What is Survivalism?

[Rob Roy MacGregor]

Came across this in my cyberspace travels. Enjoy!

What is Survivalism?

There are many images of survivalism and survivalists. Many are real since there is not one single meaning or situation and many are distortions from the entertainment and news industries. These distortions sometimes are meant to discredit and sometimes simply make for an entertaining story.

Rambo is not a survivalist. One image is Rambo, war veteran, psychotic and unable to re-enter normal life, being anti-social with a large knife and an evil looking gun that fires endless amounts of ammunition without explanation of where it comes from or how he carries it, living by primitive jungle skills learned from guerillas. Well folks, that's just Sylvester Stallone, actor by profession, with a knife that is unreliable and incapable of common woodsman chores and a skilled Hollywood sound man. In short, entertainment. Watch the movie, enjoy the fantasy, but it just ain't real.

Timothy McVeigh is not a survivalist. News media like to spice up stories by tying spectacular crimes with "survivalists". If you hear "spook" or "operative", James Bond comes to mind although most spies go to work at an office in a business suit. The term "survivalist" has a mystique because most people don't really know what it is and it is easy to apply any notion wanted to it. This is like the words Bohemian or Cossack. Both were popular images in the 30s for mysterious people from other cultures that lived unusual, and probably romantic, life styles. The UniBomber and the Oklahoma City bomber were quickly called survivalists by the news media. Neither had stocks, long term plans, or any obvious survival skills. They just liked building bombs. Hating the government and displaying anti-social thinking is NOT the trait of a survivalist. A survivalist keeps a low profile - they do not take on the federal government with the world media doing play by play coverage.

The media sometimes uses "survivalist" as a synonym for odd or exotic thinking and in this way it is probably no more than uninformed and irresponsible spicing up a story. Less easy to forgive is when folks with an agenda use the term. People who oppose gun ownership often style gun owners as survivalists - never as hunters or sports marksmen. (Digressing here, they usually call more than two guns an "arsenal" hoping the listener is ignorant of just how specialized any one gun is.) These people use it as a dirty word to smear those they don't approve of without having to bother with giving any actual facts or arguments.

If a person were said to save for a rainy day, that would be positive. If they knew how a lot of things worked, they would be smart. If they know how to do a lot of things, they are handy. If they take care of their family, that's good. Daniel Boone or a prairie settler of a hundred years ago was respected for their ability to provide for their family alone in the wilderness. A city person that is "street smart" knows what's going on in their specialized world. A survivalist is all these things and that's about all when you come down to it. Somehow, that has been made a bad thing.

A survivalist prepares for shortages and troubles that may occur. They may not occur. In fact, they usually do NOT occur. A true survivalist hopes deep in their heart that the good life never ends for anybody. They just know that trouble sometimes does happen, and want to be as well situated as they can be if bad things do come to be. Since they prepare for shortages, they accumulate stocks of materials they believe may become unavailable. They also prepare for troubles like manmade or natural disaster, war, civil disorder, financial reversals, and, yes, government gone astray.

If a person has supplies that are in short supply, someone will want them for themselves. It may be the looter, the government confiscator, or simply a neighbor with a starving family. This explains two traits of the survivalist.

First they are closed mouthed about their situation. They do not tell people about their stock. They do not tell that they have it, where it is kept, what things it includes, or how much is in it. Even disclosing the interest allows the shrewd person to guess that they are likely to have stores. Many survivalists conceal that they even have the mindset. Most practice normal daily life and social interaction, just not mentioning their concern, but some withdraw from public aspects of life. This makes them a bit of a mystery and they can seem distant from others. It is easy then for the media to call these few "loners" and "outsiders" and suspect all sorts of sinister things being hidden. Heck, they probably want to bomb town hall.

The second trait is that the survivalist is able to protect their stocks. Charity and sharing are fine, and are simply a built-in part of most people, but one person's stockpile can not feed a community. Loosing it will do no more than momentary good, but it leaves the person who lost it as desperate as those around them. If trouble strikes, someone will likely try to "share" the supplies. The survivalist knows this and has learned how to defend their property and has the materials, knowledge, and skills to do it.

http://members.1stconnect.com/anozira/SiteTops/original/whatisit.htm

Here's his main page: http://members.1stconnect.com/anozira/

Lots of good survival links.

[Steve B]

Good post, Mac! Here is another one from the link. Had to shorten it because of the length but a good read!

The author is a retired U.S. Army sergeant with a background in infantry, logistics and administrative and security training. He currently heads his own security firm and is an adjunct faculty member with the University of New Hampshire teaching seminars on home food production.-The editors.

WHAT is a survivalist homestead? It is a home in which you can live in a real-world/present-time economy and social order, yet at the same time practice on a regular basis the survival skills you may need later.

All of this is accomplished while still living a normal life-style with access to work, schools, emergency services and stores, etc. But most importantly, you will not be in conflict with criminal, firearm or building codes, zoning ordinances, EPA regulations or planning board requirements.

The survivalist homestead offers one more very important option. That of helping you now to live a better quality life at a cheaper price and allowing you to shift to more severe survival plans only to the extent needed to meet emergencies.

In planning a survivalist homestead there are three concepts which must be incorporated into your thinking from the start and which must be adhered to if the goals are to be met. They are: Plan A and Plan B. Plan A is that part of all planning of your homestead which has to do with dealing in the present/real world time frame. Plan B is the planning for whatever emergencies you feel could threaten you. Both plans must be such that they can co-exist in the same place at the same time.

One Effort with Multiple Results
This concept is simply "working smarter, not harder," fine tuned to an almost absolute. Every effort must result in more than just the one primary result. It allows you to accomplish more goals with less expenditure of time and money, to facilitate the first concept.

Reduce, Re-use, Recycle
This concept is taken wholly from the environmental movement. Re-using material and recycling waste allows you to reduce expenses thus build with less cash outlay. This is also a skill you will need in any type of breakdown of social order, where normal access to stores and services will not be available.

Applying these concepts in homestead planning is not the first step. The first step is deciding what you are planning for - what emergencies or crises you might have to face. This is subjective and no two people will feel that any one set of possible emergencies will be what they have to be ready for.

The process of thinking this through is called threat analysis. Done correctly it can give you an accurate picture of what it is you should be getting ready for. At the end of my threat analysis I decided that the following were what I wanted to be ready for:

1. Short term cash flow problems.
2. Severe weather conditions.
3. Economic upheaval on a large scale.
4. Catastrophic world events.

The first task in establishing a homestead is to find the land. You can eliminate many present-time and crisis-time security problems with proper site location. At the same time the property should be located so that you have reasonable access to work, entertainment, schools and emergency services.

Other important considerations are taxes, community growth plans, amount of land for your needs, zoning ordinances and building codes in the area where you plan to buy.

I chose my property because it was large enough (15 acres), had the right topography, available firewood, garden space, animal space, hunting and potential for water. Also the town has as part of its charter that the community will remain rural with little growth, no heavy industry or commerce and with farming as its main industry.

Crime, in normal times is a by product of growth and population density in urban and suburban life, and increased crime and civil disorder are the first results of cultural breakdown. My location has been chosen to avoid these to a great extent while still having reasonable contac with the real world.

Finally my location allows me to use firearms, garden, raise animals and build pretty much what I want for now and the future because of the absence of myriad zoning regulations and building
codes that are found in so many other communities today.

Security was at the top of my list of priorities in planning my homestead on the land I acquired. A poorly laid out homestead will result in one that is more difficult and costly to secure in both normal and crisis times.

Just locating the house-compound on a hill went a long way in avoiding problems with criminals now -Plan A-, and in possible lawless times - Plan B. The compound is hard to see from the nearest road, especially in summer. It is impossible to tell just what is on the hill unless you walk or drive at least half way up the driveway. By this time a would-be intruder or gang finds that the entire front of the compound area is blocked by a marshland to the east, extending a few hundred yards beyond my property line, and a deep dug pond connected to a series of beaver ponds that run nearly a half mile to the west beyond my property line.

This fine example of an engineer water barrier is the result of hard working beavers that moved onto the adjoining property the same year I bought my parcel. Within a few years they had backed up enough water to flood all the aforementioned area except my driveway. The total cost to me for this barrier was $600 to have the deep pond dug. This system serves as a second source of water for emergencies, irrigation , swimming, and draws a wide variety of waterfowl, mammals, reptiles and fish which can be a food supply - One Effort with Multiple Results.

The water barrier freezes in winter. To deny access to the main compound all year round I knew I would have to install some type of fence, which could be expensive. Instead, I stacked brush and tree limbs from land-clearing operations around the top edge of the hill on which my home-compound was located - Reduce, Re-use, Recycle. This created an instant barricade called an abatis. In most places it was around three feet high and as much as eight feet wide.

The next year native New Hampshire blackberries, that grow in abundance in the area, made their appearance and soon formed a living flesh-tearing barbed wire barrier where the brush had been stacked. Unlike a fence that deteriorates and has to be maintained every year, my barrier just gets thicker and stronger without me lifting a finger except to cut it back here and there it also provides a good amount of fresh fruit and attracts animals which, on occasion, end up on the dining room table - One Effort with Multiple Results.

In building my home I wanted a strong dwelling which was also aesthetically pleasing, practical for day-to-day living and would meet all the zoning and building codes and yet would meet the emergencies I plan for.

Solar Heating
I used a lot of rough-cut lumber, stucco and stone inside the house. I used one-inch lumber instead of sheet rock for the walls and ceilings because of its structural strength.

The kitchen, living room, dining room and master bedroom are on the south side of the house. This side has large areas of glass windows to allow solar heating during the colder months. The colder the season gets the lower the sun is on the horizon. By Dec. 21, the sun floods almost straight through the south windows, keeping the inside temperature around 65 degrees F. By June 21, the sun is now high in the sky, adding little heat to the house during warmer months.

Because solar gain heating can overheat a house in the day time, there is a need for something to absorb the excess heat during the day and radiate it back into the house later on. This is called thermal mass. It is achieved by having no basement and building instead on a concrete slab, sometimes called a floating slab or a monolith slab.

For additional mass - and protection from gunfire if the need should arise - I built a solid concrete block wall of four-inch thick blocks almost the whole length of the house.

This wall collects heat from the wood/coal stove to prevent overheating of the north side rooms and then radiates it back late at night. This stove, except for the Ben Franklin stove in the master bedroom which is used only occasionally, is the only source of man-made heat we have had for the past three winters.

Plans for this year call for the addition of a propane gas heating system. The gas system will be one that does not rely on electricity to function. Once again if the heating system is connected to house current the loss of electricity means no heat. The wood/coal stove will be kept for back-up, cooking and heating, and just for the pleasure of a wood fire in the winter.

The north wall of the house is just the opposite, as far as windows go, of the south wall. The smallest windows allowed by code are placed here. These are the bathrooms, toilet and bedrooms. These rooms remain empty most of the day and do not need as much light. The smaller windows reduce heat loss and restrict entry from the outside.

To further reduce heat loss the north wall is triple insulated. Standard fiberglass was installed, then one-inch rigid insulation over the studs, and 7/16-inch flake board over the insulation. There are no breaks in this barrier except the windows, to allow heat to escape or cold wind to infiltrate the house if desired.

Lastly, all closet space was built into the north wall to create as much "dead space" as possible to further isolate the heat in the house from radiational cooling.


http://members.1stconnect.com/anozira/SiteTops/retreat_hstead/1effort.htm

[Antiochus Epiphanes]

once they have gone publically anti-jew, most people have thrown survivalism out the window.

if there is ever a big chaos, there will be many settling of accounts. The more organized people on the day before the collapse will fare better after the collapse.

right now, the jews have multiple layers of social organization, from the whol religious community thing, to the pro-israel zionist organizations, to the jew social clubs, on and on and on. they have tons of people in place in such critival institutions as "Homeland Defense" who are carrying water for them TODAY.

"the collapse" will not likely happen during the era of cheap oil. If oil never gets expensive, like, lots more expensive than now, the likelihood goes up. Maybe, if oil gets really expensive, and the US defaults on debt at the same time, there will be a collapse because the fedgov will be writing rubber checks to its hirelings. Or maybe not: the Russian government fared pretty well through many fiscal crises, hasnt it?

So I would suggest we put less effort into planning for events that are unlikely, and more into planning for events that are likely. What is likely is that the current "system" has a tankful of gas and plenty of momentum and it is bearing down on us pretty fast. Better to figure out how to get out of the way than just hope it's going to collapse in the right direction before it squashes us.