Survival Scout Tips

As parents and adults, it’s our job to teach kids emergency preparedness skills so they can survive a tragedy when there are no adults around.

 

There’s a philosophy that gets talked about a lot in the preparedness community called the “sheepdog approach.” It comes from an analogy that describes humans as either sheep, wolves or sheepdogs.

To give you a brief overview, I’ve broken down the analogy into its parts. Which one are you? 

By now, pretty much all of us have seen the terrifying images of orange waves of fire ripping through California and other states across the western U.S. The situation is serious and a matter of life or death for millions.

But there’s a lot more going on here behind the devastating flames. 

The 106 large wildfires that are burning in 15 states as of August 9 may have far reaching effects that can disrupt your daily routine. You may have to kick in your emergency plan.

Whenever we ask people “what” they’re preparing for, the responses tend to be the scarier things. Natural disasters like hurricanes, wildfires, earthquakes, tornadoes. Acts of war or terror. Complete economic collapse.

Preparing for these things certainly makes them scarier. Our preparedness advisors are well-versed in helping you do just that.

But, do you know what’s the most-common reason that people use their emergency survival food and supplies?  It’s personal hardship.

Several years ago, I decided that I wanted to learn how to fly. My motivation was simple. Flying scared the heck out of me. I travelled so much for business that I had gained platinum status with my preferred airline. But every single flight terrified me. I would always send my wife a text before taking off, so the last message she had from me on her phone was “I love you.” I was convinced that every flight would be my last.

It’s called “reading the water.”

Once you’ve found a piece of water to fish, you need to be able to find the fish.

This is not always obvious and takes some practice to learn. Just like learning to read a book, it might seem strange at first, but will become second nature if you keep some guidelines in mind.

“The United States is probably less prepared for any kind of nuclear detonation than it has been at any time since the Cold War,” according to Alex Wellerstein, historian of science and tech at Stevens Institute of Technology.

Many turn to the preparedness and self-reliance lifestyle because we are shocked at how far we’ve gotten away from these traditions. If you feel this way, then you’ve found the right community.

On June 30^th, 1775, the Continental Congress agreed to adopt its first “Articles of War.”

On this day in 1775, the Continental Congress drafts its rationale for taking up arms against Great Britain in the Articles of War. Just 15 days earlier, they had appointed General George Washington to Commander-in-Chief.

While we’re only halfway through 2018, this volatile year has already seen significant developments that seriously affect folks like us who prepare.

In an emergency situation, we all know we need food, water, shelter, air to breathe. All of these are necessary to keep us alive and healthy.

But what if we’re not healthy? If you or anyone in your crew is injured, sick or worse, everything else you’ve prepared won’t matter if you can’t attend to the medical need.

This week, I want to give you an overview of my approach to emergency first aid and medical preparedness. My 3 “quick-start guidelines will help you build your own plan.

One of the most ubiquitous images of fishing in our culture is with a rod and reel. It is also called “angling” because of the angle the line forms from the tip of the rod to the fish when hooked up. However, some forms of angling, like cane pole fishing, don’t use reels and are still considered angling.