A Prius as a SHTF Vehicle?

First off I do not own a Prius.  I do not even care for them.  In my humble opinion the additional cost of purchasing one does NOT offset the gas savings.  It would take 5 -10 years of normal driving to recoup the costs of buying a hybrid.  My buddy has a used Honda civic that gets about 40 miles to the gallon and he paid about $5,000 for it.  A far cry from the $25,000+ for a hybrid.  However, if you have some yearning desire to help the environment or you have the special stickers that allow you to drive by yourself in the carpool lane then go for it!  But remember tree huggers, those batteries you are lugging around will be an environmental problem all by themselves!  Hybrids were created and made popular by a demand for better gas mileage and decreased pollution from burning gas.  They will still cause a LOT of pollution in the future because of their batteries! 

Ok, now the positive.  You have all probably witnessed this before.  I was walking through the Safeway parking lot and all of the sudden there was a car right on my tail and I never heard a thing… it was a Prius Hyrbid running on its batteries!  I got me thinking, what a sweet urban SHTF vehicle it COULD be.  It can run in a sort of stealth mode (battery power at short speeds), it can get up and go when needed (engine power) and it should run for a long time on a limited supply of stored gasoline.  Yeah, I know, they are a maintenance nightmare because unless you got training from Toyota University, you don’t have a clue what’s under the hood.  Well guess what suburbanites, you probably don’t have a clue what is under the hood of your car right now!  If you want to subscribe to Rawles’ theories and get a mechanic in your group to rebuild a 1971 Power Wagon from the ground up for about $40,000 they go for it.  But for Sam U. Urbanite, that is just not an option!  We must accept that unless we take drastic and expensive measures, our vehicles are not going to last too long into a SHTF scenario when no mechanics and worse yet, NO PARTS are available. 

I would be curious to know (and I am too lazy to do the research) if you could power a purely electric vehicle like Toyota RAV4 electric (now discontinued) from a solar panel setup.  Are there voltage or current issues?  Any readers know?  That way you would not have to store volatile gasoline at your home and you would have a perpetual source of fuel to get around in your stealthy hybrid SHTF death ride! 

So go get a hybrid and get it armored with run flat tiresand load it up with GPS navigation, HAM radio, CB radio and park it in an EMP proof shipping container and you have a nice insurance policy for a post apocalypse vehicle!  (Insert sarcasm as applicable)

You could also wait for this new Ford concept the SYN-us?  Seriously, that is what they are calling it?  At least someone is looking out for the paranoid suburban car buyer!

-SP

How To Get Started

I have been getting a lot of emails and hits from suburbanites just starting out.  As prepping and the lesser applicable term “survivalism” becomes mainstream more people are realizing that prepping is not an optional activity, it is a duty they owe to their family.  Prepping is an insurance policy.  A policy we hope we never need to collect on, but if needed it is there.

Here is my advice on how to start your journey (yes, it is a journey) to a state of preparedness. 

If you are checking my blog and becoming overwhelmed by the depth at which some preppers see to be, don’t worry.  You aren’t supposed to be there yet.  You need to start somewhere and the fact that your journey seems long is no reason not to start.  The fastest way to walk around the world is to put one foot in front of the other.  Start with commercially prepared disaster kits.  These kits will get you from a state of no prep to well beyond 50% of your neighbors and friends.  The SP started with something like this.  The supplies come in a bucket so they are water proof and can withstand some falling debris.  They have a minimum of what you need to stay alive for 3 days.  I advise going with a kit that is designed for TWICE as many people that you have.  This way, the kits will give you a little breathing room in the event you need it.  A little extra food and water never hurt.  Two buckets are easy to carry in the event you need to get out of the house.  Keep them in an accessible area of your house or even out of the house in a shed or garage. 

After you have this minimum start by adding the absolute necessities, food and water.  I started with two five gallon containers from Nitro-Pak.  Nitro-pak has high prices when it comes to water barrels.  They can be found cheaper elsewhere.  Be sure to add in some water treatment to extend the shelf life of your water and prevent bacteria and algae growth.  I like Aerobic 07. I highly recommend buying new water containers that are designed for holding water as opposed to the cheap way of emptying 2 liter bottles.  Why?  I do not want to risk my water supply being tainted because I didn’t wash the bottles properly.  Pay a little more and do it right.  Continue adding water as you progress through your preps.  Ultimately you want a few 55 gallon containers.  They are big so get the hand pump that fits the barrel.   I suggest 2 gallons per person per day for thirty days.  Check your water every two years. You may wish to empty your containers and refill them to assure freshness. 

Now food.  It is no secret I am a fan of Mountain House #10 Cans.  The food is very good and it has a shelf life of 35 years!  Which means that you can buy it and forget it.  No rotating or checking expiration dates. They don’t have a huge variety which is a bummer but they have enough to have a different meal everyday for a couple weeks.  They also make great desserts and breakfasts.  Although I don’t like the eggs!  Check out Emergency Essentialsfor your Mountain House needs.  I also recommend MRE type meals. The Mountain House meals will require additional water (they are freeze dried) and have preparation requirements.  Keeping MREs around is good because they require nothing more to eat.  Just open and enjoy (well, not really because they are not that tastey.  But if you are starving I am sure they are REAL good!).  Long Life Food Depotis a great place to get MREs.  See my post on taste testing because nothing is worse than a pantry full of food you and your family hates.  MRE deserts are fabulous.  Keeping goodies around will help with morale during troubled times.

Finally you need to think about security.  This is easily the most controversial subject of prepping.  No one argues that you need food or water, but how you protect your family is debatable.  The SP is down with the SECOND AMENDMENT!!  In my opinion you need to get a gun and learn how to use it.  Don’t go Dirty Harry right out of the gate.  Get a 9mm automatic like a Ruger P95 and take a class at your local range on how to load, fire, clear misfires and clean your weapon.  The P95 is inexpensive and accurate out of the box.  I have one and I love it.  9mm ammo can be found everywhere and Big 5 usually has sales on bulk packs.  Get a couple boxes of 100 rounds for about $20 each and another magazine (it comes with two so you will have 3) for about $15 and a holster.  I don’t care about what other people say, a 9mm handgun will turn 99.99% of people looking for trouble around and if you need to fire, it will deliver a fatal shot (sans body armor or some unforeseen circumstance).  From there I would rec commend a shotgun.  Nothing says “Get the F&ck out of my house or you will assuredly die!” like a 12-gauge!.  But you don’t need a shotgun, the 9mm will get you to a state where you can protect your family with deadly force if necessary.  I am a firm believer that for most SHTF scenarios we are NOT going to see roving biker gangs and organized thugs.  You are going to have a few opportunistic criminals looking for an easy score.  When they come around any firearm will send them away to an easier target.  If you are paranoid about armed thugs and crime in a SHTF scenario then I suggest two get a gun safe and fill it!  If you have the money, an arsenal is a GREAT thing to have!

Finally pick up a few comprehensive first aid kits in addition to the ones supplied with your commercial disaster kits above.  Costco has some for a reasonable price.  You may wish to add a bottle of comfort medicines such as Advil or Tylenol as well as a cold & flu medicine.  Don’t forget the kids when it comes to medical supplies. Get infants or children’s Tylenol as well.

Now you are prepared.

From here on out it is just about adding layers or items for specific SHTF scenarios.  Masks for the bird flu.  Radiation detectors for a nuke or dirty bomb.  Body armor and night vision for additonal protection.  More food.  More water, etc.

You have to start somewhere.  That is not a phrase, it is an order!  Start your prepping now and get squared away for a minimum of 30 days of food and water.  Look at the Chinese earthquake.  It happened days ago and they are still in the rescue phase!  Things move slow when catastrophe strikes, being self-sufficient for a month will get you further than 99% of the population.

-SP

Plenty of Reminders

You do not have to read into the headlines very far for reasons to prepare.  That Chinese earthquake was horrible.  My thoughts are with the families that lost children.  The cyclone bad news just keeps coming and there maybe NO way to tell how many people perished for a long time.

The S hits the fan when you least expect it.  Remember my post about the earthquake while on vacation?  The last thing on my mind was preparedness.  Mother nature doesn’t care what time it is. That Chinese earthquake hit at the absolute worst time possible. 

Expect the worst.  Never let your guard down.  You never know if you are going to have another week to square away preps.  Earthquakes are scary.  You have absolutely NO warning, they shake like hell and they can get you anywhere.  There are no earthquake shelters. 

This is your daily dose of “Get Off Your Ass and Prep“!  Those people in Myanmar STILL don’t have food or water.  How would you like to watch your daughter starve or dehydrate to death?  Not me boy!  I may not have every contingency planned for or enough food to last years but I am NOT going down without a fight!  I suggest you do the same!

You will never feel 100% secure with your preps. No matter how much you plan or prep, there is always something.  Do the best you can, do as much as you can while you can and you will have the best chances of being alive when the S drips off the fan and onto the floor.

-SP

Peak Oil

Ok,Ok, I am not a doom and gloomer.  But I just watched the Oil Apocalypse on Mega-Disasters … interesting stuff.

They predict that the world will fall into a global Recession if oil reserves run out!  HAHAHAHAHHA …. Recession?  No No my friend, how about global destruction?  The world has shrunk in size, no not literally but figuratively based on our technology.  You can go London to San Francisco in 10+ hours.  You can order products online from anywhere in the world and for a few extra bucks it will be there tomorrow!! As a humanity we have grown accustomed to the conveniences that modern technology provides to us. But that technology is based 99.99% on OIL!!!  The one thing everyone agrees on is that it is not IF oil runs out but WHEN!  When oil runs out this planet is going to freak out because everything we have grown accustomed to will be gone!  Poof!

Planes, Trains, 18 wheelers ALL run on gas.  No matter how many Priuses you buy it will not make up for the trillions of gallons of gas that are required to run our infrastructure.  Planes, trains and autos are crucial for transport and delivery of everything you have in your house. 

So how do you “prepare” for peak oil?   Well first off get ready to move within biking distance of your job.  Get ready to be making less as your employer now only sells to those who can walk or bike to his shop and not the world.  Be prepared for world war three to be fought over the final millions of barrels of oil as oil is the only thing that will run tanks and fighter jets.  I haven’t heard much about a hybrid battle tank or electric f-22 Raptor… you?

In all reality though you should plan to get your solar or wind power system as soon as possible.  Imagine the demand and price increases you are going to see when John Q Public realizes that he may not have any power to his home in a few years. 

An oil catastrophe is going to be a global changing event.  Not something you can “ride out” and wait for a return to normalcy.  I do not really fear that it will happen during my lifetime, but I fear for my kids and grand kids. 

On the plus side, the environment will really see benefits from the oil Apocalypse.  No more fuel to burn and it is very likely we will return to nuclear power for electricity which I think is an EXCELLENT idea.

Peak oil could very well be just like the mortgage and housing crisis.  Everyone saw it coming and no one did a damn thing about it until it was too late.  The news started small and then stories just kept pouring out until we all realized this was some serious stuff we are into.  Watch out for headlines about OPEC refusing to increase oil production … Oh wait, you mean like this one just a few months ago.  Let me ask you this, Why wouldn’t you increase your output of a product that you could sell without limits? Maybe because you can’t increase output?  I leave you with that.

Just some ranting for you guys.

-SP

Bits of Advice

I can’t come up with anything amazing to say so here a few bits and pieces:

Keep a case of flat black spray paint and flat black spray primer around.  That way you can quickly convert your shiny new car/suv into a dull looking, non-reflective SHTF ride.

Keep nails around. I keep a few 5lb boxes of 20 penny and 40 penny around.  If the grid is down a hammer and nails will be your friend.  No power required.  Nails did the job for hundreds of years before the screw became common place. 

For you families out there.  I keep a cheap umbrella stroller in my trunk along with my get-home-bag.  That way if I have one or even two of my little ones I can transport them in the stroller.  Children will NOT have the stamina needed in a SHTF get-home scenario and the stroller is a great way to transport them.

I do NOT keep ammunition for barter. I think that is a flawed strategy.  Why would you give someone else the ability to forcefully take what you have?  If, however, you have ammo and no food, then yes by all means trade it away to feed your family. 

When I come across a website that has useful information I add it to my favorites in a special folder and then come back later and print out those pages and put them in an “emp proof” binder.  That way I know how many drops of bleach are needed to purify water or how many “rads” my body can take per hour in the event of nuclear exposure. 

Listen to the radio in the morning while you are getting ready for work (if you don’t watch the news or already do so) as this will connect you to the world and you can make sure that you are not blindly heading out into the world when something crazy has happened.

Sorry for the late posts on Mondays.  Weekends are hectic.  You have also probably noticed I am no longer posting on Sundays.

-SP

Man-imals

Man-imals, Definition: When men and woman turn into animals due to some external event.

I was watching the news and two stories about man-imals caught my attention.  The first was about the Myanmar cyclone.   It turns out that once a food store opened up there were fights and disorder by those attempting to get some food or portable water.  This is understandable as the conditions there are horrible.  The second story concerns a gas station here in the states selling discounted gas at $3.55/gallon (discount huh?) anyway, when the employees started telling folks in line (which wrapped around the block) that no one else will receiving the discounted price fights broke out!  Seriously?  If people are fighting over discounted gas what is going to happen when the S really hits the fan?

Be VERY leery of your fellow citizens.  History has shown us that humans revert back to an animal like state rather quickly when times get tough.  Go read Lord of the Flies again if you don’t believe me.   Do not underestimate the desperation you are going to encounter when a major event hits town. People are going to be irrational and violent and it will happen quickly.  People that may have been your friends when times were good will step right over you (or worse) if it comes down to you or them. NEVER under estimate a starving man-imal or a man-imal trying to get food for his/her family!

Your goal should be sufficient preparations that allow you to stay in placewhen the SHTF.  You should have everything you need.  Resist the greed or paranoia that you need just a few more things. If you venture out among the man-imals then you risk a violent confrontation that will leave someone injured or dead. 

-SP

Fun Friday Post

I decided to have a little fun with today’s post … yes, even preppers can have fun sometime!

So you won the powerball $180,000,000 huh?  Well congratu-f’ing-lations! (insert SERIOUSLY sarcastic tone)  Well now that you are a super rich prepper what are you going to do?

Since we all like living in the burbs we will want to stay here.  But maybe move up to a slightly bigger house like this one here.  (I picked Vegas because one of my readers just posted a comment from there and it is just screams decadence!)  If you have the big bucks you don’t need to leave the burbs to be safe, just be sure it has enough room for a helipad.  Helipad? Oh yeah!  There is not an easier way to bug-out to your outlander retreat than in a Agusta AW 139 Executive Transport!  [full acrobat brochure here] Luxury seating for the entire family plus luggage (and weaponry) along with a 1,100 mile range allows you to get from your suburban castle to your brand new, state of the art survival castle without worrying about road agents, traffic, roadblocks or the walking dead.  Just be sure you staff a full time pilot and maintenance crew with a backup of every circuit board stashed in an EMP proof container.  As for your SHTF castle …

May I present WORLD’S END! (applause!)

This is a serious survival structure folks!  Blue Sky Construction is building/will build/has built (can’t tell) this converted missile silo for you and your family to survive just about anything!  Full scale nuclear attack, comet/asteroid strike, zombie’s ruling the world or Hilary Clinton’s election as our next president. (obviously the last one is the worst!)   Gaining entrance into World’s End is practically impossible with walls up to fifteen feet thick of heavily re-enforced concrete and steel, blast doors up to six feet thick and up to 150 tonnes in weight buried up to 200ft deep underground into the surrounding countryside.  This baby can even withstand a direct nuclear attack.  The site is covered by a comprehensive and extensive network of Color and infra red night vision CCTV systems with localised and remote 24 hr monitoring.  NIIICEEE!  It has got 14 stories of space in the actual silo bay.  It includes everything from a loading dock to a home theater and swimming pool!  Who says you can’t ride out the end of mankind in style!  Add in a 1,000 foot deep well for drinking water along with generators and air filters to make this the most bad-ass end of the world retreat known to man!  I would guess that with proper planning this facility could house 10 - 50 people indefinitely!  Check out this and other missile silos for sale here at missilebases.com.

In case you need to get around while at your retreat consider a couple fully armored Hummer H1s.  Add in some infrared headlight covers to allow driving at night with no headlights and you have one serious SHTF ride! 

Aaaahhh, to dream.  Oh well, back to reality!

-SP

Maps

Often taken for granted, maps will be an essential element for gathering intel, navigation and planning in a SHTF world.  Have you ever thought about the effort and resources it took to make a map?  Cartography has got to be a difficult thing to do after a SHTF event.  Who has time to draw maps when you are fighting off zombie hordes or biker gangs just to get to a clean water supply? 

GPS is going down so don’t count on your Garmin for navigation.  I doubt the US will have the resources to keep the civilian GPS satellites flying when they have limited resources just to keep the country running.  Forget google maps too.  The Internet has an infrastructure (somewhere) and without Cisco and the cable companies maintaining the cables and switches, there will be no Internet (I don’t know how I will make it!)  So it is back to the good ole paper maps!

Here is the good news … maps are usually cheap (or totally free if you belong to AAA) and they take up very little space in your car, G.O.O.D. bag or other SHTF stash.  When you think about what it would cost to prepare a detailed map of just your own town or city after SHTF it makes NO sense not to stock up now.  Maps have a long shelf life and even maps that are 20 -30 years old will give you 90% of what you need.

Make sure you have a detailed map of your city in ALL your SHTF bags and vehicles.  Keep a couple extra in your home.  When you start using them a lot they will get worn.  A map will be critical for planning any sort of operation outside your home such as resource gathering.  Ever seen a military CP (command post)?  They are full of maps!  Maps are essential for planning any sort of coordinated exercise.  Get maps for all the areas that you may travel in.  Get one for where you work, where your parent’s or brother lives (mistress?) whatever.  Keep those in your vehicles.  If you have a retreat, be sure to have maps for your city and your retreat area and everywhere in between.  You never know when you are going to have to hoof it! 

If you are on foot a map and map reading skills will be very handy.  Avoiding cities and tracing the outskirts of a populated area are a proficient way of making your way while trying to remain undetected.  Be sure you buy a couple compasses.  Not the electric kind that have an ipod attached from the Sharper Image.  Get an old fashioned mechanical compass.  Have some fun with it to practice.  See if you can navigate home with the kids one day after going on a walk or coming home from baseball practice. 

Remember information is power in today’s world and it will be after the S hits the fan.  Take out a cheap and easy insurance policy and get yourself all the relevant maps you need.  They may be worth their weight in gold someday!

-SP

Why Should We Read Survival Blogs?

Well, first of all thanks for reading mine! 

I read survival, self-sufficiency and SHTF blogs for ideas.  That is it.  Ideas.

I do not agree with many of the authors, commentators or guest article writers.  But I do get a little something out of blog posts that I completely disagree with.  If there is a blog post about why bugging out is the only option I read it to get information on the disadvantages of bugging in so I can attempt to overcome them for my own situation.  I don’t agree with his conclusions but I agree that bugging in versus bugging out is something that I need to be thinking about.  

All of our circumstances are different.  These differences are what make each of our plans unique.   Whatever your circumstances are, they are not mine, Rangerman’s, Jim Rawles’, Jim Dakin’s or the boys over at TSLRF’s.  So read these posts to get ideas and suggestions for your own plan whatever it is.  Do not feel that you have to adopt one blogger’s philosophy even though they may want you to.  You need to tailor your plan to your family, geographic location, financial resources, time available and the million other constraints we all face.  Don’t worry that Rawles’ readers are buying hand crank hospital beds (I had to laugh when I read that, sorry Jim) and you are just getting to your backup water purifier.  It is ok, your plan is constrained by your suburban home (filled with kids and stairmasters) and your finances (barely enough to buy gas and food at these prices!). 

Use the blogs to get ideas to formulate your own plan!  Use them to think about SHTF scenarios or situations you had not thought of.  Use them to get your daily dose of paranoia so that you keep on preparing.

-SP

Who Is Going to Get Medical Treatment During a Pandemic?

Good Question huh?  Have you ever had the misfortune of going to an emergency room on a Friday or Saturday night?  The waiting room is packed with bleeding, coughing, drunk, dirty, half-conscious people WAITING for medical care!  My sister had her finger just about severed by a hedge-clipper and she had to wait for an HOUR bleeding before being called in for treatment (oh, and FYI the clipper was clamped down on her finger the whole time) and she was well insured!

Now take this scene and inject a bird flu pandemic, bomb, riot or other large SHTF event that will require hundreds or thousands of people requiring medical treatment.  If they can’t handle the flow of people during a regular weekend night how do they expect to treat everyone when the SHTF?  The answer, THEY CAN’T!! 

A news article here is reporting that doctors know some patients needing lifesaving care won’t get it in a flu pandemic or other disaster.  They must decide who lives or dies based on their condition and they are recommending that there is a uniform criteria for deciding on who gets care and who is left to die.  Hey, at least they are thinking about this, right?

Pray you are not on this list:

1. Those older than 85. I can just see people at the hospital now.  “And what is your age sir?” … “Uh, I am 79!  Yeah, 79.  I am sorry but my wallet is in that collapsed building over there.  But trust me, I am 79!”
2. Those with severe trauma, which could include critical injuries from car crashes and shootings.   At least gang bangers and DUI idiots won’t get ahead of my kids!
3. Severely burned patients older than 60.  Sadly enough this one is based on statistics alone. 
4. Those with severe mental impairment, which could include advanced Alzheimer’s disease. Good news is they won’t know they are being left for dead.  So they got that going for them!
5. Those with a severe chronic disease, such as advanced heart failure, lung disease or poorly controlled diabetes.   Why expend valuable resources to save a dying patient anyway?

Despite my seemingly insensitive commentary I am very glad that medical personnel are discussing this .  When the medical floodgates open up you better be first in line if you need medical treatment.  I would be heart broken to see some one with no hope of survival going ahead of one of my little ones not because I am selfish (although I am) but because that would mean that medical personnel are not prioritizing their scarce medical resources and directing them where they can do the most good.  It looks like even medical care is going to be rationed!

If the SHTF you better hope you get hit fast and can get to the hospital quickly.  Otherwise the backlog is going to render our medical facilities worthless.  If the bird flu hits I want to be one of the first guys that gets it.  That way I can be on a ventilator and receive proper treatment before the outbreak occurs.  Not much chance of that happening though. 

-SP