This past week has seen a flurry of martial statements in the West that it is time to attack Iran. The United States has made them. Israel has made them. Even superdove Peres, the mostly ceremonial President of Israel, has made headlines in mainstream Israeli news saying he believes Israel and the world is ‘approaching military option on Iran nuclear threat’.

Why should anyone be surprised that there now are reports from Israeli sources with Mossad connections that Lebanese Hezbollah’s charismatic leader Hassan Nasrallah has been making parallel statements about a surprise attack on Israel.

The Nasrallah remarks cited did not occur just today; they have been culled from a two-week tour of his fighting units. That makes the reporting of them at this moment in time just a little suspect; they very neatly serve the war frenzy fever being promoted by the Israeli government.

Nevertheless, they are significant.

The purpose of his tour was reportedly to update ‘operational plans for firing 10,000 rockets at Tel Aviv and Israel’s air force and reserve mobilization bases in a surprise attack’. In Nasrallah’s opinion, “The Zionist enemy cannot stand up to a salvo on that scale. He can’t locate our secret launching bases or put a stop to a missile offensive that is sure to determine the war’s outcome.”

Afterward, four special forces brigades are to sweep south from the Lebanese border into Israel, with another brigade held in reserve.

What about the Lebanese Regular Army? What about Syria? What about Iran?

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First… this is a perfect example of why everyone in the U.S. should have THEIR OWN emergency supplies.
The next disaster is always just around the corner. But we never know which corner.

FEMA looks like they are preparing best they can for the event, but please realize the government, at best, can do only so much.

Okay…

You know to store water and food. Water is more important than food. Rule of thumb is to store three times as much as you think you should. You won’t be sorry.

You can look though this site for some poignant recommendations about everything else.

In this post I’m going to be thinking out loud about some things that aren’t on most lists. But could be really, really handy.

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Israeli sources which said country-wide defense drill would begin in Israel Sunday are saying that on Wednesday all Israelis will be requested to go to their shelter or fortified room in their home at 11am and 7pm local time. I do not remember this source giving such exact information about timing in the past.

Israel’s defense cabinet will hold their meeting in a new anti-missile shelter on Wednesday.

Same sources report that President Obama has added the USS George HW Bush Carrier Attack Group to the naval forces that are surrounding Syria, which previously included the USS Bataan Amphibious Strike Group. Joining the party are Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers USS Barry and USS Truxtun. All these naval movements are open source on the internet. Nothing is secret about them. Clearly the US wants Syria to understand the extent of the power arrayed against them. Though of course there may be other assets in movement which are not openly known.

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If a person is hungry, who in their right mind would trade their food for a piece of metal. Not me. I wonder if gold will buy food if things go really south.

Guns. Most people think that having guns to defend their supplies and their families is a good idea. There are reasons I can understand for that. But remember that unless you are very, very good at killing, it is a hard thing to do when it comes down to it. And a bluff threat will not suffice. More, unless you are good at it, the ‘bad guys’ tend to be better at it. Think of the numerous times a police officer has been shot with their own gun. And then there are numbers. If you are greatly outnumbered, it would take an exceptional person to survive. Perhaps you are one of those. Then I leave it up to your conscience.

Wilderness first aid. If things go really south, there will be few things more valuable than a person who knows how to treat injuries. Even the hardest ass bad guy tends to look for help when they are seriously injured. If you have some knowledge of how to deal with, say, a stab or a gunshot wound, I believe that in many cases you have something more valuable than food. And a reason for people to keep you alive. (more…)

One of the primary sources for emergency food in the United States is Nitro-Pak

There are good reasons.

1. ‘Iron-Clad’ 120-day Guarantee

2. Free Shipping in the continental United States over $100, most items.

3. Over 50,000 products

5. Guaranteed lowest price. If you find a lower price on an in-stock item, they will match it.

6. In business over 25 years.

7. Most orders ship in 24 -72 hours, although the time can get much longer when there is a perceived crisis, and then they also run out of the most popular items.

They have MRE’s, Emergency Food Units, Freeze-Dried Food.
They have Earthquake Survival Kits, Camping Survival Supplies, and Survival Food.
They even have esoteric emergency supplies like Space Food, Potassium Iodide and Nite-Vision Equipment.

Is this beginning to sound like a commercial?

Yes. It is a commercial. I would like you to go there and see if you find yourself saying… oh… I do not want to wait until it’s too late. I want some things on hand NOW. And start being actually prepared.

Have I gone through this checklist and made sure I have nearly all of what they suggest?
Yes. And I have a lot more of some categories, like first aid supplies.

Humor me. Go to Nitro-Pak. and click on 72 Hr. Survival Kits. Then when the next window comes up, click on 72 Hr Survival Kits. At the top of the page that comes up, you will see **72 Hour Emergency Info & Checklist. Click on that.

You will be shown an extremely well-thought-out emergency checklist.

The first part is a list of reasons why you should actually do something to be prepared. It is interesting.
The second part is the checklist with links to many of the supplies themselves. It is vital.

You can print out this checklist.

It is free.

Please take a little time and consider the checklist. As I’ve said, and as they say… because it is so true… when an emergency strikes it will be too late.

Ain’t nothin’ like the real thing, baby…

… but a dress rehearsal is as good as it gets until the real thing arrives.

So every once in a while, we go through the motions as though it were the real thing. We put on our gear, get the appropriate things out of storage and into action locations.

Most of our First Aid supplies are stored at the proper temperature for long term storage, so we need to put them someplace more at hand during an actual emergency. Some kits go into cars, depending on (more…)

It’s about time for me to go through my periodic check of supplies, so I thought I share with you what I’m going to do. (more…)

Risk taking is currently seen as a negative personality trait, right up there with a rigid morality.

It’s understandable, from a certain viewpoint. If you want to create a society that is malleable to the desires of those in power, then you do not want people taking actions on their own, or having opinions that do not conform to current mass thinking.

People are glad to buy into the illusion of stability and safety that goes along with that, because most people desire safety and sameness above all. I’d cite an example, but there really is no need. It’s easy to see in every part of life.

In an emergency or disaster, things are radically different. The rules that applied a few seconds ago are out the window.

As people in New Orleans and Haiti found out, you can’t (more…)

When an emergency situation arises, the chances are that some of the people around you at the time will be different from you.

Even if they have the same ethnic background, they may have a completely different moral compass, a completely different world view. Since you are reading this, you probably see helping people as a duty and a privilege. Some people that you would normally be very comfortable around may think that stopping to give aid is just stupid and wouldn’t consider it.

You might actually have more in common with someone of a different ethnicity. Or, put more bluntly, color.

This gets very personal, but I do not know any better way of making these points. It’s also long, so if you’re going to take this journey with me, sit back and relax.

I have had an interesting walk through prejudice. (more…)

WARNING: If you do not obey the lawful commands of police and military authorities, especially during an emergency, you may be subject to severe penalties, including summary execution. This post does NOT in any way suggest disobedience of lawful commands. It is about leadership by non-official, self-appointed people in an emergency situation.

Who Should You Trust in an Emergency Situation? My first knee-jerk reaction is, no one but yourself.

And that is true to some extent. Ever watch a disaster movie? There is always some self-promoting person who leads a group of people directly into the maw of whatever is waiting out there for them. And then the smart but unpopular hero leads a smaller group toward a semblance of safety, although many of them perish along the way.

Unfortunately, the movies mirror reality all too closely.

There is a type of person who really wants to take charge during an emergency and have everyone do exactly what they say. They’re just made that way. Some of them are idiots. A few have experience and good training and good judgement, and it would be a good idea to listen to them. Question is, how can you tell the difference? (more…)