When The S*** Hits the Fan

Building An #Igloo Alone: “Survive In Ice and Snow”

May 30, 2016 by mac slavo

Screen shot 2016-05-30 at 2.22.02 AM

OK, I know it isn’t anywhere near winter, and there aren’t many people reading this site who live in or even visit the remote tundras of the extreme north and south of this planet.

However, I find it fascinating how people have figured out how to survive and thrive with next to nothing.

Shaping an igloo out of blocks of ice cut from the snow covered surface is a great example, and has many survivalist and SHTF applications for those who find themselves in extreme climates. Besides that, it is just cool.

This man shows how it can be done by anyone – even alone:


YouTube channel: Overthehill Outdoors

Traditional development of igloos by Inuit tribes migrating across a vast frozen wasteland no doubt followed a formative conversation sometime early on addressing how desolate was their setting, and how little there was to work with.

“But we have nothing but snow and ice.”

“Then we shall build with ice and snow.”

And so the idea occurred to someone that with nothing else around, the ice itself offered a valuable resource as protection against the blinding winds and extreme conditions of the area. Clearly, it was born out of necessity, but became beautifully mastered over time.

Surrounded by little else, the stuff itself offered insulation, warmth and shelter. And with it, a way of surviving for people in harsh environments.

How the careful crafting of this snow and ice turns around into a secure yet temporary,  and if desired, long-term location is no small wonder. Nature had to be reverse engineered.

The principles of construction are as solid as any other building material, and the practical use by man with only limited tools is nothing short of miraculous.

If nothing can be simply and skillfully transformed into life supporting stuff there, then it can be done anywhere.

Here’s a video showing it in timelapse:


Youtube channel: Daniel Kessler

Has anyone here actually tried to build one?

Read more:

The Prepper’s Blueprint: This is the Code to Live By In Order to Survive Anything

Are You Prepared to Survive in the Wilderness Alone? “Natural Shelter, Blend In”

“Simple Offers Freedom”: Building a $500 Cabin Without a Permit

Living Free Without Permission: “Building Without a Permit, Driving Without a License”

shtfplan.com

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: bug out, build, construct, Emergency Preparedness, escape, eskimo, Headline News, ICE, igloo, shelter, solo, survival, survive, temporary, tundra, wilderness, winter

Fed Up With #Traffic? Highway “Straddling Bus” Would Carry 1400, Allow Cars to Drive Underneath

May 28, 2016 by mac slavo

traffic-meme

Innovation is the only way out of tough jams.

And few problems are more frustrating and impeding than traffic.

A company in China has designed and developed plans to launch a giant bus that would be elevated above the highway, straddling rails and even allowing other cars on the highway to pass underneath.

The futuristic rail-bus could carry as many as 1,400 and may someday prove to be a great solution for alleviating traffic – all without the need to build expensive new infrastructure.

via the London Guardian:

A Beijing company has unveiled spectacularly futuristic designs for a pollution-busting, elevated bus capable of gliding over the nightmarish mega-jams for which urban China has become notorious.

Plans for the so-called Transit Explore Bus or TEB were showcased earlier this month at a technology expo in the Chinese capital.

The “straddling bus”, which owes more to Blade Runner than China’s car-clogged highways, is supported by two legs that run along rails laid along the roadside.

Those legs allow the TEB’s giant frame to glide high above the gridlock at speeds of up to 60km per hour. Equally, vehicles that are less than two metres high will be able to drive freely underneath the bus, even when it is stationary.

“The biggest advantage is that the bus will save lots of road space,” Song Youzhou, the project’s chief engineer, told Xinhua, China’s official news agency.

It isn’t clear when the inventive bus could appear on Chinese roads, but it may be a worthwhile solution.

Experts claim it will be drastically less expensive than expanding underground subway tunnels or adding lanes.

Here’s a video of how the Transit Explore Bus might look like in action:

Instead, this bohemoth could be added to existing roadways with the simple addition of rail, and may prove to help with traffic woes.

What do you think?

Can highway travel be improved, or is everything doomed to simply grind to a halt?

Meanwhile, self-driving cars and other forms of automation are geared up to take over travel and revolutionize, for better or worse, they way people and stuff gets moved around.

Read more:

Self-Driving Cars Programmed to Sacrifice As They Hit the Road: “Someone Is Going to Die”

New Legislation Would Place Breathalyzers in All New Cars: “Drunk Driving Demands Bold Action”

Could You Escape Your Vehicle In a Disaster? “The Potential Is All Too Real”

shtfplan.com

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: china, Emergency Preparedness, future, Headline News, highway, innovations, inventions, jams, self-driving cars, traffic, travel

6 #Prepper Laws You Should Never Break: “Things You Need To Have Ready”

May 28, 2016 by mac slavo

prepping-101-kellene-590x331

Prepping? You should be thinking about what you might need.

But focusing all your time and energy on the wrong priorities can leave you just as ill-prepared as if you had done nothing at all.

City Prepping shares his top 6 priorities for being ready – starting with the most obvious necessities and working towards an expanded plan for survival in case of the worst.

Whether or not you agree with his specific order of operations, starting with a solid foundation and working towards the more extravagant possibilities is a good way to plan and develop skills.

Becoming fully prepared is an ongoing process and will undoubtedly require a lot of effort on your part, but starting here will make sure you can survive most situations, as further steps will cover the less likely “what ifs.”

Check out the video:

  1. Water is an absolute necessity, and drinking unsanitary water will make you sick. Make sure you have plan to have enough clean water. Store it, treat it, purify it, have access to it. How much water do you need? 1 gallon per person per day for drinking, cooking, sanitation and the like. Water preservative can help keep it long term, and make sure it doesn’t become contaminated.
  2. Storable Food. Extra food can be built up gradually a few cans at a time, and rotated out. Get items that you would actually eat, and balance your needs between protein, fats and carbs. Many canned foods have lots of  extra sodium, which requires more water to balance out. In the event of a power outage or other emergency, eat the perishable foods you have on hand first, since they will of course go bad soonest.
    1. -How will you cook your food? Keep extra fuel and useful stoves, grills, etc. on hand that aren’t reliant on the electric grid, or far away resources that would take a lot of effort to gather or obtain.
    2. -Where to store food an water? Basements, closets, under stair storage space, etc. to keep it cool and away from sunlight.
  3. Medical care preps, supplies, equipment and, of course, skills. First aid kits and basic medical skills, including C.P.R., are essential. Know how to handle major and minor cuts, stop bleeding and keep wounds from becoming infected. Learn how to clear an airway, when and how to use a tourniquet and take classes from your local medical authorities if you can. Know how to treat shock, since it is very common during stressful situations – and basically anything that falls under SHTF.
  4. Having cash on hands. If/when the grid goes down, credit cards and online payment systems will be out altogether.
  5. Securing your home. The widespread instability will leave countless people desperate and willing to invade your home and/or attack your family or group. Avoid conflict when possible, but have firearms and other weapons to defend your family, your preps and your property. What type of gun is best for you is a matter of preference, training and the amount you are willing to invest; however, ideally you would want a rifle or shotgun as well as a handgun, among other options. Train and continue to train as much as possible.
  6. Prepare to bug out (but don’t leave unless it becomes necessary). Bugging out early and without need could put you in greater danger of exposure to the elements or bad circumstances, and your home may be the best place to stay. Nevertheless, you should have your bug out bag and plan ready to go, and execute when the time is right. It should provide all your vital needs for 72 hours, and will be different for each person and geographic area.

Tailor this list to your own specific needs, and do your due diligence to be ready for whatever may come.

Stay vigilant and protect those that you love.

Read more:

The Prepper’s Blueprint: Step-by-Step Guide to Prepare You for Any Disaster

How to Start Prepping Without Breaking the Bank: “All About Self-Reliance”

“All The Prepping In The World Is Immaterial If You Don’t Survive Long Enough For Your Supplies & Planning To Matter”

10 Prepping Mistakes That Could Get You Killed (And How To Avoid Them)

shtfplan.com

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: apocalyptic, bug out bag, capsule, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, disaster, Emergency Preparedness, food storage, Headline News, lost, prepping, SHTF, stranded, survival, tsunami, water, wilderness

This #Survival Capsule Could Insulate You Against Any Disaster: “More Control Than Safe Houses”

May 27, 2016 by mac slavo

tsunami-bomb

Depending on your outlook, this could be the ultimate in survival gear.

In the wake of an extreme threat – such as a tsunami or earthquake – this capsule could be the best place to withstand the impact, no matter what.

It is water-tight. It is extremely durable. It floats, and it can withstand against the impact of super-strong winds, crashes, heat and many other factors.

For the right price, it could hold between two and ten people, protecting them from literally just about anything that could come your way.

As the London Guardian reports:

The Survival Capsule – a personal safety system in the form of a giant ball – has been designed to combat this issue.

This capsule, which features two small porthole windows so the occupants can see what is going on around them, was created to give individual groups and families more control of their survival in emergency situation than traditional ‘safe houses.’

It is designed to float so it will never be inundated by water levels rising too high, as they do in tsunami situations.

[…]

The sphere is designed to withstand the initial impact of a natural disaster, as well as sharp object penetration, heat exposure, blunt object impact, and rapid deceleration.

Occupants are strapped in to the seats with crash-test proof seat belts and can expect to survive in spite of rampant destruction and perhaps unsurvivable conditions.

It appears that the unfortunate loss of life and vast property destruction that took place during some of the most recent tsunamis inspired the ball’s inventors to hedge against all possibilities.

Since earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes, hurricanes and other extreme weather events seem to be increasing right now, particularly surrounding the Ring of Fire, that could be a good thing.

Watch the video:

The test model is bright red and would be easily spotted by rescue crews once they arrive for clean-up after the event, though it could be camouflaged for those who also want to stay off the radar after a SHTF situation in which the political situation may be part of the threat.

Read more:

The Prepper’s Blueprint: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Survive Any Disaster

The Ultimate Prepper Bug Out Home

Elite Bunker Down in “Secure, Safe Rooms Hidden in Plain Sight”… And You Can, Too

The Safest Areas in America: An Expanded Western Relocation Zone

Nukes and Fallout: How to Survive When Others Won’t

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: apocalyptic, capsule, disaster, Emergency Preparedness, Headline News, lost, SHTF, stranded, survival, tsunami, wilderness

“Slacking Off”: Young Adults Living In Parents’ Basement Most Common For First Time Ever

May 25, 2016 by mac slavo

** MUST LINK BACK http://www.newyorker.com/ ** ** MUST CREDIT THE NEW YORKER ** ** NO CROPPING MUST BE PUBLISHED FULL FRAME ** A Rising Share of Young Adults Live in Their Parents’ Home A Record 21.6 Million In 2012 by Richard Fry OVERVIEW SDT-millennials-with-parents-08-2013-01In 2012, 36% of the nation’s young adults ages 18 to 31—the so-called Millennial generation—were living in their parents’ home, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. This is the highest share in at least four decades and represents a slow but steady increase over the 32% of their same-aged counterparts who were living at home prior to the Great Recession in 2007 and the 34% doing so when it officially ended in 2009. A record total of 21.6 million Millennials lived in their parents’ home in 2012, up from 18.5 million of their same aged counterparts in 2007. Of these, at least a third and perhaps as many as half are college students. (In the census data used for this analysis, college students who live in dormitories during the academic year are counted as living with their parents). Younger Millennials (ages 18 to 24) are much more likely than older ones (ages 25 to 31) to be living with their parents—56% versus 16%. Since the onset of the 2007-2009 recession, both age groups have experienced a rise in this living arrangement. The men of the Millennial generation are more likely than the women to be living with their parents—40% versus 32%—continuing a long-term gender gap in the share of young adults who do so.1

Covert art: The New Yorker

Moving into the basement or prolonging a stay in a childhood bedroom filled with outgrown toys and posters used to be a last resort for struggling 20-somethings, but now it is officially the most common situation for millennials and even those in the their early 30s.

These cold statistics reveal not only a brutal economy with few good job prospects, but a generation that is failing to branch out and start a new life on their own – a necessary phase of continuity in the human species.

All of this paints a grim future and a disappearing American Dream.

According to the Associated Press:

Many of America’s young adults appear to be in no hurry to move out of their old bedrooms.

For the first time on record, living with parents is now the most common arrangement for people ages 18 to 34, an analysis of census data by the Pew Research Center has found.

And the proportion of older millennials — those ages 25 to 34 — who are living at home has reached its highest point (19 percent) on record, Pew analysts said.

The vicious cycle between an economy that is too brutal to make young adults comfortable and secure enough to start out on their own is also further declining as 20-somethings and 30-somethings shelter in place and avoid consumption, spending, investment, etc.:

The pattern may be a contributing factor in the sluggish growth of the U.S. economy, which depends heavily on consumer spending. With more young people living with their parents rather than on their own, fewer people need to buy appliances, furniture or cable subscriptions. The recovery from the 2008-09 recession has been hobbled by historically low levels of home construction and home ownership.

Millennials are also putting off buying cars, buying houses, getting married, having kids and other grown up activities that used to be a default of adult life for the majority of Americans.

Instead, it is a future of mostly singles with a tough time finding the jobs they want to become careers.

To her parents, it looks as though she’s slacking off.

“It’s definitely a generation gap,” she said. “I think they literally think I just sit down and watch Netflix all day.”

Along with that goes a later and later average age for marrying and having kids, further stalling the birth rate which has already fallen sharply below the replacement rate of 2.1 children per couple.

Instead, we are entering a dark future where “me” comes before any other unit of society, and nearly everyone is becoming a self-absorbed and self-centered automaton whose closest relationship is with a smart phone.

Is it too conspiratorial to suggest that governments will have a far easier time controlling everyone with a nation full of (adult) children?

If people never grow up enough to move out on their own, how can they be prepared to deal with emergencies of any kind, face dangers and problems or, gasp, help others to deal with the harsh realities of life, too?

shtfplan.com

Read more:

As the Middle Class Dies, Millennials Give Up: “The American Dream Is Not Really Alive”

Can’t-Do Generation: “Expect Everything to Just Work,” and Throw Out What They Can’t Fix

29 Percent Of All U.S. Adults Under The Age Of 35 Are Living With Their Parents

shtfplan.com

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: basement, college, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, Emergency Preparedness, Headline News, high school, living with parents, loans, marriage, student debt, unemployment

Armed #Patriots Prepare to Defend Against #Federal Encroachment: “This Is The Beginning of The Revolution”

May 25, 2016 by mac slavo

bundy ranch cowboys

It seems that many voices within the federal government are quite concerned about the growing patriot movement throughout the country, and especially in rural strongholds where land and liberty go hand and hand.

More events like the Bundy Ranch standoff seem likely to occur, as the BLM and other agencies show no sign of changing policies, and more and more individuals are waking up to the abuses and tyrannies taking place.

It is isn’t just hypothetical – environmental regulations and bureaucratic land management continues to undermine ranchers and farmers who are, in many cases, forced out of business or taxed & penalized to death.

Many are refusing to take it lying down, and groups across the country are training and preparing in case of the worst – a standoff with the feds over land and their very way of life.

According to the Washington Post:

Deep in the heart of a vast U.S. military training ground, surrounded by spent shotgun shells and juniper trees blasted to shreds, the Central Oregon Constitutional Guard was conducting its weekly firearms training.

“The intent is to be able to work together and defend ourselves if we need to,” said Soper, 40, a building contractor who is an emerging leader in a growing national movement rooted in distrust of the federal government, one that increasingly finds itself in armed conflicts with authorities.

Those in the movement call themselves patriots, demanding that the federal government adhere to the Constitution and stop what they see as systematic abuse of land rights, gun rights, freedom of speech and other liberties.

Law enforcement officials call them dangerous, delusional and sometimes violent, and say that their numbers are growing amid a wave of anger at the government that has been gaining strength since 2008, a surge that coincided with the election of the first black U.S. president and a crippling economic recession.

[…]

“It doesn’t say in our Constitution that you can’t stand up and defend yourself,” Soper said. “We’ve let the government step over the line and rule us, and that was never the intent of this country.”

That virulent strain of resistance, despite being the very stuff the country was founded upon and which much of its character is made up of, has the government and its supporting voices quite worried.

The powers-that-be are downright freaked out that so many individuals are willing to put their life on the line for principled reasons… and recognize the historical dilemma between quelling a rebellion and creating martyrs that can, in turn, inspire more to stand up.

The Washington Post spent thousands of words on the growing conflict, which organizations like the Southern Poverty Law Center and Anti-Defamation League see as a “second wave” of the violent militia movement they say characterized the atmosphere surrounding Waco, Ruby Ridge and the Oklahoma City Bombing:

The movement received a huge boost from the 2014 standoff at Cliven Bundy’s ranch in Nevada […] Bundy’s supporters claimed victory and were emboldened to stage similar armed face-offs last year at gold mines in Oregon and Montana.

In January, dozens of armed occupiers, led by Bundy’s sons Ammon and Ryan, took over the headquarters buildings of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge…

[…]

Shortly after the Bundy ranch confrontation, two of Bundy’s supporters who had been at the ranch, Jerad and Amanda Miller, killed two police officers and a civilian and also died in a Las Vegas shooting rampage. Police said the couple left a note on the body of one the officers they had shot point-blank.

It said: “This is the beginning of the revolution.”

Of course, it is important to note that the SPLC and groups like it love to conflate together radical individuals like the Millers – who were suspect to the Bundy Ranch crowd and asked to disassociate and leave the site long before they ever carried out their Bonnie and Clyde-like massacre.

Most people lumped into this category are nothing like Jerad and Amanda Miller, who sought conflict.

But one thing that is common to nearly everyone is a sense of being fed up. People recognize that there is a problem, that tyranny is taking place, and are on watch for potential abuses from the government.

Whatever happens next, these constitutionally-minded patriots are prepared. They are training with guns, survival skills, communications and working out scenarios.

Everyone in the group keeps 30 days’ worth of food and emergency supplies on hand. Group members learn gardening and raising livestock. They go camping and learn survival tactics, including how to fashion a shelter, find food and water, and make a fire.

McNeely and Lisa Soper are taking an emergency medical technician class to learn to treat wounds, including combat trauma. They all are working on getting ham-radio licenses to communicate in the event that the cellphone network fails.

But a bedrock of their mission is to be an armed and trained paramilitary force. Soper said group members train on “basic infantry” skills: “working a patrol, patrolling with a vehicle, arriving at ‘contact’ and how to protect yourself and escape from that.”

“We are not soldiers,” Soper said. “But we know the basics.”

B.J. Soper, who was heavily profiled in the Washington Post story, typifies the sense of disillusionment with how far the federal government has gone, and how important the role of complacency among the populace has been – until now:

“I was very disappointed with myself,” he said. “I realized that we’re here in the predicament that we’re in as a country because my generation, and my parents’ generation, have done nothing. We let this happen. We got used to our cushy lives where everything’s easy. We have forgotten what’s really important. We’ve forgotten what liberty and freedom really mean.”

It was like being shaken out of a lifetime of slumber, he said: “Before 2014, I was blind. I wasn’t awake. I wasn’t paying attention. But Bundy Ranch woke me up.”

Suddenly, his weekends watching the San Francisco 49ers or the Portland Trail Blazers seemed like anesthesia numbing him against real life.

[…]

Soper, who carries a pocket Constitution with him everywhere, said he thinks the Constitution does not give the federal government the right to own land, and that the government’s increasing emphasis on environmental regulations is putting ranchers, miners, loggers and others out of work and devastating local economies.

“We need to be able to raise and grow food,” Soper said. “Wealth comes from the land. I want to take into consideration endangered frogs. But at the same time, that frog can’t be more important than the survival of the human race.”

In past years, these media outlets and so-called “watchdogs” have relied heavily on trying to make those in the patriot movement appear “crazy” and “deranged”… but that really won’t work anymore. Ordinary people everywhere can see what is going on through streaming video and information on the Internet.

Not everyone is perfect, but there is a real honest backbone of genuine concern about the direction things have taken in this country.

The federal government has amassed incredible centralized power, and there is an attempt to undermine liberty.

There are many who are getting prepared and staying vigilant, for whatever may come.

Read more:

The Prepper’s Blueprint: Prepare for Anything that Comes Your Way

Harry Reid Calls Cliven Bundy Supporters “Domestic Terrorists”

Federal Snipers Train Guns on Family For Filming Cattle: “Outside the Bounds of Designated First Amendment Area”

FedGov Moves To Seize Water Rights From 100,000 Montanans: “All Surface Water And Wells”

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: armed, bundy, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, constitution, Emergency Preparedness, federal government, Headline News, land, militia, patriots, ranchers, standoff, training

#SHTF In #Movies: “Lost, Wrecked and Left Alone to Survive”

May 20, 2016 by mac slavo

train-wreck-dead-bankers

When it comes to prepping for a truly serious SHTF, experience is the best teacher.

Planning, preparation and learning from experts is also critical.

But can cinema also be a good teacher?

Obviously there are plenty of things in the average Hollywood flick that are ridiculous and far from accurate when it comes to real-life disaster scenarios.

But others have gone to great lengths to be as realistic as possible, and seeing these situations play out on the big screen, before the real stuff happens, can be a great way to start thinking about what you would do in a similar situation, if you ever found yourself in it.

Many of them are pure survival films after being lost in the wilderness, others are prepper-minded but all are thought provoking and depict the kind of desperate scenarios that may well occur someday.

(in alphabetical order)
All is Lost (starring Robert Redford)
Cast Away (starring Tom Hanks)
Goodbye World
Panic Room (starring Jodie Foster)
Red Dawn (starring Patrick Swayze and Charlie Sheen)
The Edge (starring Anthony Hopkins)
The Road (starring Viggo Mortenson)
The Snow Walker
The Way Back (starring Ed Harris)
Wrecked(Starring Adrian Brody)

Obviously there are many, many other great films with these themes of lost, wrecked and left alone to survive.

What do you think are the best films with a survival, prepping or SHTF mentality as a major part of the plotline?

Read more:

The Prepper’s Blueprint: The Step-by-Step Guide to Survive Anything

Preparing For Worst Case Scenarios: Using Pop Culture Media as a Forecasting and Training Tool

The Prepper Movie: When Survival Is All That’s Left

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: apocalyptic, cinema, Emergency Preparedness, films, Headline News, lost, movies, SHTF, stranded, survival, wilderness

#Democrats Fear #Violence At Convention: “Don’t Want To Go Back To ’68 #Riots”

May 19, 2016 by mac slavo

bernie-accues-hillary

Any way you slice it, the Democratic National Convention coming up in Philadelphia in late July promise to be tumultuous.

Though Hillary Clinton and the party insiders long ago expected the 2016 primary to be a formality (which conspicuously few hopefuls in the race), the grassroots voters are feverishly demanding Bernie, and vehemently against the establishment candidate who is widely known for her duplicity and dishonesty.

As California Senator Diane Feinstein makes clear in this short and sweet video below, the establishment fears the riots and backlash that could come from a contested, or at least highly protested, convention as Sen. Sanders vows to continue the fight ‘until the last ballot is cast.’

Instead, she and other figures inside the Democratic party are trying to nudge Sanders into dropping in order to save face and avoid damaging the party’s share in the duopoly of political power.

But regardless of whether Sanders pushes through until convention or not, there will be lots of angry people who remain unsatisfied with another Clinton and more of the same. Tensions have been especially high since the controversial events in Nevada last week, as CNN notes:

The public outpouring of anger began last weekend at the Nevada Democratic Party convention, where Sanders supporters who said Hillary Clinton’s backers had subverted party rules shouted down pro-Clinton speakers and sent threatening messages to state party Chairwoman Roberta Lange after posting her phone number and address on social media.

That led Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid and other top party leaders to demand an apology and publicly ruminate on the possibility of violence at the Democratic National Convention in July as they prepare for a general election battle with Donald Trump.

Commentators and politicos have also speculated on potential violence unfolding at the Republican National Convention, though that was largely before most of the GOP began to come to terms with Trump as the nominee.

Clearly, the broiling political anger, which has been heating up for years, is one of the major scenarios that riot police and other members of law enforcement have been training for for years. As Paul Joseph Watson reported:

Police advised by FEMA officials how to conduct “mass arrests”

The Department of Homeland Security oversaw a first of its kind three day training exercise in Texas this week during which police officers from fifteen different departments took part in drills on how to deal with riots and conduct mass arrests.

Although the threat of riots is real enough (it happened back in 1968 largely because the Democrats forced unlikable establishment tool Hubert Humphrey as the nominee), it also gives a pretext for larger security budgets, more riot gear and other tools and a rationale for forceful treatment of peaceful protesters exercising their rights.

The American people are angry. There are many reasons, and the shamefully rigged elections have been one of the major outlets for their outrage.

Read more:

Martial Law at Republican Convention? Riot Cops “Preparing For A Siege Rather Than Political Event”

Homeland Trains Police for Riots, Civil Unrest: “This Training Has Never Been in Texas Before”

Strapped Americans Headed for “Civil Unrest and Riots,” With Poor Spending 60% on Bare Essentials

Study Finds “Presence of Professional Protesters to Incite More Violence” in Baltimore and Ferguson

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: bernie sanders Tagged With: bernie sanders, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, convention, democrats, DNC, Emergency Preparedness, feel the bern, gear, Headline News, Hillary Clinton, police, riots, socialism, SWAT, voters

Starving #Venezuelans Fed Up With #Maduro: “We Want Food!”

May 19, 2016 by mac slavo

venezuela-food-lines

Venezuela’s problems are sure to get worse before they get better.

Right now the nation, at the hands of socialist dictator President Nicolas Maduro, is headed for the bottom.

Weeks of rationed food and electricity, a shortage of basic necessities and spiraling inflation is taking its toll, and the regime is quickly descending into all out hell.

Now, people are beyond fed up with the conditions and are moving towards support for Maduro’s ouster… that, and they want to eat… food.

It is no laughing matter. Shortages have already prompted poaching animals and looting has become widespread.

The black matter trade of goods, which stores have struggled for more than a year to keep in stock and which are rationed tightly, is an important stabilizing factor for increasingly desperate people in Venezuela.

Long lines have been the norm. Food has been in short supply. But now a new degree by Maduro is forcing people to take ration delivers at their home, door-to-door, in order to curb black market transactions.

As AFP reports:

It was around noon when a food truck rolled up… But, to the fury of the long line of people waiting out front, the cargo wasn’t unloaded. Instead soldiers took it away.

“We want food!” the crowd roared in protest, to no avail. Some tried to run after the truck.

Under the state of emergency imposed by President Nicolas Maduro, the military, along with government-organized civilian committees, ensures that food packets are delivered door-to-door in order to — as officials say — cut out black market operators.

[…]

“Here in Guarenas there were revolutionary supporters. But now the people no longer want revolution — what they want is food,” she said.

“The people are going hungry. We are tired of lining up, of killing ourselves for just a carton of eggs or some bread,” she said.

As Joshua Krause noted in his recent article, Venezuela, while far from perfect, was nonetheless fairly normal only a couple of years ago. The collapse in oil prices forced the oil rich nation into position where it could no longer sustain its system of total socialism.

Two years ago, Venezuela was a normal functioning nation, relatively speaking of course. It was by no means a free country, but the people still had a standard of living that was higher than most developing nations. Venezuelans could still afford the basic necessities of life, and a few luxuries too.

[…]

If you’re a prepper, pay close attention to what happens next. What’s playing out in Venezuela right now is the kind of worst case scenario that many of us have been preparing for in the US. It should be very informative. It just goes to show that if you live under a corrupt authoritarian government that can’t manage its resources, all it takes is a heavy ripple in the global economy to send the whole system careening over a cliff.

The emperor in Venezuela is naked, no one there is under any illusions any longer, and the empire is falling. America, you could be next.

How are your leaders dressed, and vulnerable is society really?

Get your preps together, and don’t let it happen to you if it happens here.

Read more:

Collapsing Venezuela Is Out of Food: “Prepping Became Illegal”, Long Lines Mandatory

Venezuela, Socialist Paradise in Collapse: “Rationing Food, Toiliet Paper… Now Electricity”

Raw Venezuela: Looter Burned Alive, While “Streets Filled With People Killing Animals For Food”

Venezuela: A Prepper’s Nightmare Come to Life: “Pay Close Attention To What Happens Next”

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Aftermath, chaos, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, economic collapse, Emergency Preparedness, food, goods, martial law, military, order, prices, riots, socialism, United States, venezuela

#Preppers Warn #Obama Dividing the Country: Prepare to “Live Through a Civil War”

May 19, 2016 by mac slavo

Austin Ehlinger helps hold a banner during a Guns Across America rally at the state capitol, Saturday, Jan. 19, 2013, in Austin, Texas. Texas officials opposed to new federal gun control proposals plan to speak on the steps of the state Capitol during a pro-Second Amendment rally. The event is one of many rallies planned across the country Saturday. They come four days after President Barack Obama unveiled a sweeping plan to curb gun violence. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Is civil war coming to America?

Those of us watching see the signs, and have witnessed our rights being trampled upon. That’s why so many have been prepping for what is coming.

Now a prominent prepper author is warning that Americans must also be prepared to stave off a complete divide in this country as Obama’s term is coming to an end.

According to the Washington Examiner:

President Obama has pushed the “prepper movement” into high gear, sending millions to buy guns, survival gear and food to live through a “civil war,” according to a nationally known survivalist who calls on Americans to prepare in a new book.

Bryce M. Towsley, whose “Prepper Guns” details the best weapons and ammo to survive a political or natural disaster …

[…]

“Americans are pitted against Americans as Obama has divided us on a course for civil war,” he wrote in the 270/-page hardback that echoes many of the complaints heard by supporters of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

No one knows what the flashpoint would be, but there is good reason to think that a big, disruptive event or period is coming.

There has already been violence and rioting at Trump rallies, and between the Bernie Sanders and Hillary factions… and things could easily get much crazier when the RNC and DNC conventions arrive.

But the politics are just surface indicators for the huge issues that are destroying the fabric of the nation.

Economic issues are sharpening, and good jobs are just not available for many people. The squeeze between rising living expenses and stagnate wages is making more and more families downright desperate. Automation is replacing low end jobs, and the future is going to be tough, especially for those entering into the workforce for the first time.

Riot-ready factions and political groups are forcing these issues and more into the streets, and police have become a target for protests and even direct attack.

“Police are now the enemy and, in many places, can’t or won’t continue to do their jobs. The military has been decimated and he has fired most of the top military leadership. The Supreme Court has been bought and paid for and many of its recent rulings are bizarre, to say the least.

[…]

Preppers aren’t standing by… “The time is now to prepare for what’s coming,” he wrote.

All of this spells potential disaster and unrest for the cities of America.

The federal authorities have been preparing with riot gear and weapons of war; FEMA and Homeland Security regularly exercise for martial law and plans to clamp down on potential unrest.

But preppers and constitutional militias will also be ready to defend the rule of law, prevent destruction and provide for their communities when they need it most. And most of all, to survive and avoid the worst, no matter what.

Read more:

Prepper’s Blueprint: Your Guide to Prepare for Anything

Homeland Trains Police for Riots, Civil Unrest: “This Training Has Never Been in Texas Before”

Authorities Fear Civil Unrest, Buy Up Gear To “Arrest, Disperse, Control Riots”

The Poor Man’s Guide To Survival Gear

29 Essential Tips for the New Prepper: “Start Small. Develop Your Skills. Create a Plan”

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: ammo Tagged With: Aftermath, ammo, civil war, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, divide, Emergency Preparedness, firearms, guns, obama, prepping, unconstitutional

Packing Heat: #Missouri Lawmakers Expand #Gun Rights, OK “Concealed Carry Without Permit”

May 17, 2016 by mac slavo

guns-everywhere

While so much of propaganda about gun control has been inundating the country and clouding the debate about the 2nd Amendment in effort to restrict firearms, the state of Missouri just surprised everyone by actually expanding gun rights!

The heavily Republican legislature just passed a bill in both the Senate and House allowing people to carry concealed without needing a permit, and without requiring training. Moreover, it reinforced the state’s Castle Doctrine and Stand Your Ground statutes.

via the NY Times:

Missouri lawmakers have passed a sweeping expansion of gun rights in the state, one that would allow people to carry concealed guns without requiring permits and widen their right to stand and fight against perceived threats.

Under the measure, most people would be able to carry concealed guns, even if they have not completed the training currently required to obtain a permit.

The legislation would also expand the state’s “castle doctrine” by allowing invited guests, such as babysitters, to use deadly force against intruders. It would also create a “stand your ground” right, meaning people would not have to retreat from danger in any place they are legally entitled to be present.

Symbolically, Missouri essentially put up a giant “Come and Take It” in defiance of all those who would disarm Americans and usher in a crime-ridden, heavily bureaucratic and debased police state.

Of course, it has gun control advocates steaming, and attempting to argue that the bill will create more violence.

While many Democrats denounced it, Republican supporters of the bill described the measures as reasonable approaches to personal safety.

[…]

“To me, this is modern-day lynching,” said another Democrat, State Representative Kimberly Gardner of St. Louis. “This bill would allow open season for vigilante-style behavior and put all of us at risk.”

As of now, it is unclear if Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon will sign the bill, or veto it and force a legislative fight. But a message has been signaled, loud and clear.

Americans do NOT want to give up their guns, and will do everything they can to protect themselves in self-defense from anyone who would attempt to disarm them.

With so much of the country going eroding into liberal la-la land, this is one state that understands and honors the intent of the founders in framing the Constitution to empower ordinary citizens against criminals, both within and without government.

As the NY Times notes, the trend is swinging back towards free and open gun rights… a possible sign that gun control efforts, despite deep pockets and incessant appeals to emotion involving children and other victims of gun violence, have fallen on deaf ears.

Ten other states already have what supporters describe as “constitutional carry” laws allowing concealed guns without permits, including ones enacted this year in Idaho, Mississippi and West Virginia, according to the National Rifle Association.

No doubt that is why President Obama has resorted to using executive actions to impose gun control, and why Hillary Clinton is talking openly about using the executive pen to restrict rights, rather than even attempt to jam rights-restricting legislation through the Congress at the federal level.

Do you think this is a big win for the 2nd Amendment?

Read more:

Sheriffs Call for Defying Unconstitutional Gun Control: Feds “The Greatest Threat We Face”

Billionaires Buy Gun Control in Washington: ‘Straight to Voters, Bypassing Politicians Terrified of NRA’

Texas Police Chief Warns Obama That Gun Control Will “Cause A Revolution… You’re Not Our Potentate, Sir”

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: 2nd Amendment Tagged With: 2nd Amendment, castle doctrine, concealed carry, Emergency Preparedness, firearms, gun rights, guns, Headline News, missouri, rights, stand your ground

Global Catastrophe Imminent: “Asteroids, Robots and Engineered Viruses Will Kill Millions”

May 14, 2016 by mac slavo

Nuclear war

There is yet more confirmation that near-certain doom is headed for planet earth, and could kill or disrupt the lives of everyone on the planet.

And there’s reason to think it could be in our lifetimes.

A study commissioned by Oxford University identified possibly-imminent catastrophe from asteroids, AI, volcanoes, nukes/EMP or manufactured/weaponized disease sweeping the planet.

And yet we’re the conspiracy theorists…

According to the Daily Mail/Press Association:

In the next five years asteroids, super volcanic eruptions and unknown risks are ranked as the biggest threat to humanity.[…]

It may sound like the stuff of sci-fi films, but experts said these apocalyptic threats are more likely than many realise…

[…]

In the longer term, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has been listed alongside catastrophic climate change, nuclear war and pandemics as a threat to humanity.

The biggest long term threat to civilization is natural and engineered pandemics and nuclear war […] the rise of synthetic biology could open the door to the creation of “off the shelf” deadly viruses.

The report, which focuses on global approaches to address these looming dangers, and a worldwide integration of efforts, reminds us that we are all too mortal, and that devastating pandemics have indeed occurred throughout history:

It warns that while most generations never experience a catastrophe, they are far from fanciful, as the bouts of plague and the 1918 Spanish flu that wiped out millions illustrated.

There is no way of knowing what kind disaster could befall the planet, but it is important to prepare for the worst at a personal and local level. Chances are, you’ll be far more effective that way.

Despite the focus on global talk, there is little chance that a bigger and bigger governing structure could protect us all, or come to the rescue when you need it most.

When seconds count, police are minutes away, and the federal/international authorities are days or weeks away. They are only there to clean up the mess when it’s over and seize power.

Indeed, it seems that civilization is all-too-vulnerable, and millions of lives hang in the balance. Don’t be complacent, don’t rely on big cities and trust only those who you know and can rely upon.

Read more:

The Prepper’s Blueprint: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Prepare for Any Disaster

The Shaking Continues: “There is Great Reason For Concern” Over Recent Earthquakes and Volcanic Eruptions

“Looming Catastrophe from Diseased Rates”: Billionaire Icahn Warns of Danger Ahead

Surviving The Unthinkable – Being Prepared For What Is Coming Will Be The Difference Between Living And Dying

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: asteroid, attack, bacteria, biological, chemical, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, earthquake, Emergency Preparedness, EMP, global, Headline News, meteor, nuclear, pandemic, report, solar, spanish flu, virus, volcano, weapons of mass destruction, wipe out

#DARPA Creepiest Programs For Human Control: “How Dark Will Our #Future Be?”

May 12, 2016 by mac slavo

terminator-autonomous-killer-robot

How Dark Will Our Future Be?

There’s every reason to suspect that the powers-that-be are writing us out of it.

There are more dark projects and secret research grants than anyone can keep track of, but this list is a good start – and an indicator of how serious they are about control.

From robots to artificial intelligence and software to read your mind, the Pentagon and its Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) have ways of reducing the population to little more than automatons and prisoners in a high-tech worldwide control grid.

Via Truthstream Media:

Dystopic Hollywood nightmares have nothing on real life military research projects.

In addition to the many robots DARPA has created to mimic human walking, throw cinder blocks, run on four legs at cheetah speed, climb trees, grasp objects, kill targets and more, DARPA has announced projects including mapping the human brain, trying to create a physical, thinking brain for robots, computers that can think for themselves, tracking rat brains over the Internet, real-life Avatar projects, autonomous robots, electronic tattoos and pills swallowed to authenticate online access instead of passwords, mapping the neuroscience of the “fight or flight response,” tracking heart beats and other long distance biometrics, quantifying and track “love” and emotive responses, mind controlling squids…. and much much more.

Truthstream Media provides a long, creepy list of semi-secret projects the military is pursuing under DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency)

And there’s plenty more where that comes from…

The most recent Davos conference featured a panel of neuroscientists, criminal justice experts and DARPA representatives who have achieved literal mind-reading technology that could “confess” your guilt or your non-compliance to authorities… and this creepy capability is just in its infancy.

Imagine what they will be capable of in just a few more years.

There seems to be no end in sight for DARPA or the applications of technology to control human life on this planet. Their endless taxpayer funds are aimed right back at the people.

Can anyone honestly say things are headed in a good direction?

It is high time you prepare for all contingencies, including the ability to live and sustain yourself and your family off grid, and outside of the track-and-control system they are finalizing and implementing across the grid.

Read more:

How to Lay Low and Prepare for All Possibilities

DARPA Develops Implant With “Terminator” Vision: “Plugs directly into a person’s DNA and visual cortex”

Frightening Future of War: “Inescapable Smart Bullets, Biometric Data and Armed Drones with Facial Recognition”

Scientists: Robots Could be Programmed to Kill You ‘For the Greater Good’

Feds Unveil New Surveillance Tool Developed by DARPA that Could Kill the ‘Dark Web’

The Military’s New Microwave Heat Ray Gun: “We Can Shoot First and Ask Questions Later” *Video*

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Aftermath, artificial intelligence, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, DARPA, digital, Emergency Preparedness, enslavement, grid, humans, martial law, matrix, military, mind control, mind reading, pentagon, population control, robots, tyranny

Dawn of the Homemade #Submarine: “Potentially Intriguing Vessel For A Post-Apocalyptic #World”

May 7, 2016 by mac slavo

Screen shot 2016-05-06 at 3.19.53 PM

No doubt it’s stealthy, and it’s homemade.

A Chinese man, reportedly a farmer, debuted this one-man semi-submarine which he invented and won a patent for. Basically shaped into a steer-cigar tube with a hatch and a propeller system, it costs only around $760. RT reported:

Zhang Shengwu, a 51yo farmer, received a Chinese government patent for a submarine he designed and built himself for around 5,000 Yuan (€670 / $760).

Here’s the video:

It is a potentially intriguing vessel for a post-apocalyptic world of human ingenuity and a pestering will to survive, maybe situated somewhere between Mad Max and Waterworld. The only problem?

It doesn’t actually dive to the depths like a full-blown submarine equipped for modern warfare. At best, it only submerges 1 meter, or around 3 feet… basically putting it back in boat category.

On the other hand, it could be utilized for stealth escape or travel in a crisis. More likely, it will just stand out on the waterways as a unique contraption.

Or, maybe it could spawn a new market of semi-submersible sport craft, or constitute an intimidating fleet of Chinese pirates who could hunt you down at around 7 nautical miles per hour.

Either way, it is inventive. Not bad start for a peasant farmer living under tyranny…

Can any of you preppers build a better or more ingenious one?

If you don’t have time for such an elaborate mechanism, here’s how you could improvise a personal water craft in a survival situation – out of next to nothing.

Read more:

Future of America: Harder Than Anything You’ve Experienced In Your Lifetime

After the Collapse: Six Likely Events That Will Follow an Economic Crash

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Aftermath, apocalypse, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, Emergency Preparedness, Entertainment, equipment, homemade, inventions, makeshift, personal, self-reliance, stealth, survival, training, water craft

#Survival #Communications After a Collapse: “Pringles Can And Broadband Routers Could Create a WiFi Network”

May 6, 2016 by mac slavo

Collapse

Are you truly prepared to survive what is coming?

It could prove to be the darkest period yet for modern civilization and the age of technocracy.

An EMP, a natural disaster, a nuclear attack, an economic collapse or a declaration of martial law rank among just some of the worst scenarios that could befall our society. And if you are not prepared, you will fall along with the masses.

Not long ago, the London Guardian interviewed global crisis expert and author Nafeez Ahmed, extracting lots of great info to think about prepping for survival.

Ahmed, who was involved with advising on a video game that included realistic portrayals of crisis aftermath, brought up lots of good points, including basics like:

1. Don’t hole up alone with hundreds of tins of baked beans
“There’s a survivalist response which is ‘I’m going to hide away all by myself’,” says Ahmed. “You’re probably not going to survive like that – you have to cooperate with other people… The more people who band together, the more likely you are to be able to rebuild something like a society.

2. You need to go rural … but not too rural
“Cities are found to be extremely vulnerable simply because there are so many supply chains that are interdependent… People will be competing with each other for these scarce resources, which creates violence… You need a group of differently skilled people who can work cooperatively in order to build your own supply chains and flourish…”

3. You need access to running water and agricultural land
“There’s also the need to grow your own food,” says Ahmed. “Again you’re better off doing that with a group of people on a large area of land where you can apportion labour. That’s not going to work as well in an urban environment.”

5. Don’t necessarily trust the government or law enforcement
All major governments have contingency plans in place to ensure their survival after a global disaster…. What we can be fairly certain of, however, is that it will involve the suspension of constitutional government and the instalment of martial law. To some degree.

But the most interesting discussion was on communications during a survival situation.

Of course, a lot of it has been brought up by different survival sources, but it is amazing how inventive people could be in setting up networks, even if the main internet went offline or was inaccessible.

4. Establish communications
The basic method of acquiring information will be a wind-up or solar-powered radio. However, to actually communicate with the outside world, or with members of your community, you may be back to walkie-talkies, two-way radios or even a citizen band radio…

Apparently, using a few repurposed items in tandem with alternative sources of energy could go a long way, and in the right configuration might even successfully set up a worthwhile local network.

If the internet providers and content sources go down, you can go it alone on a small scale, according to Ahmed:

Your best option, then, may be to set up your own community computer network – and the most sensible technology would be Wi-Fi, as the components are easily available. “You could loot a PC World for broadband routers and then hit a garage or supermarket for some Pringles cans,” says Bloch. “With those, you can probably build a reasonable network across a scorched suburb.”

Why a Pringle can? Well, it can be used to create a cantenna which would be capable of boosting a Wi-Fi signal from your computer. “Some students in Kansas made a cantenna that transmitted over 100 miles a few years ago,” says Bloch. He suggests using a cheap Raspberry Pi as the combined communications hub and router (although a basic netbook may be a good alternative). “I ran an old Pi off four AA batteries for four hours just to play a video game a while back, and that was wasting power on bluetooth and speakers. They can shift a lot of traffic, and run little servers, so I imagine you could run tiny hubs off a car battery for 1-2 weeks at a time.

“If you ran an old-school email network off those, it’d be quite handy and expandable piece by piece as you contacted neighbouring villages, cleared the zombies out, etc. I guess that’s the nice thing about the internet: the oldest protocols still adapt to this situation. I think some people really want to see this happen, just so they can prove it.”

A Pringles can to create a “cantenna” for wifi transmission? That bears some further explanation:

Getting a wifi antenna from pringles tube (DIY Cantenna)

Along with a number of low tech alternatives, there is also the chance that you and a network of survivors could piece together a wireless mesh network with radios or cell phones:

Broadband Over Radio Wireless Mesh Network Experimentation for Emergency Communications

It’s all very technical, so if you are serious about survival, it is obviously essential to test it before things collapse. Nevertheless, it offers up some rewarding possibilities.

According to Ahmed, who posts his work regularly to his personal website, it would be

“a long time before everything is safe… If you really wanted to stay safe, I think you’ll need to survive for a decade before civilisation sorts itself out.”

There are too many scenarios to list here, and every reason to think the world is titled towards ensuing chaos, and a grander attempt at “order out of chaos” than anyone has yet seen.

Read More:

Homeland Security Conceals “Secret Plan to Cut Cell Service” During Emergencies

Top 10 Survival Downloads You Should Have

Deadly Reliance on Tech: “If Internet Goes Down… Preppers Will Be Last Ones Standing”

This Rural Community Stopped “Relying on Corporate America” and Created its Own Internet Service

How To Survive Occupied America: “We Will Eventually Face a Totalitarian Dictatorship”

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Aftermath, alternative, cantenna, communications, emergency, Emergency Preparedness, grid, internet, mesh network, preppers, pringles, survival

“#Medical Errors”: Going to the Hospital Ranks As Third Leading Cause of #Death in U.S.

May 6, 2016 by contributing author

emergency-room-waiting-th

This article was written by Joshua Krause and originally published at The Daily Sheeple.

Editor’s Comment: Hospitals are dangerous for a number of factors… and their pitfalls are representative of a larger issue of trusting the system.

Deaths at the hands of medical practitioners is due, in some respects, to the mentality of many Americans to turn to authorities for help with everything; going for treatment at the first sign of sickness; taking drugs and antibiotics that weaken or harm them unquestioningly; and assuming that those in charge can do no wrong despite a very troubling record.

The same is happening at the macro level: the economy is diseased, the infrastructure is falling apart, and the population has a dangerous dependency on the nation’s practitioners.

Third Leading Cause of Death in America: Going to the Hospital

by Joshua Krause

Before the 20th century, the average person would only go to the hospital as a last resort. That’s because hospitals were where you went to die. They were unhygienic hell holes staffed by unprofessional doctors who knew as much about medicine as you or I know about nuclear physics. Even when a healthy person was admitted to a hospital, there was a really good chance that they weren’t coming out alive.

A lot has changed since those dark days, but there are still plenty of ways to die in a hospital that are very preventable. In fact, so many people die from “medical errors” in our hospitals, that it’s become the third leading cause of death in America. It outranks car accidents, murders, and suicides put together, and by a wide margin. It’s only surpassed by cancer and heart disease as the leading causes of death. According a report published by The BMJ, over 250,000 people die from medical errors every year. They define these errors as:

“An unintended act (either of omission or commission) or one that does not achieve its intended outcome, the failure of a planned action to be completed as intended (an error of execution), the use of a wrong plan to achieve an aim (an error of planning), or a deviation from the process of care that may or may not cause harm to the patient.”

And the true number of deaths could be much higher. “Medical error” isn’t something that shows up on death certificates, and the people who do die from these mistakes are just the individuals that we know about.

While the study doesn’t mention this, there shouldn’t be any doubt that at least some of these numbers are related to America’s prescription drug epidemic. Americans are prescribed more drugs than anyone else on the planet, and while estimates vary, the deaths that are related to these prescriptions number in the tens of thousands. The statistics surrounding opioid drugs alone are harrowing.

Approximately 4,263 deaths were linked to opioid overdoses in 1999, but that number had climbed to 17,000 in 2011, and didn’t include those from benzodiazepine drugs such as Xanax and Klonopin. The numbers could be even higher because specific drugs weren’t named in about 25% of all drug deaths. The greatest increase in death rates occurred in Americans between 55-65 years old.

“The amount that [opioids] are administered by well-meaning physicians is excessive,” said Dr. Robert Waldman, an addiction medicine consultant not involved with the research. “Most physicians are people-pleasers who want to help and want to meet people’s needs, and they are more inclined to give people the benefit of the doubt until you are shown otherwise.”

Unfortunately, there’s no reason to believe that these numbers will fall in the near future. Between the proliferation of socialized medicine (which results in fewer doctors who are under more stress, and thus, make more mistakes), the rise of superbugs, and doctors who give out drugs like candy, someday soon going to the hospital may be just as hazardous for your health as it was before the 20th century.

—-

This article was written by Joshua Krause and originally published at The Daily Sheeple.

Joshua Krause is a reporter, writer and researcher at The Daily Sheeple. He was born and raised in the Bay Area and is a freelance writer and author. You can follow Joshua’s reports at Facebook or on his personal Twitter. Joshua’s website is Strange Danger .

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: bacteria, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, contagious, death, Doctor, Emergency Preparedness, Headline News, hospital, infection, medical errors, mistake, MRSA, obamacare, viral

#EMP Attack Would Destroy #Civilization: “A Nightmare You’ll Never Wake Up From”

May 2, 2016 by mac slavo

iran-emp1

It could all be over tomorrow. A truly modern threat.

The threat of an EMP – via natural event or deliberate attack – remains a grave one. Its potential as a WMD looms larger than any other weapons known to man.

Due to the dependency of modern society on electricity, supply chains and cities, an electromagnetic pulse wave  poses a threat that really could kill or cripple 90% of the population.

It is a system wide reset that few are prepared for.

As WND reported:

Think this couldn’t happen in today’s America?

Think again, says former Defense Department security policy analyst and WND national security writer Michael Maloof. All it would take is an EMP attack to knock out all “life-sustaining critical infrastructure.”

[…]

“And if the electrical grid system is knocked out, it affects everything that depends upon that electrical grid. It could include our telecommunications, our banking and finance systems, our petroleum and natural gas transportation systems, our food and water delivery systems, our emergency services. It also affects all of the automated control devices that we take for granted every day, like the automatic control of lights, our surge system.”

He added, “It would be a nightmare you’ll never wake up from.”

The impact on life supporting-medical devices alone would be devastating to millions of people in the population.

It is a stark reminder that all the high technology of this world has been built on a fragile and very vulnerable foundation.

Such an event would also render hospitals unable to help their patients, as they rely on electronics. People with pacemakers or other electrical-based medical devices would suddenly lose their source of life.

“One thing people don’t really talk about is the impact it would have on nuclear reactors,” added Maloof, who wrote about the EMP threat in his book “A Nation Forsaken.” “When you look at what happened in Fukushima in Japan a few years ago with just one reactor, the impact on something like 147 nuclear reactors we have in the United States could be not only catastrophic, but cataclysmic.”

As SHTF has reported numerous times before, these effects could be minimalized if the government worked with the private sector to reinforce the grid, and protect critical infrastructure.

The problem is that this is very expensive, the grid is very old, and the powers-thatbe are much more likely to capitalize on the fear and horror after an event has already taken place… rather than simply resolve the issue with proper shielding.

Of course, that may change. But will it be too late?

The military has moved many of its vital operations, equipment and contingency forces back to Cheyenne Mountain to reinforce the continuity of their operations; numerous government agencies have taken similar measures.

But the vast majority of the population remain dangerously unprotected. Self-reliant individuals can, however, prepare for life off the grid, and even protect backup electronics in a homemade Faraday cage, as SHTF previously reported:

“Island yourself” from the central grid… that’s former FERC chief John Wellinghoff’s advice to individuals – preppers if you will – for surviving any grid downs that could occur from an EMP, a cyber attack or other event powerful enough to interrupt the highly vulnerable primary grid.

People are beginning to understand that they need their own onsite capabilities to island themselves from the grid. That’s because the grid’s external vulnerabilities will continue to be a problem until we do have substantial amounts of distributed generation. I have a solar photovoltaic system that provides 100% of my power needs. I am looking into how I can island myself off the grid. But it is not just me, the military is moving toward micro-grids at all of their bases because they understand the vulnerability of those bases to outages.

Let us pray that the day never comes…

Read More:

Military Readies Mountain Fortress to “Shield Against EMP Attack”
Congressman Urges Protection for Power Grid: EMP Attack “Could Bring Our Civilization to a Cold, Dark Halt”
“Super EMP” Capable of Disabling Power Grid Across Lower 48 States
EMP Threat: ‘Within One Year 9 Out of 10 Americans Would Be Dead’
What Are You Going To Do When A Massive EMP Blast Fries The U.S. Electrical Grid?

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: banks, banned, beast, cash, cashless, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, currency, digital currency, electromagnetic pulse, Emergency Preparedness, EMP, grid, Headline News, manipulation, power

#Venezuela, #Socialist Paradise in #Collapse: “Rationing Food, Toliet Paper… Now Electricity”

May 2, 2016 by mac slavo

power-grid-attack

Welcome to Venezuela, the socialist paradise where many workers how have a five-day weekend, and everything is rationed because nothing works and the country has shifted in an all-out SHTF situation.

As Grindall61 sums up succinctly, this is why you do not want Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders of the United Nations running their life. Why? Because they are pushing sustainable development for everyone in the United States and on the planet, where resources are rationed, and your very existence is considered a blight on the planet.

Life in Venezuela means waiting hours in a line for supplies and necessities that aren’t even available to buy. It is a total nightmare:

Venezuela is rationing food, toilet paper, and now electricity. They are in a depression which is turning into a SHTF situation.

What keeps it going? Force by government agency:

Just think, California today is mandating cuts and rationing water because of the shortage, and more and more parts of life even in the U.S. will be regulated and controlled – all while the insiders and bureaucrats party on the taxpayer dime, and dance to fiddle music while the country burns.

It is has happened over and over again in history, and right now it is happening in Venezuela.

This is socialism in action, and socialism when it has failed.

Make no mistake, America is headed on the same path, unless things change.

H/t SGT Report.com

Read more:

Crumbling American Economy Headed for Venezula-Style Collapse: “Worthless Cash; Nothing To Buy”

Collapsing Venezuela Is Out of Food: “Prepping Became Illegal”, Long Lines Mandatory

This Is How Government Dealt With Dissent And Revolt In Collapsing Venezuela – “Soldiers Shooting Civilians In The Streets, Paramilitaries Roaming Neighborhoods”

Venezuela Enforces Fingerprint Registry to Buy Groceries: What to Do Before Rationing Starts in America

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: breadlines, cash, civil unrest, collapse, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, economy, Emergency Preparedness, empty shelves, food, Headline News, lines, poverty, socialism, venezuela, worthless currency

“ #DIY #Antibiotics”: What To Grow to Protect Your Health In a #Crisis

April 29, 2016 by mac slavo

redcross-medicine_preparedness_kit

What will you do in a crisis without life saving medicine and antibiotics?

If society breaks down, hospitals, pharmacies and clinics will be unavailable, and the medicine you or a loved one need may be unavailable.

Clearly, this means you need to have to supplies on hand, particularly for anyone who is dependent upon insulin or other medications that can be deadly if disrupted.

But those supplies will only go so far. Something that is also important to do is become familiar with medicinal herbs and plants, and grow some of the ones that could be most useful to your family or network.

Wilderness and homesteading survival teacher Marjory Wildcraft shows how you can grow and process your own medicines – many of which are more potent and potentially beneficial than those developed in the medical industry. Best of all, it is relatively simple to do:

Yes, you can make your own anti-biotics at home. I’ll show you how to make a really super powerful one (it’s easy to do). Anyone can do it. Most people will want to do this in their backyards or on a patio. But I suppose you could do it indoors too. This one I’ll show you how to make is way more complex than anything the pharmaceutical companies can produce, yet it is simpler and easier to make. No, you won’t need a lab of chemistry set. No, you won’t need microscopes or chemicals. Nope, you won’t even need a spectrum analyzer….

This particular anti-biotic not only helps boost your immune system for any time you have an infection, but it is also good for when you have a cold, it’s known to help lower cholesterol and high blood pressure, it’s been known to help balance blood sugar, fight cancer, fight fungus, and more.

The answer is simple… Garlic is perhaps the single best natural antibiotic, and very well known for staving off colds, infections and for overall supporting a healthy immune system and restoring good health.

Quite simply, garlic is well worth growing, eating and having around, as this video demonstrates. Adopt some of the best practices for growing and storing it, and it will always be around.

There are, of course, many other important medicinal plants that can be grown and utilized than just garlic:

Sara an expert in Medicinal plants explains the properties of several different plants and what their uses are for different ailments. This is information that could save you lots of money in buying medicine and can help you live a healthy diet. Filmed at the eco village of Valdepiélagos, Madrid

According to Sara (in the video above), these plants and many more can address many health issues, including some of the most serious.

• Stevia isn’t just a “sweet leaf” to be used as a sugar substitute, but eating the leaf or its extract can help regulate blood sugar (not in the processed form used by soda companies).

• Kalanchoe Daigremontiana can strengthen the immune system and reportedly even fight cancer.

• Melissa and Evalouisa – Plants from these families both have similar medicinal properties for digestive and stomach relief, as well as as a sleep aid.

• Caledonia can help with cataracts (the orange liquid can be put in the eyes) or for cuts on the skin

•Artemisia Annua is another powerful anti-bacterial that can fight malaria and other serious diseases.

• Galio can be used to regulate the hormonal system

• Epiolobium can reduce inflammation in the prostate

(Note: some of these names may be more familiar to Spanish speakers, or go under a different name elsewhere)

There are, of course, hundreds of more varieties of plants that you can cultivate, but you will need to do your own research. Many plants are found in certain regions only, and others may be difficult to grow outside of their typical climate.

Though they have been used for centuries, no one can guarantee they are safe for everyone, and most doctors and hospitals refuse to recognize the potential of these natural (and unpatentable) medicines.

Regardless of whether or not you endure a collapse or prolonged crisis situation, these are valuable skills that could improve your personal well being, or come in handy as a tradable and necessary skill within a self-reliant community or survivor group.

Along with goods and precious metals, exchanging skills & service is a useful part of any barter economy that could thrive under the right circumstances of determined and freedom loving people.

Read more:

30 Most Popular Herbs for Natural Medicine

Tom Brown’s Guide to Wild Edible and Medicinal Plants (Field Guide)

First Aid Kit Best 100 Piece Compact Multipurpose Essential for Survival & Medical Emergencies with Durable Canvas Bag & Ideal for Auto Office Travel Home Camping Hiking Sport & Outdoors. Be Prepared!

The Four Prescription Drugs You Must Have in a Crisis… And How to Get Them

3 Barter Items You Probably Haven’t Considered But Will Be Valuable Even If the Poop Doesn’t Hit the Fan!

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: antibiotics, cancer, emergency, Emergency Preparedness, garlic, grow, Headline News, healing, herbs, kit, medicinal plants, medicine, preparedness, prepper, properties, ready

#McDonald’s Will Replace Jobs with #Kiosks: Ex-CEO Says $15 Wage “Will Trigger Massive Layoffs”

April 28, 2016 by mac slavo

mcdonalds-automated-kiosks-fast-food

The future of fast food service will involve much less human interaction.

Instead, humans will line up like rats to pellet dispenser, and computer screens will take orders, as the classic menial, entry-level job will gradually disappear along with many other jobs in the workforce.

Former McDonald’s CEO Ed Rensi, who headed the company during the 90s, blasted the push for a $15 minimum wage, which he argued, food companies won’t pay – they just won’t pay it.

And jobs will suffer because of it.

The company will admitted choose to cut jobs altogether, and phase in automated kiosks, rather than pay more in minimum wage. (Perhaps that was their plan all along, and the $15/hour minimum wage controversy is the perfect excuse to put it into action.)

via the Daily Mail:

A Former McDonald’s CEO has predicted that raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour will cost people entry-level jobs.

In a column he wrote for Forbes, Ed Rensi says… “it will mean wiping out thousands of entry-level opportunities for people without many other options.’

[…]

Labor organizers have been demanding an increase in wages… Rather than raise prices, McDonalds is more likely to replace people with self-service computer kiosks so they do not have to pay the high wage. […] Over a million American youths may otherwise be out of a job.

[…]

‘You’ll see their legacy every time you visit the Golden Arches, where “would you like fries with that” is a button on a computer screen rather than a phrase spoken by an employee in their first job,’ he wrote. 

Admittedly, McDonald’s has already cut thousands of jobs in Europe, where it put in more than 7,000 kiosks to take orders rather than pay wages.

And you can bet that there is much more of that sort of thing coming.

From the company perspective, it is obviously a matter of the bottom line. For society, it is an unfortunate perfect storm as automation alone is poised to destroy millions and millions of jobs.

The future just doesn’t need many burger-flippers and order takers – the computers do it much more efficiently and accurately, after all.

Could they cut money elsewhere – like from the salaries and bonuses of overpaid CEOs? Of course.

But that’s not the point, and it won’t make the difference. These companies simply don’t care… and the economics are against anyone caring ever again.

It is harsh, but true. Please brace yourself as best as you can for this looming change in our society.

As Zero Hedge reported, McDonald’s has already been rolling out test kiosks in Chicago, and as the above article noted, in Europe as well:

According to Brand Eating, fast food king McDonald’s has been spotted testing a self-serve McCafe coffee station/kiosk out in downtown Chicago. The station is located in the restaurant but apart from the counter and looks to be a theoretically more convenient way for those who just want a cup of coffee to skip the regular line (while also freeing employees from having to make each drink in the back)

In essence, this is the company’s latest venture to make employees responsible for one less task as corporate HQ slowly but surely responds to minimum wage hikes sweeping all states, and in the process, outsource its minimum wage workers to simple machines which will never unionize or have any demands aside from being cleaned occasionally.

That site, of the self-serving kiosk, is already familiar at many grocery stores and Wal-Marts, and will become a mainstay of the shopping experience in all sectors, along with driver-less cars, and somewhere, unrecognized by the media, an endless line of former middle class and working people desperate on food stamps and benefits.

It is all happening so fast… before we know it, it will have happened.

Where will everyone go? What will they do?

Read More:

In the Robotic Near-Future, Most “Will Live Off Government-Provided Income”

The Age of Machines and Unemployment: “Robots Could Steal 80 Million US Jobs”

This is a Tipping Point: Robots “Cheaper Than Any Human Worker” Means the End of Jobs

Hey Boss, The Robots Are Coming For Your Job Too: “Easier to Automate First”

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: automatic, burgers, coffee, Emergency Preparedness, fast food, grocery, Headline News, jobs, kiosk, mcdonald's, Minimum wage, opportunity, orders, store, wal-mart, work

How to Start #Prepping Without Breaking the #Bank: “All About Self-Reliance”

April 21, 2016 by mac slavo

prepping-101-kellene-590x331

You don’t necessarily have to pull out your wallet, and pay big bucks for storable food, emergency camping equipment, ammo and fatigues… though you can if you want.

Instead, if you are just starting to prep, check out these essential items and focus most of all on the mindset of being ready for anything.

This video by the Dynamic Prepper gives some good insight into doing what counts – instead of what costs.

The Dynamic Prepper writes:

Top Ten things to get to start your prepping. Have you wanted to prep but don’t know where to start because of too much info and too many big prepping companies telling you to buy expensive “starting packages”. Tell those prepping corps. to take a hike!!! Start this list today. With a little money and weekends worth of shopping you will be well on your way to keeping yourself and your family fed and safe in extreme times.

In many cases you can make your own kits – for first aid, bug out bags and more – and perhaps you should.

Not only could it save money, but it will ensure that you are thinking about the use and purpose of every item you intend to carry or use.

Read more:

The Prepper’s Blueprint: Where Every Prepper Should Start

5 Mistakes Every New Prepper Makes

How Horrific Will It Be For The Non-Prepper?

29 Essential Tips for the New Prepper: “Start Small. Develop Your Skills. Create a Plan”

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: advice, best, bug out, build, buy, camping, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, create, custom, Emergency Preparedness, make, mistakes, planning, prepper, prepping, reuse, self-reliance, supplies, survival, tips, wilderness

The #Pentagon’s Counter- #Zombie Martial Law Plan: ‘Concentrate Firepower to the Head’

April 14, 2016 by mac slavo

Terminus---American-Zombie

What level of hell is in the process of descending upon this earth?

The twisted mind of strategic thinking must consider all contingencies, and prepare to defend against it.

And whether it seems like a joke or not, the Pentagon has a document preparing its forces for the remote possibility – or perhaps imminent cult film future pre-programmed through the media – of an all-out Zombie apocalypse.

Foreign Policy reports:

The U.S. military has always been the one place in government with a plan, forever in preparation mode and ready to yank a blueprint off the shelf for almost any contingency.

Incredibly, the Defense Department has a response if zombies attacked and the armed forces had to eradicate flesh-eating walkers in order to “preserve the sanctity of human life” among all the “non-zombie humans.”… [A Concept Operations document C]alled “CONOP 8888.”

“This plan fulfills fictional contingency planning guidance tasking for U.S. Strategic Command to develop a comprehensive [plan] to undertake military operations to preserve ‘non-zombie’ humans from the threats posed by a zombie horde,” CONOP 8888’s plan summary reads.

American TV viewers know all the twists and turns of the debasing fight against undead hoards of the human race, unconscious automatons intent on eating brains and over-running humanity.

But to spoil the fun before you’ve had it, keep in mind that this entire document, though “real,” holds a double meaning, alluding to the plan for maintaining dominance over the masses, who are largely unthinking and tend to follow propaganda prompts and orders to obey.

As its authors note in the document’s “disclaimer section,” “this plan was not actually designed as a joke.” Military planners assigned to the U.S. Strategic Command … looked for a creative way to devise a planning document to protect citizens in the event of an attack of any kind.The officers used zombies as their muse.

It is essentially a generic blueprint for occupying any major episode of civil unrest, economic collapse or major natural disaster. So what is really coming that the Pentagon isn’t telling us about?

If it seems to weird to be true, just see the Counter-Zombie Dominance PDF via Scribd for yourself.

Screen shot 2016-04-14 at 2.49.02 PM

Specifically, the document discusses how the use of head shots and martial law to restore civil order would be utilized:

“Establish and maintain a vigilant defensive condition aimed at protecting humankind from zombies. If necessary, conduct operations that will, if directed, eradicate zombie threats to human safety.”

“The only assumed way to effectively cause casualties to the zombie ranks by tactical force is the concentration of all firepower to the head, specifically the brain.”

“Zombies are horribly dangerous to all human life and zombie infections have the potential to seriously undermine national security and economic activities that sustain our way of life.”

“Given the rapidity at which zombie outbreaks spread, decisive, overwhelming, and possibly unilateral military force may be required to negate the zombie threat.”

“Given the likelihood of an all out threat to ‘human survival’, it is likely that this plan will be executed with a declaration of martial law with CONUS and U.S. territories.

The report also includes several nods to become personally prepared for all contingencies – including use of natural resources, and a reinforcement in the home or shelter:

“Rain will be vitally important to human survival. If civil water supplies are cut off, humans will have to rely on other means to obtain water… it will be difficult to determine if ground water is a vector for zombie infection.”

“Humans who do not shelter-in-place within a sturdy structure that protects them from the direct effects of air currents that could carry pathogens or toxins will be at increased risk of contamination, death and injury.”

Many preppers are expected to survive the zombie apocalypse, and define the character of what is left of humanity.

Will you be among them?

Read more:

The Walking Dead: 7 Mistakes That Would Get Somebody Killed in a Real Zombie Apocalypse

How to Prepare for the Zombie Apocalypse

What Do You Prep For: The Zombie Apocalypse: “Assume The Just In Time Infrastructure That Supplies Our Society Breaks Down”

Zombie Entertainment: A Lesson in Cognitive Dissonance and the Red Pill

Counter-Zombie Dominance PDF via Scribd

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Commodities, economic collapse, Emergency Preparedness, Headline News, martial law, pentagon, prepping, zombie apocalypse

This 72 Year Old Survived 9 Days in #Arizona Wilderness: “Lost, With No Gas and No Cell Reception”

April 13, 2016 by mac slavo

Picture 21

Image: Arizona Department of Public Safety.

Running out of gas. Lost on a remote back road. No cellphone signal, unreliable GPS. Maybe an accident.

It could happen to anyone, but not everyone would handle this desperate situation as well as this 72 year old woman managed to do.

Indeed, her resourcefulness and determination in keeping herself alive, along with her dog, after being “lost, with no gas and no cellphone reception” for 9 days in the remote Arizona wilderness is down right incredible.

via AZ Central:

A 72-year-old woman and her dog survived in the Gila County wilderness for nine days before being rescued by the Arizona Department of Public Safety on Saturday.

Ann Rodgers and her dog survived by drinking creek water and eating berries and plants, according to reports by law-enforcement officials. A weeklong multiagency search ended with a helicopter crew rounding a bend in a canyon to find her waving at them from below.

Rodgers had done her best to guide searchers: She had spelled out “HELP” in sticks and rocks on a canyon floor, hoping to gain attention.

According to the report, Ann Rodgers was running low and got lost while exiting for a fuel station, and then got stranded for more than a week in the vast national forest area between Phoenix and Show Low, Arizona.

The Gila County Sheriff’s Office released this statement:

On April 3, 2016, at approximately 8:00 p.m., the Gila County Sheriff’s Office received a call from the White Mountain Apache Rangers to assist with a missing person. The Gila County Sheriff’s Office, Gila County Search and Rescue, Tonto Rim Search and Rescue, along with the Arizona Department of Public Safety Helicopter responded to assist the White Mountain officials in attempts to locate the victim.

On April 9, 2016, at approximately 5:45 p.m. Ann Charon Rodgers, 72 years old, was located in the Canyon Creek Area. The Arizona Department of Public Safety Helicopter was able to get assistance to her and transport her to a local Hospital to be evaluated.

Picture 23

Image: Gila County Sheriff’s Office

Though the search rescue team worked diligently to find her, it took them a week, and everyday in the harsh wilderness made the challenge for Rodgers that much more difficult.

She found water, and made fire for warm and to attract attention from search crews. She left signs, like the word “Help” spelled out in sticks; she attempted, in vain, to find a ranch she saw, and she attempted to find a spot with a working cell phone signal.

But most importantly, she continued on, in spite of these setbacks.

How did she do it? She had taken a survival training course, and had cultivated skills. As the AP reported:

An Arizona woman lost in the wilderness for nine days says she became desperate but stayed alive because of her survival skills.

[S]he slept in her car the first night and wore several layers of clothing to keep warm […]

She says she survived on plants, pond water and at one point, a turtle. Rodgers says she took a survival course and studied techniques for years.

There a lots of things that could have improved her condition if those supplies and tools had been with her…

But this wasn’t just theoretical, it was real world survival, making do with the environment around you when there is no one else to turn to.

And this woman made it; hopefully you can, too, if and when the situation arises.

Of course, it also offers us some lessons for being prepared for anything.

Here are some links to develop ideas about what to focus on next… and what it might take to survive in a wilderness scenario alone for an extended period:

7 Tips to Keep You Alive and Found in the Wilderness

Survival Skills: How to Find Water In the Wild

The Prepper’s Blueprint: Step-by-Step Guide to Survive Any Disaster

The Number One Knife Skill for Wilderness Survival and Self-Reliance

Teaching Kids How to Survive in the Forest

Wilderness Survival: Preventative Measures and Off Grid Treatment for Deadly Bugs

The One Thing You Need To Survive: “Everything Else Is Just Talking and Wishful Thinking”

Are You Prepared to Survive in the Wilderness Alone? “Natural Shelter, Blend In”

12 Bad Strategies That Will Get Preppers Killed

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: advice, best, bug out, build, buy, camping, create, custom, Emergency Preparedness, planning, prepper, prepping, reuse, self-reliance, supplies, survival, tips, wilderness

#Venezuela Rations #Power to Avert Collapse: “Do You Think It Can’t Happen Here?”

April 12, 2016 by contributing author

power-grid-attack

This article was written by Daisy Luther and originally published at The Organic Prepper.

Editor’s Comment: It is indeed difficult to imagine life in the United States without power, and with such severe shortages that the government would have to excuse away the shortfalls, and divvy out what remains with an iron fist… or is it?

On a daily basis, we here about how divided the world has become, how impoverished, and how close the economic system to collapse. Could it… really… happen here?

Venezuela Shows Us What an Electricity Shortage Looks Like

by Daisy Luther

The SHTF might be a lot more subtle than an EMP or a massive natural disaster. We preppers tend to think in black and white, but there are some gray threats out there that few are considering. What if, instead of a total power outage, our country suffered a serious electricity shortage?

That’s exactly what has been going on in Venezuela, since they don’t have enough problems running out of food and other supplies in a previous development of the excruciating economic collapse of the country.

In the latest installment of collapse propaganda, bus-driver-turned-Venezuelan-President Nicholas Maduro offered some beauty advice. He wants the women of Venezuela to stop using hair dryers to save electricity aside from special occasions. He said, “I always think a woman looks better when she just runs her fingers through her hair and lets it dry naturally. It’s just an idea I have.”

This sage advice came along with announcements of further cuts and suggestions. State employees will now have Fridays off for at least the next two months, and he also recommended that citizens make small changes, like “embracing the tropical heat and hanging clothes out to dry instead of using tumble dryers.” (source)

The electricity shortage has been going on for almost a year.

This isn’t a new issue, but a worsening one. In May of 2015, they tried to sugar coat the rationing of electricity by saying they were just being green. Vice President Jorge Arreaza explained:

 This is, of course, linked to global warming and the excessive industrialization of capitalism, which never stops, nor has ever stopped, for the effects that it can have on the climate, on society and on Mother Earth.

When the electricity concern began, public employees saw their work hours cut to 6 per day. Businesses were required to reduce their usage by 10% and new laws permitted police visits to inspect the businesses to ensure that they weren’t exceeding their allotments.

In February, citizens who were already facing shortages and long lines for items like cooking oil, laundry soap, diapers, and food were absolutely stunned when shopping centers were forced to shut off power from 1:00 to 3:00 pm and again from 7:00 to 9:00 pm in a measure to save electricity.

The rationing in Venezuela is a cautionary tale.

Here’s why we need to pay attention to what’s going on in Venezuela: It provides a modern-day glimpse into what an economic collapse really looks like, much like the collapse of Greece was a cautionary tale. These are both direct case studies of what happens to the middle class during an economic collapse.

Previously, I wrote about how it could happen here. (Excerpt)

These mandated power rations, the limited amounts of food, the government-funded snitches, the tracking, and most of all, the propaganda, are all what await us in an economic collapse situation. While the Venezuelan government will be facing no limits on their use of electrical power, the people will only be allowed allotted amounts.

Do you think it can’t happen here?  Consider the forced rationing of water amidst the drought in California. Rationing that only applies to regular folks, not wealthy people or massive corporations.

It’s obvious that the state really is in the midst of an epic drought. But conservation mandates are not applied equally, much like the electricity rationing in Venezuela.

Golf courses for the rich and famous remain lush and green, while wells across the state run dry. Ordinary people aren’t allowed to have lawns or to even have vegetable gardens, and newspapers are calling upon “good Samaritans” to snitch if they feel someone is wasting water. There’s even an app for that, and Smart Meters are in place to target wasters. (Unless they happen to be wealthy corporations, of course. They have different rules and snitching on them will do no good.)

One small community, Outingdale, just received word that strict rationing is now in effect. Residents will be allowed only 50 gallons per day, per person, and no outside watering of any kind will be permitted. This is not good news for folks who rely on their vegetable gardens for food. Meanwhile, the Nestle corporation is busy pumping out the state’s remaining water, bottling it, and selling it back to people for an enormous profit.

Anyway, back to electricity.

I’m reminded of the series, The Hunger Games, in which residents of the outlying districts are only allowed power when the Capitol deems they should have it, such as when they want to air propaganda “entertainment” to keep people in line.  In the movie, citizens of the Districts were relegated to cooking over open fires and lighting their rooms with candles.  No one had transportation or power.  They were not allowed to hunt to supplement their meager food allotments and in the heroine’s District, they were not allowed to use the coal the area was rich with.  Uniformed “peacekeepers” patrolled the districts to ensure that the rules were strictly adhered to and that the excruciating poverty was the standard for all residents.

With the widespread installation of mandatory Smart Meters, how difficult would it be to forcibly ration our electricity here?

They can already remotely turn off appliances they deem are using too much energy. At the press of a few keys on a central computer, our electricity usage could be monitored to make sure we stay within the designated limits, strictly slotted to only certain hours of the day, or even cut off entirely if we exceed our rations. It may not even be direct rationing that cuts us off, as it is in Venezuela. As prices of electricity keep climbing, how extreme is it to think that one of these days, electricity might only be for rich people?

However it goes down you can be sure that no one in the government will admit to mismanagement or a desire to enhance control and dependency. It will be couched in warm, fuzzy terms of saving the planet from carbon emissions, much like the propaganda coming out of Venezuela.  It’s easy for us to see it when it happens to them, but many people here are so deeply entrenched in cognitive dissonance that they’ll swallow the green pill with a smile, moving into their Agenda 21 microhomes and martyring themselves for the good of Team Green. (Find the original article HERE)

So…what if electricity was only for rich people?

It’s not that far-fetched, and if you don’t fall into the category of “rich people” it is definitely something you should prepare for.

What if the Big Event isn’t an EMP, but that no one could afford to pay the electric bill?  Power prices are going up – what if they rise to the point that it’s a choice between food and electricity?  What if the lights in the middle-class neighborhoods just start going out?

Let’s face it, if you really had to pick, you’d choose to feed your kids over having the lights on, right?

What a control mechanism that would be.

What better way to return to a “Lords and Serfs” lifestyle than the strong visible delineation of who has power and who does not?

The rationing of electricity or the lack of affordability would change life as we know it. Our society is incredibly dependent on the power grid, not only to keep us comfortable, but also to keep us entertained. We’ve grown soft.  As well, we depend on others having access to electricity to make our lives easier by keeping us fed and clothed, and by making the things we purchase easily accessible to us.

Here’s how to maintain your independence throughout an electricity shortage.

You don’t have to return to serfdom, though. The steps you take and the things you learn now can help you overcome any hardships presented by the lack of affordable “necessities.”

Learn to provide your own food.

If the stores are closed or supplies are limited because manufacturing plants can’t produce food, you’ll have to provide for yourself.

  • Grow a garden
  • Raise chickens and rabbits,
  • Join a food co-op,
  • Try hydroponics or aquaponics
  • Sprout seeds for added nourishment
  • Grow salad veggies in the windows
  • Preserve your harvest through canning and drying
  • Save your seeds so you can do it all again next year!

For more self-reliance information, be sure to check out this round-up manifesto with more than 300 resources!

Reduce your dependence on the power grid and use less.

If prices skyrocket, there are lots of things you can do to cut your usage. Before anyone starts arguing that this is “caving in” to the demands of those who are rationing power, (because there’s always someone who says that) sometimes it’s a matter of personal economic survival. Whoever survives, wins.

If it’s a matter of the price of power skyrocketing, your ability to use minimal electricity may allow you to still afford to use a freezer, a laptop, or a medical device. It only makes sense that the less dependent on the grid you are, the less you will be affected by a shortage.

  • Lights:  Solar garden lights, candles, kerosene lights
  • Cooking: Wood stove, nutritious home-canned meals that only require reheating, stock up on buckets of meals that only require the ability to boil water, cast-iron dutch ovens to use on the wood stove, sun oven, outdoor fireplace, meals that don’t require any cooking.
  • Refrigeration: Pack a large cooler with snow in the winter and use it indoors, get a plastic storage bench that is lockable to be used outdoors in the winter (the lock is to keep 4 legged critters out of it), root cellar for summer, using a spring or creek to keep perishables cool, change of eating habits in summer.  (See how this family lives without a refrigerator entirely.)
  • Water:  Back-up manual or solar pump for your well,  1-month supply of drinking water stored, water filtration system with extra filters, buckets along with a wagon or wheelbarrow for hauling water from a nearby source, rain barrels to collect water, direct the gray water from your washing machines to reservoirs for flushing or watering plants (Here’s a link to my book on water survival.)
  • Laundry: Hand wash, hang dry.
  • Entertainment: Solar chargers for small devices, read books, play games, engage in productive hobbies.
  • Heat: This assumes you have power. Without electricity, see the suggestions in the next section. Run the heat briefly to take the chill off. Keep blinds open if there is some solar gain, otherwise keep windows insulated against drafts to keep the heat in.
  • Keeping cool: Check out this article for ways to stay cool without using an air conditioner.

Find other ways to stay warm.

If you can’t afford to run your central heat, it’s important to have back-up methods for staying warm.

This article was written by Daisy Luther and originally published at The Organic Prepper.

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: apocalypse, basics, communications, Conspiracy Fact and Theory, disaster, electricity, Emergency Preparedness, food, fuel, grid, Headline News, observation, prepper, prepping, shelter, SHTF, surveillance, survival, urban, venezuela, water

#SHTF Skills Every American Needs: “Improvise With What You Have”

April 8, 2016 by mac slavo

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Does the future hold prolonged economic collapse? Electric outages? Food shortage? Civil unrest? EMP attacks? Looting and the general descent into madness?

Whatever may come, you and your family will be extremely vulnerable unless you have prepared for continuity and self-reliance without the aid of society. The vast majority have made no attempt to prepare, or decrease their dependence upon government agencies for basic needs. In an emergency, they will have no one else to turn to either.

But you will be ready.

Every American who values his/her independence, and hopes to survive and thrive in an after-math economy that will be very different needs to develop and hone their SHTF skills.

There are too many to list in one article, and most of the basics are well known to this audience, but here is a good resource for starting your prepping, and expanding to cover all important areas.

But it is equally important to tailor your plans around your actual situation in a way that will give you the optimal support in a crisis, and fit around the freedom lifestyle you actually want to lead.

Reallybigmonkey1 is a great example of unique prepping. He has invented devices around his needs – and improvised with what he has one hand.

In this video, he explains a homemade stove that is also designed to store & boil water, as well as cook without the need to use a pot or pan. It might be the best solution in a bug out situation.

His inventions make prepping, camping and surviving a fine art of creativity and style, and prove that you don’t have to spend a fortune to get ready:

“If you do have to leave your house and bug out, this is the kind of things that happen. You need to have the ability to make things… and improvise and make do with what you have.

He also addresses the top items he carries that aren’t in the bug out bag of others.

After the basics, this guy has included a host of homemade and improvised devices that serve his potential SHTF needs and will make his chance of survival better than the average suburbanite.

What do you carry in bag, and what have you figured out on your own to make off grid living even better?

Read more:

The Prepper’s Blueprint: The Essential Starting Point for Survival Planning

95 Survival Tips For When the SHTF: “Carry These. Do This. And Don’t Ever…”

The Six Laws of Survival: Strategies For Beating the Worst Case Scenario

12 Bad Strategies That Will Get Preppers Killed

SHTFplan and Mac Slavo www.shtfplan.com

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