How To Always Protect Yourself

News of mass shootings and terrorist attacks continue to increase and until people start standing up for themselves and stopping these individuals, we will proceed on this downward spiral.

 Keeping you and your family safe should be your number one priority everyday!

BE ALERT
Always be aware of your surroundings. Always! As humans, we are built for survival. Our senses are there to protect us and warn us of problems. Use them and always scan your immediate area for potential threats.

KNOW YOUR EXITS
Escaping a threat and seeking help is always the best option before attempting to stop the threat yourself. You can either end up hurting yourself or going to jail because you used unnecessary force. The Police are trained to stop threats and protect others.
If it's an option, always escape and seek help! Living to see another day is not a cowardice act.

DEFEND YOURSELF
When escape is not an option and you must defend yourself, your goal is now to incapacitate the threat so that you can escape and seek help. Let's talk about the multiple levels of self-protection.

Most states allow law-abiding citizens to obtain permits to legally carry a handgun for protection. I understand not everyone is comfortable carrying a gun around and that's ok. But before ruling this out, I would recommend going to your local firing range and getting comfortable through personal training with a gun instructor.

Keep in mind that pulling out a gun is the last form of self defense you ever want to employ. Many people have gone to jail because they used a firearm unnecessarily in a situation that didn't warrant the use of a gun for protection.

Another form of protection is carrying a folding tactical knife. Many businesses do not allow guns on their premises, so carrying a knife at least prevents you from being helpless if a situation arises. I highly recommend a TAC Force Assisted Opening Tactical Knife as the spring mechanism allows you to open the blade much faster.

Another great item to keep on hand is Pepper Spray. Pepper spray is a non-lethal form of self defense and it will incapacitate your attacker, whether human or animal. I always keep pepper spray on me when I'm walking my dogs to protect us from other dogs. I'd rather not use lethal force against an attacker if I have the option.

The last form of protection you have in your arsenal is hand-to-hand combat. I don't suggest this even if you're a highly trained in mixed martial arts. Again, your job is to get away from the threat as fast as possible and a street fight is rarely quick.

Do yourself a favor and always make sure you have some form of protection on your person at all times.

Keep on Prepping!

Alone Season 2 Episode 1

I was super pumped to see the new season of Alone was coming soon and have been counting down the days until this first episode.

I'm sure a lot of people will agree it will take a lot for someone to outperform Alan from Season 1. He seemed to calmly handle every situation thrown at him and understood his biggest competitor was his own brain.

I was able to learn a lot about each person in the initial episode showing how they pick the contestants and test them, but I don't feel like we actually meet them until they're alone out there.

Having said that, we only met four of the new contestants in this first episode and I wonder if that means we have a shorter season and less footage to work with.

Desmond White had a lot of camera time in this first episode and I figured it was because he was the first one to return home. The theory was proven correct rather quickly. He actually decided to call it within the first day after realizing he was surrounded by bears and not as prepared as he had thought.

I was very surprised he made the decision so quick but it was a very tough decision I'm sure and one I will not judge. It is easy to sit in my cozy chair and say I wouldn't quit, so I just keep my mouth shut.

I had my questions about Tracy Wilson, mostly because of her weight. I won't lie. But seeing how calm she was while animals roamed around her shelter at night was extremely impressive. Maybe she is cut out for a long haul this season after all.

I like Larry Roberts and hope he can overcome his shelter issues. He had a strong motivation to experience this show for himself and I hope he continually reminds himself of this before quitting. Having a family that has grown up and moved out may be in his favor, as I know from season 1 that having little ones plays a large role in that decision to throw in the towel.

Speaking of little ones, Mary Kate Green seems knowledgable and may have a chance but I just can't give her the benefit of the doubt at this point. Having two small children at home is going to play a very large role psychologically and I don't believe many moms can voluntarily be away from their babies for very long. I also feel she was immediately dealt a bad hand by having to walk from the plane through the water and get her gear wet. We know from season 1 how important it is for the gear to stay dry and she is already in trouble with wet equipment.

I really wish this first episode would have been longer to allow us to see each person and how they fare on their first day. It will be difficult to wait a week before seeing the others but I guess I have no choice.

I am excited to see more of Jose Amoedo and think he may be the one to beat this season.

We shall see.

4 Survival Tools You Don't Need But Should Have

Confusing title, right?

But hear me out. There are certain tools we absolutely must have in a survival situation. And then, there are tools which make life a little bit easier in a really shitty situation.

Here is my list of 4 must-have supplies:

Goal Zero Switch 10 USB Recharger and Solar Panel Multi-Tool Kit
First of all, we have grown pretty accustomed to our cell phones and the multitude of handy apps, so it is a great idea to have a plan to keep that bad-boy charged up when electricity fails. There are a lot of solar chargers out there, but Goal Zero has made a name for themselves in the solar powered market. The reason I like this particular charger is because you can also use it as a flashlight or fan. Not to mention, the battery is replaceable!

Sewing Kit With Supplies For Emergency Repairs + Free E-book for Beginners
Most people I talk to don't plan on having to make repairs to their clothing.When it comes to disaster preparedness, always plan on no one helping you for a long time. Clothing will become quite valuable in an extended situation and so will the ability to repair clothing.


Emergency Solar Hand Crank AM/FM/NOAA Digital Radio, Flashlight, Cell Phone Charger with NOAA Certified Weather Alert & Cables
Staying on-top of outside news is not a necessity, but knowing more is never a bad thing. Plus it might just be nice to hear another voice other than your own inner-monologue from time to time. I always suggest a hand crank radio so you're not relying on a large storage of batteries. Plus this serves as a backup charger for your phone.

Mr Beams MB390 300-Lumen Weatherproof Wireless Battery Powered LED Ultra Bright Spotlight with Motion Sensor
Keeping the general area around you secure is another wise idea. Spotlights won't prevent intruders but it's a good step in deterring them and telling them they should move on to the next location. I really like this light because it's wireless and the batteries last up to a year. 

So, there you have it. What else could be added to this list?

Keep on prepping!

Free Military Training and Survival Manuals

I found some more free military manuals for your use. These manuals can be found on Amazon for sale because some dishonest people take the information and convert it into e-books and sell them to unsuspecting people trying to learn more about survival. Please share so we can help others find these resources before spending their hard-earned money on those books.

US Navy SEAL Training Program

Rifle Marksmanship M16A1, M16A2-3, M16A4, and M4 Carbine

Kill or Get Killed

 Guerilla Warfare and Special Forces Operations

Physical Security

US Marine Corps - Hand to Hand Combat

Special Reconnaissance Tactics, Techniques, & Procedures For Special Forces

Special Forces - Caching Techniques

Unconventional Warfare Devices and Techniques - Incendiaries

Make sure you check out my first posting which has additional manuals not found on this page.

Also, as I mention in my first post, don't just save these manuals on your computer. PRINT RELEVANT PAGES OUT for your future reference. The next disaster situation may make your computer useless. Then what?

Keep on Prepping!

Free Army Manuals

The U.S. military has a lot of experience in survival situations and they tend to put what they learn down into manuals for all of their soldiers to learn.

If you go to Amazon, a lot of these survival manuals are available for sale. What most people don't know is  these manuals are a free resource and many can be found online. No cost. Zilch.

So stop spending your hard-earned money and check out some of these links below:

Basic Cold Weather Survival

Improvised Munitions Handbook

Special Forces Sniper Training

Map Reading and Navigation

Special Forces Medical Handbook

This is a small sample of the manuals available for free download. I have added a second page with 9 more free manuals.

Don't forget to print these manuals out and store them away somewhere safe. You may not have access to a computer or the internet in a disaster situation.

Keep on prepping!

Sony Hackers Reveal Much Larger Threat

The hackers who have been slowly releasing hundreds of thousands of private documents recently stolen from the servers and computers at Sony have now threatened violence to those who attend the showing of the movie, The Interview.

You heard that right - A terrorist attack has been threatened to occur on our soil because a corporation has put potential profit above public safety. Did you expect any different?

The hackers are claiming this attack will rival Sept. 11 2001 and it seems the attack(s) may occur at the movie premier or on Christmas Day.

UPDATE

Since posting this, Sony has cancelled the movie premier scheduled in Manhattan on Thursday. Seth Rogan and James Franco, the stars from the movie, have cancelled all public appearances and at least one movie chain is refusing to show the movie at any of its locations because of the terrorist threat. 

Warning from Guardians of Peace

I hope this is nothing more than a threat, but if this group is affiliated with the North Korean
government as some are saying, we may be in more danger than we think.

It is safe to assume North Korea has access to some sort of nuclear technology. We know they have been testing for many years and that testing hasn't occurred for quite some time, leading some to assume they are happy with the current product and are ready to use it. While they may not have the missile technology needed to deliver a warhead to the United States, there are other delivery options.

Stay vigilant over the holiday week, watch for suspicious people and keep on prepping!

Our Infrastructure is Under Attack Daily

CNN recently reported our infrastructure is constantly under threat from hackers around the world. Because a majority of our electrical, water, and financial systems are controlled over networks, there is always potential for a hacker to take these systems down for a considerable amount of time. An interruption of these systems could be catastrophic depending on how long it took to regain control and return systems to normal operating capacity.

Suzanne E. Spaulding of Homeland Security confirms our systems are under attack on a daily basis. It only takes one of these hackers or groups of hackers to successfully take control.

Not to mention 85% of these systems are handled privately by organizations. In the past year, we have seen first-hand how poor these private systems are handled with the Target and Home Depot identity thefts.

The hackers are fully capable of bringing down the system as they are usually one step ahead with their attacks.

We continue to hear our infrastructure is aging and is on the verge of failing if it isn't updated soon.

Do not allow yourself to become complacent and assume our government and organizations will stay ahead of the threats. A grid failure is 100% possible. Professionals will agree it is only a matter of where and when it will happen.

Keep on prepping and make sure your family is ready for this!