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Please take a moment to visit today’s featured advertiser St. Paul Mercantile – they offer an extensive assortment of kerosene stoves, ovens, lanterns, heaters, solar ovens and other related gear. Go over and take a look and don’t forget to tell them M.D. sent you.
Okay – this reader question is going to exclude some readers who don’t read survival fiction (my apologies – next one will be more inclusive).
What is your Favorite Survival Fiction Book – and Why?
This question must be in the top 5 questions that I’m asked each week by readers – so I thought it would be useful to have a post that I can point people to for suggestions made by other readers.
So what survival fiction books are in your “must read” basket?
Looking forward to reading your answers as I’m sure other readers are too.
PS: I’ll kick things off – my favorite survival fiction books would have to be One Second After
Guest post by Sunshine – The opinions expressed here are those of the author.
Being a firm believer in the Constitution and our rights and freedoms as Americans, I could not live with my conscience if I did not SOUND THE ALARMS about this story.
I belong to several groups which fight to maintain our freedoms, and I got this information from Freedom Advocates. They have a booklet called ” Understanding Sustainable Development Agenda 21.” I recommend it to anyone who doesn’t want to live in a communist America.
The way I understand it, the United Nations invented the global warming LIES, (using their OWN group of scientists, who have REWRITTEN global temperatures, to suite the lies…) You may have heard of this in the news recently, that emails were discovered, which showed how they were LYING… Well, what the news coverage NEGLECTED to tell us, was why the lies were invented in the first place.
The lies were invented as a SCARE TACTIC, so all of us gullible Americans, and others would believe that changes had to be made in order to STOP global warming to “protect the environment.” The changes they are making are contained in Agenda 21, and according to the booklet, they are being used in all areas of our government. I myself have witnessed some of this first hand. Agenda 21 is being used globally, nationally,and locally.
This agenda never had to pass Congress, because it is considered ’soft-law policy.’ It has basically UNDERMINED our Constitution and all other rights. Our government officials, (federal, state AND local,) have bought into this trash bin of COMMUNISM, thinking that they were doing something GOOD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT.
Maybe some of them know what they are doing. Maybe not. Bill Clinton established it here..so I’d say HE knew what he was doing..(He is the one who gave most of our national parks to the U.N., in case you didn’t know.)
The bottom line is this. According to the U.N. Declaration of Human Rights,”Rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.” Government can grant, restrict, or withdrawal your rights according to what it needs. The product of your labor, and you yourself belong to the community. In other words, you HAVE no rights…
The booklet also discusses how the U.N. wants to control and ration our drinking water, HEALTH CARE, and other public services.They will create ’shortages’ of things, and control our natural resources, making them forbidden to us.
They are planning to control our dietary intake,and they want to eliminate MEAT from our diets.They want to control the population, and force us to recycle.They want new modes of transportation.They want to brain wash our children to abide by, and promote ’sustainable development.’
Local colleges near me are offering courses that are called ’sustainability and going green.’ From the brochure, these classes are teaching students agenda 21 principles, and how to build homes that restrict heating, cooling, appliance usage, and more.
The U.N. wants to take away our private property rights, making fifty percent of the U.S. OFF LIMITS to humans. This is so they can jam us in GOVERNMENT OWNED HOUSING, force us to work GOVERNMENT JOBS, and do exactly what they tell us. All of this is supposedly done to “PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT.” The booklet explains how they are implementing this, and the scary part is, they are GETTING AWAY WITH IT!!!
Many of our U.S. cities have already joined with the group called ICLEI, The International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives. This group assists the local government in pushing this agenda. You may have heard of ’smart growth, sustainable development, the wild-lands project, or other “GREEN” terms.
Don’t you believe the lies. This has NOTHING to do with SAVING THE ENVIRONMENT. It is PURE SATANIC COMMUNISM, and we have got to GET RID OF ALL OF THESE “GREEN” GARBAGE LIES AND RECLAIM OUR COUNTRY!! Please..get the booklet. I wish you all the best, and never give up! May God Bless And Keep Us From This Evil!
Dollar in For a Massive Sell-off – In my opinion, the market is now perfectly positioned for a massive dollar sell-off. My gut is that the dollar sell-off will be sharp and swift. Once the dollar decisively breaks below last year’s lows, many of the traders who jumped ship in the recent rally will look to re-establish their positions. This will accelerate the dollar’s descent and refocus everyone’s attention back on the financial train-wreck unfolding in the United States.
The Fed Computers Ready to Fire Up Again – When debt to GDP reaches 90%, as it looks like it will, growth slows and bad things happen.
Can It Go Up Forever? – Here’s one of the only economic charts that really matters: Total U.S. debt to GDP. This chart shows the trend from the end of the Civil War until now.
Housing Collapse Getting Worse – The banking system has captured our government and frustration is boiling over. Yet those in the housing and banking industry seem complacent and even self congratulatory that we “have avoided Great Depression 2.0.” Really?
Retirees More Broke Than Ever – People don’t want to think about this.” Instead, everyone prefers to stick their head in the sand until it is too late to do anything.
Every Bank And Government Will Collapse World Wide – The collapse of currencies and nations won’t happen overnight, because their demise has been planned, and a subtle collapse is in process. Our guess is that next year is when the collapse will finally take place followed by one of the greatest deflationary depressions of all time.
I think I’m lucky for the fact that I live by myself, with the girlfriend living in town. Marriage isn’t a bad thing, in fact marriage can be wonderful if you have a compatible partner. Unfortunately, for many, the spouse isn’t supportive – or even hostile toward the concept of emergency preparedness.
My girlfriend doesn’t know the extent of my preparations, she thinks I’m just “into” living cheaply and preparing for bad weather. Over the last several months I’ve slowly introduced her to more “extreme” concepts such as economic collapse and peak oil.
She appears to be opening to the possibility that the world isn’t unchanging and the need to prepare being paramount to our survival as a species.
If you’re constantly fighting through the resistance of your spouse, you will not be able to sustain the required effort for the long haul. The way your spouse views your emergency preparedness pursuits will be based on the way they are affected and where they feel they fit into your priorities.
Here are some tips that should help keep your spouse happy and supportive of your efforts:
1. Set Priorities
Trust me, I know how easy it is to become totally obsessed with prepping, planning, reading and learning. This is necessary if we want to have a chance at surviving the coming mayhem, just learn to set priorities. You may see collapse around every corner, that’s fine after all if you’re not paranoid you’re not paying attention.
Just don’t constantly communicate the fact to your spouse.
I’m not saying not to mention potential threats or your preps, just don’t talk about it all the time. If you do they will quickly grow tired of your constant ramblings and possibly of you.
2. Communicate Your Reasons for Prepping
This may sound contradictory to point one, but it is necessary if you want to get your spouse on board. You just have to do it in the right way. Take it slow and try not to shock the senses.
For instance say your watching the news when the broadcaster announces the latest update for whatever natural disaster – now would be a good time to ask your partner something like; what if something like that happened here, what would we do?
3. Seek Their Input
Try to get them involved in some way. Ask what they think and for suggestions. Maybe you could talk them into putting together their own bug out bag – you know in case a natural disaster happened in the area.
4. Watch Movies
As far as I’m concerned most movies are a waste of time, but the latest disaster flick, could be a good way to help your partner visualize possible events and start them thinking about the need to prepare.
Again, don’t shock the senses – a storyline about a massive earthquake, tsunami or tornado for instance, would have more influence than a zombie apocalypse. Try to keep it real and again suggest the need to prepare for a similar event.
5. Read Books
This can be a great way of breaking down the wall of resistance, especially if your significant other likes to read. Buy them a book, for example One Second
What about you – is your spouse on board or working against your efforts?
guest post by Veranio – submitted on March 6 2010
God is very kind to us and we can surely feel his guidance and protection. It was indeed a long day yesterday.
Our day started at 3:00 a.m. when we got a call to turn on the T.V. The announcer confirmed that we will be hit by a massive tsunami by 11:25 a.m. So my wife and I prayed together and blessed the house. Immediately, we started gathering our pre-arranged bug out bags. My wife put together additional things that could augment our kit while I went to fill up gas for our van.
At 4:00 a.m. there was already line at the gas station. Before 5:00 a.m. we got the essentials together and loaded it to the van and went back to bed to rest awhile. The children woke up at 5:30 and they started with their own personal kit.
We loaded most of our gears to the van just in case we need to go to a higher ground. Not wanting to be herded like refugees, we decided not to go to any evacuation center. But if needed, head to a place where we ride our dirt bikes and wait it out up there.
The emergency warning sirens started sounding at 6:00 in the morning. I cooked a hearty breakfast for everybody to keep our energy level. My daughter and my middle son went to put gas to the 4Runner since we decided to go with the van, the 4runner and a dirt bike. The CRF450 will be used for scouting if were required to move from place to place.
My eldest son put together gear for long term survival which was stowed in the 4Runner. Our youngest who is eight also organized his things together including his beloved pillow. When my daughter and my middle son returned, they related that there was a long line at the station and several accidents on the road.
The radio reported that the road to Upcountry was jammed since everybody was headed for the higher grounds. In the meantime, there was a small plane and helicopter buzzing the beach and fire trucks and police cars were patrolling the road to clear the area.
Our house is by the beach and we were in the flood zone but located on a hill so we were in the middle of the commotion. A fire truck passed by but did not warn us to evacuate.
At 8:00 we were very much situated. My daughter had a morbid but very pragmatic idea. The children wrote their names on their bodies for easier identification. My eldest son followed suit and went further by waterproofing a removable computer stick with his personal info and wore it as a pendant.
We continued to monitor developments so that if needed we can react or change plan accordingly. Part of the entertainment is to listen to the local radio station and have light moments listening to callers with their silly thoughts and questions on the incoming disaster.
I asked everybody at home to take a bath and go to the bath room before the utilities will be cut off. I did additional cooking for lunch to have the last warm and decent food if things get bad. We had also ice cream to keep the energy level high while waiting for developments. At the meantime, I filled up the three 50 gallon water barrels
The first of the island chain was Hawaii or Big Island. In the past, it suffered most of the tsunami casualties. It was an advantage for us because we can monitor their damage and the effect of the incoming tsunami. We have between 20 to 30 minutes difference before the actual waves hit us.
We can also observe the ocean changes through live camera on Big Island. It was forecasted that the wave will be higher on Maui based on the structure of the island and its reef formation.
The night before, the dogs in the neighborhood were agitated. There were lots of barking and howling. Normally there is bird traffic in the wooded area of our yard but yesterday it was noticeably absent. Most likely, they flew inward to the mountains. We also heard from radio callers that pets were acting crazy.
At this time, we prayed again as a family, thanking God that we were all together and prayed for his continued protection and guidance. In the meantime, the sirens are sounding every hour. Later on the sirens sounded every 30 minutes as it gets closer to the expected time of arrival.
The fire department passed by our house once again but they did not ask us to leave. At this time, most of our neighbors have already evacuated. We learned from the local radio some roads were closed and that road to the higher areas were congested.
Cars were tightly parked on the shoulders and on available county and state parks. Later on we also found out that there were multi-family camp out on vacant lots.
There are also light moments for us during the tension. We have a two story house and our eldest and middle sons sleep downstairs. My eldest son placed his art supplies on top of the refrigerator. My middle son brought upstairs his truck muffler and placed it on my daughter’s bed.
My guess was to keep it safe from the inundation. My daughter put on a make up so she would look pretty during the disaster. They all put on deodorant so they would not be stinky in case something happens.
Basically, the children were given liberty to pack what they want to bring besides their essentials. My daughter had firecrackers to celebrate if we survive. My eldest son had pillow covers that her girlfriend made and his drawing materials for a comic strip to illustrate our experience.
My middle son had his flow master muffler and assortment of things. My youngest has his pillow, game boy and joke books to make us laugh. He also wanted to bring his bow and arrow but I told him that his Red Ryder is more than enough.
On a more serious side we also packed comfort food such as chocolates, snacks and drinks. We had raisins and nuts besides the usual canned goods. We also have a pot to boil and distill water and for cooking soups and hot drinks.
We had extra changes of underwear and socks. Learning from the aftermath of major disasters such as Hurricane Katrina and the Haiti earthquake where the best and the worst of people surfaces, we have defensive arms. My wife and my daughter had .38/.357 revolvers each. I had a 45 pistol and the boys had 9 mm pistols.
We opted not to bring long guns to avoid standing out in the crowd and creating undue tension. We also decided against shotguns because they are bulky and the ammunition will take more space and weight. I packed a foldable Keltec 9mm carbine that was compatible to the 9mm pistols and a .22 carbine that can be disassembled in two parts. Both of the carbines can fit inside the back packs. We also packed two .22 pistols as back up.
We had sub-sonic and low powered .22 rounds for quite hunting if we cannot go back to our house for a while. Each firearm has at least 100 plus ammunition. Each family member has a knife, flash light, first aid kit, fire starter, sewing kit, mini-tools, hygienic aids such as s
oap, tooth brush, tooth paste, disinfectants and other possibles/ miniature survival kits. There was redundancy and overlapping in our bug out kits in case we get separated.
As usual as in the case of the island culture, the tsunami came Hawaiian time. It was more than an hour late and more subdued like a Jawaiian reggae, not the rocking tsunami that would have rocked the island chain to oblivion. Praise the Lord. God is truly awesome in his wisdom and kindness.
It actually came in at past 12:00 p.m. in four sets of tsunami waves. Instead of the massive wall of water it came just above three feet higher than normal, much smaller than surfing waves.
It was surreal because it was actually a beautiful day yesterday. The sun was shining bright, no trade winds, a perfect cloudless sky and blue water so we can really see the changes in the ocean.
On our side, the sea was calm with small sets of waves. Then suddenly in the shoreline, there is discoloration due to the under current as the water receded, exposing some reefs and then covering it. At the harbor, the changes were more noticeable.
The water in the harbor receded and only the muddy residue was left and then the water came in and repeating the process four times.
The children were joking that it was an excitement letdown but we are all relieved that there was no destruction and we still have a home. So we prayed again as a family to thank God. By 2:00 p.m., the next thing is to unload our survival gears and put it back in place.
By the way, my wife just napped through the tsunami. I did not wake her because it was not significant and so that at least one of us will be fresh if things got worse. I told her she was unbelievably calm and she responded “We already prayed and that God is with us and remember I am a nurse – nurses are supposed to be calm. Besides, we also ate lots of grapes from Costco in case those were our last grapes.” What an incredible woman for a wife.
After this, it’s back to routine. We went to church for the 5:00 Saturday evening mass and helped out as Hospitality ministers. Prayed again and gave thanks to God. My older sons went to surfer’s banquet and the rest of the family ate dinner at the re-opened mall and we were famished and hungry.
When we got home we were so tired because our adrenaline wore down. I went to sleep in the living room because I knew I will be snoring loud and I don’t want to disturb my wife because she was also very tired. The experience was a great exercise to learn from so we can be more prepared for the next time.
When I woke up this morning the weather was bad, it’s dreary and stormy outside. The ocean is not as friendly as yesterday since it is churning and furious, but this time the birds were back on the trees.
If you want to comment, please do not hesitate so we can all learn together.
Walmart is raising eyebrows after cutting the price of a black Barbie doll to nearly half of that of the doll’s white counterpart at one store and possibly others.
Collapse of the American Empire: Swift, Silent, Certain – A combination of fiscal deficits and military overstretch suggests that the United States may be the next empire on the precipice.” Yes, America is on the edge.
Why California is Doomed – California is doomed for two simple but profound reasons: the cost structure is too high for most businesses to survive, and a boom-dependent economy.
Next Crisis: Everything Could Be Leveled Within 12 Hours – When the CBO notifies the public that the debt/GDP in a decade will be 90% and that total marketable debt will double to $20 trillion, the game is over.
Food Stamps At Record High – Almost 39 million Americans received food stamps in December, the most ever, as the jobless rate hovered near a 26- year high.
Owners Walk From Homes By The Thousands – With more than 500,000 households in Michigan owing more on their mortgages than the homes are worth, thousands of Michigan residents are choosing to abandon their homes and walk away.
Our World Balances on a Sea of Debt – The banks that control the world’s supply of money are no better than counterfeiters – and their system of juggling debt has left the global economy teetering on the brink of ruin.
My name is M.D. Creekmore and I write The Survivalist Blog to help others prepare for an uncertain future.
