7/31/14
Prepping.
Water, it's all around us. Water, without it, life does not exist. humans can only survive 3 days without water and plants, animals thrive because of water. Could this natural resource hold the key to not only earths survival, but earths demise? (I want you to say that in a Morgan Freeman Inside The Wormhole voice).
I personally don't drink a lot of bottled water. I'm more of a seltzer, beer and scotch kind of guy. Occasionally I drink soda, milkshakes and other beverages but I doubt that I could live healthily on a diet that does not include at least half a gallon of water a day. As a prepared person who has done many hours of research on numerous different scenarios, one factor remains the same no matter what the SHTF incident is: Water.
There is a reason that governmental agencies such as FEMA and organizations such as the American Red Cross all include Bottled Water in lists of items that you will need for when disasters happen and if you pay attention, you will have noticed that whenever the news spreads the warnings of an approaching hurricane, the masses flock to supermarkets and raid the shelves of bottled water.
So how much water do you need?
1 gallon of water per person per day. This is the standard "formula." What it means is that if you want to have enough water for 10 days, you need to buy 10 gallons of water for every person in your family. My family has 2 adults, 1 child and 2 small pets. Obviously cats consumer much less water than my 1 year old daughter does and obviously my daughter doesn't consume as much water as I, a 195lb man does.
How much water should you stockpile?
An easy thing to do is to buy a case of 24 bottles of water and see how quickly you and your family finish the case (drink all the water). If your household finishes 24 bottles in one day, then you have a basic idea of how much water you should have. People tend to drink more fluids in the summer than they do in the winter and I recommend storing at least 15 cases of 24 bottles of water to have enough water for 3 people + 2 pets for up to 11 days.
I did the math and one case of 25 bottles of water is roughly 2.5 gallons. For my household, that means that 1 case could potentially be enough for 3 people each day.
Where should you store your water?
I recommend storing the water in your basement and keep the water out of direct sunlight. Just pick a corner or something and stack the cases of water. IF you buy the one gallon jugs or the bigger 5 or 7 gallon jugs, a shelf might be worth buying. Most basements stay very cool, but not cold. Because I live in New England, my main concern is a blackout during a blizzard. Obviously it would not be good if the water turned to ice. It is a good idea to purchase a analog thermometer and some sort of humidity gauge so that you can monitor the conditions of your basement. I like to keep my basement dry and between 50 and 70 degrees because moisture causes mold, rust and other bad things.
Transporting water.
Water is heavy. If you are transporting water with a vehicle, you should know exactly how much weight your vehicle is designed to carry. If transporting by car, you should know how much weight you can put in the trunk, on the roof, on the hood, and also what your towing capacity is. I doubt that you will just "bug out" with water which is why you need to know those things and also have an organization plan for loading up your vehicle. Too much weight could lead to tire problems and possibly even engine and transmission strain. If you are like me, you require good MPG in your Bug Out Vehicle to maximize your "escape range."
My 2014 Kia Sorento can tow a max of 1,800lbs, carry 100lbs on the roof, aprox 60lbs on the hood and another 250lbs inside the vehicle. That does not include the weight of passengers.
If transporting by boat, you need to know how much weight your boat can carry and more importantly, you need to evenly distribute the weight inside the boat.
Variety isn't a bad thing. If you plan on bugging in, I recommend having at least two 55 gallon drums and one rain collection barrel as well as your bottled water.
Purchase a water filtration pump or straw so that you can drink water from streams if you are bugging out in the woods. Purchase a big stainless steel pot that you can boil water in. Boiling water is a fool proof way to make unsafe water safe to drink. If you are storing water in barrels, I recommend buying water purification chemicals and stabilizers.
Remember, without water, there is no life.
*I will include photos of some water related gear that you should buy later.
Thanks for reading.
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Why UPS will be Down and Out in Less than 3 Years.
7/30/17
Business
I am self employed, working from home on the internet. Because I sell online I ship my items to the buyers. I will tell you that from my experience, I could see the death of the United Parcel Service from 100 miles away. I don't even need to know about their 58% loss in this years second quarter to know that the UPS is struggling to compete with FedEx, DHL or USPS.
According to DailyFinance.com
"The big Atlanta-based shipping company said it will spend $175 million on improvements that include beefed-up operations on the day after Thanksgiving, more sorting facilities and sped-up deployment of software designed to help drivers find the quickest route to a destination."
Wait, UPS will spend $175 million to put GPS units in their drivers hands and to hire more people to speed up operations? That sounds like a very stupid way to spend $175 million.
I'm no economics expert but I know enough to see what the problem is.
In the digital age (God I hate saying that) Brick and Mortar establishments are being replaced with internet retailers and what I call E-Services. The Postal Services biggest foe is Email and text messaging while UPS has an enemy called consumer choice. Naturally, businesses want to save money and when you sell exclusively on the web, you really need to count your nickels when it comes to how you ship your products. I have personally shipped over 500 items using the USPS and to my knowledge nothing went wrong at all. If the tracking data says "delivery date of 07/07/14," that package will likely be there on 07/06/14. Most Americans don't throw away money which is why, as a business I ship with USPS 100% of the time.
The problem is that UPS can't compete with the United States Postal Service. Sure, the USPS is billions in debt thanks to the federal government but I have not had any problems with the USPS for as long as I can remember. The Mail Man never failed and every day, you could almost predict when he would come down the street. My Mail Man arrives around 11:00AM 6 days a week. Although driving the same route 250+ days a year probably would drive most humans insane, the men and women of the USPS do it and rarely make mistakes or have delays. Once big web retailers stop having exclusive shipping contracts with FedEx, DHL or UPS, all these companies will see their stock prices plummet. I know several web stores that ship using only UPS. This means I need to pay $20.00 for UPS instead of $16.00 for USPS.
UPS, FedEx and other couriers should envy the USPS because what the Post Office has, is everything other couriers need in order to stay in business.
-The USPS has a well established logistical system that makes sure that packages and paper mail arrive on time and intact.
-Getting a job with the USPS is not easy but the pay is amazing. (I know this because I wanted to work for the USPS when I was 19 and I got all the way up to the interview process before life happened and changed my career objectives). According to Glassdoor.com, a City Mail Carrier's avg salary is $54,852. UPS pays their drivers an average salary of $74,326 according to Glassdoor.com. I assume that is full time pay.
- Go onto Google Maps and search for "UPS Drop Off Locations Near Me." When I did it, the nearest drop off location was 10 miles from me in Torrington CT and there are less than 8 UPS locations in a 30 mile area of me. There are just as few FedEx locations in the same area.
To contrast, the USPS has 9 Post offices within 10 miles of me and 14 of the blue collection boxes within 5 miles of me. Also, I can always hand my packages to my Mail Man when he delivers my mail.
-UPS and FedEx are both more expensive than the USPS. To ship a package that weighs 10lbs in a "Large" box using a 2 day service, it would cost $66.41 for FedEx 2-Day, $70.72 for UPS 2nd Day Air, and just $17.45 for USPS Priority Mail 2nd Day. Even UPS Ground is more expensive at $20.51.
-FedEx and UPS both are unreliable and I know this from personal experience. When my fiancé and I moved to Florida, FedEx was who was shipping some of our newly ordered furniture. There were issues 2 different times where FedEx sent our furniture to two different states and locations. It took over 20 days before we could stop sleeping on an air mattress. UPS once sent a package from its pick up location in NYC to Orlando FL, then to some place in Puerto Rico and then to Massachusetts and then, after 3 weeks, I finally got my item. I could have driven to the shippers business, got my item and been home in less than 15 hours. The only issue with the USPS I've had is when ordering something from Alaska. It was supposed to arrive in 5 days but it took 14 days.
-My family filed a complaint against the UPS after one of their drivers threw a gallon of paint at our door because he was to lazy to walk 15' from his truck to the doorstep. The paint leaked and caused $1,700+ worth of damage that the UPS had to pay for. More than once UPS has delivered a package that was dented, ripped and even partially destroyed.
-Both the UPS and FedEx have customer service that is worse than the Cable company. If I have any problems with the USPS, I can call their toll free number or walk into my local post office and speak with a supervisor. When someone robbed my mailbox earlier this month, I went to file a claim with the Postmaster at my local post office. The clerk immediately got a supervisor for me and he had the paperwork filled out and everything in less than 10 minutes.
Of course the USPS has its share of problems. They are B-R-O-K-E. Well, the USPS is too big to fail anyway and Job security is pretty much a standard benefit of any government job. The USPS has a supply and a demand that will always be around. People and businesses need to mail things and people and business need to have things mailed to them. The federal government will continue to drive the USPS into a financial black hole but I guess money doesn't really mean anything when you have actually cornered the market.
Thanks for reading.
Business
I am self employed, working from home on the internet. Because I sell online I ship my items to the buyers. I will tell you that from my experience, I could see the death of the United Parcel Service from 100 miles away. I don't even need to know about their 58% loss in this years second quarter to know that the UPS is struggling to compete with FedEx, DHL or USPS.
According to DailyFinance.com
"The big Atlanta-based shipping company said it will spend $175 million on improvements that include beefed-up operations on the day after Thanksgiving, more sorting facilities and sped-up deployment of software designed to help drivers find the quickest route to a destination."
Wait, UPS will spend $175 million to put GPS units in their drivers hands and to hire more people to speed up operations? That sounds like a very stupid way to spend $175 million.
I'm no economics expert but I know enough to see what the problem is.
In the digital age (God I hate saying that) Brick and Mortar establishments are being replaced with internet retailers and what I call E-Services. The Postal Services biggest foe is Email and text messaging while UPS has an enemy called consumer choice. Naturally, businesses want to save money and when you sell exclusively on the web, you really need to count your nickels when it comes to how you ship your products. I have personally shipped over 500 items using the USPS and to my knowledge nothing went wrong at all. If the tracking data says "delivery date of 07/07/14," that package will likely be there on 07/06/14. Most Americans don't throw away money which is why, as a business I ship with USPS 100% of the time.
The problem is that UPS can't compete with the United States Postal Service. Sure, the USPS is billions in debt thanks to the federal government but I have not had any problems with the USPS for as long as I can remember. The Mail Man never failed and every day, you could almost predict when he would come down the street. My Mail Man arrives around 11:00AM 6 days a week. Although driving the same route 250+ days a year probably would drive most humans insane, the men and women of the USPS do it and rarely make mistakes or have delays. Once big web retailers stop having exclusive shipping contracts with FedEx, DHL or UPS, all these companies will see their stock prices plummet. I know several web stores that ship using only UPS. This means I need to pay $20.00 for UPS instead of $16.00 for USPS.
UPS, FedEx and other couriers should envy the USPS because what the Post Office has, is everything other couriers need in order to stay in business.
-The USPS has a well established logistical system that makes sure that packages and paper mail arrive on time and intact.
-Getting a job with the USPS is not easy but the pay is amazing. (I know this because I wanted to work for the USPS when I was 19 and I got all the way up to the interview process before life happened and changed my career objectives). According to Glassdoor.com, a City Mail Carrier's avg salary is $54,852. UPS pays their drivers an average salary of $74,326 according to Glassdoor.com. I assume that is full time pay.
- Go onto Google Maps and search for "UPS Drop Off Locations Near Me." When I did it, the nearest drop off location was 10 miles from me in Torrington CT and there are less than 8 UPS locations in a 30 mile area of me. There are just as few FedEx locations in the same area.
To contrast, the USPS has 9 Post offices within 10 miles of me and 14 of the blue collection boxes within 5 miles of me. Also, I can always hand my packages to my Mail Man when he delivers my mail.
-UPS and FedEx are both more expensive than the USPS. To ship a package that weighs 10lbs in a "Large" box using a 2 day service, it would cost $66.41 for FedEx 2-Day, $70.72 for UPS 2nd Day Air, and just $17.45 for USPS Priority Mail 2nd Day. Even UPS Ground is more expensive at $20.51.
-FedEx and UPS both are unreliable and I know this from personal experience. When my fiancé and I moved to Florida, FedEx was who was shipping some of our newly ordered furniture. There were issues 2 different times where FedEx sent our furniture to two different states and locations. It took over 20 days before we could stop sleeping on an air mattress. UPS once sent a package from its pick up location in NYC to Orlando FL, then to some place in Puerto Rico and then to Massachusetts and then, after 3 weeks, I finally got my item. I could have driven to the shippers business, got my item and been home in less than 15 hours. The only issue with the USPS I've had is when ordering something from Alaska. It was supposed to arrive in 5 days but it took 14 days.
-My family filed a complaint against the UPS after one of their drivers threw a gallon of paint at our door because he was to lazy to walk 15' from his truck to the doorstep. The paint leaked and caused $1,700+ worth of damage that the UPS had to pay for. More than once UPS has delivered a package that was dented, ripped and even partially destroyed.
-Both the UPS and FedEx have customer service that is worse than the Cable company. If I have any problems with the USPS, I can call their toll free number or walk into my local post office and speak with a supervisor. When someone robbed my mailbox earlier this month, I went to file a claim with the Postmaster at my local post office. The clerk immediately got a supervisor for me and he had the paperwork filled out and everything in less than 10 minutes.
Of course the USPS has its share of problems. They are B-R-O-K-E. Well, the USPS is too big to fail anyway and Job security is pretty much a standard benefit of any government job. The USPS has a supply and a demand that will always be around. People and businesses need to mail things and people and business need to have things mailed to them. The federal government will continue to drive the USPS into a financial black hole but I guess money doesn't really mean anything when you have actually cornered the market.
Thanks for reading.
Friday, July 25, 2014
Understanding the Role of Profit and People in the Marketplace.
7/25/14
Business.
"Income inequality" "People over profit" "We are the 99%" Do any of those little phrases ring any bells? Now more than ever, tens of millions of Americans are feeling the pain of big government and horrible economic and social policies. A small group of people (the 1%) makes their money off the labor of the Working Class and the Consumer (the 99%). I don't really buy into the nonsense of the Anti-Capitalism movement but I understand the frustration and anger that the folks in OWS (for example) are consumed with. I am a believer of the free market. I am not very fond of federal taxes and I don't support much of the federal regulations and statues for very good reason. Big government is bad for small business, that is a fact. In fact big government is bad for ALL businesses*
Business.
"Income inequality" "People over profit" "We are the 99%" Do any of those little phrases ring any bells? Now more than ever, tens of millions of Americans are feeling the pain of big government and horrible economic and social policies. A small group of people (the 1%) makes their money off the labor of the Working Class and the Consumer (the 99%). I don't really buy into the nonsense of the Anti-Capitalism movement but I understand the frustration and anger that the folks in OWS (for example) are consumed with. I am a believer of the free market. I am not very fond of federal taxes and I don't support much of the federal regulations and statues for very good reason. Big government is bad for small business, that is a fact. In fact big government is bad for ALL businesses*
*Unless you are one of the cronies who have kissed a lot of D.C. ass and bribed your way into the pockets of legislators. Cough cough, Warren Buffet, George Soros, Mark Zuckerberg..Ahemm Achoo! Terms and conditions may apply.
Don't you just love the fine print? Okay, so what's the bottom line? Is profit a bad thing? Are the rich people not taxed enough? Politics need to take a back seat with this. Let me explain how things work in the real world:
- Profit is necessary and without profit, there are no people. ("people" refers to both the employee and the consumer) I am really tired of the people who protest companies like Walmart while at the same time using their Apple Iphone to record and upload pictures and video of the protest. Here is an idea for you, if you don't like the practices of a certain company, don't seek employment there and don't shop there. Spending your hard earned, overly inflated worthless currency at other establishments speaks much louder than the Obama loving loon with the Guy Fawkes mask and the megaphone. The truth is that a person who creates something like a successful business will always get very rich, while the people who work for him will simply make an honest middle class wage.
- The minimum wage is not a living wage and that does not mean that raising the minimum wage from $8.00/hr to $12.00/hr will fix any social injustices. Most working class Americans make over the minimum wage to begin with. My 22 year old fiance worked at a retail clothing store from 2009 to 2011. She started out making the minimum wage ($8.50 or so at the time) and every year she would get a $0.25 raise if her employee review was "5 star." Now she works at a daycare and makes $10.10/hr. She recently completed her CDA and if she gets hired by a school, she could make between $14.00/hr and $18.00/hr. So by the time that she is 25 years old, she could be making $45,000 a year. I am self employed but still have 2 separate degrees and 4 certifications that have led to job offers in retail sales that would pay me $52,000 a year.
- Having skills, certifications, degrees and experience is what leads to employment that will provide you with a living wage. That is the point I was making in the above bullet point. Don't ever expect to make over $20,000 a year if you only have a GED.
- There is a difference between being a Capitalist and being a Crony.
- If you don't understand how a business works, how do you know that the CEO of a business can afford to pay his employees more? Have you ever considered the reality that wages are competitively based upon factors such as the laws of supply and demand? The reason a fast food restaurant burger flipper only makes minimum wage is because his job requires minimal skill or knowledge and the employer knows that there are thousands of potential employees who will work at that wage. If the position is lets say, Warehouse Logistics Coordinator and calls for an employee with a 4 year degree in that field, who is bilingual, has a CDL and OSHA forklift operators certificate, the pay will be higher.
- Abundance=cheap, scarcity=expensive. A person with only a GED is worth less than a person with a High School diploma and 2 years of college. The dude at Burger King probably can't figure that out but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand why income inequality exists.
- Income Inequality is not a bad thing and it naturally exists in the free market. Income Inequality simply mean that some people make more money than other people. There will always be a few rich people and a lot of not-rich people, it is just the way of the world. If you don't like being "poor" then you need to figure out a way to not be "poor." I didn't make over $32,700 in 2011 by doing nothing and I don't expect to make money by doing nothing.
The American economy would not exist without Capitalism. Fairness is not a principle that can exist in any economy unless you want to live in a country with bread lines and water rationing. Economies thrive and people prosper because of the principles of the Free Market and Capitalism. Why do you think all communist countries have failed? What we have here, in America, is the greatest thing on Gods earth. Don't wish it all away based on some Liberal Progressive Neo-Marxist bullshit that idiots like Elisabeth Warren vomit into the microphone.
- fggInorsosvhh
Sunday, July 20, 2014
The Truth about Prepparedness and Survival.
7/20/14
Preparedness.
Many Americans are not prepared for anything. They live in the moment and want instant gratification. "Long Term" is not in their vocabulary and TEOTW/Disasaters are a SciFi genres to them. Most Americans only care about Hurricane Katrina or Sandy for as long as the MSM reports on it and once the coverage stops, people move on to the next "distraction."
Turn off the TV and pay attention. EF5 Tornadoes, category 4 Hurricanes, massive wildfires, pandemics...These are just a few examples of real types of disasters. Real disasters that have happened many times before and will happen many times in your future. People die, property is destroyed, lives are turned upside down and in some cases, life as you and I know it will never be the same.
Here's an eye opening test for you. Go to your local mall and ask random strangers questions like "Which contestant lost in the season finale of (Insert current popular show). I guarantee you that they would know without having to look it up. Then I want you to ask the same person "How many people died in New Orleans because of Hurricane Katrina?" Do you think they would know? I bet they would be shocked when you tell them that 1,833 people died.
Hurricane Sandy killed 286 people.
The 1900 Galveston hurricane killed upwards of 12,000 people.
"The Great Pandemic" sounds like a Zombie Apocalypse thriller doesn't it. Well what if I told you that "The Great Pandemic" was the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic that killed over 40 million people world wide. (Some experts say that 100 million people died). It killed more people in 24 weeks than AIDS had killed in 24 years.
The 1968 "Hong Kong Flu" Pandemic killed 33,800 people in the USA and infected 15% of the Hong Kong population.
The bottom line is that bad things can and will happen. Mother Nature is a violent merciless bitch. Do you think the government can help everyone affected? The pathetic response to what happened after Katrina wasn't the fault of President Bush. Our government may have the infrastructure and supplies but our gov't does not have a clue on how to respond and initiate recovery in an effective way. You know how I know that the government can't help you? Because I remember what happened in New Orleans. I was there when Hurricane Irene and Sandy hit and I think of them as educators. I wasn't a prepper then, but I am now. I didn't have a grid down plan, I do now. By being prepared, I can avoid the negative affects of a disaster. It's not crazy at all.
I keep hearing that the government hates preppers and I think...That's BS. The gov't has websites like Ready.gov which are dedicated to personal preparedness! The problem is that the Entertainment Industry has eroded the minds of so many people. Doomsday Preppers is NOT who I am. Solar Flares, Zombies and Invasions OH MY! It's all a load of crap. I'm not saying those things wont happen and in fact a solar flare did cause chaos in the 1800's. What I am saying is: stay real. I live in CT so I prepare for disasters that are relevant to my area. Wildfires don't happen here the way they happen out west. We don't get earthquakes or major flooding and we rarely get tornadoes. We do get blizzards, hurricanes, Nor'easters, thunderstorms and heavy rains. There are some nuclear power plants inside my 300mi Zone and a NukeBioChem disaster could happen, even though it isn't likely. If the Economy collapses, it will have horrible consequences in CT because of the high unemployment, high poverty and horrible government.
Right now, there is an invasion of Illegal Aliens at our Southern Border. States like TX, NM, AZ and CA are the ones directly affected, states like CT are not...At least not yet.
So, how can you prepare? You need to know what historically impacts your area. Know your surroundings, population density, economic situation and geographical area. I like the 300mi Zone plan because that is about the range my vehicle has on a full tank of gas. The best advice I can give you is to educate yourself. Go get some training, EMT-B or something like that. Everyone in your family should be certified for CPR/AED/Basic First Aid through the American Red Cross.
Like I said, forget about the stuff on TV. Unless you really want to, you don't need to have more than 1 year worth of food and water. I wont tell you the extent of the preparations and planning for my family because of this thing called OpSec but I will advise that you buy the following if you want to have the basics of preparedness for 1 month:
Call me crazy, call me paranoid; I don't care. One of these days you will be happy that you took the necessary steps to be prepared too.
Thanks for reading.
Keep Calm and Prep On!
Preparedness.
Many Americans are not prepared for anything. They live in the moment and want instant gratification. "Long Term" is not in their vocabulary and TEOTW/Disasaters are a SciFi genres to them. Most Americans only care about Hurricane Katrina or Sandy for as long as the MSM reports on it and once the coverage stops, people move on to the next "distraction."
Turn off the TV and pay attention. EF5 Tornadoes, category 4 Hurricanes, massive wildfires, pandemics...These are just a few examples of real types of disasters. Real disasters that have happened many times before and will happen many times in your future. People die, property is destroyed, lives are turned upside down and in some cases, life as you and I know it will never be the same.
Here's an eye opening test for you. Go to your local mall and ask random strangers questions like "Which contestant lost in the season finale of (Insert current popular show). I guarantee you that they would know without having to look it up. Then I want you to ask the same person "How many people died in New Orleans because of Hurricane Katrina?" Do you think they would know? I bet they would be shocked when you tell them that 1,833 people died.
Hurricane Sandy killed 286 people.
The 1900 Galveston hurricane killed upwards of 12,000 people.
"The Great Pandemic" sounds like a Zombie Apocalypse thriller doesn't it. Well what if I told you that "The Great Pandemic" was the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic that killed over 40 million people world wide. (Some experts say that 100 million people died). It killed more people in 24 weeks than AIDS had killed in 24 years.
The 1968 "Hong Kong Flu" Pandemic killed 33,800 people in the USA and infected 15% of the Hong Kong population.
The bottom line is that bad things can and will happen. Mother Nature is a violent merciless bitch. Do you think the government can help everyone affected? The pathetic response to what happened after Katrina wasn't the fault of President Bush. Our government may have the infrastructure and supplies but our gov't does not have a clue on how to respond and initiate recovery in an effective way. You know how I know that the government can't help you? Because I remember what happened in New Orleans. I was there when Hurricane Irene and Sandy hit and I think of them as educators. I wasn't a prepper then, but I am now. I didn't have a grid down plan, I do now. By being prepared, I can avoid the negative affects of a disaster. It's not crazy at all.
I keep hearing that the government hates preppers and I think...That's BS. The gov't has websites like Ready.gov which are dedicated to personal preparedness! The problem is that the Entertainment Industry has eroded the minds of so many people. Doomsday Preppers is NOT who I am. Solar Flares, Zombies and Invasions OH MY! It's all a load of crap. I'm not saying those things wont happen and in fact a solar flare did cause chaos in the 1800's. What I am saying is: stay real. I live in CT so I prepare for disasters that are relevant to my area. Wildfires don't happen here the way they happen out west. We don't get earthquakes or major flooding and we rarely get tornadoes. We do get blizzards, hurricanes, Nor'easters, thunderstorms and heavy rains. There are some nuclear power plants inside my 300mi Zone and a NukeBioChem disaster could happen, even though it isn't likely. If the Economy collapses, it will have horrible consequences in CT because of the high unemployment, high poverty and horrible government.
Right now, there is an invasion of Illegal Aliens at our Southern Border. States like TX, NM, AZ and CA are the ones directly affected, states like CT are not...At least not yet.
So, how can you prepare? You need to know what historically impacts your area. Know your surroundings, population density, economic situation and geographical area. I like the 300mi Zone plan because that is about the range my vehicle has on a full tank of gas. The best advice I can give you is to educate yourself. Go get some training, EMT-B or something like that. Everyone in your family should be certified for CPR/AED/Basic First Aid through the American Red Cross.
Like I said, forget about the stuff on TV. Unless you really want to, you don't need to have more than 1 year worth of food and water. I wont tell you the extent of the preparations and planning for my family because of this thing called OpSec but I will advise that you buy the following if you want to have the basics of preparedness for 1 month:
- Bottled Water
- Food
- Charcoal Grill and charcoal
- medical supplies
- household cleaning supplies
- 5 gallon buckets
- 70% wool blankets
- Candles
- Flashlights and batteries
- Lighters and stick matches
- Portable Emergency Radio
- 5 gallon fuel container
- Tools (household and vehicle)
- Firearms and ammunition
- Trash bags
- Board games, playing cards and toys
I will elaborate on emergency supplies in another blog post.
Call me crazy, call me paranoid; I don't care. One of these days you will be happy that you took the necessary steps to be prepared too.
Thanks for reading.
Keep Calm and Prep On!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)