My Take:

     As many people of the world watch Japan go through this disaster, I wanted to take the time to discuss what I have learned from this extremely unfortunate event. 

• First and foremost, my heart goes out to all the people affected by this disaster, and I truly feel for them as a fellow human being. 

• What I believe is one of the most important lessons learned from these kinds of events, is that nature has no bias.  Old, young, rich, poor, we are all the same, and when nature changes violently, people die.

• The Japanese are a very stoic and proud people.  The way they have handled this from the beginning has made me respect them beyond words.  They are an amazing group, and I wish American’s could be that responsible and respectful.  We are unfortunately not that evolved as a nation yet.  These people are currently teaching all of us through their example.

• The tsunami showed a hidden secret of preparation that the survival/prepping community does not like to talk about.  Why prep, when all preps can be washed away or buried in an instant, leaving you with nothing but the clothes on your back?  I think the survival community is at a loss for words in a way.  Here many of us are, telling you to prepare for the change that is upon us and a series of disasters seems to have blindsided the most prepared country in the world.  Leaving the obvious question; what good did all those preps do?  The true answer to those questions is that their basic preps didn’t seem to do much (I’m not talking about their infrastructural preps, those saved countless lives obviously).  Does this mean don’t prepare then?  No, it should if anything broaden your horizons as a prepper.  As preppers, we know that we can only control how prepared we are for disasters.  We can’t control all other variables.  Things like if you are at home, or work, and if you’ll even survive the initial disaster need to be let go of because they are out of our control.

• With having said that, nothing beats knowledge.  Any disaster preps you have on your person or at home are a bonus.  If you happen to have a knife, and a way of starting a fire on you when you survive the initial disaster you are way ahead of the curve.  If you are in your underwear with no shoes, you better have the knowledge and the know-how to build shelter and get a fire going as soon as you possibly can.  As the saying goes in outdoor survival; “knowledge is easy to pack as it weighs nothing, and is always with you.”

• One thing we seem to not realize is that the Japanese people themselves were prepared, and that preparation saved countless lives.  If that quake happened anywhere else in the world with that many people living in close proximity to it, the losses would have easily been double.

• The nuclear disaster, which was a disaster as soon as the first bit of radiation leaked, is actually not the fault of the people, but of the bureaucratic nature of their government (who is strikingly similar to ours with their smoke and mirrors.)  I’m pretty sure the people were not thrilled to live next to nuclear power plants on an island with so much seismic activity.  Like here though, they accept what they are told, as long as they can buy things and power up their many toys.  (Quick Rant: My quick fix for our many ridiculous power solutions for this planet is simple: stop using so much power.  By the time we reach an agreement about what is right or wrong, there will be nothing left to power.)

• Redundancies and back-up plans are never a bad idea.  If you live in an area prone to flooding or earthquakes, then you need a fall back location.  Having a second or third location with supplies, and making sure to not put all your eggs in one basket are the only way to be sure that you’re covered.  Is this possible for most people?  Of course not, but it is something to consider.  Don't forget that you could always rely on close family members, and keep supplies there if they are OK with it.

• Killing a dead horse here, but make sure to always have your ECB and BOB stocked and ready to go. 

Defining a Modern Survivalist

Bill Longshaw-freedigitalphotos.net

      I often get asked by people, why do I practice and believe in survivalism?  To answer the question I often have to explain where the ideas come from first, and then why.  The words 'survivalism' and 'survivalist' are misunderstood, and often misinterpreted in my opinion.  When you use terms like these, you run the risk of people assuming that you are a military guy, gun nut, or wacko with a tin foil hat.  This, in reality, could not be further from the truth.  The terms are currently media's buzz words for ideas and practices that have been around since the dawning of man.  Show's like Discovery's Dual Survival, Man vs. Wild, and Les Stroud's Beyond Survival are becoming more and more popular and are watched by millions of viewers every week.  Magazines, websites, and blogs like this one, about camping, homesteading, and survival are getting more attention then ever.

     Though survivalism seems to be a new idea and it's popping up all over the place in media, its concepts are ancient.  It's been called many different things over the years; survivalism, homesteading, prepping, self-sufficiency, The Prepper Movement, etc.  The survivalist/prepper movement really got its start in the 1960's when global nuclear war became a very real threat.  People started to realize that all our modern conveniences could be gone in a flash, and our societies infrastructure was actually very fragile.  The movement gets, what I'll call "refreshed and renewed" every so many years when something big is on the horizon for humanity (i.e. nuclear war, Y2K bug, 2012.)  These 'movements' lose steam though, as people lose interest and stop caring once the impending doom has passed.  Many a businessman have made a fortune on these trends by playing into peoples' fears and selling ideas, and products that will save you from the disaster.  You are starting to see that a lot right now with the approaching 2012 scare.

     Before the 60's, prepping and self-reliance did not need to be a movement because it really was just common sense and a way of life for most of the world.  Many of our grandparents remember that way of life as they grew up during those uncertain times.  They lived (though were probably children) at a time when indoor plumbing was not very common, and things like growing your own food, and preserving it for future use was normal for most households.  Most of that generation is now gone unfortunately, taking with them the knowledge that our now elder generations in the United States, don't have.  We as a nation have been fortunate enough to have had many years of exceptional wealth.  All present generations only know these wealthy times and have never seen a real major disaster such as The Great Depression, or either World War.  Most of us have witnessed a few regional disasters such as Hurricane Katrina and 9/11.  These events were drastic, especially in the areas where they happened, but for the most part did not effect our day to day lives.  Our current younger generations have no real survival knowledge beyond how to survive in our rich, and plentiful environment.  They don't get to hear the stories from the generations before that have the hands-on experience that most of us lack.  (Like when my Grandfather was young and had to walk to school 3 miles in the snow uphill, both ways!!  Maybe he exaggerated it a bit, but I'm sure it still sucked...)

     I do use the terms 'survival' and 'survivalism' often in this blog, but I do so with a purpose.  The purpose is to educate and bring awareness of something that we in America, and especially in N.Y.C., have already forgotten; self-reliance!  The modern survivalist is not about stockpiling as many guns and ammo as one possibly can, it's about preparing for realistic, very plausible events that can happen to us in our modern society.  It's about taking control of how prepared you are for these events, while not having to rely on others (i.e. the government.) 

     To me survivalism is more about controlling my own destiny, without having to rely on those that I do not trust.  Self-reliance allows me to live comfortably and confidently with the knowledge that no matter what disaster happens to me and those I love, I am in control of how prepared we are.  No one can control the disaster, or if you will even survive it.  That is the unknown, its out of our control, and should be let go of.  Knowing I can control how prepared I am for whatever disaster (large or small) comes my way without relying on outside help, that may never come, allows me to live without fear.

     Here is a link to a podcast about Prepping from "The Survival Podcast".  It is a worth-while listen, and goes a bit more into detail of why he, and other people believe survivalism is one of the most important things you can do for yourself and your loved ones, which I agree with completely.