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Post by The Resister on Jan 15, 2024 4:06:42 GMT
I am going to embark on a series of posts for those who really want to know how to prepare for 2024. As often as possible I will post things you should be doing and considering. Feel welcome to register and post questions, comments, criticisms or anything else to keep the conversation lively. Since I've been doing this since the 1970s this is just sharing that experience. The year 2024 is going to be a challenging year with the great possibility of a Black Swan event. According to Wikipedia, a Black Swan event is defined as: " The black swan theory or theory of black swan events is a metaphor that describes an event that comes as a surprise, has a major effect, and is often inappropriately rationalized after the fact with the benefit of hindsight. The term is based on an ancient saying that presumed black swans did not exist, until they were discovered in Australia in 1697, and it then became reinterpreted to mean an unforeseen and consequential event." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_swan_theoryWe could get into a war with China. It isn't supposed to happen, but... We could find ourselves in a war with Russia, but... World War III might break out in the Middle East, but... None of that is supposed to happen. The problem is, politicians lie. Sure, Taiwan isn't part of NATO; however, considered a major non-NATO ally by the U.S. thanks to the Foreign Relations Authorization Act passed by Congress under President George W. Bush. Jimmy Carter decided that Taiwan was a part of China and Biden has been all over the map (currently supporting China's view) that Taiwan is part of China. If you ever work with hand tools (sockets, ratchets, etc.) you know the difference between made in China and made in Taiwan. And, in case you didn't know, the ONLY company that makes those kinds of tools in the United States is Snap On. Anyway, Taiwan just elected a new president and he is not listening to the claptrap that his country belongs to China. Anyway, we have the Koreans threatening us and the massive flood of foreigners coming from south of the border that are destroying the country and then all the pretend differences between the left and right; Democrats and Republicans; conservatives and liberals. The point is you need to be prepared. You know the Boy Scout motto: " BE PREPARED, which means, you are always in a state of readiness in mind and body to do your DUTY;
Be Prepared in Mind by having disciplined yourself to be obedient to every order, and also by having thought out beforehand any accident or situation that might occur, so that you know the right thing to do at the right moment, and are willing to do it.
Be Prepared in Body by making yourself strong and active and able to do the right thing at the right moment, and do it." — Lieut. Gen. Baden Powell C.B., Scouting for Boys (1908), "Camp Fire Yarn.—No. 4. Scout Law." (Part I, p. 48) I'm going to go further. You need to be prepared emotionally, religiously, financially, physically, spiritually and you must have the tools, knowledge, equipment and supplies it takes to make it on your own off the grid. It is better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. So, where do you start? It is of utmost importance that you begin right now by examining your health. You need a physical check up and a trip to the dentist followed up by a trip to the optometrist (or ophthalmologist.) You prep to stay alive, but if you're in poor health, that may be all for naught if you aren't working to keep your health up. This is the most important first step that you are going to take. Get a handle on your health. Find out all the ailments and begin working to do something about it whether that is diet, exercise, getting new glasses, getting a colonoscopy, joining ( and going to) the gym. Work on your insomnia and get the sleep you need. Rid yourself of those bad habits that cost you money and shorten your life span. Don't think about it. Start right now. Do it today. The rest of this won't matter if you are slowly killing yourself. |
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Post by The Resister on Jan 15, 2024 23:19:25 GMT
I posted in the wrong forum yesterday. I had to have it moved, so let's continue:
I suppose that most people intended for me to start with Bug Out Bags, Main Battle Rifle, Evacuation and Rendezvous, etc., etc. Based on whether I told people what they want to hear would determine (in their mind) whether I'm full of it or not. This is practical experience. It may not be what you want to hear, but this is based upon experience (trial and error) over a period of getting close to half a century. Anyway, you've gone to the doctor and had your physical, prescriptions filled, recent eye exam, had your teeth cleaned / x rayed (and attended to) so now what?
Every prepper would be well advised to learn how to budget their time and their money out of the chute. In order to survive the NEW WORLD ORDER you have to get out of debt, get out of debt, get out of debt. If the excrement interacts with the electric oscillating device (aka SHTF) let's suppose you can't pay your mortgage payment for say six months. Where do you go? What are you going to do with your prepper supplies? All the training and preparation aren't worth a tinker's damn if you have no place to live and put your supplies. When I became serious about prepping I took all the money I had saved in 401k funds and bought a fixer upper house and paid off all my bills. I started off living in a shack and, instead of paying rental payments, my money was going toward fixing up the house. I'm not trying to give you financial advice; I'm just telling you what worked for me.
The way I figure it, the house is paid for and increases in value every time I do another project on it. IF the scare stories are true and IF the government some day confiscates our retirement money, a home is better than electronic characters on a computer. With my home paid for, IF I get to where I can't get money any other way, I can do a reverse mortgage. A reverse mortgage is where a lender "loans" you the equity in your home. If you can't pay that loan off by the time of your demise and your beneficiaries cannot make good on the loan, the lender takes your house. If you plan on leaving your home to you children, grand-children, or others this may be a non-starter for you. You just need to know your options.
We all need time for R & R (Rest and Relaxation.) We need time for prayer and meditation. We need family time. We need time to learn new skills. We have to earn a living AND we want to prep. For me, I'd rather be learning a new skill, reading up on prepper skills, going places to get stuff I need or watching videos or posting about this stuff rather than watching the monkeys chase balls on tv or keeping up with the Kardashians - or whatever is in vogue at the moment. You have to figure out how much time you can devote to what is important to you, but without an idea of how much time you will invest in each area of your life, someone is going to get cheated and you will become about as ineffective as a eunuch in a brothel.
Your budget is going to determine how much and how fast you acquire the things you need and the skill sets you learn. Some people out there make enough that they have three cars in the driveway and those payments combined are about twice what I make a month. Yet, I'm ahead of those people in ALL areas of prepping PLUS they cannot sustain their lifestyle for 6 months should they lose their job or we get plunged into that SHTF scenario. If you can't close your doors and get off the grid and live on what you have for a MINIMUM of six months, you are not prepared. Still, no matter what your income; no matter what your budget you can become fully prepared in a short amount of time. And this is just something to think about. In order to survive you need a transferable skill that will allow you to make money or barter your skills. Let's mention a few: arborist, naturopath, plumber, electrician, farmer, carpenter, mechanic, handyman, EMT or some service related job that you can learn and tolerate. If the SHTF tomorrow and the company you work for shut the doors, what would you do to provide for yourself and your family? You need to get out of debt and you need a skill set. Next time we will begin talking about those things that you clicked on this link for.
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Post by noclevername on Jan 16, 2024 3:59:26 GMT
There are so many questions to ask that it is impossible to know where to start. Would you mind answering a few questions?
How can I get my family into prepping when they oppose the idea?
If someone owes out a lot of money how can they prep and get out of debt in a short time?
Do you think I should cash out my 401k and buy gold?
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Post by The Resister on Jan 16, 2024 13:45:23 GMT
There are so many questions to ask that it is impossible to know where to start. Would you mind answering a few questions? How can I get my family into prepping when they oppose the idea? If someone owes out a lot of money how can they prep and get out of debt in a short time? Do you think I should cash out my 401k and buy gold? Good questions though a bit premature, but easily answered. I got my family interested in prepping by finding practical ways to implement the skills into our daily lives without them realizing what was going on. For example, soccer moms are all about safety. So, when it comes down to making sure you make the children safe, what better way than to implement a communications protocol so that they can get the information they need with the least possible effort? A family phone tree goes along with that and that's another prepper skill. Then what would we do in an emergency to make sure we're all safe? That is where the Evacuation and Rendezvous Plan comes into effect. I got them into the survival mindset back when we used to have family night. Every week we had one night where the family did something together. When it was my turn, every other time, we'd watch a movie at home. That is when I would play flicks like Braveheart and The Patriot (Mel Gibson's contributions to the cause.) We would spend about half an hour thereafter talking about the movie. We will talk in depth at some point about the strategy of getting out of debt and prepping at the same time. The basic idea is to throw as much money as you possibly can toward getting out of debt. At the same time, when you prep for the future, you are going to put things you actually need into storage. So, you're already going to buy and use the items. Buy in bulk or buy when things are on sale and begin building a few months supply of a little at a time. We call it Power Buying. The trick is that you don't buy more than you will use during the shelf life of the product. Also, if you begin learning a skill set, you can make extra money doing it and pay that toward getting out of debt. I am not a financial adviser. But, from a prepping perspective, I can tell you my strategy and mindset. When you put money in the bank, it begins to lose its value. You need some money in the bank for emergencies (deductibles and co pays for insurance plus a fund for times when you may not be working.) I diversify. I buy silver, but not gold. The reason I don't buy gold is that it is so valuable you would need a very SMALL sliver of it to barter for say a tank of gas or a couple days worth of groceries. For me, it's impractical. Your situation may be different. A few ounces of gold will always be enough to buy you an automobile. According to occasional news stories, rich power brokers are not believers in keeping large sums of cash in the bank. So, I keep my debt down significantly, take care of my health, buy essential prepping supplies and maybe one day I will buy some land in the middle of nowhere so that if / when the SHTF, I can retreat to somewhere the masses aren't. BEFORE you run down and start cashing out your 401k, you need a financial statement (aka a balance sheet) listing all your assets and liabilities. Then you should have a six month, one year and five year plan for where you want to be in your life at each of those intervals. Also factor any known variables like the prospect of having children or dealing with personal health issues. Also think about food, clothing, mortgage payments, utilities, transportation expenses, health and insurance costs. If you don't have money in the bank, how will you get what you need? Having some cash is necessary. It is immediate. At the same time, if the government takes it because they want to redistribute it, you don't want to lose all you have. I diversify. I keep a few months saved for emergencies; I invest in silver; I invest in myself and I buy tools I will use and keep a supply of necessities so that no matter what, I have a few months cushion for whatever happens. Hope that helps until we start talking specifics. |
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Post by The Resister on Jan 18, 2024 4:50:14 GMT
I want to finish up this stuff about finances so that you get an idea about HOW to prep. If you are near bankruptcy you can still prep. You do it incrementally unless you are a Rockefeller, Soros Elon Musk or Mark Zuckerberg. If you have more money than common sense, you would probably ignore this thread. Here is the simplicity of life: Each week you take out 10 percent of what you make and pay yourself first. This is your money for the future. Invest it, but wisely and don't invest what you cannot afford to lose. Next, you pay off your debt and pay your bills. What is left over is for big ticket prep items. If you need to discuss specifics, I will do what I can to help. For some really good info on money matters go to: clark.comBUG OUT BAG 101When we talk about prepping we always think about Bug Out Bags (aka Go Bags, 72 Hour Bag, etc.) It becomes such a fascinating subject that entire books have been written about it. You can spend thousands of dollars on yours OR you can consider what I'm about to say. NOBODY can tell you what you need to go into your Bug Out Bag. All of that is determined by these factors: Your age Your health How much weight you can comfortably carry Individual needs (like medicines, medical devices, etc.) Your location (rural, city, suburban, etc.) Time of year your bag covers - It changes with the seasons (Heavy clothes in the winter and different gear for warmer months as an example) So, what do you NEED? The best person to figure that out is YOU. Here is how I made that determination: Knowing once that I was going on a three week trip, so in the two weeks before the trip I used a spiral notebook and wrote down everything I used from the time I woke up until I left. I used soap, shampoo, hair conditioner, etc. and then my shaving stuff, stuff to brush my teeth with, tweezers, comb, toenail clippers, etc. All the medicines I might be taking, the stuff in my pockets, etc. After three days of that I started writing down stuff I used in the course of a day after I left the house. Then I ran over that stuff again for two days checking to see if my list was complete. That was what I NEEDED. Your changes of underwear, toiletries, all of it is counted. After that you have to weigh it all and then figure out how much more weight you can comfortably handle, you move on to other real necessities. For a Bug Out Bag, your toiletries bag can be made up of stuff from home OR maybe the travel size of soaps, shampoos, etc. I usually put small items into zip lock bags (I always save them from stuff I buy in stores.) A quart size zip lock bag will hold a couple of pairs of socks and underwear. A few Q tips here, an extra comb there and a disposable razor from the drawer. I was building up my prepping supplies without spending hardly any money. I even shopped for the Bug Out Bag looking in places like flea markets, Goodwill stores, yard sales, etc. But, look, I don't want to deter you from spending your money on the latest and greatest. As I said, if you have the money and don't want to take the time (which kind of defies the whole notion of self reliance) to learn how to do it yourself, there are always books on Bug Out Bags: www.amazon.com/Build-Perfect-Bug-Out-Bag/dp/1440318743taskandpurpose.com/gear/how-to-build-the-ultimate-bug-out-bag/Just remember: Their lists will NEVER be all inclusive of YOUR individual needs |
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Post by The Resister on Jan 19, 2024 21:54:51 GMT
As you move toward preparedness, you have to keep defining and redefining why you are prepping. I didn't start this thread out with that because you already have some idea of why you're getting into prepping. You realize that no matter who is leading the charge in Washington, District of Corruption we have a destiny with the fate known as SHTF. The prepper may begin by preparing for the occasional emergency (inclement weather, a derailed train in the neighborhood, local civil unrest, etc. or maybe even a house fire.) You may prepare for the event that puts you out of your house for a few days OR makes you stay IN your house for a while without utilities. You begin preparing for that and then see the advantages of being prepared for a week, a month or even longer. That shortage of toilet paper and disinfectants along with other items during the pandemic got a lot of peoples attention. The point here is that once you start your reasons will always be morphing and usually growing.
I was once a DFACS asset. A DFACS asset is a county volunteer for the Dept. of Family and Children Services. I took in children that may need a foster parent on a moment's notice. Because children could show up at my door at any hour of the day or night (holidays and week-ends included) they expected me to be prepared. And stuff happens. I could have a house full of children and need to bug out immediately. I might have to leave town. There might be a gas leak in the house and we have to evacuate. So, DFACS made sure foster parents were prepared. We had an exit plan at home (an Evacuation and Rendezvous Plan) along with a Communications Protocol (a way to communicate with those that can help you in an emergency situation - phone trees, radio communications, etc.) This was the ONLY area that DFACS was competent in. And, with that, I found out that once you present these skill sets to family and friends, they will not dismiss your prepping mindset. They benefit from being part of it. Soon, they become preppers.
Why do you need an Evacuation and Rendezvous Plan?
Let's be honest. Your house could burn down. A plane could crash in your neighborhood. Your community might become the target of a terrorist attack. Severe weather could force you out of your house. In many of the scenarios we might imagine, the grid may become overloaded and / or go completely down. What would you do? In many emergencies you may hunker down and stay at home. But, let's imagine the worst for a moment:
It's 2 am. A fire breaks out in your house. You've got to get out. Have you actually practiced an exit strategy? You roll out of bed and there is smoke everywhere. Now is not the time to do your planning. You need to know what you would do and you need to practice it. You practice the drill once every three months. The plan may take a couple of hours to decide on, but training takes a whopping TEN MINUTES or less! Is your life worth that much? How about that of a loved one? I have an anecdotal story that I want you to consider:
A friend of mine ran to a home fire some years ago. The parents had gotten out, but the children didn't. They were unsuccessful at saving the children. Maybe if they had smoke alarms and a well rehearsed Evacuation and Rendezvous Plan, they might have been able to save their children. Even in school we had regular fire drills to make sure we could exit the building and go to a designated area so that we could be accounted for. Let's do some supposing here:
Suppose that a fire breaks out at your house one night. Everybody gets out, but they don't go to a designated area. In the commotion, you don't realize that a family member actually got out, but doesn't hear you calling. You charge into a burning house to save someone for, literally, nothing. Maybe you die. Do I have your attention? You need an Evacuation and Rendezvous Plan.
You've probably seen these kinds of plans in schools and buildings. They have a diagram of the floor plan and exits marked so that you know where the closest emergency exit is. You should have one for your house as well. AND everybody must be told where to meet at once they get out. That is your rendezvous point. Your training should be that you roll out of the bed without standing up. Assess what is going on and which strategy you've practiced for is employed. You might crawl out, grabbing your Bug Out Bag on your way out; you may have to get children and / or pets, grabbing your Bug Out Bag which is next to the exit as you leave. The best way to exit a burning house if you don't know where the smoke is coming from is to do so on your hands and knees. Practice the most extreme cases and when something easy happens and you have time, it's no pressure.
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