared to garden when you can may make all the difference between squeaking by and doing okay in a disaster. Remember, Preparedness Always Pays!

Preparedness On The Fly Series

Of Interest

*****

Cover Versus Concealment

If the site is slow loading or you’ve had trouble getting through, my apologies. We are experiencing growing pains as I move from regular blog to high-traffic blog. Working on it, feel free to hit the tip jar to help me keep going and upgrade the site. Your gifts truly do make the difference. Working on adding a mail-in option, GabPay, others; if interested in mail-in for now drop me a line.

In this post the other day, I brought up two topics for future discussion. Lifeboat Rules was the topic yesterday, and I really do urge people to share it and think about it. If we have a major disaster, not just a nuclear war, we will have a new and different form of “lost generation.”

Today, I want to talk briefly about the difference between cover and concealment. I want to do this because many of the posts of late have been aimed at those late to the concepts of preparedness and nuclear war. Many such have no connection to, or participation in, old Scouting (my thoughts on modern Scouting another day) or the military. While this discussion is only partially germane to immediate nuclear survival, it’s some useful information to have both in general and for later.

Concealment is simply avoiding observation. It can be as simple as putting objects between you and potential observers, or as complex as camouflage. When I say objects, I mean everything from ridges and buildings to trees and shrubs. When I say camouflage, I mean anything from a ghillie suits and/or face paint to large camouflage nets or more.

Now then, there are good reasons to use concealment, if possible, after a nuclear strike. First, you may want to hide that your home or other shelter is both useable and in use. It’s the quick and clean way to avoid those not-nice folks as well as others that even if nice will push your shelter over capacity. When and if you go out, you may want to use it to both avoid any not-nice people in the area and to avoid advertising where you are located. Depending on where you are located, it may be a moot point — or it may make the difference between staying relatively peaceful and secure or having to defend yourself.

Cover is something that protects you from incoming fire. It may also conceal you, but the main point of cover is the protection. Cover is everything from piling dirt or sandbags in front of basement windows before the blast, to putting solid objects in place to bar unauthorized entry to your shelter. Putting up items to block radiation is also technically cover.

Thing is, you want and need both. Concealment means you can be overlooked or missed by the not-nice no matter the disaster. Cover can help protect you from the disaster itself, as well as give you a secure position after. For a quick example, sandbags can help prevent flooding in floods or damage in a nuclear blast, and then help protect you and yours, as well as the structure involved, after.

It’s never too late to start thinking about such, and about what you have around you that you can use to improvise cover and concealment inside and out. Just one idea: books can and do act as cover from radiation and a variety of small arms rounds. Of course, if you shoot my books be happy if just shoot you and make it quick.

Further discussions are the advanced courses, though I will note that for individuals, between clothing and paint, the idea is to break up your outline so that the brain doesn’t recognize it as human. Again, advanced discussion for another day, but a bit of knowledge that may prove useful.

BTW, don’t know who did the meme above originally, but my hat is off to them. It’s been used in this context, for political memes, and probably more. It’s also true. Race really may have been the first to teach me that. 🙂

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Lifeboat Rules

If the site is slow loading or you’ve had trouble getting through, my apologies. We are experiencing growing pains as I move from regular blog to high-traffic blog. Working on it, feel free to hit the tip jar to help me keep going and upgrade the site. Your gifts truly do make the difference. Working on adding a mail-in option, GabPay, others; if interested in mail-in for now drop me a line.

In my post the other day, I brought up a couple of topics for later discussion. For a number of reasons, I want to bring up first the concept of “lifeboat rules.” This is a concept that few today, other than some older people and/or veterans, understand. Failure to understand will, in many cases, be a death sentence.

Back in the old days, as in even unto the 1900s, when ships sank (or were sunk) passengers and/or crew took to the lifeboats. Each lifeboat had someone who was designated as its leader, effectively the captain of that boat. The rule of that leader was (and is) absolute. They might have to answer at some later point for their actions, but during the emergency they had the absolute, and fully legal, power of life and death over everyone in the boat. If they gave an order that was not obeyed, they could kill the person refusing or have others do so. They could, if they chose, instead put the person over the side with or without any aid(s) or provisions. They could, if circumstances allowed, maroon them on whatever land offered itself.

This was all done to try to ensure that as many as possible survived. In the days before GPS, extensive search and rescue, and other positive joys of modern life, being in a lifeboat could mean weeks or months at sea. So, the captain of the lifeboat rationed stores, oversaw efforts to catch food and produce potable water, erect such shelter as possible, create sails or other means of locomotion so that the boat could steer towards hopefully hospitable islands or land, etc. People who refused to abide by the rations, refused to try to help catch food, refused to do whatever was needed to get somewhere safe — they were (and are) a direct threat to the survival of all. Each person had a responsibility to themselves and to all in that group. If they failed of it, then they were killed outright or exiled and likely died as a result of that exile.

While it still holds for lifeboats today, many people don’t realize that pilots have much the same authority. One of the more interesting discussions when earning my license involved not only my authority, but my responsibility to prevent anyone from using the plane of which I was in command to do something bad with it. Pilots can, either on their own or by order to others, cause you to be disabled or restrained. In the event of an attempt to seize the controls, they can kill you. Now, as with the lifeboat captain, they will at some point hopefully have to answer for all they’ve done, but the law is almost overwhelmingly on their side.

In today’s world of sensitive snowflakes for whom individual responsibility is an antiquated concept, where improper pronouns being used is unimaginable violence, and who have never truly lacked for a thing in their lives the very idea of lifeboat rules is a foreign concept. It is a concept that needs to be understood now lest it result in your death and/or the death of those with you.

If I accept shelter with someone else, and agree they are in charge, then I have to abide (within reason) their decisions and commands. If I disagree with such, then it is my obligation to leave, no matter the circumstances as to do otherwise is to challenge their authority and potentially put the survival of the larger group in danger.

Now I note, within reason: obvious psychosis overrules normal agreements. In an emergency, it also overrides normal civil law because of the immediate danger of irreparable harm or death. The word that applies is “justifiable” in such cases. That said, engaging in strict rationing, strict protocols, or making you actually stand watch or such, those things are not psychosis no matter what you may think. They are an attempt to keep as many people alive as possible.

If you are of a younger generation, you need to understand: in an emergency of the magnitude of a nuclear attack, be it in a shelter of some sort or a group traveling towards safety, the situation is not a democracy, it is not a representative republic, and unless you have knowledge and/or experience that directly relates to emergency at hand, no one cares what you think or feel. Unless your input is directly solicited, it might be a good idea to stay silent, listen, learn, then speak only if you have something relevant to add to the conversation.

I guarantee you that if you continually question, challenge, and encourage others not to obey the orders of the person in charge, one of two things will happen.

First, if you are lucky (or have really PO’d the person in charge and others), your rear end is getting tossed out the door or left behind on the side of the road or trail to make your own way. If you are lucky, you have a shot at survival. If the environment is extremely bad, well, it’s a very nasty way to die. That’s not just from radiation. Keep in mind there are likely to be some very not-nice people outside being kept at bay by those inside or in the group/convoy. If you are lucky, they will kill you quick.

Second, instead of tossing you out, you will be killed. Period. Dot. Given that your actions threaten the survival of all, not unwarranted or extreme. You need to understand that NOW. Not later.

If you find yourself in some government shelter or camp, hope and pray that it is under something like lifeboat rules. Otherwise, what you encounter may be far worse than being outside the wire.

Understand that it is not wrong, evil, or fascistic to demand that you follow the rules and do your part to ensure the survival of all. It is neither the time nor the place for temper tantrums, acting out, being petulant, or trying to impress others with your knowledge of class struggle. It’s a time for hard work, for digging in and doing the best you can, and otherwise being a productive member of the group so everyone survives.

If you don’t know this, please learn this now: in a true emergency, to fuck up is to die. It doesn’t even have to be done by the people with you. You open the airlock door without checking the indicator, you are dead and others with you. You decide to do something to show everyone it is perfectly safe no matter what anyone says, well, that almost never works out. If you go outside because it is so pretty and there is nothing obvious going on, well, fallout and radiation don’t exactly advertise. Those cute animals you see? Guess what, they’re hungry.

Listen, learn, and live. Particularly if you are new to things nuclear, to preparedness, and to surviving after a major disaster. When someone uses the term lifeboat rules, know what that means and know that the people involved are not kidding around. Your life, and the lives of those with and around you, depend on it.

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Preparedness On The Fly: General Thoughts

For all that I’ve tried to keep these posts on an introductory level, it’s not always possible and worse yet from your viewpoint if you’re new to nuclear or preparedness, there’s a heck of a lot of information. Easy to miss some things, so I want to bring a few things up to the front.

First, if you are reading this because you are rightfully worried about nuclear war and have never done any form of preparedness before, some advice. Don’t get overwhelmed, take it a bite at a time. Try to do your preparations so they work to enhance your life in non-disaster times and cover a variety of other disasters as well.

Second, if you have a question about this, about rational preparedness, or the concepts being explored in my hopefully-to-be-finished book Preparedness Pays, ask. There are stupid questions; however, yours probably isn’t one of them. If you are thinking of asking it, know others are probably thinking it too. Do them and yourself a favor, ask.

Now, on to some other things that I’ve said, meant to say, etc. One of the sucky parts of getting hit by lightning is having the short-term memory of a mayfly. May they be right on it eventually healing in a few years. Anywho, onwards.

Buy shelf-stable foods, not those that require freezing, refrigeration, special conditions, etc. When buying canned goods, tuck away a couple of extra can openers too. In the box/area with the canned goods. Trust me.

Buy what food you can, including flour and other grains, and especially things like coffee, chocolate, etc. that are imported. I strongly suspect the food situation is going to get a little too interesting even if Vladimir doesn’t destroy the world in a temper tantrum.

If the button is pushed, go to minimum food and water immediately. Only exception is for food that can’t be saved (refrigerated/frozen for example). Large amounts of vinegar can come in handy on the latter, as you should cook and/or pickle and/or can as much as you can under the circumstances. Vinegar is also a reasonable disinfectant/cleaner/etc.

Buy food and some water filtration/purification gear ahead of anything else simply because of what is likely to happen with food production and distribution regardless.

Protection should be right after food. Remember that I highly recommend three levels for each person: rifle for long-range/hunting, shotgun for medium-range/hunting, pistol for short-range/hunting. Carry edged on you at all times you legally can. GET TRAINING!

One thing I did forget to include the other day is, in addition to whatever else you get, pick up a .22 rifle (and pistol if you can). Great for varmints, good for hunting, a number of uses in survival. Personally, several of us at work were discussing the need to have something tucked away in a vehicle for emergencies that was small, discrete/hidden, reliable, and useful. Idea evolved into a take-down 10/22 in a case with a thousand rounds of ammo. Inexpensive, and good.

BTW, 500 to 1,000 rounds of ammo in one caliber is not an arsenal or whatever other breathless sensationalistic prose the legacy media uses. If you start getting into this, 500 to 1,000 rounds of ammo per caliber is a good day at the range. Or maybe even the start to a good day at the range…

There is no such thing as having too many flashlights or batteries.

Did I talk about radios? Even if you followed some of the discussion in some of the Nuclear-101/201 posts and saved your cell phone, towers and service are probably going to be fracked for a while, possibly a very long time. Frankly, in the event of nuclear war, I expect to see sound trucks used in what’s left of metropolitan areas. Otherwise, think WWII and “This is London!” There are at least two different brands of emergency radio out there that include standard batteries, rechargeable batteries, USB recharging, hand crank, and even solar. You can get one that receives weather, AM, FM, and ShortWave (SW) 1 and 2 for around $40. If you can, get more than one. Oh, you can also use them to recharge cell phones and other devices that survive, including some rechargeable batteries. Useful.

Yes, two-way radios could be useful if you can shield them during so they work after. Problems are expense, range, and the fact that you might not want to be talking loudly and carrying on too much when out. Being able to report observations, issue warnings, advise on your location, talk to other vehicles if doing the boogie, etc. can be a very good thing. You just really need systems (that tend to be more expensive) that allow you to do so as quietly as possible and as hands-free as possible.

Noise and light discipline in the aftermath of any disaster, but especially a nuclear war, is a good idea.

So is the need to set and keep watch, and to be prepared if anything not-nice comes to call.

Sandbags outside doors going up 1.5 feet or more are a great way to block fallout from coming in under doors, and make the doorway an even better chokepoint when and if non-nice types drop by. It is also cover if needed.

Think I may need to do a column on the difference between cover and concealment, and that things that are really good at stopping radiation also work to stop projectiles. Interest?

Under the heading of good things to have around for life, much less emergencies, is a good pressure canner. And lots of jars that hopefully survive the disaster.

When it comes to some people’s cooking, certain foods, and field/emergency rations, hot sauce is you friend. Also, a great source of salt.

When you stock up, be sure to get some pogey bait.

Baby/body wipes are a very good thing to have in quantity if you are going to have to hunker down in a very small area for several weeks.

Also, while super large containers of anything, especially food, seem like a great idea, it also can be a single point of failure if damaged in the disaster. Buying multiple small containers (10 for $10, etc.) increases odds at least some will survive, and offers you items for trade, for being kind, etc. Not to mention portion control, as well as reducing temptation for someone to take just a bit more…

Liquor miniatures work well for medical use (pouring over wounds, etc.), are excellent for trade or reward, and can prevent problems in the shelter if used like the old British Navy rum/grog ration. Staying drunk during and after may seem like a good idea, and tempting a little, but it is a very bad idea.

Understand the concept of lifeboat rules. If you don’t, you need to. Think this is another column, esp. give how some are likely to react.

Wish I could remember what else I meant to cover, but failed to write it down, and so it’s gone. I live by lists, electronic and paper, post-it-notes, and even field note pads these days. Stupid lightning.

Preparedness On The Fly Series

Of Interest

Nuclear 201: Some History

*****

If you would like to help me in my recovery efforts, which include moving to the SW, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo. Getting hit by lightning is not fun, and it is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.

Nuclear Overview

Sorry for the slow loading or trouble getting here. Growing pains as I move from regular blog to high-traffic blog. Working on it, feel free to hit the tip jar.

With so many new readers interested in learning about preparedness and all things nuclear, I thought it might be a good idea to provide links to all the Nuclear 101/201 posts as well as the complete (for now) Preparedness On The Fly series. For those digging into nuclear war and strategy for the first time, there is some basic information along with suggestions for learning more. If you are wanting my takes on what is happening and why, hit the Current Events category. Also, some other posts of interest and non-blog resources of interest are included. .

Nuclear 101 Posts In Order:

Nuclear What?

Nuclear 101: Weapons

Nuclear 101: Delivery

Nuclear 101: Now What?

Nuclear 101: Targeting

Nuclear 101: Scenarios

Nuclear 101: Survival

Some Quick Thoughts

Nuclear 201 Posts In Order

Nuclear 201: Will You Be My PAL?

Nuclear 201: A Bit More C&C

Nuclear 201: Additional Thoughts On Coms

Nuclear 201: Targeting, Take 2

Nuclear 201: Scenarios

Nuclear 201: Policy, SIOP, and Escalation

Nuclear 201: Effects

Nuclear 201: Radiation

Nuclear 201: Preparedness

Nuclear 201: Fallout

Nuclear 201: Fair Question

Preparedness On The Fly Series

Of Interest