Posted on 06/12/2013 10:01:12 PM PDT by 101stAirborneVet
Good idea. Thanks.
Who are "all these Preppers" you refer to?
Most of the Freepers who are regulars on prepping posts here seem to be oriented to preps that are universal in application and need. And there are a lot of articles and posts about preparing for unknown emergencies on a tight budget.
No matter what type of disaster befalls us, we all need food, water, shelter, sanitation, medical care, security, survival skills, physical fitness, etc. And those are the general topics I see discussed here for the most part.
By survival skills I mean the skills to hunt, fish, garden, obtain and purify water, use tools and weapons, repair or build a shelter, protect your family from predators, starvation, thirst, disease.
Most of the preppers posting here seem to be of moderate means so a lot of info is shared on how to do more with less. Where to find bargains, how to grow and can garden produce, make soap, build a cache, purify water with a penny's worth of bleach, etc.
Of course there is the occasional link to an article about old missile silos in Wyoming or someone discovering a cold war fallout shelter in their back yard but I don't recall many Freepers posting that they have just bought a missile silo or their own mountaintop redoubt in Idaho.
I would say most of the preppers posting here seem knowledgable and level headed and the information sharing is generally helpful and interesting. Not everyone is interested in or capable of makng their own soap from scratch or rucking 26 miles in a full pack but the posts are interesting and thought provoking and there is usually some part of the information that is good to know and file away for reference.
I was commenting on the myriad sites and ads very prevalent nowadays that only seem to be growing in quantity and alarmist attitudes and not sites and information which is good to have and useful.
Perhaps I was being too general with my sweeping comments so to all those Freepers who might have been offended I apologize.
It just seems to me a situation spiraling downward and so many commercial folks are feeding off it, that's all.
Have to agree with you there.
Like everything else in life, the end user has to be equipped to make judgment calls and separate the useful from the B.S.
There are three types of people::-)
- Those who make things happen,
- Those who watch things happen,
- Those who wonder what happened
In a similar vein, Thomas Edison was supposed to have said, “5% of people think. 10% think they think. 85% would rather die than think.”
Your post is full of, Who said “X” will happen? We prepare for the unknown “X”- it's called “PREP INSURANCE”. I have a specific danger and that is hurricanes.I have “Insurance” for hurricanes in the way of preps to provide what I need after a hurricane takes out power and/or damages my house. And, I have regular insurance on my house and goods.
Because I have prep insurance, I will be okay no matter what “X” happens.
To AirborneVet: I am 80 and I can't ruck anywhere due to bad knees. The right one has already had surgery. I move around my garden and I have stairs to my second floor which I go up and down several times a day.
I got myself medically evaluated and had terrible blood numbers, my body was in self destruct mode seriously, so I changed my diet and took the medicines the doctor suggested for those problems, and in a year, my blood numbers were good to very good. I went from my body shutting down to everything in good shape. That was my mental ruck - to fix what was wrong and I did that. That major diet change was no red meat and little sugar and more veggies and fish and chicken. I saved my own life. Now, that is the equivalent of a physical ruck.
Because I can't travel distances like you say, I made my small townhouse a fortress so no one can get in but me. Since I am retired, I'll likely be home when “X” happens. I don't travel far from home at all since a street within feet from me has everything I need.
I can lock my front door and not leave for a year and live well including having fresh food from my small garden (think container growing). I have house security to prevent zombies from entering, and personal security with firearms I can handle and hit the target. Yes, I have magazines that hold 25 cartridges and a hand gun with hollow points and a laser so I definitely don't miss the target. Hussein can go pound dirt, he's not getting my magazines.
I wish I had the ability to walk as you say, but I fixed my surroundings as well as I could to make up for that.
I rather think you would consider my normal lifestyle 'unreasonable'. It's the way I choose to live.
Should anything bad happen, I expect I'll be way ahead of the couch potato urbanites who don't have any skills or preparation for hard living.
/johnny
I subscribe to his channel already, and I always recommend him to friends. There's a wealth of information there.
I wish some of the naysayers would realize that this isn't Navy SEAL or Delta Force stuff we're talking about here. Being as fit as you can be and ready to fire a rifle and walk distances is just good citizenship.
For those who literally cannot, that in no way reflects on their value as a citizen. So many FReepers have found other ways to improve themselves within their limits, learn self sufficiency, and acquire knowledge and expertise that is just as valuable.
He could walk into any uncivilized area with nothing with him and eat better than the rest of us and live without suffering (too much) for as long as he needed to be there.
He is survival man and lives pretty much that way as his preferred method of living. I have learned a lot from this survival man.
I have read many of his posts since coming to FR. Not only does he embody preparedness, he has a wit and a humor that never fails to impress me. I can only hope he’s in my small group someday so he can teach me to skin a mountain lion, and keep a smile on my face while doing it.
Personally, I think it’s a very valid recommendation for those who can train for it. I do cardio, cross-training walk aerobics, 2-3 miles at least 4 times a week, often 5. So I have a reasonably good level of basic fitness although I need more strength training in my arms.
Still, I after a recent re-do of our 72 hour bug out bags, I put one on and wondered right then if I’d be able to walk very long with it.
I’m not certain I’d ever be able to do the 12 miles, but it doesn’t hurt to try to increase above what I’m already doing. I will be in a great location later this summer to put the thing on and hike/train across rough terrain. And I am going to do just that.
Thanks for the post, 101stAirborneVet! Prairiebreeze, you summed up somewhat my situation as well. I lost quite a bit over 50 pounds 5 years ago, and do frequent walking in order to maintain the loss.
Your rucking article has given me food for thought about the need to extend my capabilities. The info about socks is potentially going to be a helpful one, for I seem to be at a threshold of about 2 miles, when after that I invariably start with the burn/hot spot blister situation on the balls of my feet.
What kind of polyester socks should be chosen as the inner sock? I’ve been wearing primarily cotton, because I just don’t like the feel of polyester. But I’m willing to do what works, if I may have a little more specific advice on the subject.
BTW, speaking of burning foot issues, for those who are advancing in years and getting gray, I learned recently that that blood sugar issues are not the only causes of a burning/sensitive sensation in feet and legs denoting neuropathy. Malabsorption leading to deficiency of vitamin B12 which often occurs in elderly, can also account for that as well.
Homebrew beer has plenty of B12, since all the yeast can't be filtered out. Even with malabsorption, if you get enough homebrew, you should get enough B12.
That's my theory, anyway. ;)
/johnny
If I'm at altitude, or going to be doing a lot of shank's mare transport, I slather on petroleum jelly, before I put on my socks. You get used to the squishy feel.
Once, in a pinch, I actually used axle grease, because that was what there was, and I had to make movement. Threw the socks away, and the boots stank for months.
/johnny
Personally, I recommend moleskin. Cut a large enough section that you can cut a hole in the middle - the hole should be the size of the problem area. After cutting the hole, place the moleskin so that the problem area is within the hole, surrounded by moleskin.
/johnny
It may start that way, but it always ends up with people on the ground with weapons.
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