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Featured Story. Sandy Hook Elementary shooting
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Was Ct. School shooter's mother a Prepper?
By Tom Martin As members of the American Preppers Network community pour their hearts out in support and prayers for the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School victims, one can only wonder what would cause someone to commit such a heinous crime. I personally find this tragic incident deeply saddening as I shed my own tears thinking about those wonderful lives that are now lost. So many young children. Words cannot describe what those family members are going through. America's children are our nations most valuable resource. So when even one is lost we must all take notice. If there is one single most important thing that a Prepper should prepare for, it is the safety of our children.Who would commit such an evil crime? And why? It's hard to say what goes on in peoples minds, especially today in the violent world that we all live in. Even recently in China, a man wielding a knife attacked 22 children at a school. What has come of society where we now live in a world where school violence is becoming more prevalent? We must all prepare for the safety of our children and their schools.Who is to blame? As with any tragic story of this sort, first come the reports of the attack, followed by prayers for the victims, followed by background information on the attacker, and then comes the blame game. Who was the attacker and why did he do this? What weapon did he use? Guns? What kinds of guns? Where did he get those guns? Who taught him to shoot? Blame will often be thrust upon the parents, and then maybe bullies at school who may have contributed to who this attacker became. Maybe blame will be thrust upon his friends, or the community for not treating him right as he grew up. What about violent video games, movies and TV shows? Society and people around the attacker will often catch the blame. But how often is blame fully put on the murderous evil attackers themselves?It is being reported in some stories that Nancy Lanza was a Prepper...Read more here... |
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 The Collapse as a Process
By Westfalia
http://sibitotique.blogspot.com/
Within the Survivalist and Prepper community the concept SHTF is often used in order to describe an event that will require the tools often discussed as tactics to handle a massive breakdown of the modern institutions, infrastructure, law and order. WROL or Without the Rule of Law has also started to be used in order to describe such an event.
The main problem as I see it is that this type of thinking focuses on a single event that will suddenly change everything about modern life. History shows us that many previous civilizations have collapsed; the Romans, Mayans and the people of the Easter Islands are just some examples. Modern examples are also available like the collapse of the Soviet Union, the collapse of former Yugoslavia, the Genocide in Rwanda and a number of civil wars and more or less collapsed states like Afghanistan, Iraq, Congo and Somalia. The difficulty of reversing this process has been demonstrated in several conflicts where comprehensive peace building and state building processes have place. So we know that countries, systems and civilizations can and have failed over the course of history. Sometimes a collapse can have absolutely devastating results, but in some cases it can also be relatively peaceful as in the case of the Soviet Union.
What if a Collapse is not an event but a Process?
Within the Survivalist and Prepper movement different types of tactics and solutions has been developed in order to be able to cope with a sudden collapse of modern society;
- The ability to escape an area buy having kit such as Bug Out Bags, Vehicles and Plans for Escape to safer areas or alternative locations where supplies are being stored.
- Collecting and storing equipment, supplies, water and other essentials in the home so that one can "Bug In" without having to rely on others. This type of tactics can be effective for disasters with a fast onset like a hurricane, a nuclear plant meltdown and large scale accidents,but this does not mean that this type tactics is well suited all situations. As the Economic Crisis within the European Union progresses many choose to leave their homes and even their home countries in order to find jobs and livelihoods. For this type of situation a fully equipped Bug Out Bag is not as an effective tool as an education, skills and knowledge that makes it possible to find a job elsewhere.
 As the situation progresses, it becomes clear that the standard of living that many have experienced may become a thing of the past. Things that might be expected are: - Higher unemployment and a tougher job market
- Lower wages
- Higher taxes
- Higher prices on food, water, energy and fuel
- Social services like schools, healthcare, law enforcement, military and other functions of states may decrease in size and function.
- Pensions being lost or lowered and the age for retirement being raised.
These threats present a number of challenges to individuals and families; especially those how already have low marginal in their economic situation. There are no easy solutions for these types of problems but there are of course thing that can be done by individuals and families. It's also important to say that all regions in the world may not develop the same; some regions may continue to experience economical growth while other regions may go the other way. Some suggested steps for increasing your resilience Try to reduce your level of debt and pay of any loans you might have, in a situation when the economy no longer grows it can become very hard to pay interest on loans while your salary remains the same or event get lowered.Try to make some savings and put some money away every month; investing money in gold, silver, land and other type of values can also be a way to improve your situation. Learn how to make do with less and save where you can. Work together with your community; it is likely that many services may no longer be available in the same way as they have before. Non Governmental Organizations already provides services for Search and Rescue, Education and Social Services and other fields around the world. When buying gear try to investment in quality gear that will stand the test of time. Also try to repair and learn to repair gear instead of throwing things away and buying something new as soon as it breaks. Find local opportunities and local options to ensure your basic needs.
Conclusion
First of all; I do don't want to pretend that I know what tomorrow will bring. There are however a number of challenges that is not being recognized either as parts or as a whole by the political and economical community. Viewing a potential collapse as a process and not as an event presents a number of problems to actually preparing for such an event. One thing that is clear however is that as things change what we regard as normal will change over time, lower wages, higher gas prices, lowered pensions and other problems will no longer be viewed as imminent disaster, but as everyday life.
The political system in the United States and within the European Union is focused on the notion of growth. This makes it very hard to recognize that there might be limitations like
- Fossil fuels that provide over 80% of all energy used today are not an unlimited recourse and that we might reach a Peak in the world production.
- That land is not an unlimited resource.
- Other renewable and non renewable resource like topsoil, phosphor, fresh water and forests does not exist in an unlimited quantity.
- That the increase of the world population might create challenges and problems.
Adapting to such a situation is not easy and solutions that work in some settings for some people may not work in other settings. Solutions must be based on the local climate, terrain, population and opportunities that exist. Some change may come from the top of the political and economical system but it's likely that challenges presented will be ignored and that adapting to the changing situation will have to be done by people themselves; you have to take responsibility for your own situation.
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 Food Preps and Recipes
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Putting my food storage to the test
By Cindy Hale Food Fatigue is when a person is forced to eat the same thing over and over again.They become so sick of eating the same things that they would literally rather starve to death than eat it again. While this may be a worst case scenario, it can still be a real problem on a smaller scale.My husband and I have been building our food storage for the past 10 years, and slowly we've been buying extra food here and there. Over the past year, we have really put in a lot of research and time into prepping. We recently moved from Utah to Tennessee to a small 3 bedroom apartment with our 4 children and we brought all of our food storage with us cross country. We have a large black storage cabinet in our dining room that we store small cans, bottles of sauces, spices, baking supplies, soap, and shampoo, etc. We have #10 cans full of wheat, rice, beans, oats, powdered milk, freeze-dried fruit and veggies, and soup and various mixes. We keep them stored under my twin sons' beds.Read More Here... |
Nuclear, Biological, Chemical...and Fire Safety Tips
Brought to you by ILC Dover
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Quick Tip #8
From FEMA.gov
Smoking and Home Fire Safety Tips
- If you smoke, smoke outside.
- Wherever you smoke, use deep, sturdy ashtrays.
- Make sure cigarettes and ashes are out.
- Check for cigarette butts.
- Never smoke in a home where oxygen is used.
- If you smoke, fire-safe cigarettes are better.
- Be alert!
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The Self-Reliance Corner
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Each week you'll receive videos, images or quotes promoting the concept of Self-Reliance and individual responsibility. It's our hope these messages will help with our mission of attaining "Freedom Through Teaching Others Self-Reliance"
Individualism vs Collectivism
 | | INTRO - Individualism vs Collectivism |
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APN Classifieds:
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Upcoming Events:
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 Quartzfest 2013
Quartzfest* www.quartzfest.org is a Ham Radio gathering in Quartzsite AZ during the RV show in January (Jan 15 - 26th). Quartzfest is a 10 day event full of seminars and workshops on Ham Radio and operational techniques, Alternative Energy (mainly solar) and RV'ing and to my knowledge is the only event of its kind in the world. This year we're hoping to add seminars on Prepping and Survivalist Techniques. Go here for more information.
If you can attend as a speaker for this event, please contact Steve and Angel at Organizer@quartzfest.org |
 Self Reliance Expo
Big Thanks to Ron Douglas for inviting the APN to the Mesa, Arizona Expo last month. Watch for upcoming expos at SelfRelianceExpo.com |
 The Life changes. Be Ready! Preparedness & Gun Expo
Volusia County Fair and Expo Center
3150 E. New York Ave. DeLand, FL 32724
Saturday January 19th, 2013 / Sunday January 20th, 2013 Volusia County
Fair and Expo Center 3150 E. New York Ave. DeLand, FL 32724 (exit 118A Interstate 4) |
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