professorx
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Post by professorx on Feb 7, 2023 4:39:38 GMT
Started this thread earlier today and my computer went down. This thread is past due for as long as this board has been here so I hope that it gets your attention.
This is a personal view unsupported by any other information. There are a lot of places that cater to preppers and survivalists. As best as can be determined a prepper collects food, guns, gear, medical supplies, etc. and waits on some Armageddon type shtf scenario. Survivalists are preppers that go a step further and become somewhat self reliant and self sufficient. Others may disagree but that is the working theory for purposes of this thread.
Something that hasn't been as widely discussed as most subject matter is the question of what people are preparing for. There was a recent debate - discussion recently about why more younger people weren't preppers. When they did respond and gave umpteen excuses plus more the older people challenged them and the younger crowd produced some butt hurt snowflakes crying because they felt disrespected. It is time in my opinion for us to step up to the plate and put on our big boy pants. Younger people began with the excuse that the older generation locks out younger people as the youth are more liberal and they are not Christians. They feel disrespected and lose interest because the older people begin what are characterized as religious debates in the middle of prepping and survival threads. The older people are guilty as charged. Yet it is not that simple.
You can build a website, discussion board, or start a survival group but you have to define what you are prepping for. If you only envision small catastrophes and you want to survive a harsh winter or maybe a temporary event like the scandemic then your preps are basic and minimal. Then there are those who think a war may break out or maybe Armageddon and they prepare for months to maybe a year with no plan beyond that. Finally the smaller number of people will live off the land, prepare for war, and acquire their own weapons along with the ability to grow their own food and manufacture most of their necessities. It becomes relative to ask what are you prepping for? A Christian patriot- survivalist may have a completely different objective in their preparations compared to a gay atheist living in a downtown apartment. For that reason it is doubtful that any one place can address both groups. What about in the meantime?
There are laws against hoarding. You have the liberals wanting to take your firearms. The medical community wants to limit your access to alternative healing (which means they don't like vitamins, herbs, natural remedies). If you prepare for whatever shtf scenario only to be raided by the feds and have your preps confiscated - what was your point? How do you plan to protect your loot? How can you acquire what you need without creating a paper trail for the government and hackers that can sell your information to those with the wherewithal to take it all from you? That is what urban survival is going to be about. How about some input this time?
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Post by noclevername on Feb 7, 2023 20:04:14 GMT
Are you talking about things like infosec, comesec, persec and opsec?
It's a point well taken about building up supplies that the gubmint knows about. Because nothing is being done its like preppers are thinking out of sight out of mind. That is until a person buys something the gubmint don't like. Solvent traps, forced reset triggers, bump stocks all come to mind. When the government wanted that stuff they just went to the sellers and served a warrant to get shipping information. Too much food or maybe ammo will also get the attention of bureaucrats. How are we going to survive it all?
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Post by The Resister on Feb 8, 2023 4:48:50 GMT
I've been whizzing off my share of keyboard commandos and armchair generals lately on discussion boards aimed at preppers and survivalists. The younger guys say they don't have time to prep and yet, in the same breath, they claim not to have a good paying job. What???
If you acquire skillsets and you're young enough to get around you make a lot of money practicing survival skills. What kind of skills? Whether you are outdoors having to build temporary shelter and animal traps OR you are a get off the grid type who becomes self sufficient, you have to be able to work with your hands. Carpentry, electrician skills, mechanics, restoration work, farming, etc., etc. are all in demand jobs that will pay you to hone your skills. The problem is most people are acquiring enough food and medical supplies... supposedly for a period of time from 30 days to as much as a couple of years. After that, they apparently haven't thought it through as to what comes next. They might get whizzed off at me, but if they at least consider the subject, then I've done what I set out to do.
In my mind these are the days when we should be examining our lives closely. While the federal government is looking to hire 87,000 new IRS agents and stores are moving away from cash and cashiers, the prospect of an 1984 Orwellian system seems antiquated to the point that George Orwell could not fathom the extent of our modern Surveillance Society. We are moving toward government controlled religion and government monitored entertainment. Thought police are considered a plus in today's liberal society. The government tells us what to think, what to do for a job, who we can associate with, what you can put into your body and everything else you can name.
Personally I'd like to offer this on the subject:
Urban survival right now has to begin with your economic situation. You put a little money into food, medical supplies, weapons, ammo, heirloom seeds, tools and precious metals as often as you can. YouTube is full of videos of money gurus saying that you want to get your money out of the banks. While that may be true, you still have to utilize that money where it will do you the best job. While I would tell people to put some money into silver, I'd be remiss in not telling you the downsides:
* First, unless you know what you're doing, when you buy silver, there are a LOT of scam artists out there selling fake silver that is little more than silver coated alloys with NO value * Secondly, usually when you do buy precious metals, you go into them upside down. People want to sell to you at spot plus a premium. Right now that seems to be just under $5 an ounce for silver. In other words, an ounce of silver in the form of a one ounce rounds retails for just under $30 and dealers will buy them from you for around $24 and change * Finally, if you do sell to a dealer or someone that does business with the government (any business that is incorporated), your transactions of precious metals require you give up your Socialist Surveillance Number ...there I go again "Social Security Number" and they report your sales of precious metals to the IRS.
IF you can market gold or silver in the private sector without giving up private information, I would recommend that some of your portfolio contain precious metals.
Personally, I do not buy my survival preps with plastic. Debit cards and credit cards are for mundane purchases like the groceries, utilities, taxes, car payment, insurance, etc. You can buy a FEW extra items at the store every week and add them to your supplies, but NEVER the bulk purchases or anything that a regular week wouldn't normally absorb. A box of band aids here and a few extra groceries every other week there won't raise fed flags.
Cash is king and flea markets, trade shows, yard sales and other private venues that offer face to face private sales are things your new lifestyle should revolve around. You have to be diligent about maintaining a modicum of privacy. In my mind, protecting your privacy is the first urban survival skillset that you can develop.
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professorx
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Post by professorx on Feb 8, 2023 22:05:23 GMT
Are you talking about things like infosec, comesec, persec and opsec? It's a point well taken about building up supplies that the gubmint knows about. Because nothing is being done its like preppers are thinking out of sight out of mind. That is until a person buys something the gubmint don't like. Solvent traps, forced reset triggers, bump stocks all come to mind. When the government wanted that stuff they just went to the sellers and served a warrant to get shipping information. Too much food or maybe ammo will also get the attention of bureaucrats. How are we going to survive it all? Actually we tried to explain that once before. The problem is when you are a civilian there is a lot of overlap. For instance are your cell phone calls infosec or persec? Just a reminder about security. Comsec - Communications security Opsec - Operational security Persec - Personal security infosec - Information security We have one area that was explored on this topic. Let me add another. Beware of what you say on your cell phone. The cell phones of today are monitored and if you say certain words or phrases your conversation will be listened to by censors. Your cell phone knows where you go since they have GPS and the phone companies know pretty much all you say on your phone. Don't talk about anything illegal on a cell phone. Chalk that up to communications security.
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Post by The Resister on Mar 7, 2023 21:53:43 GMT
With things being what they are, I thought that now is the time to sound the alarm and try to wake people up. We've all had these fantasies that one day America would be under siege and that we would head for the hills and weather the storm OR maybe unite with others of like mind to defeat the enemies of America. Well, here we are and World War III could erupt at any moment. How prepared are you? If you're like most, you might be sitting at square one. This is going to be a bit wordy, but if you want a quick start guide or a checklist here it is. It will all depend on your budget. Then, again, it might not... if you are close to being prepared.
1) If you don't own an MBR (Main Battle Rifle) by now, you've cheated yourself. A rifle, ammo, extra magazines, cleaning kit and tools to work on it are key to survival
2) Back up weapons like a handgun, 22 rifle, shotgun, etc. are next in importance. All the additional accessories for the MBR above are equally important here as well
3) You can't live long without air and water. Five gallon water containers like the military ones are a must as well as ways to purify water. At the very least, stock up on bleach (non scented) and learn how to purify water. A good home water filter is in the $350 range or so
4) You need a good first aid kit, some books and videos on emergency first aid and a stockpile of any medicines you use. See your dentist and get your teeth taken care of. You haven't known pain until you have a bad tooth and no help is available under extreme circumstances. See your dentist NOW. Also see your eye doctor and get and extra pair of eyeglasses if you wear them
5) Having lived through the "Energy Crisis" of 1979 when they had gas shortages (which led to other shortages) and many other events leading up to the pandemic this is a short list of things that weren't available at your local stores:
* Coffee * Sugar * Salt * Flour * Butter / cooking oil * Chocolate * Soaps of all kinds * Disinfectants * Bleach * Toilet Paper
You can help the taste of many a bland food with the right condiments - so stack 'em deep. Keep the packets you generate from fast food places and restaurants
6) Communications - Battery powered radios to Sat phones are important. You never know when the grid is going to be down so think HAM radio, CB, walkie talkie,shortwave radio - the best you can afford. Even an AM / FM radio is better than nothing
7) Lighting - Candles, flashlights, lanterns, will all suffice if the power grid goes down
8) A power generator IF you can afford it, but you will also have to stock fuel for it
9) Shoes - make sure you have a couple of pair of shoes that you can WALK and HIKE in
10) Precious Metals - You may need some silver, gold, etc. for barter if the situation goes on very long
There are a lot of other things you need, depending upon how long any SHTF scenario lasts, but these are THE top ten, regardless of what guru you listen to. I've witnessed this stuff go down before and I made lists as a kid so that I would never have to be stressed out over what I didn't have. We can discuss any of the above OR any other prep you think deserves a response.
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