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Good morning everyone… I hope everyone had a great fourth of July Independence Day and didn’t over do it with the hotdogs, burgers, and fireworks. 

Sadly, the main threat to what resemblance to freedom that we have left isn’t from a foreign power but our own government. We live in a country where we have to get a permit or a license for just about everything we do, and or follow a law or ordinance or be fined and or jailed and since 9-11 we have been on a fast downhill slide as far as individual freedom and constitutional rights are concerned. 

Granted we are better off than North Korea for example, however, “our” own government and the powers that be continuously chip away at the freedoms that we still have and will continue to do so no matter who is in Congress, The Senate, and the Whitehouse. 

That’s what governments do… they chip away at freedom while dipping more and deeper into our wallets via taxation and then when the people push back they might back off a little, you know take three steps forward and one step back, and then start again.

It’s never-ending and we have to always be on the lookout for the never-ending encroachments. Sometimes the powers that be will even allow a new president to be elected to calm one political side down for a while so that they think that they have a choice and a say in how things are going while in reality they continue on with their agenda.

It’s like professional wrestling… it’s all a show to keep everyone entertained and pacified while “Rome” burns…   

Okay, now on to the next topic… I still get an email or so each month asking why I stopped posting the original “what did you do to prep this week” segment… so I’m going to answer that for everyone here today all at the same time.

I stopped posting it because it turned into a circus of whining, complaining, and ridiculousness. Every day I’d get emails from the main commenters (probably 70% of the comments were from the same five people), complaining about someone else comment that didn’t agree with them. Ban them or I’m leaving was the general and common thread of the emails.

Oh me oh my, if for some reason the system held their comment for moderation – here came the emails accusing me of “censorship” because their comment wasn’t approved instantly. If you’re going to turn into a dictator and censor comments I’m leaving the site.

And this from people who are supposedly preparing to survive TEOTWAWKI – newsflash, if you can’t deal with a comment in a blog comments sections without falling all apart then you’re probably not going to survive TEOTWAWKI. 

An then there was this one guy who thought that it was his personal mission to reply to EVERYONE else’s comments with his opinion. And even when asked by other comment posters to stop replying to their comments he still would not stop.

This is also, the same guy who publicly stated in the comments that he purposely avoided clicking on my affiliate links to Amazon.com because he didn’t want me to earn anything for my work here on the blog, even though, clicking an Amazon affiliate link costs the reader NOTHING extra when they order. 

And there were the ones who are horrified at the thoughts of me actually making a couple of dollars from my efforts here. I remember back when I first bought my solar panels and posted a photo of those on the site, several left nasty comments saying I should be ashamed, that I was getting “rich” off them somehow. 

And then there were the ones who when a few loyal readers would send a small donation to help support the site and I’d then thank them publicly for their support in the “what did you do to prep this week” segment, the jackasses would respond with the “here MD goes begging for money again” or the “looks like a scam to me” or other stupid crap.

To be honest I just got sick of all of the bullshit and the whining people that came with the segment so I closed it down. And then when I did they really showed their true colors yet again by going to another site and talking about me like a dog in the comments section there.

Some even came back here using different names and posting comments asking others to stop reading this site and to come to the other site… this went on for a couple of months before they “the wolf pack” got tired of trying to destroy me simply because I had decided to shut down their gossip column. 

Anyways, as you can see I decided to post it again today to see how it goes… so feel free to comment below if you have anything to say that you want to share.

As for my preps this week I ordered this, this, and this from Amazon.com – not really prep items but that’s what I’ve ordered.

I’ve also been working in my garden with my three sisters experiment and it’s coming along nicely, however, the weeds are trying to take over, I had hoped that the squash would shade out the weed growth but that’s not been the case. So I’m going to go pull some weeds after I get done writing and posting this.

Also, I’ve been thinking about selling my homestead and moving to another location with more land. While you can do a lot on three acres I could do a lot more on 13 and a half which is what I’ve been looking at buying. 

Oh yeah, for those who think that I’m getting rich running a prepper/homesteading blog I’ll post a couple of screenshots of my recent earnings below…

What did you do to prep this week?

 

by Seeuncourt

“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” – Thomas A. Edison

Whether you want to leave the rat race, get off the grid, retreat from the city, enjoy a simpler life, or become self-sufficient, whatever your motive – to achieve your goals you need an income.  You can work for someone else or work for yourself.  Starting a cottage industry can be daunting but it doesn’t have to be. 

Start by exploring your talents and hobbies.  What are you good at doing?  Could you make money from it?  Then, look at your area; is there a niche market for what you do?  Are you able to create that market?  Starting small is key.  The temptation to “go big or go home” may cause you to invest your precious capital in the wrong areas of your business.

Hawking Your Wares

Begin with an analysis of your area for marketing.  Determine if your local area has a farmers market or flea market and how to participate.  Develop an Etsy or eBay page, or your own website.  Ensure that you are not using colloquialisms or local lore to market your product.  I’ll explain; as a youth, I went to a local restaurant with my father. 

My father is from Tennessee, but I was raised in Iowa.  At the restaurant, the menu read, “Ham n Aigs with Taters”.  I asked my father, “What’s an “Aig”?”  After he composed himself he whispered, “Egg”.  Some local cute-isms are lost on the young or international travelers!  Market accordingly! 

The best and most enduring way to market your product, in my humble opinion, is to donate your product or service.  Your generosity will be remembered and passed on to new customers.  Often your donation can be accompanied by your business card revealing to others how to obtain such a good or service.  Happy and satisfied customers are the best advertisement.

Green Thumbs

If gardening is your forte, attend your local or regional farmers markets.  Take notes on what is there.  Identify the excess and the rare.  See what people like and are taking home.  Tailor your efforts toward what is popular, but not in great supply. 

Some ideas that are surefire sellers:  Herbs, Onions, and Greens.  Nothing says “take me home” like fresh culinary herbs, onions, shallots, garlic, and fresh spinach, and salad greens. 

All can be grown year-round outdoors, in greenhouses and high tunnels, and in cold frames.  Low in overhead, simple to grow organically, and to harvest, they are easily packaged with a simple rubber band at the stems or stalks or in plastic baggies.  Think non-GMO, heirloom, and organic!

Cut Flowers and Floral Arrangements

This takes a bit more gardening know-how, but if you are a flower image, put them to work for you!  Donate an arrangement to a local church or nursing home.  Include a “donated by” business card with your business details.

More than Whirly-gigs and Lawn Ornaments

If your talents include woodworking consider items picnic tables, vegetable hods, window boxes, bookshelves, storage cubes, vertical gardens, antler mounting plaques, and natural walking sticks (add a hand-carved wood spirit and leather grip!)  Donate a picnic table to the nursing home or a mini-table to the daycare center with a “donated by” card.  Take orders for your creations by posting with pictures on Craigslist or in the free local add paper.  Consider furniture refinishing as a side industry.

A Stitch in Time Saves Nine

Sewing can encompass everything from quilting to mending and alterations to custom tailoring orders.  It can be basic or include machine embroidery.  You are limited only by your creativity and the capabilities of your sewing machine. 

Be aware that some may not be interested in your finished product, but in learning to make their own.  Offer sewing lessons as a mainstay of this industry.  Consider volunteering to teach a basic sewing course to a 4H or homeschool group. 

Investigate how to teach an adult education course through the local school system choosing an interesting finished product.  Consult with local fabric stores and hospitals to determine if they will display finished class products.

Knitting and Crochet

While a fabulous pastime, hand knit and hand crocheted items are not often lucrative given the cost of fiber and the amount of time invested.  This and the influx of cheap china-mart knits make handmade fiber crafts money losers.  Better to offer a class as above with a finished walk away product.

Givin’ the Dog a Bone

We love our pets, thus, the pet products industry is very lucrative if you can create a product that appeals.  All natural dog treats packaged in human-appealing packaging, for instance, are a boon.  Or, hit up the local thrift shop on “fill a bag for a buck” day (or ask for the unserviceable items at a deep discount) and buy blue jeans and fleece coats or blankets. 

Turn these into creative two-sided recycled pet beds.  Stuff them with fabric scraps and cedar shavings for natural flea repellant.  Collars and leashes:  nylon webbing, paracord, leather – plain or covered in bling, these simple to make and high return for investment items are a must-have for dog and cat owners. 

Think of ways to make them original or trendy.  Donate a few of these items to your local animal shelter.  Ask them to post your business cards in return.

Bartleby the Scribner

Tutoring, typing, medical and legal transcription, resumes –put those 65 wpm+ typing skills to work for you!  Legal and medical offices often search for individuals to take on “a la carte” typing jobs.  Canvass your local area presenting a professional business card.  Obtain a “good conduct” certificate from your local PD and indicate that you will present it upon request.  Consider tax preparation as a seasonal side industry.

Are You Being Served?

Process Server and Notary Public:  With a small investment in training and certification or licensure, depending on your area population, you can make a decent wage as a process server.  Upon certification, make your service known to the local courts and attorneys by sending a business letter describing your qualifications and services. 

Include professional business cards.  Consider the dangers that accompany process serving and consider self-defense classes and/or a concealed carry permit.  Hang out a shingle stating you are a notary public, run a newspaper advertisement and post a notice on the community bulletin board.

Think Outside the Box

Do you own a truck and/or a trailer?  Put it to work for you!  Advertise “two grunts moving” on Craigslist, the free add paper, at the local storage units, and farm store.  Offer to move everything from hay bales and firewood to Aunt Fanny’s antique armoire.  Consider the overhead for packing materials, strapping, and added insurance when pursuing this venture.

Show me Angry – Now Sexy

Quality photography and photo products can be produced with a small investment in equipment and software.  If you have a digital camera, a computer, and a working knowledge of Photoshop, you have the makings of a popular business. 

Use your innate creativity to make stunning birth announcements, senior pictures, graduation announcements, holiday photo cards, etc.  Consider specializing in pet or infant photography. 

Add an additional creative niche selling matted photographs.  Take black and white photos of common objects that look like alphabet letters.  Arrange the photos to spell the name of a local popular establishment.  Mat and frame the photo montage and donate to the establishment with a request that they display your business card.

Tis the Season

Some work is only available dependent upon the season or your geographic area.  The key is to observe what is popular in your area and determine how you can get in on the action.  Some seasonal industries include:  cleaning gutters, sealing hot-top driveways, wreath making, gift baskets, rotor tilling/garden preparation, lawn care, leaf raking, camp wood and ice vending. 

Break up pallets (often free for the hauling) into 16-inch lengths, mix hardwood and softwood pallets, including a pack of matches and one commercial fire starter.  Saran wrap into a bundle.  Sell these and ice at or near local campgrounds (with the appropriate vendors’ permits, of course.)

Dressed in Overalls and Looks like Work

Don’t have all of the skills you need?  Explore the enrichment or continuing education credit courses at your local technical or community college.  These are usually offered at reduced price tuition.  Contact the local High School or Cooperative Exchange Office and determine what adult education classes are available in your local area. 

Request to apprentice with a local tradesperson during the “off” season.  Offer to work for free during the high season as payment to learn the trade.  Some trades to consider include butcher, welding and fabrication, and carpenter.

Your choice of employment doesn’t have to be conventional.  You may develop the next big thing.  Above all else, you must make wise choices and believe that you can be self-sufficient.

How about you?  What is your cottage industry success story or suggestion?

by blogRot.

Yes, a Faraday cage should be properly grounded to be more effective at preventing damage to electronics as grounding provides a discharge path for EMP. I’ll cover the why and how below so read on…

Electromagnetic Pulse (aka EMP) or a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) from our sun produce high-powered electromagnetic ‘rays’ that are very damaging to electrical and electronics based equipment. Rubbing your bare feet across the carpet generates a significant electrostatic potential that you feel when you then touch something metal like a door handle – that spark is a discharge of roughly 4,000 volts to 35,000 volts.

Lightning cracks across the sky are 10,000 volts and more.  YES, the voltages created from you rubbing your feet and lightning is roughly the same but there is an ‘umph’ factor behind the voltages that I could explain but do not want to have anyone’s eyes cross.

Ever tried to heat up some Earl Grey with your DW’s gold trim porcelain tea cups in the microwave?  Did you notice the fireworks from that boneheaded move?  For comparison, EMP is both similar and different to the above but much more powerful the closer to ground zero one is, and CME could not only be up to EMP powerful but is also sustained – the Earth could be in the sun’s blast zone for hours or days whilst an EMP burst is milliseconds.  EMP from a nuclear detonation can still be higher than 100,000 volts hundreds of miles away.

What this electromagnetic energy does is to create (‘induce’) energy potential (voltage) in equipment even when it is not plugged in.  This is bad, as not only is this not controlled (like plugging something in backward the energy doesn’t go in the correct pathways and it burns up) but also that energy could very easily exceed tolerances of the components of the equipment – something as low as 30V inducement could irreparably damage electronics.

And electronics are everywhere and are needed for/included in electrical systems like your car, generators, central air conditioners, etc.  If that electronic control goes kaput it is hard if not impossible to get that electrical system it controls/manages to work.

Furthermore, the susceptibility of electronic memory components needs to be considered: even if the electronic memory component physically survives the inducement there is a strong chance that the critical programming codes it contains may be altered enough to ‘break’ it!

Your Kindle or laptop may survive undamaged but the software it needs to power up and run would be corrupted enough to make it useless and its data irretrievable.

To be honest, until there is a detailed study of a modern-day nuclear detonation near a population center I do not believe the magnitude of EMP effects are truly understood, anticipated or expected – I can only fantasize about what the results are and believed that most experts just don’t know every cause-and-effect nor the true extent of the damage (the good-stuff data is Classified).

Yeah, there was Project Starfish Prime in Hawaii, but that was more of an incidental byproduct and not specifically set up to be monitored – “ugh… Honolulu just called and said their streetlights all went out; did we just do that?  Yes, but let’s call it part of a study so Congress will fund it. Ka-ching!”  I do recognize EMPs and CME events as being catastrophic no matter what.

So how does one protect his precious ham radio, her dc/ac inverter, or their computer from these high energy discharge events?  While some special equipment can be ‘hardened’ by design the chances of you acquiring this military-grade engineering or old-school manufacturing is not expected.  Automobiles and airplanes used to be made without electronics; today nearly everything is and today’s products are soundly engineered using the least amount of material necessary in its construction.

Great for cost savings, but no wiggle room for extra capacity.  Grandpa’s wire wound antenna I inherited in his vacuum-tube based radio weighs more than my entertainment center – this is the old-school manufacturing that I am referring to.

The wiring in those old electrical systems would be considered over-engineered in today’s standards; they were bigger back then and those bigger wires can conduct more power through them before overheating and burning out.  Hardening and modern RF shielding is a whole ‘nuther bag of beans topic-wise, and this is just a brief snippet to show contrast to the other option.

…and that other option is to Shield it.  There is a reason UFO nutters wear tinfoil hats – it is actually sound physics in shielding from electrical waves; however, unless it is properly Grounded then it is useless.  So do you truly know what ‘grounding’ is?

Earth ground is special in that it is ASSUMED to be able to absorb an unlimited amount of Current without changing its potential (Voltage).  Another way of saying it is that earth ground is always ASSUMED to have zero volts, no matter how much current/power it is subjected to.  Electromagnetic radiation continues to propagate until dissipated through earth ground… err… it travels until stopped by the earth.

Let us assume the equipment is plugged into the wall outlet and is exposed to EMP.  This means that is being zapped and induced with ~100,000 volts of energy, more than likely turning whatever was plugged in into a heavy paperweight.  Light bulbs will explode, electronics will pop n fizzle, and if it was already running then it may catch fire.

Not to mention that the power lines are already saturated with its own induced energy, causing further mayhem and destruction.  “But I had it turned OFF” you say; well, unfortunately most On/Off switches only opens one leg of the circuit loop so that induced power will flow through the ‘neutral’ just like if it was running (and destroying it) or it will flow at the speed of light through the ‘hot’ and then to another piece of equipment you have running and THEN back to earth ground.

It still goes ‘poof’.  Or it may even arc the distance across the leads of the On/Off switch.  Multiply this effect by all of the items you have plugged into the walls of your house, then all of the houses tied into your electrical grid.  Many, many ‘poofs’.  Even if the mains breaker on your house trips you’re still left with 100,000v inducement in the house wiring.

“So just leaving it unplugged will protect it, right,” you ask?  Not really.  Let us say you’ve got a nice 1000W dc inverter tucked away on a shelf.  It will still get zapped by 100,000 volts, but that induced energy potential doesn’t go anywhere until that energy potential is great enough to overcome the resistance of air(!) to get to Ground.

And since we know from the paragraphs way up there at the beginning that lighting can arc through the air at somewhere around 10,000, we’re still turning that nice 1000W inverter into a paperweight as that induced energy somehow, someway discharges itself to ground.  Or it might not immediately, and stay at 100,000 volts potential, but then you touch it… ouch, or plug it in.. ‘poof’.

“But I want my eyes even further crossed – what else you got?”  You are masochistic, my friend.  Let us continue to Shielding.

Electromagnetic radiation wants to go to earth Ground – it is its destiny, that’s its sole purpose in the universe, its feelings would be hurt if it couldn’t.  To protect equipment we either need to “hide” it ten feet or more underground or “shield” it before the energy waves find it.

Hiding doesn’t mean putting it in the basement or the storm cellar – you need at least ten feet of earth above your abode; we’re talking underground bunkers here.

By surrounding it with – but not touching – a grounded conductive enclosure the electromagnetic waves and/or static discharges are harmlessly shunted around the sides of the enclosure.  Some dead dude name Benjamin Franklin (I’ve never heard of him either) noted as the discoverer of this but some other dead dude named Faraday codified it, thusly the Faraday Cage.

Almost anything can be made into an effective Faraday cage, provided it is:

• conductive (“Yay!” screams the tinfoil hat crowd),
• properly Earth Grounded (“Hissss!” boos the tinfoils),
• adequately surrounds whatever is trying to be enclosed (“Hey, we need to breathe yo!” the tinfoils’ excuse is),
• whatever is inside is sufficiently insulated from this cage. (“I got nothing.” Me either.)

Microwave ovens are designed and built as faraday cages and continue to function as such even if it doesn’t work anymore.  Ever loose cell phone reception in an elevator?  That is the Faraday cage effect, my friend.  A grounded safe or vault.

Properly grounded tinfoil around a box.  You can use a military surplus ammunition can, drill and tap a hole, screw in a lugged ground wire and clip it to the metal shelf support next to the other ammunition cans you’re using as such, and tie that shelf into earth ground.

“But what about using bird cages, chicken wire, and/or DW’s heirloom spaghetti strainer bowl?”  Depends, and this is where the lack of public information comes in to play.  The spacing of the electromagnetic permeable conduits acts as a wave-guide of sorts and determines what frequency of electromagnetic radiation is rejected, attenuated or passed.  WAIT- Please don’t leave, I didn’t mean to get too technical!

Think of an EMP burst as a golf ball passing through a Faraday minefield of putting holes of different sizes – too small a hole and the ball will roll over it and too big a hole the ball will bounce out and continue on.  Complicate that further by not knowing what size of the golf ball is to begin with.  So it might just be that the hole spacing in a birdcage and chicken wire won’t be able to shield out enough of the EMP.

I can’t say for sure that these materials would be 100% effective against EMP or CME events, but something is better than nothing and this something is *significant*.  I use chicken wire over certain things I’ve got in the shed; if you think the holes are too widely spaced then add another wrap around it.

There is no Prepper Law that says you can’t have DW’s spaghetti strainer covered by chicken wire over a birdcage.  Solid cage is best, next is the smaller the spacing of the holes the better off you are.  Just make sure whatever you use is properly grounded to earth ground.

“So what does properly earth grounded mean?” A good earth ground is a conductive rod that is driven into the ground 10 feet or so – and the depth is dependent on where the damp earth starts; Texas building code is 10 feet so that’s what I stuck to.

The licensed electricians I work with say some houses have copper plumbing that acts as the earth ground.  The shield has to be connected to it and you need to make sure the grounding wire is thick enough to handle the ‘funneled’ energy (if you’re covering an entire safe room then tiny 24ga speaker wire will not be sufficient – use a battery jumper cable) and makes a good, solid contact to whatever earth ground you are using as well as the shielding material.

“Properly insulated?” If the equipment you want to shield is actually touching the cage then there is a conductive path for the energy burst to follow that could compromise your equipment; it becomes part of the shield, therefore, it is fully exposed.  Put that inverter in a cardboard box, wrap it in a garbage bag, then put it in that properly grounded junky microwave.  Throw in a desiccant bag for good measure.

“’Conductive’; you keep using this word.  I do not think it means what you think it means.”  Copper is the best common material that conducts electricity and the higher the content of the copper in the conductor the better it does that job.  Aluminum (probably the worst), steel, brass, tinfoil and other commonly available alloys do work but are not as efficient as copper.  But those *do* work as conductors, so don’t disregard them if that’s what you’ve got available.

EMP or CME related puns welcome in the comments; I enjoy electrifying conversations.  (<- see what I did there?  Hah! I kill me!)

by Ron G

Think of this as a primer if you will. It is written to cover the basics that will matter most to you as a prepper. I am intentionally leaving out a lot of technical jargon; there are others willing to throw that out at you.  There will be some terms and concepts that do need to be understood. One I will use a lot is Ground Zero (GZ).

Ground Zero is that point on the surface of the earth directly under, at, or over, a nuclear detonation. Your location, distance, and direction, from GZ is very important.

It’s important that you understand that there are four types of nuclear detonations or “burst”. Sub Surface Burst, Surface Burst, Air Burst, and High Altitude Burst.

All nuclear burst will produce the same basic effects, blinding light, tremendous heat, massive blast wave, radiation, and the electromagnetic pulse. However, the type of burst will greatly determine the degree of each effect upon the target.

A Sub Surface Burst is one that occurs underground in which the fireball produced does not break thru to the atmosphere. The ground will shake and there may be a surface collapse at GZ but on the surface, there will be no radiation or EMP released or blast wave.  Really nothing to be concerned with and I mention it only because they have been used during weapons design testing programs in the past.

A Surface Burst is a detonation on or near enough to the surface where the fireball touches the earth’s surface. This is the one we almost always see in the movies and in illustrations for articles like this.  There will be a brilliant flash of light, a massive fireball, and an intense outward-bound blast wave outward from GZ. As the fireball starts to rise a second blast wave, this time returning towards GZ, arrives and brings with it massive amount of debris.

This debris is forced upward into the fireball and creates the stem of the familiar “Mushroom Cloud”. At GZ there is total destruction and depending on the size, design of the weapon, and to a degree, the terrain, the area of total destruction can be considerable. Large areas of partial and incomplete destruction will extend even further.

Meanwhile, the Mushroom Cloud continues to rise through the atmosphere, the stem discontinues and temperatures inside the fireball start to cool down. As it cools the prevailing winds will start to push the fireball downwind. The material inside the fireball, now radioactive, cools and starts to fall, largest, heaviest material first.

By the time it reaches 30,000 feet the fireball will appear to be just another cloud but this cloud will be leaving behind a trail of radioactive fallout for several hundred miles.

GZ will not be survivable and will be radioactive for a long time. The further away from GZ you are the better your chances. A safe distance downwind will be much further then a safe distance cross or upwind.

An Air Burst is a detonation in which the fireball does not touch the surface of the earth. It has all the other characteristics of a Surface Burst but there is no Mushroom Cloud and most important there will be no significant fallout. What the Air Burst will do however is create a much larger area of destruction. It does this by creating three blast waves.

As the expanding blast wave (or initial wave) strikes the surface of the earth, it is reflected off the ground to form a second shock wave traveling behind the first. This reflected wave travels faster than the initial wave since it is traveling through the air already moving at high speed due to the passage of the initial wave.

The reflected blast wave will merge with the initial wave to form a single wave. This is called a Mach wave. The overpressure at the front of the Mach wave is generally about twice as great as that at the initial blast wave.

If you have trouble picturing this try thinking of a ripple hitting the edge of a calm pond. This deflected wave becomes a second wave. The third wave will be the displaced air mass returning to GZ.

These types of detonation will double the area of destruction without the messy fallout. You can see the military advantage of this type of detonation. GZ will not be survivable but will not be radioactive for long. The distance from GZ you will need to survive the destructive blast are much greater but fallout will not be an issue.

Last of all is the High Altitude Burst. A detonation above 100,000 feet is a High Altitude Burst. No blast damage. No fallout. Your personal physical threat from this would be the potential flash blindness from the initial burst. The purpose of this type of detonation is the Electro Magnetic Pulse.

Lets review. A Sub Surface Burst is really not a military option. Surface or Air Burst, if you are at or are too close to GZ you are either toast or soon to be toast. If it was an Air Burst fallout is not a threat. If it was a Surface Burst and you are located far enough up or cross wind you should be in good shape. If you are downwind…

Fallout.  Fallout is material that was made temporarily radioactive in the fireball through a process called ionization. It has a known decay rate.

There are multiple layers in the atmosphere; each layer is capable of having different wind speeds and directions. As the fireball becomes a fallout cloud and raises and lowers thru each layer the winds in that layer will have an effect. Lower levels will have less effect while upper levels will have more. In predicting where the fallout will go it helps to be a weatherman.

Generally, Continental US weather patterns flow from the South to North and West to East. But, there are seasonal variations. Understanding Highs and Lows and where you are in relation to them, would be useful information.

Knowing that your westerly winds are the lower part of an upper-level low that is moving south you can determine that the fallout will mostly travel south and east. (I once had to explain why surface winds have no effect to an Air Force General. The Major who ran the DoD weather school just sat there and grinned.

Fallout Protection is all about Time, Distance, and Shielding. The longer it takes for fallout to arrive the less there will be. If you are in a safe space, the longer you wait to go out the less you will be exposed to. The greater the distance between you and fallout that has arrived the less radiation you will be exposed to.

The more mass between you and the fallout the less radiation will reach you. I think everyone understands these concepts well enough.

The next thing topic is very important. Targeting in Nuclear War.

In an all-out war the first strikes will be against an enemy’s ability to strike back. Missile Silos, Bomber and Submarine Bases, and Command and Control Centers will be the first targets. Major military bases, seaports and manufacturing centers would be secondary.

In a nuclear war, most targets are going to be hit with Air Burst. Let me say it again. In a nuclear war, most detonations are going to be Air Burst. (ICBM Silos and Cheyenne Mountain in Colorado will be exceptions to this). The fallout will be a problem, but probably not to the extent most of us think. Nuclear Winter? Forget about it. Totally made up bull!

One last thing, if you are outdoors and see an unexplainable, sudden, intense, flash of light and cannot identify the source, immediately drop to the ground, close your eyes, and cover your ears and open your mouth. You want to protect against flash blindness and the oncoming overpressure of the blast wave.

Remember, there will be a second blast wave in the opposite direction, so don’t be in a hurry to get up. Of course, you may be far enough away that the wave(s) may never get there. Count that as a blessing.

By A Different Drummer

There are many aspects of personal preparedness that make sense, and I know firsthand that once you take a trip down the rabbit hole, the path to preparedness can be daunting at best, if not completely overwhelming.  To this overwhelming state of mind, I wish to remind everyone that you must walk before you can run.

I know it sounds obvious, but once you start “waking up” to the real world we find ourselves in many are drawn into panic because there is so much to do and seemingly so little time.

Where to start?  What’s most important? Bug out bags (click here to read an awesome article on bug out bags)?  Food storage (click this link to read MD Creekmore’s detailed article on long-term food storage)?  Water purification? HAM radio? Alternative energy systems?  Defense “tools”?

The list of needs in a SHTF situation is staggering.  However, I believe that while all those things (and more) are important, maybe even essential given the scenario, what I see most overlooked is just good ol’ common sense personal safety in the home.

For example, are you aware that in 2014 there were over 1.2 million fires reported in the U.S. alone?  Those fires led to 3,275 civilian deaths and over 15,000 civilian injuries.  In other words, the S hit the fan for close to 20,000 people that year, from house fires.  Not financial collapse, CME/EMP or the New World Order, house fires.  Just think about that for a minute and let it sink in…

When is the last time you checked your smoke detectors?  Not only do they need to be checked routinely for battery replacement, but smoke detectors also have expiration dates.  This is something most people aren’t aware of.  If you haven’t checked yours in a while, do it today.

Now let me ask you, where are your fire extinguishers?  Do you know off the top of your head or do you need to think about it for a second?  Can you easily grab one, or is it behind a bunch of stuff that will need to be knocked out of the way?

Do your spouse and/or children know where the fire extinguishers are located?  Do they know how to use one if necessary or when NOT to use them? When is the last time you checked the extinguisher to see if it is still good?  Some extinguishers are disposable and have expiration dates; others can be serviced and can last for years.

Have you made a family/household evacuation plan?  If so, have you ever practiced it?  Nothing can make a minor emergency spiral out of control faster than not knowing what to do in said emergency.  Everyone needs to know at least two ways to get out of the home and where to go once they’re out.

I’m not talking about “bugging out”; I’m talking about evacuating your house due to fire, earthquake, tornado, etc.   You’ve made it out of your home, but the street is blocked off, there are emergency vehicles everywhere, maybe news vans and reporters and of course the curious neighbors and passers-by.  Where do you go?  How do your kids find you if this happens while they are away from the house and the LEO blocking the road won’t let them through?

At the very least you should practice your evacuation plan at least once a year.  The more you practice, the more your response becomes automatic.  And besides, things change.  Another example; my family’s “muster point” should we need to evacuate is in a little courtyard at a small shopping center down the block.

This worked great for 10 years until suddenly the courtyard was fenced off completely for construction and was off limits for a year… It’s important to keep things up to date and even better to have a Plan B, just in case.

Aside from the obvious hazard of a house fire, it’s important to prepare yourself, your family and your home for the type of natural disasters most likely in your area.  For me, its earthquakes, so keeping tall shelves bolted to the walls and keeping a wrench handy to shut off the natural gas valve are some simple, inexpensive preps I can do to help mitigate risk.

Maybe you live in a hurricane zone, so having pre-cut (and labeled!) plywood sheets for your windows would be a simple, low-cost prep that will save you time, energy and further damage when the storms come.

My point is this, we all live with danger, every day of our lives.  There are many things we can do to lower our risk and shorten recovery time, but you have to identify them ahead of time. That is why we all participate in this thing called preparedness!

Sure, smoke detectors aren’t exciting and nobody is going to care about the picture you posted of your freshly serviced fire extinguishers in the survival forums, but these are simple things that will most likely do more to save your life and the lives of those you care about than the latest tactical gear.

It’s easy to get caught up with the preparedness “stuff”, I know because I’m guilty of it too.  And I’m not saying the gear and the long term storage foods and all those other goodies aren’t great to have around.

I’m a firm believer in the better-to-have-it-and-not-need-it-than-need-it-and-not-have-it camp but the fact of the matter is that you and your loved ones are far more likely to face a house fire, a natural disaster or some other mundane crisis than you will need to grab your B.O.B. and your AR-15 and head off into the great unknown to fight the Illuminati.

If you’re one of the newly awakened, take a step back, a deep breath and ask yourself “what type of disaster is the most likely to happen to ME?” and go from there.  Apply a little common sense and get your house in order before you spend all your time and resources on the survival toys that so many crow about.

After all, nothing is going to ruin your day more than having all your hard earned preps lost forever for want of a $6 smoke detector.  It’s often said that skills trump gear nearly every time and I believe that.  I also believe that critical thinking is a skill and one that is underused by many.

If you really think about it, I believe you will agree that preparing your home for the everyday, common emergency will give you a much better chance of survival in the long run than say, another hank of paracord or the latest and greatest gadget to show up on the magazine covers.

Prepare smart, with serious consideration for your location and personal needs and before long the overwhelming panic will subside. And once you got your home base covered, you’ll be ready to move on to your next preparedness phase with a clear head.