Pre-SHTF Thoughts Thread

a reply to: Trueman

Not if he reloads from the dead bodies.

originally posted by: network dude
read "one second after" if you haven't. The big picture ended up being go to the coast, not the mountains.
But that book brought up a whole lot of issues I never would have thought of.

I have that book on a recommendation a friend made some years back. Seemed unrealistic to me and I set it aside (not knocking your opinion on it at all, Brother).

In your previous post, you mentioned taking time to read. I lived 'in the woods' for six months, call it an extended bush crafting thing, just to see what it was like. I don't think I would have ever found the time to read. Too busy trying to stay clean, stay dry, and foraging for food. I couldn't have gone much further on my own. A sobering take-away.

What is going to trigger the SHTF event? Will it be nation wide or localized or World wide.

I think it would be easier to just become an expat and move. There should be plenty of indicators pre SHTF.



expatra.com...

originally posted by: olaru12
What is going to trigger the SHTF event? Will it be nation wide or localized or World wide.

I think it would be easier to just become an expat and move. There should be plenty of indicators pre SHTF.



expatra.com...

don't let the door hit you where the good Lord split ya.

originally posted by: network dude

originally posted by: olaru12
What is going to trigger the SHTF event? Will it be nation wide or localized or World wide.

I think it would be easier to just become an expat and move. There should be plenty of indicators pre SHTF.



expatra.com...

don't let the door hit you where the good Lord split ya.

Blessed to have skills and expertise in a profession that is in demand almost everywhere; and no kids.

Greece looks nice....

www.movebuddha.com...

originally posted by: olaru12
What is going to trigger the SHTF event? Will it be nation wide or localized or World wide.

I think it would be easier to just become an expat and move. There should be plenty of indicators pre SHTF.



expatra.com...

I don't know what will be the nail in the coffin, but we will get clues if we have our eyes open..
I'll give you a good indicator.
Back in 2008 I had an AmEx credit card, zero balance. I was a great customer for many years.
They lowered by credit by half for no reason. I was never late.

Just this week I got mail from a CC company was changing their terms. Again, zero balance etc.
I think the financial markets know well ahead of time of pending events, call if financial seismic activity.

All the gardening groups are hoarding seeds like nobody's business. Too many people are on the same page.

originally posted by: Snarl
There was a movie I can't recall the name of. The 'mom' decides to throw herself to the wolves abandoning her husband a child.

Charlize Theron in "The Road"
A horrid scene among many in the film.
The book is even darker.
Probably one of the more realistic depictions of a post shtf world sadly.

a reply to: Snarl
Lot's of people talk about running out of ammo, that may be true, but from most that I know that have guns/rifles, they have several thousands, and if it gets that bad that they run out, things are to a point that we'd be back in the same situation as the wild west, probably.

I don't have enough ammo, I have around 2 thousand, maybe, but of assorted calibers. Mostly I have .22.
For defense I have all 3 of my .22's, all rifles, and I also have a single shot shotgun (break-down) that I have .22, .38, .357, 9mm, and .44 magnum inserts.

Yes, I do know that a .22 is not the best round to use for self-defense, but if you shoot fast enough, it's no different than shooting them with #3 buckshot. Most people blow off .22's, I don't, plus, they are cheap, well, they were... I have seen up close what a .22 can do shot from a Saturday night special, they can be very debilitating with correct placement. Now couple that with a rifle giving it more speed, plus, more than one shot, well, it changes the dynamics somewhat.

I have a 9mm pistol that I daily carry, so that is for close-up shooting. I also have a .357 revolver that is good to have. I also have a Remington 870 pump that I have loaded with 7 shots buckshot and/or bird shot, the buckshot is when I don't have to worry about what is behind my target, the bird shot is when I do. That aforementioned break-down shotgun has a stock mounted ammo carrier bag, I have buckshot, and some of the above mentioned calibers in it with their respective inserts. I don't ever think that all of this will be necessary, but planning ahead is just added insurance, we don't give much thought to have insurance (monthly) for tornadoes, flooding, disasters., etc.) this is actually no different, planning ahead. I am NOT a prepper really, I do prep just enough that I have enough food and ammo and I am still working on the water thing, that will last for close to a year. If it is beyond that, like some say, I am not sure I'd want to live in that world, so it'd be day-by-day, I guess.

As far as the .357 and the .44 ammo being shot out of a break-down shotgun, I wouldn't do that unless I had to use it in an emergency, I know that particular caliber is too strong for a break-down. They will work, but shoot it too much and you will break the shotgun eventually. So, only in an emergency.

For me, it's not about (so much) that we will have a civil war, but, just picture that the trucks that deliver our food stop coming, from whatever reasons. Whether it's BLM/ANTIFA or civil war, or the dollars is completely gone, the result will more than likely be the same, very hard times. I am retired, my wife and I receive a check for our retirement, if things get to where the dollar is no good, neither is that electronic check that is deposited into our banks, and your banks.
If the dollar is bad, the housing market will probably be the first to go, that means that people can and will be out on the street, through no fault of their own. I saw that happen just a few years ago, one would think that banks would not throw people people out into the streets, but they did, and will again.

If the housing market is gone, jobs are too, and things start piling up fast, all kinds of things follow. We all know that in the U.S. that we don't have the money to back up that paper it's printed on, not for a long time.
On and on, and soon enough you will have hungry people, and hungry people will do anything to live, or feed their families. I would imagine that even 'good people' will take food that doesn't belong to them, if they are hungry enough.
So, really, I am not so much worried about the government or BLM/ANTIFA coming for me, but I am 'more' worried about neighbors, or neighboring neighborhoods, or people from another town.
Saying that sounds crazy, I know, but I say I am "worried", I'm not worried at all right now, but as I have been trying to consider what might happen, I use this 'new insurance' plan that I have now for times that may, or may not be ion our not so distant futures.

On top of that, I will be wearing 5 masks!

originally posted by: network dude
a reply to: Snarl


I bought some survival books, first aid books, identify mushrooms, cooking wild game, and trap wild game books. They were relatively cheap, and I don't need to read them now, just have them. Should a bad situation happen, and we are out of power for an extended time, I will have plenty of time to read.

Actually you won't have time to read. You will need food, water, a safe place that you can keep warm and dry as well as secured from unwanted interest. Surviving in the wild is a full time job and having books is not enough. You will need to know those skills by having practiced them. Time is never on your side so the more efficient you are the better you will survive. Books are great but not everything in every book is correct or the best method - that is where practice separates the useful from the useless. Foraging wild plants; it's great if you know them but you also need to know where it grows, when it is edible, how to process it and whether or not you can even stomach eating it. You might even be allergic to some, you don't know unless you have tried.

Not saying you don't have the skills needed, I'm just saying once the SHTF it's too late to start learning these skills that take years to master. Everyone thinks building a fire is the easiest thing in the world to do. Until you are in a spot, it's dark and everything is wet and you are already shivering. At that point having mastered fire making will save your life. If you think you can pull off a hand drill the first try they will find your frozen body with blood all over your palms.

a reply to: recrisp

Oh yeah, I forgot...
Also, I have many, many BB's, I have a pretty good BB rifle that can kill small game. (I actually have two BB rifles) One day I thought I would add a red laser to it just to see how accurate it would be, so I did. I didn't have a good way to actually put on a picatinney rail, so I hot-glued it onto the receiver, it is on there like crazy, I'd have to heat it up just to remove it.
I have zeroed it in at anywhere from 15 feet to 25 feet, it's really accurate too. I haven't 'hunted' with it yet, and I hope that I don't have to.

If I were to think about getting even more serious, I would add a green laser, they are much more easier to see in the daytime and night time. I have green lasers on all of my rifles and shotguns and even on my 9MM. They work so well that I am not even a little bit worrying about not hitting the target. Yes, I do practice too.

I have 5 dogs, so if things gets rough, that will be the way I feed them, I live in an area that there is quite a bit of land around, there is an abundance of squirrels, at least for now there is.

I have fishing equipment too, I have been an avid fisherman my entire life, so that part if covered.

The only thing is, if things got really bad, it's not going to be as easy as me going out and bring home the bacon, if I did that, I might be the bacon, there will more than 'just me' out there.
It ain't going to be like The Walking Dead so much, there will be way more people out there, well, at least, at first there will be.

a reply to: Snarl

We're fortunate enough to be in an outskirts area, with a river and raising bridges between here and a larger metro. First line if the S really HTF.

And not all that far-fetched... During last summer's riots one of the bridges stuck open, and authorities had to put out a statement that it was a malfunction and NOT raised to protect the area.

It's seems like they got the SHTF on a slow drip. Not what I expected. Will things just get gradually worse or will there be some event to catapult into a full on SHTF ?

originally posted by: JAGStorm

originally posted by: olaru12
What is going to trigger the SHTF event? Will it be nation wide or localized or World wide.

I think it would be easier to just become an expat and move. There should be plenty of indicators pre SHTF.



expatra.com...

I don't know what will be the nail in the coffin, but we will get clues if we have our eyes open..
I'll give you a good indicator.
Back in 2008 I had an AmEx credit card, zero balance. I was a great customer for many years.
They lowered by credit by half for no reason. I was never late.

Just this week I got mail from a CC company was changing their terms. Again, zero balance etc.
I think the financial markets know well ahead of time of pending events, call if financial seismic activity.

All the gardening groups are hoarding seeds like nobody's business. Too many people are on the same page.

The indicators I'm looking for is power brown outs and localized failures and the web being severely restricted and martial law declared.

With almost all banking and commerce dependent on the Web; when that goes south...there's your clue to hunker down, head for the hills, or book your flights to God knows where....

a reply to: Asktheanimals

I’d say you might agree that they have time for one book out in the woods...a survival journal. Something you wrote down those things you wanted to learn in intricate detail to the point of it being more of a reminder than instruction...because OTJ training doesn’t work out so well when it is fail or die.

Things like how to angle that kink in a snare wire on a squirrel stick. Not so much that you need to go gather some snare wire, why a squirrel stick works but the angle of the kink. Because just reading about it now in the woods is a little late.

Or maybe a different style of shelter building that is more advanced and permanent than a lean to, debris hut or ‘A’ frame.

It's great to be aware of survival skills and even better if you can practice them, run drills, for when a real emergency happens. I find that most people are under prepared for everything. Like they say, everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face. Part of my preparation is to not post my inventory, plan or hiding location on social media. Buddy of mine used to tell me his plan, part of which was to head out his front door if he had to escape and head for the hills. I asked him what he'd do if his front door was blocked. Of course he said he'd run out the back. I said what if all of the doors were blocked? How you going to get out? He said he'd just head out shootin'. So I asked him when was the last time he went to the range to practice loading, firing, reloading, clearing a jam, you know all the basic bull#. He was done with me at that point. If you don't have the details nailed down the plan won't work.

I've said before, I saw a video which was a drama/documentary (I've searched and searched but I can't find it) about a wife, husband and a 10 year old lad. They live in a large city and the SHTF. The video explains what to do, how to survive etc. with experts from the navy and army giving their input what to do.
First, get out of the city, but not by the roads as there will be roaming gangs. Trust nobody, kill them before they kill you. If I remember correctly the survival experts say you can last over 7 days without food (remember you will be moving expending energy) but you can only last a few days without water. In fact if you've been without water for a few days drinking too much water can kill you.
They recommend that the only way to survive long term is to become part of a community. A nice little aside, when questioned about SHTF scenario people were asked if they would eat their pet dog. 99% said they would not. But they all said they would eat the neighbours pet dog.

a reply to: Asktheanimals

What will SHTF look like? Likely an economic crash, dollars become worthless, the power goes out and people become predatory in small groups yet there are varying degrees of how bad things can get. Stories from Sarajevo are probably the most instructive in that type of world. Save the last bullet for your self.

I personally do not believe we will ever get to the level of Venezuela, but that's not to say things won't get bad.
I do think there will be an economic crash, and hyperinflation. Not sure about power outages, but utilities will be costly.
People should think about their cars, the price of gas. Utility usage.
Finances, don't have anything that is adjustable rate!!

Not that anyone ever reads my walls of text, I found a big mistake in what I wrote, and this is, 'just in case' it matters to anyone.

"I have a 9mm pistol that I daily carry, so that is for close-up shooting. I also have a .357 revolver that is good to have. I also have a Remington 870 pump that I have loaded with 7 shots buckshot and/or bird shot, the buckshot is when I don't have to worry about what is behind my target, the bird shot is when I do."

I have a 9mm pistol that I daily carry, so that is for close-up shooting. I also have a .357 revolver that is good to have. I also have a Remington 870 pump that I have loaded with 7 shots buckshot and/or bird shot, the buckshot is for when I do have to worry about what is behind my target, the bird shot is when I don't.

I had my do's and don't's mixed up...

a reply to: Snarl

The first book is pretty interesting, the others in the trilogy kinda go off the rails a bit. Even so, to get to that level you would need the town or small community as a whole to actually come together, which is something I question these days. Most of the fictional books I've read focus on an EMP style event, which I'm fairly sure is less likely than civil unrest in major cities. Which the easy answer to that is, get out of major cities now as they're already turning a bit sour.

I'll be staying home if anything happens. I've talked to the neighbors, a lot of farmers, a few ex military. We will do what we can.

I got lucky a few years ago, and my grandmother gave me the Foxfire series books. I read them off and on still.