Book: "Patriots, Surviving the Coming Collapse"

[30 cal slut]

Okay, so I'm thumbing through this how-to guide thinly disguised as narrative fiction.

I'm making a mental tally of all the stuff one would buy as prescribed by the author ... "James Wesley, Rawles"

1. I think I'm okay in the firearms department. But as far as food, condoms, medical equipment/training, explosives, and the tactical bidet go, it looks like the Schumer Hit The Fan :p shopping list is gonna bankrupt me. :D

2. The author apparently favors Colt 1911's for SHTF sidearm. :confused:

3. Why is there a comma between "James Wesley" and "Rawles" ? Inquiring minds wanna know.

[MarshallDodge]

1. Food, water, heat, medical supplies, ammo, and firearms are a good thing to have on hand. Start with 72 hours worth and build on it from there.

2. I believe the book was written in the mid 90's and was published in 1999. The Internet was barely alive then to tell people that you had to have a Glock to survive. ;) :rolleyes:

3. You may be able to find the answer here: http://www.survivalblog.com/

The book has some good points and some that are exaggerated in my opinion. One nice thing about it is that after my wife read it she became a believer in preparation. :cool:

The thing I do not like about the book is the lack of community, just running off to the woods is not going to keep you alive. I think Lights Out (http://www.frugalsquirrels.com/friends_links.html) does a much better job of showing how you could survive as a community if there was a collapse.

[St.Michael]

A GLOCK!!!!!???? good thing I just ordered me an OD green one this past weekend. But I mean really, I do have to have the 1911. Which I do already.

[faithmyeyes]

1. What Marshall Dodge said.

2. Not anymore - Mr. Rawles has become an XD fan. (See http://www.survivalblog.com/2008/12/a_1911_dinosaur_turns_over_a_n.html) (http://www.survivalblog.com/2008/12/a_1911_dinosaur_turns_over_a_n.html)

3. It has to do with common-law something or other. He's mentioned it in an interview, but didn't give specifics as to why he would choose to adopt that nomenclature.

[LippCJ7]

I read a bunch of these online books/stories each month and I have to agree with you that if I followed their examples I would,
1. Be divorced inside of 1 hour
2. Be bankrupt inside of 1 week
3. Be on the "HOLY CRAP LIP'S LOST HIS MIND" list with everyone I know including my family and
4. be on the ATF's list of people who need to be watched very closely
I think its important to filter everything you read in patriot fiction and decide for yourself what is important to keep your family prepared and at the same time sane!
At the same time I enjoy most the stories alot and continue to read them even though I have grown to enjoy paperbacks as well. I also encourage others to read and decide for themselves whats best for them. Personally I feel if TSHTF the most probable outcome is that people will form MAG's on their own and everything will move on from there. Life will go on.

Lip

[MarshallDodge]

Personally I feel if TSHTF the most probable outcome is that people will form MAG's on their own and everything will move on from there. Life will go on.
MAG? Metal Active Gas?

Sorry, I am not FBC (Fully Buzzword Compliant) :D

[LippCJ7]

Funny I normally have to Google acronyms since I am old by my childrens definitions! However in this case a MAG is a Mutual Aid Group where like minded individuals team up in order to mutually benefit each other or the group as a whole. Its become a popular idea in Patriot Fiction/Post Apocalyptic/TEOTWAWKI Stories and books. Hows that for an explanation! AND NO I DIDN'T GOOGLE IT EITHER!:D

[Honu]

Funny I normally have to Google acronyms since I am old by my childrens definitions! However in this case a MAG is a Mutual Aid Group where like minded individuals team up in order to mutually benefit each other or the group as a whole. Its become a popular idea in Patriot Fiction/Post Apocalyptic/TEOTWAWKI Stories and books. Hows that for an explanation! AND NO I DIDN'T GOOGLE IT EITHER!:D

this idea is one that I learned in a survival course back in the late 70s early 80s :) with the cold war fear

[30 cal slut]

I read a bunch of these online books/stories each month and I have to agree with you that if I followed their examples I would,
1. Be divorced inside of 1 hour
2. Be bankrupt inside of 1 week
3. Be on the "HOLY CRAP LIP'S LOST HIS MIND" list with everyone I know including my family and
4. be on the ATF's list of people who need to be watched very closely




LMAO.

I appreciate the very thorough approach the author takes in the book. No stone appears to be left unturned. It's a useful thought exercise, because my own imagination (fears?) didn't anticipate half of what the author has described could unfold.

If one is reading diligently, one will be writing down a LOT of notes. And there will be a LOT of thinking.

The reader can take away a few things about a real long-term SHTF type of scenario:

1) it will likely be difficult for the average person to endure SHTF on his/her own. Folks will need support from trusted friends, and that includes pooling SHTF resources as well as responsibilities (security, and everyday tasks like food procurement and preparation).

2) most folks (myself included) as of this very minute, are not going to be prepared for SHTF of extended duration.

3) ergo, we hope to hell SHTF doesn't happen any time soon. :p

4) in the meantime ...

[Bad Voodoo]

2) most folks (myself included) as of this very minute, are not going to be prepared for SHTF of extended duration.

That's why Rawles prescribes to a bartering system for his little enclaves of survivalists. You'd work together to sustain necessary land, provisions, and services, no one person or family responsible for sustaining all (think traditional LDS communities). Obviously, those who wish to survive but don't necessarily want or have the payola to build giant survival stores would want to acquire a skill or trade that might be considered a valuable commodity to others capable of provisioning on a for service basis. Given the state that is America right now, the various meat-and-potatoes trades that only a couple generations ago might have been taught as a matter of course, have generally disappeared in favor of a liberal education system that teaches global entitlement.

No, you're right. There's a whole LOT of people in this country who are not going to be prepared, way past how to access basic necessities.

[Rider79]

I love this book, this is one of the first books I read that got me to start thinking about these types of scenarios. While some of it is far-fetched (Jeff Trasel somehow going to every specops/specialist school that any branch of the military offers, for one), it still gives alot of great, well-researched info. As for the way the author writes his name, I read the reason somewhere a long time ago, has something to do with some Scottish clan type shit. He's James Wesley, from the Rawles clan, or something.

[1859sharps]

My two cents on SHTF preparedness is most people are thinking and preparing for the wrong scenario.

Your #1 concern should be for whichever natural disaster tends to happen in your area. Floods, earthquake, hurricane, tornado etc, the most. prepare for 1 - 2 weeks on your own, and your good.

Your #2 concern should be economic down turns. be they personal or more global as we are seeing today. sound personal economics, a rainy day nest egg of some kind, and a willingness to learn new skills are your best bet to pull through.

The more exotic/apocalyptic SHTF scenarios might be "fun" things to game out, the what if and things to consider are endless. But unless you are super rich with an inside track on which exotic/apocalyptic scenario is the "ONE" and when it will actually happen (if at all) the vast majority of us have no hope of building up a life time of supplies to "ride it out". IMHO, IF one of these type SHTF scenarios actually ever happen your survival will be far more dependent on what you can do, not what you have. Do you know how to purify water, grow food, build shelter. What are your medical skills etc.

[MarshallDodge]

+1 to 1859 Sharps.

[JSantoro]

The Firefox series of books was a good read in my youth. It's chock full of Jim Bridger-type skills that have helped me out in austere environments, and it's nice to know that there's a means to do all kinds of stuf without electricity and running water.

[Abraxas]

My two cents on SHTF preparedness is most people are thinking and preparing for the wrong scenario.

Your #1 concern should be for whichever natural disaster tends to happen in your area. Floods, earthquake, hurricane, tornado etc, the most. prepare for 1 - 2 weeks on your own, and your good.

Your #2 concern should be economic down turns. be they personal or more global as we are seeing today. sound personal economics, a rainy day nest egg of some kind, and a willingness to learn new skills are your best bet to pull through.

The more exotic/apocalyptic SHTF scenarios might be "fun" things to game out, the what if and things to consider are endless. But unless you are super rich with an inside track on which exotic/apocalyptic scenario is the "ONE" and when it will actually happen (if at all) the vast majority of us have no hope of building up a life time of supplies to "ride it out". IMHO, IF one of these type SHTF scenarios actually ever happen your survival will be far more dependent on what you can do, not what you have. Do you know how to purify water, grow food, build shelter. What are your medical skills etc.

Agreed

[LippCJ7]

While I agree with 1859sharps and others, I can't help but wonder, whats the scarriest thing that could happen to my little world that I cannot control?

Natural disasters? Sure, anyone in their right mind should keep that in the back of their mind but I live in Colorado so it looks like a blizzard for me been there done that no big deal.

Go down the list and the ones that scare me are a Meteor, and the big one a Nuclear war. I can't do anything to prevent a meteor or another natural disaster so all I can do is think about how I would deal with surviving the aftermath should I live after the initial event(realistically I'm not even scared of these they are simply out of my control).

Now a Nuclear war, ok this scares me but why? The way I see it is that it is totally preventable and yet it seems totally inevitable at the same time. We continue to screw around and let dictators and terrorists play with atoms when they can't even feed their people or terrorize or brainwash their people into submission or idiotic promises of martyrdom.

Nope that seals it, what I fear the most is the Atom. The Atom and those that will soon be able to control it but not themselves.

Problem is I personally cannot do anything about it but I could prepare for life after it..............do I really want to? Who knows.

I think what I enjoy most about thinking of these scenarios is placing myself in the storyline or thinking about how I would handle the issues differently then the characters in the story. It may be that this is my way of preparing for what comes.

sorry I'm in Wyoming currently and just decided to write a book for you guys since there isn't anything else to do here after work.

Lip

[30 cal slut]

... whats the scarriest thing that could happen to my little world that I cannot control?




running out of terlet paper.

oh noooooo...! ;):D