History Channel's Last Supper
I watched the Last Supper episode of the History Channel's Life After People series last night. Keeping in mind that food in residential pantries is virtually the same as food in supermarkets and is normally stored similarly, here's a short list of my takeaways from the show:
Non-survivalists who plan to live off the food and bottled water in grocery stores after Armageddon may want to buy a gas mask or at least a clothespin to help with the smell. Seems all that rotting meat, fruit and veggies will keep all but the most insensitive noses out after a few days without refrigeration.
The show interviewed a guy who'd been involved in the cleanup of an abandoned supermarket where, after weeks without electricity to run refrigeration units, the cleanup crew had to wear Hazmat suits and breathe bottled air. Of course all the rats, mice, flies and other vermin attracted by the smell won't add to the ambience of post apocalyptic supermarket dining either.
My favorite pull quote from the interview was: "The flies were so thick you couldn't see your own hand at arms length."
Canned goods will likely last longer than stuff in cardboard boxes or cellophane packaging, but will eventually rust from the outside due to moisture or rupture from the inside due to pressure from multiplying organisms when the cans are exposed to hot weather.
But the good news is that Twinkies sealed in their packages will, according to experts, last up to 25 years. That estimation is at variance with the manufacture's assurance that Twinkies are good for 25 days on store shelves.
The experts also opined that sealed freeze dried food would likely last up to 100 years. And that freeze dried food had been tested after 30 years and found by the testers to be "almost" as tasty as similar "fresh" freeze dried food.
Unfortunately the experts didn't say how the freeze dried food had been stored. The US military stores its MRE's in temperature and humidity controlled warehouses and expects them to last three years. But freeze dried foods are just part of an MRE package.
Pointing out that edible bee honey had been found in the pyramids of Egyptian Pharaohs the experts claimed that bee honey stored in glass jars would last between 4000 and one million years.
Now I'm all in favor of honey. It's nature's perfect food. You can supposedly live for years eating nothing but honey. And it will store longer than human life expectancy. And it gets better, honey fights infection on wounds.
Ayup! If you're out of povidone iodine, rubbing alcohol and hydrogen peroxide honey will do the job.
But my question is: The glass may last for a million years, but how do they seal the jar for a million years? Steel, even stainless steel, will rust eventually.
Lessons Learned
Don't expect to be able to eat refrigerated or frozen foods from pantries and grocery stores for more that a day or so after the power goes out.
Don't expect to be able to eat perishable foods (fresh fruits and vegetables) from pantries and grocery stores for more than a few days.
Don't expect to be able to eat canned goods, unless they've been stored in a cool dry place, for more than a few months if they've been exposed to moisture. If a can is bulging it's poisonous.
Glass jars and bottles will likely hold edible food longer than cans so (after waiting for the smell to die down) when foraging at the local Food Emporium eschew the cans and embrace the bottles and jars.
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Showing posts with label Armageddon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Armageddon. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Revisiting Armageddon Man
In Armageddon Man on the History Channel Rudy Reyes starts off by pulling a Bear Grylls (on Man vs. Wild) type stunt (telling the audience how dangerous it is to do something and then showing how to do it.) The contrived bridge crossing Rudy uses to open the show is great theater, but lousy survival tactics. Throwing a makeshift grappling hook across a broken bridge was an excuse to show how to make an improvised rope ladder which while being a useful bit of knowledge is misused in that instance.
Running around in the open in broad daylight when you fear interception or ambush? I think not. Maybe the director just wanted some action footage, but I fail to see how running in the open on railroad tracks is a good thing under the circumstances the show is purporting to show us how to survive.
If you have to move during daylight stay in the tree line; pausing often to listen and observe. Walk next to buildings popping into doorways and alleyways to disappear (as least momentarily) from the sight of those who may be observing from one point of view. Where possible enter buildings by one door and exit by another.
Better yet, wait for nightfall. There's a reason Rangers and Special Forces types train to operate at night and it ain't for the ambiance.
Skipping looted homes and breaking into the intact ones may work for heavily armed squads where Rudy and his special ops team operated, but here in the states where firearms ownership is legal for the citizenry it's likely the homes weren't broken into for a reason. The show should have pointed out that while the guy outside may consider it foraging, the guy inside considers it looting.
However Armageddon Man does demonstrate, albeit briefly, some good tactics for those for those operating behind enemy lines (as he was trained to do) or surviving Armageddon. The use of a piece of a metal sheet (supported by bricks, rocks or other non burnable objects) to build a small fire on in a building was well demonstrated.
-- Once while hiking I built a small fire on a metal plate in an abandoned and falling down line shack. I thought the metal by itself would keep the dry wood floor beneath it from catching fire. I was wrong. Fortunately it was raining and I was able to cool the smoking floor boards before they burst into flame. --
As Rudy points out, when in a city camping on the second floor does give you several tactical advantages. For one it's difficult for an enemy to rush you from all sides when you're on the second floor. For another attackers are forced into kill zones (stairwells) and the walls of the first floor act as sounding boards confining and reflecting the sounds made therein thus increasing the chances of early warning for those on the second floor.
Further on the plus side escape from the second floor is as near as the closest window. Or, as Rudy demonstrates, you can slide down the elevator shaft on the elevator cables however I find that a less than optimal (slow and noisy) method of egress while under attack.
Even with editing you could see that Rudy had trouble getting the elevator doors open to get into the shaft. After sliding down the cables we find the elevator doors conveniently open and the elevator car conveniently not on the first floor which would have necessitated opening a trap door in the roof of the elevator car, climbing down into the elevator and then prying not one but two sets of doors open to get out. Like I said slow and noisy.
Like most other survival instructors Rudy is anxious to show us how to start a fire using steel wool and a nine volt battery. However, he fails to inform us that the finer the steel wool the better. And it is that lack of significant, often crucial, details that I noticed running through the entire show.
Yes, you can use a hand bicycle pump to pull gasoline or diesel (or water) from the underground storage tanks of gas stations by cutting off the valve at the end of the pump's tube and attaching a garden hose for added length using duct tape to get a good seal. But you'd better bring a good pair of bolt cutters along because gas station owners don't leave thousands of dollars worth of fuel unlocked when they go home at night. Also they don't want some drunk unscrewing the lid and lighting a match to "see what's down there" after the bars close.
And, yes, you could (eventually) get enough fuel that way to start up a hospital generator so as to charge a battery but it's more likely that the hospital's generator was run until it ran out of fuel. A better option, here in the states at least, might be the offices of a large corporation which (if it had a backup generator) is more likely to have shut down during the chaos that led to the city being abandoned and therefore still have fuel in its tank.
The segment on making fuel from the contents of grease traps behind restaurants was, as far as I know, accurate but lacked details.
In house to house combat soldiers will take to the sewers to avoid machine gun and sniper fire that's how Rudy was trained. But the rationalization for that stunt with the field expedient grappling hook on the bridge was to avoid the vary contaminants he encounters when he goes into the sewers.
Also, once in the sewers he's trapped down there with only one way to retreat if he runs into hostiles. And the exits (where he can reach them) are usually in the middle of streets.
The same goes for maneuvering in flood control channels when they are dry. These concrete lined sunken highways are, for the most part, devoid of cover and in many places impossible to get out of without a ladder or rope, a perfect place for an ambush.
Bottom Line
If time constraints require you to travel quickly in the open, do so at night and sleep during the day.
Rudy seems to have some good information but it's presented out of context without supporting data and in segments that are far too short for him to get all the information across.
To Comment on this article
E-Mail Me Unless you specifically ask me not to, I'll post your reply here in the blog so everyone can read it. Of course I'll remove your last name, email and any other specific information for privacy purposes.
Running around in the open in broad daylight when you fear interception or ambush? I think not. Maybe the director just wanted some action footage, but I fail to see how running in the open on railroad tracks is a good thing under the circumstances the show is purporting to show us how to survive.
If you have to move during daylight stay in the tree line; pausing often to listen and observe. Walk next to buildings popping into doorways and alleyways to disappear (as least momentarily) from the sight of those who may be observing from one point of view. Where possible enter buildings by one door and exit by another.
Better yet, wait for nightfall. There's a reason Rangers and Special Forces types train to operate at night and it ain't for the ambiance.
Skipping looted homes and breaking into the intact ones may work for heavily armed squads where Rudy and his special ops team operated, but here in the states where firearms ownership is legal for the citizenry it's likely the homes weren't broken into for a reason. The show should have pointed out that while the guy outside may consider it foraging, the guy inside considers it looting.
However Armageddon Man does demonstrate, albeit briefly, some good tactics for those for those operating behind enemy lines (as he was trained to do) or surviving Armageddon. The use of a piece of a metal sheet (supported by bricks, rocks or other non burnable objects) to build a small fire on in a building was well demonstrated.
-- Once while hiking I built a small fire on a metal plate in an abandoned and falling down line shack. I thought the metal by itself would keep the dry wood floor beneath it from catching fire. I was wrong. Fortunately it was raining and I was able to cool the smoking floor boards before they burst into flame. --
As Rudy points out, when in a city camping on the second floor does give you several tactical advantages. For one it's difficult for an enemy to rush you from all sides when you're on the second floor. For another attackers are forced into kill zones (stairwells) and the walls of the first floor act as sounding boards confining and reflecting the sounds made therein thus increasing the chances of early warning for those on the second floor.
Further on the plus side escape from the second floor is as near as the closest window. Or, as Rudy demonstrates, you can slide down the elevator shaft on the elevator cables however I find that a less than optimal (slow and noisy) method of egress while under attack.
Even with editing you could see that Rudy had trouble getting the elevator doors open to get into the shaft. After sliding down the cables we find the elevator doors conveniently open and the elevator car conveniently not on the first floor which would have necessitated opening a trap door in the roof of the elevator car, climbing down into the elevator and then prying not one but two sets of doors open to get out. Like I said slow and noisy.
Like most other survival instructors Rudy is anxious to show us how to start a fire using steel wool and a nine volt battery. However, he fails to inform us that the finer the steel wool the better. And it is that lack of significant, often crucial, details that I noticed running through the entire show.
Yes, you can use a hand bicycle pump to pull gasoline or diesel (or water) from the underground storage tanks of gas stations by cutting off the valve at the end of the pump's tube and attaching a garden hose for added length using duct tape to get a good seal. But you'd better bring a good pair of bolt cutters along because gas station owners don't leave thousands of dollars worth of fuel unlocked when they go home at night. Also they don't want some drunk unscrewing the lid and lighting a match to "see what's down there" after the bars close.
And, yes, you could (eventually) get enough fuel that way to start up a hospital generator so as to charge a battery but it's more likely that the hospital's generator was run until it ran out of fuel. A better option, here in the states at least, might be the offices of a large corporation which (if it had a backup generator) is more likely to have shut down during the chaos that led to the city being abandoned and therefore still have fuel in its tank.
The segment on making fuel from the contents of grease traps behind restaurants was, as far as I know, accurate but lacked details.
In house to house combat soldiers will take to the sewers to avoid machine gun and sniper fire that's how Rudy was trained. But the rationalization for that stunt with the field expedient grappling hook on the bridge was to avoid the vary contaminants he encounters when he goes into the sewers.
Also, once in the sewers he's trapped down there with only one way to retreat if he runs into hostiles. And the exits (where he can reach them) are usually in the middle of streets.
The same goes for maneuvering in flood control channels when they are dry. These concrete lined sunken highways are, for the most part, devoid of cover and in many places impossible to get out of without a ladder or rope, a perfect place for an ambush.
Bottom Line
If time constraints require you to travel quickly in the open, do so at night and sleep during the day.
Rudy seems to have some good information but it's presented out of context without supporting data and in segments that are far too short for him to get all the information across.
To Comment on this article
E-Mail Me Unless you specifically ask me not to, I'll post your reply here in the blog so everyone can read it. Of course I'll remove your last name, email and any other specific information for privacy purposes.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
After Armageddon on the History Channel
WOW! just WOW! After Armageddon is the most realistic portrayal of what would happen in America after a worldwide pandemic that I have ever seen on TV!
OK the last five minutes was the standard Hollywood claptrap about how the world would be better off without cities and how the cities could never be rebuilt (which begs the question: How were they built in the first place?) and peace and yada and love and yada and so on. But I noticed that if you look closely you'll see guys with rifles on guard on the roof of that ultra modern architecture house as they roll the closing credits.
The show depicts a family of sheeple living in the Los Angeles area when a Southeast Asian virus spreads world wide in a matter of days and soon mostly depopulates the human world. Or as the History Channel puts it:
"The disappearance of water and food supplies, the effects of deteriorated sanitation and health care on the remaining population, and the increased use of violence as a means of survival--all illustrate how societies have responded and survived."
Without the skilled people to run them communications (phone, Internet, transportation and utilities begin to shut down.
The protagonist, Chris Johnson, is a paramedic who refuses to believe there is anything seriously wrong until he sees panic buying in the grocery stores and violence in the streets. Even then he and his wife and teenage son refuse to make any meaningful plans as they hunker down in their home. The program points out viruses usually complete their cycle in about 90 days and that most homes have only a three days supply of food on hand while grocery stores restock every "one to one and a half days" on average. Or as one expert put it: "We're nine meals away from anarchy."
Finally hunger forces Chris out of the house on what turns out to be a clue finding mission. Seeing looters two blocks from his house he tries to "go gray" (a survivalist term not the films) by scattering trash and clothes outside to make it look like their house has already been looted.
In a true TEOTWAWKI situation I'd be inclined to let looters break in and then take them out with small caliber weapons whose report wouldn't be heard far outside the house and later scatter the bodies on the front lawn to discourage others, but that's just me.
As looters finally force them from their LA home they pack hurriedly (the show's onscreen experts give an all too brief explanations of what BOB (Bug Out Bag) & GOOD (Get Out Of Dodge) bags are. That's the first time I've seen such references outside of earthquake & hurricane preparedness segments on TV shows) pack and throw everything, more than they can carry and no backpacks, into their car and try to leave LA for somewhere in Idaho.
I give the show credit for admitting that people will need guns to survive in the aftermath of a TEOTWAWKI event.
In explaining what people are likely to do in a catastrophe the onscreen experts (often in voiceover mode) frequently reference people's reactions during and after Hurricane Katrina.
After Armageddon also reminded viewers that in order to prepare for disaster, it will be important to be aware that you will need to defend yourself and understand that survival may require force and violence. When people move into survival mode, they do not act as they normally would - civilized and peaceful.
As one expert put it: "We don't have many cases of mass migrations that go peacefully."
One expert on After Armageddon surmised that foraging after a disaster would become a necessary part of survival. As he stated, "foraging is a nice word for looting". This illustrates that disaster changes people and changes their behavior - a common theme in After Armageddon.
Another expert said it best: "We like to think that moral progress has made us nice people. We've heard that our distant ancestors were mean and cruel and ruthless, and we can't imagine that we would be such people - but we're nice mainly because we're rich and comfortable. And when we're no longer rich and comfortable, we won't be as nice."
Through a series of unlikely events and miraculous luck the (for most of the time) unarmed family eventually arrives in Idaho to start their new lives wherein they learn, among other things, that an abandoned car in the hot sun makes a good dehumidifier.
One thing they did that I disagree with was using storm drains and sewers to get out of the city on foot in the daytime. Such avenues of egress are not meant for foot traffic and expose those in them to ambush. Better to travel quietly at night and hold up during the day.
There are plenty of other tactical errors, but I'll leave them for you to discover as you watch the show.
A short list if concepts shown but not articulated:
Never camp, rest or stop on roads or trails.
Avoid fellow refugees, they'll be eager to "share" whatever you've got.
Very few have the skills and/or supplies needed to survive TEOTWAWKI.
Overall I give After Armageddon an A for an accurate depiction of what would probably happen if a TEOTWAWKI event were to occur.
The History Channel is already offering it for sale and it is the only History Channel show I've ever even considered buying.
To Comment on this article
E-Mail Me Unless you specifically ask me not to, I'll post your reply here in the blog so everyone can read it. Of course I'll remove your last name, email address and any other specific information for privacy purposes.
OK the last five minutes was the standard Hollywood claptrap about how the world would be better off without cities and how the cities could never be rebuilt (which begs the question: How were they built in the first place?) and peace and yada and love and yada and so on. But I noticed that if you look closely you'll see guys with rifles on guard on the roof of that ultra modern architecture house as they roll the closing credits.
The show depicts a family of sheeple living in the Los Angeles area when a Southeast Asian virus spreads world wide in a matter of days and soon mostly depopulates the human world. Or as the History Channel puts it:
"The disappearance of water and food supplies, the effects of deteriorated sanitation and health care on the remaining population, and the increased use of violence as a means of survival--all illustrate how societies have responded and survived."
Without the skilled people to run them communications (phone, Internet, transportation and utilities begin to shut down.
The protagonist, Chris Johnson, is a paramedic who refuses to believe there is anything seriously wrong until he sees panic buying in the grocery stores and violence in the streets. Even then he and his wife and teenage son refuse to make any meaningful plans as they hunker down in their home. The program points out viruses usually complete their cycle in about 90 days and that most homes have only a three days supply of food on hand while grocery stores restock every "one to one and a half days" on average. Or as one expert put it: "We're nine meals away from anarchy."
Finally hunger forces Chris out of the house on what turns out to be a clue finding mission. Seeing looters two blocks from his house he tries to "go gray" (a survivalist term not the films) by scattering trash and clothes outside to make it look like their house has already been looted.
In a true TEOTWAWKI situation I'd be inclined to let looters break in and then take them out with small caliber weapons whose report wouldn't be heard far outside the house and later scatter the bodies on the front lawn to discourage others, but that's just me.
As looters finally force them from their LA home they pack hurriedly (the show's onscreen experts give an all too brief explanations of what BOB (Bug Out Bag) & GOOD (Get Out Of Dodge) bags are. That's the first time I've seen such references outside of earthquake & hurricane preparedness segments on TV shows) pack and throw everything, more than they can carry and no backpacks, into their car and try to leave LA for somewhere in Idaho.
I give the show credit for admitting that people will need guns to survive in the aftermath of a TEOTWAWKI event.
In explaining what people are likely to do in a catastrophe the onscreen experts (often in voiceover mode) frequently reference people's reactions during and after Hurricane Katrina.
After Armageddon also reminded viewers that in order to prepare for disaster, it will be important to be aware that you will need to defend yourself and understand that survival may require force and violence. When people move into survival mode, they do not act as they normally would - civilized and peaceful.
As one expert put it: "We don't have many cases of mass migrations that go peacefully."
One expert on After Armageddon surmised that foraging after a disaster would become a necessary part of survival. As he stated, "foraging is a nice word for looting". This illustrates that disaster changes people and changes their behavior - a common theme in After Armageddon.
Another expert said it best: "We like to think that moral progress has made us nice people. We've heard that our distant ancestors were mean and cruel and ruthless, and we can't imagine that we would be such people - but we're nice mainly because we're rich and comfortable. And when we're no longer rich and comfortable, we won't be as nice."
Through a series of unlikely events and miraculous luck the (for most of the time) unarmed family eventually arrives in Idaho to start their new lives wherein they learn, among other things, that an abandoned car in the hot sun makes a good dehumidifier.
One thing they did that I disagree with was using storm drains and sewers to get out of the city on foot in the daytime. Such avenues of egress are not meant for foot traffic and expose those in them to ambush. Better to travel quietly at night and hold up during the day.
There are plenty of other tactical errors, but I'll leave them for you to discover as you watch the show.
A short list if concepts shown but not articulated:
Never camp, rest or stop on roads or trails.
Avoid fellow refugees, they'll be eager to "share" whatever you've got.
Very few have the skills and/or supplies needed to survive TEOTWAWKI.
Overall I give After Armageddon an A for an accurate depiction of what would probably happen if a TEOTWAWKI event were to occur.
The History Channel is already offering it for sale and it is the only History Channel show I've ever even considered buying.
To Comment on this article
E-Mail Me Unless you specifically ask me not to, I'll post your reply here in the blog so everyone can read it. Of course I'll remove your last name, email address and any other specific information for privacy purposes.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
A 12 Step Program for the Unprepared
Few of us could afford to prepare for TEOTWAWKI even we knew what it would be. The alternative is to prepare for WTSHTF events like hurricanes, floods, earthquakes and blizzards. Fortunately preparing for the smaller events makes us more ready if the big one should ever come along.
Here's my 12 step program for the unprepared:
Step One: Ensure you have enough water on hand to last for at least three days (a week is better) at one (1) gallon per person per day for cooking and drinking only. (Not for washing or toilet flushing.)
Step Two: Ensure you have enough "picnic" supplies on hand to provide paper plates/bowls and plastic spoons/knives/forks (Spoons are most important, you can get by without the others.) so you don't have to eat off of dirty dishes. Remember that one gallon of water per person per day is for cooking and drinking. Picnic supplies allow you to eat without compromising your sanitary requirements.
Step Three: Ensure you have enough food on hand to last at least a week (a month(s) is better). Canned food is best since it requires no refrigeration and most cans nowadays have expiration dates printed on the can. Buy canned goods you normally eat and rotate them; first in first eaten.
Step Four: Ensure you have enough alcohol wipes and/or hand sanitizer for a week. Note that suspect water from compromised municipal water systems is safe for toilet flushing, but not hand washing.
Step Five: If it seems likely the electricity is going to be off for an extended period; eat only refrigerated food at first. Then the frozen stuff as it thaws. Draw a map, from memory, of the contents of your refrigerator/freezer. Then make up a menu. Next pull out those foods needed immediately and close the refrigerator door as quickly as possible. Containers that need to be replaced in the refrigerator should be placed next to it as portions are removed so all of them can be replaced at once. Then update your map.
Step Six: Ensure you have enough candles, flashlights and fresh batteries to last a week. A months worth is better. Don't forget the matches. Common candles are OK, but a better/safer bet would be "jar candles" of the type used in churches. The candle is in a glass tumbler and can be found in most supermarkets with and without religious printing on the side.
Step Seven: Ensure you have enough of the medicines you and yours will need for an extended period. Yes, in a WTSHTF event help may arrive within a week, but medical supplies will likely be in short supply. If possible have your doctor write two prescriptions then fill them both going back for another periods worth when the first prescription runs out then using the second period's meds while the third periods supply acts as a backup and so on. That way you'll always have at least a periods worth of fresh meds on hand.
Step Eight: Ensure you have all your BOBs packed and up to date.
Step Nine: Ensure you have enough TP to last for several months, 'nough said.
Step Ten: If you live in an evacuation zone (and even if you don't) a can of gasoline in the garage, rotated every six months, will get you that much farther when the roads are packed and gas stations drained dry. You did remember to keep the tank at least half full at all time didn't you?
Step Eleven: Family records, pictures, deeds, marriage and birth certificates, résumés and other important documents stored either in a waterproof container or, better yet, copied on to a thumb drive could come in handy in the event the storehouses of those records are washed/blown away or swallowed by the earth or sea.
Step Twelve: "But Dave, but Dave we've gotten all the way to the last step and you still haven't told us which Assault Rifle with 30 round magazines you recommend. Or what 12 gauge shotgun with folding butt stock is most desirable. Or even if a .45 semi-auto pistol is preferable to a.44 magnum revolver." (Well duh, of course it is!)
No, because if you're an experienced shooter you've already made up your mind on which weapon(s) you'll use to defend yourself and my stated opinions won't change your mind.
But I'm glad you asked because if you're a non-shooter with no preconceived notions about calibers and barrel lengths I do have a recommendation for you:
Non-shooters by definition have no firearms skills and so should stick to the simplest to operate personal defense weapon i.e. a short barreled (so he can't grab it away from you) double action (so you don't have to remember to "cock" the hammer) revolver (so you don't have to remember to turn off the safety or "work" the slide). Happy?
To Comment on this article
E-Mail Me Unless you specifically ask me not to, I'll post your reply here in the blog so everyone can read it. Of course I'll remove your last name, email address and any other specific information for privacy purposes.
Here's my 12 step program for the unprepared:
Step One: Ensure you have enough water on hand to last for at least three days (a week is better) at one (1) gallon per person per day for cooking and drinking only. (Not for washing or toilet flushing.)
Step Two: Ensure you have enough "picnic" supplies on hand to provide paper plates/bowls and plastic spoons/knives/forks (Spoons are most important, you can get by without the others.) so you don't have to eat off of dirty dishes. Remember that one gallon of water per person per day is for cooking and drinking. Picnic supplies allow you to eat without compromising your sanitary requirements.
Step Three: Ensure you have enough food on hand to last at least a week (a month(s) is better). Canned food is best since it requires no refrigeration and most cans nowadays have expiration dates printed on the can. Buy canned goods you normally eat and rotate them; first in first eaten.
Step Four: Ensure you have enough alcohol wipes and/or hand sanitizer for a week. Note that suspect water from compromised municipal water systems is safe for toilet flushing, but not hand washing.
Step Five: If it seems likely the electricity is going to be off for an extended period; eat only refrigerated food at first. Then the frozen stuff as it thaws. Draw a map, from memory, of the contents of your refrigerator/freezer. Then make up a menu. Next pull out those foods needed immediately and close the refrigerator door as quickly as possible. Containers that need to be replaced in the refrigerator should be placed next to it as portions are removed so all of them can be replaced at once. Then update your map.
Step Six: Ensure you have enough candles, flashlights and fresh batteries to last a week. A months worth is better. Don't forget the matches. Common candles are OK, but a better/safer bet would be "jar candles" of the type used in churches. The candle is in a glass tumbler and can be found in most supermarkets with and without religious printing on the side.
Step Seven: Ensure you have enough of the medicines you and yours will need for an extended period. Yes, in a WTSHTF event help may arrive within a week, but medical supplies will likely be in short supply. If possible have your doctor write two prescriptions then fill them both going back for another periods worth when the first prescription runs out then using the second period's meds while the third periods supply acts as a backup and so on. That way you'll always have at least a periods worth of fresh meds on hand.
Step Eight: Ensure you have all your BOBs packed and up to date.
Step Nine: Ensure you have enough TP to last for several months, 'nough said.
Step Ten: If you live in an evacuation zone (and even if you don't) a can of gasoline in the garage, rotated every six months, will get you that much farther when the roads are packed and gas stations drained dry. You did remember to keep the tank at least half full at all time didn't you?
Step Eleven: Family records, pictures, deeds, marriage and birth certificates, résumés and other important documents stored either in a waterproof container or, better yet, copied on to a thumb drive could come in handy in the event the storehouses of those records are washed/blown away or swallowed by the earth or sea.
Step Twelve: "But Dave, but Dave we've gotten all the way to the last step and you still haven't told us which Assault Rifle with 30 round magazines you recommend. Or what 12 gauge shotgun with folding butt stock is most desirable. Or even if a .45 semi-auto pistol is preferable to a.44 magnum revolver." (Well duh, of course it is!)
No, because if you're an experienced shooter you've already made up your mind on which weapon(s) you'll use to defend yourself and my stated opinions won't change your mind.
But I'm glad you asked because if you're a non-shooter with no preconceived notions about calibers and barrel lengths I do have a recommendation for you:
Non-shooters by definition have no firearms skills and so should stick to the simplest to operate personal defense weapon i.e. a short barreled (so he can't grab it away from you) double action (so you don't have to remember to "cock" the hammer) revolver (so you don't have to remember to turn off the safety or "work" the slide). Happy?
To Comment on this article
E-Mail Me Unless you specifically ask me not to, I'll post your reply here in the blog so everyone can read it. Of course I'll remove your last name, email address and any other specific information for privacy purposes.
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