Survival Gear

During small emergencies like temporary power outages, as well as more lengthy situations, the ability to gather news from afar can be critical. Being able to tune into to radio broadcasts as well as weather alerts can help you plan your next move. Unfortunately, many people don’t give this much thought and find themselves immediately suffering from withdrawal in the absence of the Internet.

A portable radio can mean the difference between being in the proverbial dark or knowing help is on the way. I always advise people to invest in a crank powered radio, if nothing else than because one doesn’t have to remember to have batteries on hand for it.

The one carried here by Survival-Gear.com has the added bonus of being able to use solar power in addition to turning a crank. It has all the features I suggest in such a device:

–Lightweight
–Easy to use
–Earphone jack so as to keep things quiet
–AM/FM and weather bands

There are many other radios available with all sorts of bells and whistles, such as lights, strobes, and sirens. Those are all nice to have, especially if you are planning to keep it in your Get Home Bag and use it for signaling for help if needed. But for a portable radio to keep at home or in the retreat, many of those features are merely window dressing.

If you prefer to use a battery powered radio, I suggest storing it with the batteries kept separate until you need them. Doing so will help prevent any leakage from the batteries fouling up the radio.

As I’ve mentioned before, I’m a fan of The Walking Dead show on AMC. For the most part, I’m rather sick of zombies as the fiction market is absolutely flooded with the undead. But, the zombies in The Walking Dead are almost secondary to the overall story. I’m finding the show focuses much more on the interpersonal relationships of people thrown together by circumstance.

In a scene from a recent episode, three of the main characters, the “good guys” as it were, meet up with two strangers in an abandoned town. The two strangers, while seemingly somewhat polite and cordial, are obviously very interested in learning where our heroes are living. In the course of a very short conversation, the strangers are able to determine the heroes are staying at a farm near the town. Without any overt threats, they make it known they expect to be taken to this farm, ostensibly to be fed and such.

If you pay close attention to this scene and watch the body language as well as listen to the words that are spoken, you’ll notice several subtle clues as to the strangers’ true intent. While it is of course natural for such a conversation to be very tense, given the overall circumstances, Rick (the de facto leader of the good guys) is able to pick up on the body language and take appropriate action.

Should there come to pass a total societal collapse, this type of situation will no doubt be played out again and again. Members of one group meet members of another and quick decisions must be made by each about the other. Friend or foe? Good intentions or ill will?

On the one hand, your group could take the “kill ‘em all, let God sort them out” approach. Doing so may indeed reduce your risk of later betrayal. However, on the other hand, let’s say one of the members of this other group is or was a surgeon and you have injured people back at camp?

If I were a betting man, I’d say the odds of your group meeting folks just like yourselves are far better than meeting people who mean you harm from the get go. But desperation changes people too so keep that in mind. A well-to-do businessman who never uttered a cross word in his adult life may turn into a homicidal maniac when it comes to providing food for his family.

The best advice I can give is, like Rick did, pay very close attention to body language and word selection. Remember, upwards of 90% of communication is nonverbal. This is why there is often confusion and misinterpretation when using email and chat for communication online. In all seriousness, the guy or gal who invents a font that is universally recognized as sarcastic will be a billionaire.

The point today is this — learn to really pay attention to the subtle clues people give out when they communicate. Learn to “read” people. It just may save your life someday.

I just read a rather interesting story about how Target uses data mining to determine which of their customers are pregnant. Basically the way this works is they track purchases made by customers and formulate algorithms that predict not only pregnancy but even go so far as predicting ballpark due dates. They then use this data to customize coupon offerings and such to these customers.

Kind of frightening, isn’t it?

I’ve talked before here and elsewhere about the need for using coupons and store loyalty cards to help stretch your prepping dollar. And I still stand by that advice. But with that said, I’d encourage you to do some digging and find out how your favorite retailers may or may not use your data. Whenever possible, stick to patronizing those companies who do not share your data with anyone else, such as Survival-Gear.com.

I’ve said before that I’m not much of a conspiracy theorist. I don’t really know that the “powers that be” would consult with retailers like Target or Walmart to come up with a list of customers in a specific area who have purchased specific items, such as freeze dried foods or camping equipment. But it might not be the worst idea in the world to use cash or prepaid debit cards for some purchases. I don’t know of a brick-n-mortar retailer out there that won’t allow the use of manufacturer’s coupons even when paying cash.

The point is this — use your head when making certain purchases.

From time to time, I like to pick the collective brains of my readers here. Sometimes it is out of pure curiosity. Other times it is for a larger purpose.

Questions of the day — What concerns do you have with regards to security issues? What threats are you most worried about? Do you feel you are adequately prepared to confront security threats to your family, your home, your retreat?

All the stored supplies in the world won’t do you a bit of good if they are taken from you or you lose your life protecting them. Have you given security issues any thought at all in your overall disaster planning?

I’d love to hear from my readers about this. Let’s say you were shopping around for a good book on prepper security. What topics would you hope to find addressed?

Please leave a comment below, on Facebook, or via email to Jim@Survival-Gear.com.

Thanks!

A man and woman, missing for three days, were found and rescued on Wednesday, February 15, in Placer County, California. They had been out sightseeing in their car when they drove down an unplowed remote road and got stuck. They survived for three days, subsisting on Girl Scout cookies, peanuts, and melted snow.

You can read the full news story here.

Stories like this read almost like a list of what NOT to do.

1) While they had a cell phone, the battery was almost dead and they had no car charger for it. The man had to hike several miles in snow a couple feet deep to find a strong enough signal to call for help. What would they have done if the phone had completely died? Always have a car charger for your cell phone in your vehicle, just in case.

2) They had no food, water, or presumably other supplies in the car. If they’d had even a basic emergency kit, they’d have been much better off. The story says they would run the car every thirty minutes to warm up. What would have happened if the car ran out of gas? Emergency blankets, even old comforters, would have served them well to help keep warm.

3) They had told no one where they were going or when they were likely to return. The story mentions searchers were looking in the wrong area. Had the couple just told a family member they were heading out to see the sights in even a general area, they may have been found much quicker.

Use stories like this to illustrate to friends and family the need for even just a basic emergency kit in every vehicle, as well as the need to follow basic precautions. Thankfully, despite the many errors in planning and judgment, this story turned out ok. That may not be the case for the next folks in a similar situation.

Provided they are legal to own in your area, stun guns and Tasers deserve consideration for inclusion in your preps. They provide a viable means of incapacitating an aggressor at least long enough for you to put some serious distance between you and him.

There is a distinct difference between the two types of devices. A stun gun produces a high-voltage, non-lethal electric shock when the probes are activated and make contact with the body. Press the button, touch the aggressor pretty much anywhere and the effects are immediate.

A Taser device works on a similar principle but rather than having to touch the end of the device to the aggressor, it uses compressed air to shoot two probes at the person. These probes are usually barbed and stick into the skin a bit. The electric current is sent through wires attached to the probes. I recently witnessed a demonstration of the effect of this electric current. A local police department, as part of the training process with Taser devices, attached the probes to the calves of each officer, one by one, and activated the current. I know several of these guys personally and can attest to them being pretty tough dudes. Each one, to a man, screamed like a little girl the instant the current was activated.

One advantage of these devices is that in most cases, there are no lasting effects. There have been instances where the use of the device has led to seizures and other problems. But, by and large, they are non-lethal.

The idea with these devices is to drop your aggressor immediately, giving you time to get away or perhaps implement another method of defense. As such, they are certainly worth considering adding to your defense preps.

This post may very well contain the most vital piece of survival advice I could possibly deliver to you, at least for the male portion of my readers.

Today is Valentine’s Day, if you’ve somehow missed all the hearts and such in the stores lately.

If you have not done so already, go immediately to your nearest florist shop and purchase a large bouquet. Doesn’t necessarily have to be red roses, though those are rarely turned down. As long as they are bright and colorful, you should be ok. Next, stop at the grocery store and pick up a pint of your wife’s favorite ice cream. If you’re not sure what flavor that might be, just get something rich and chocolatey. Do not under any circumstances get a generic brand of ice cream. Spend the money for a good quality brand. Finally, swing by the dollar store and pick up a card. Important — read the card (all of it) before buying it. You can go cheap with the card as long as the words apply to your relationship.

When you get home, present your gifts to your bride, give her a huge hug and kiss, and tell her how much you appreciate all she does for you. Find a romantic comedy on Netflix or TV and give her a leg and/or foot rub while you watch it together.

Yes, I know she said you didn’t have to buy her anything this year. Please tell me you didn’t really believe that? Failure to complete the steps outlined above means risking a night on the sofa, wondering just what the heck you did wrong.

For my estrogen-enabled readers, your steps are infinitely simpler. Show up, tell him you love him, smile at his possibly clumsy attempts to make today special.

If you don’t have a significant other in your life today, do something special for your one true love — YOU. Treat yourself to a special treat, such as a night watching your favorite TV show or movie or perhaps ordering in some of your favorite take out.

The point is, do something nice for those you love. You should do that every day, you and I both know that. But today has been set aside for many, many years for the sole purpose of loving and being loved.

The story has been making the rounds on various online survival forums all weekend. David Sarti, “The Hillbilly Prepper” from NatGeo’s new series, Doomsday Preppers, has had his firearms confiscated. This is apparently due to his physician reporting Sarti as being suicidal. Here is just one of many stories about the situation.

This is the pic of him as shown on the NatGeo site devoted to this show.

Now, much has been made in those aforementioned online forums about how Sarti’s appearance on Doomsday Preppers directly led to the trouble he’s having right now. Honestly, I can’t say truthfully if that’s the case or not. I don’t know the timeline of events. Some of the more conspiracy minded people say that perhaps Sarti was set up from the get go and the entire show is really about exposing preppers as whack jobs and calling attention to them so the “authorities” can deal with them properly. I can’t say I buy into that particular line of reasoning but hey, stranger things have happened in the course of history, I guess.

I do know this though. Going on TV and broadcasting to the nation your location as well as a guided tour of your preps is an extremely bad idea. Over the last couple years, I’ve been approached by several casting agencies about appearing on either that show or similar ones. Without exception, I’ve told them in no uncertain terms that while I’d certainly welcome the opportunity to help educate folks about disaster readiness, I have no interest in having my home, my family, my retreat, my preps on television. Really, that’s just common sense, isn’t it?

Folks, I’m all about education here. I want to spread the word far and wide to get people better prepared for anything that might come their way. But going on a show like that is just inviting trouble.

Prepping is common sense. Keeping your mouth shut about what you have, what you’ve done with regards to being prepared, is as well.

I was recently part of a discussion online concerning the apparent lack of a large number of young people involved with prepping. Based on just some cursory searching and investigating, it appears as though the 25 and under age range is sorely underrepresented among preppers and survivalists.

So, color me curious. How many of my readers would fall into that age range? I know there’s at least a few of you as I’ve corresponded with you via email and such. Near as I can tell from the hit counts and other stats, I have about a thousand or so readers every week on this blog. How many of you were born after 1987?

The reasons young adults today aren’t involved much with prepping are varied and I’m not looking to start a debate about how “these kids today….” I’m much more interested in figuring out ways to get these kids engaged and actively prepping. If they put their minds to it and got the creative juices flowing, I’m betting a fair number of these kids could teach old farts like me a thing or two.

I’d love to hear from my younger readers. Tell me what you think could be done to increase interest among your peers when it comes to prepping. Do your friends know you prep? Do they ask questions about it or just figure you’re a bit goofy?

First, I will immediately confess I cannot claim this idea was originally mine. A good friend of mine over at the SurvivingTheDayAfter Yahoo Group posted about this yesterday. But, I thought the idea was so insightful and incredibly simple I just had to share it here. It really is just brilliant.

Many people are looking to set up a retreat, a home away from home, just in case things go south with the economy and such. But they don’t know where to look. Experts on top of experts recommend this place or that place and have long lists of criteria. Often, one of the first things on that list is you want to keep away from population centers, right? The less people there are in the area, the less chance of trouble. This makes perfect sense.

So, if you want to find areas of the country that will likely meet that requirement, here’s what you do.

Go online and look up the coverage maps for the major cell service providers, such as ATT, Verizon, Sprint, etc. All those blank areas, where service is spotty or outright non-existent? Those are going to be the sparsely populated areas. Cell providers always brag about their coverage areas. But they aren’t stupid and aren’t going to invest millions of dollars in providing service to areas where there just aren’t any people. That’d be a rather poor return on investment.

Make a list of the areas where cell coverage doesn’t reach. Then begin narrowing down your search by eliminating the ones that don’t appeal due to climate, proximity to major fault lines, things of that nature. Once you have that list pared down to a few likely areas, visit them in person and get a feel for them. Odds are land prices are going to be fairly reasonable because these are likely to be pretty desolate areas. If some of the areas of your list aren’t familiar to you, an excellent resource is Bug Out! by Scott Williams. In this book, he breaks the country into several geographic areas and discusses such things as climate, flora, fauna, and natural resources. I highly recommend it.

Really, this is about as simple as it gets for finding ideal retreat locations.