Posted on 07/21/2011 12:33:22 PM PDT by Kaslin
This is true.
Use hardwood sawdust for smoking your meat. It smokes without blazing and gives a really good flavor. The salting comes first. Hams cured with way are the best thing in the world.
Sorry 'bout that!
B.S.
Tell that to the members of my family who struggled desperately to try to figure out how to feed those who viewed food as free because they were farmers (not considering they needed every bit of their crop to sell because nobody could afford to pay much for what they could sell)...and how they often went hungry on the farm so the children could have enough to eat...
When the other kids laughed at my old traps that had been passed down to me, I looked down on theirs because mine were ones that had saved a family. (Hunting came naturally to me, but I must admit that they'd have died if they had to rely upon my fishing skills--or lack thereof! Fortunately, I am descended from far better than I.)
So, yes...those things allowed survival...but it didn't mean they were unimpacted by The Great Depression. Unfortunately, Dr. Kengor is falling prey to a bit of myth. Don't let anyone fool us into thinking that farming and hunting/fishing/trapping/sawdust-and-iceboxes will get us through.
Even if people knew those skills, it still would be much more difficult than then to support today's population with today's lack of easy-to-tap domestic fuels (the more we drill here, the worse we make it for ourselves...if we cared about our children, we'd be using up foreign oil FIRST). Many would die from lack of heart medication, etc., but still we'd have to disperse the cities into smaller inefficient farming plots. It would not be fun, even with those skills.
People always make a plan to “go somewhere” but those of us in flyover country are better off to stay right where we are. Its a good idea for useful urbanites to look at a bug out plan but they really do need to be useful if they intend to stay somewhere.
I’ve got liberal cousins who are finally realizing that there are serious problems looming and are looking to me to learn to be self sufficient. I’m willing to help them but have explained that fantasies they have about organic gardening and living in harmony with the earth have got to go.
I think that we are at the very least in for a collapse much like that of Argentinas ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yerKMQc7-w&feature=grec_index), but as a armed society with a very large entitlement minded population our collapse will be much more violent and I see many many small business wiped out by flash mob looting, and large scale violence (look at what happened just this past Memorial Day and 4th of July weekends)we are seeing these mobs grow bolder and bolder like:
Chicagos CBS 2s Jim Williams reports, the problem of mob attacks downtown is much bigger than the weekend beatings, according to beat cops who wanted to remain anonymous.
And its not just Chicago, but Washington DC, Las Vegas, St Paul, Philadelphia and on most major big Blue cities are increasingly reporting such flash mobs and gang muggings. Look what happened just this past weekend in Peoria, Il:
http://peoriachronicle.com/2011/06/25/peorians-living-in-fear/
Teenage Flash Mob Robberies on the Rise:
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/06/18/top-five-most-brazen-flash-mob-robberies/
Rash of violence isnt flash mobs, its wilding
http://www.suntimes.com/news/roeper/5826624-417/rash-of-violence-isnt-flash-mobs-its-wilding.html
Teens in a mob assault and rob Center City patrons
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20110629_Teens_in_a_mob_assault_and_rob_Center_City_patrons.html
Milwaukee Police Go Barney Fife On Mob Attacks
http://www.620wtmj.com/blogs/jeffwagner/125017329.html
Milwaukee Mob Victim Recalls Beating ... Oh, White Girl Bleeds a Lot
I see what I call Pocket Pogroms taking place in many big Blue cities and if you arent a 0bamamite yute or one of Holders People its going to get Reginald Denny bad for you very quickly.
For those who are just starting or are old hands at prepping you may find my Preparedness Manual helpfull. You can download it at:
http://www.tomeaker.com/kart/preparedness1i.pdf
For those of you who havent started already its time to prepare almost past time maybe. You needed to be stocking up on food guns, ammo, basic household supplies like soap, papergoods, cleaning supplies, good sturdy clothes including extra socks, underwear and extra shoes and boots, a extra couple changes of oil and filters for your car, tools, things you buy everyday start buying two and put one up.
As the LDS say When the emergency is upon us the time for preparedness has past.
Or as the bible says: A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.
NIV Proverbs 22:3
There is no greater disaster than to underestimate danger.
Underestimation can be fatal.
It describes a small, fictional town in Florida after an atomic war. The book takes place in the late 1950s, but 99% of it still applies today.
This book is one of my all time favs.
Even a useless lib can be taught to use a shovel, a hoe, pull weeds, scoop manure, split wood, etc.
Those of us with useful skills will then be freed up to use them.
I agree CC. We live in a small town community surrounded by farms and we know everybody. We have some Amish also living nearby. We an learn from them too. Though we live in downtown in one of those old main street houses, we have any number of friends on those farms who would be happy to share what they have with us. They already do. Hubby came home from church last night with Zucinni, squash, cucumbers, banana peppers and sweet peppers. Tomatoes will be coming next week.
Like others have said and thought...
I am doing it now!
This particular DIL has taken a country boy and changed him into a complete and total city guy, and both of their careers have them in the extremely liberal higher education setting. They’ve basically never left college since college. Nearly 20 years of it and they are completely helpless in hard times and show no interest in self-sufficiency. :(
If they’re willing to learn, I’m willing to teach. Its not their fault they were raised in the city.
Rule number one. Mr Chipmunk is not your earth brother who shares your garden. Mr Chipmunk is your enemy and if worse comes to worse, he’s food.
The peddler would always be running from an IRS ghoul these days.
It's a good idea to have an old smoke pole around, preferably a flintlock. You can get lead from batteries and wheel weights, you can make black powder. Flint (or any quartz rock that can be chipped to shape) is one of the most durable natural rocks, and can be found in most gravel. Good flint isn't as easy to come by, so laying up a few spare flints and a little extra powder might be a good idea. At any rate, now is the time to do it, whatever you are going to do.
I'm not suggesting the flint rifle for a short term solution to marauders, either, but just in case the problems last longer than we think they might.
For the money, .22 long rifle will take most small game up to and including Whitetail deer, if in close and well placed. A couple accurare .22s and plenty of ammo will handle the subsistence stuff, and a good pellet gun will bag squirrels and the like.
My “lived in a city all her life” wife is going to be amazingly surprised at what I know how to do from being raised on a farm...
Don’t worry about your son not remembering his roots.
It all comes back.
I’ve been working on that here in the neighborhood. Funny...a lot of “neighbors” are following that lead to establish relationships.
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