What would your perfect survival website contain?

Originally posted by Inannamute
The vast majority of people are definitely geared towards short term survival - how to survive max for a month. That's what most survival kits are geared towards.. 3 days to a month..

...how to use those to build yourself a new life.

Strongly agree. In these days of high unemployment where there seems to be a need for social workers, counsellors and therapists to treat the emotional needs and depression of the newly unemployed, I really wonder how the lifestyle adjustment to years of "doing it hard", is going to affect many people thrust into a fight for survival. If being retrenched can turn your life into turmoil, how much worse will it be when your life looks like being made redundant?

Sadly, I think those who are armoured with nothing more than a video lesson are going to find it hardest. I wonder how many people with nothing more than a BOB and a knife, plan on carving out their "back to basics" empire in the wild? Where does the reality of hunger, injury, pain, cold and illness factor into their dreams?

Where will your insulin come from? What about your child's asthma medication? Have you tested the "alternative" herbs and medications for these conditions and do they work? If so, why are you still using the orthodox drugs? Are you truly prepared for a return to "survival of the fittest" with all of the consequent impact on your loved ones?

Videos? PDFs for your library? Why would you need these if you already have the skills internalised within yourself, and more importantly, their application mastered? A time of crisis is not the time to be indulging in a reading fest. Survival and leisure rarely co-exist. Not unless you're securely bunkered underground with a well equipped survival larder and you have nothing to do except read.

A test for you. If you can, take a month off and go bush, with nothing but your BOB. See how you survive, utilising nothing but your bare hands and a minimum of equipment. It'll be an easy test, because you can always go home if you get too hungry or cold, and there will be a home for you to go back to. Also, you shouldn't have too many people trying to kill you for the meagre resources you have to hand. Not yet, anyway.

I think, if you're serious about survival, you should already have made the move out of the city. Or you should already be utilising post-apocalyptic tools and technology. They should already be built, ready and waiting for when the lights go out.

You see, the danger of just reading and viewing other people's experiences is that it tends to dull the immediacy of the perceived threat to your good self. The sense of shared dread, for most of us, makes the threat easier to bear. It even becomes quite cosy, chatting online with other survivalists from the comfort of your heated home. Even more alarming, is the attitude of "I'm aware of the threat, therefore I have an advantage, therefore I am smarter and I will survive. I can read and I can consult a PDF." Which is an insidious and dangerous mindset to fall into.

A plan is not a collection of videos and PDFs. Your raw data cannot be tested. PDFs and videos cannot take into consideration your physical, emotional and materiel limitations. The only way to guarantee your survival, is to have your survival strategy and knowledge tested and refined NOW. Even our armed forces do not stumble blindly (hopefully) into dangerous and unknown environments without a substantial training period beforehand. Even then, there are no guarantees.

So, when everything that has ever defined or supported you as a human being comes to a screaming halt, how will you survive?

After thinking about this again today, a really great tool for a website to have would be survival kits that were customizable..

Eg, I'd fill in a form, saying I wanted to have a kit for two people, on foot, for two weeks in a california climate.

Then the website would spit back a basic list of supplies.

I could also put in that I wanted a shelter-in-place kit for my house for say, 6 months, for two adults, one baby and one child, and have a different and more comprehensive list spit out.

I think something like that would be a lot more useful, especially based on people's budget and personal situations

Always thought that there should be more insight to what type of vehicle you should aim for if sit/x kicked off, my personal one would be Thorny-croft Nubian fire tender or get your hands on a mobile crane and take of the jib/slew gear and you have a perfect 6x6 heavy weight machine, just my two bobs worth

I personally like SurvivalistBoards.com.

The owner posts many, many videos there and on You Tube. Also, they have a forum very similar to this one, where you can discuss anything survival related, from survival retreats in the mountains to what kind of knife to carry for everyday use.

I live in the middle of a medium sized city, right in the middle of Hurricane Alley, and do not have enough money to do anything but rent an apartment, so I have spent much time there finding info about urban survival for very little money. I know to have stocks of water, fresh batteries for the flashlights and radio, etc (been doing these all of my life, since I live in Louisiana), but what do I do in a SHTF situation? Got lots of this info from there.

[edit on 11-8-2009 by rebel9]

I would like to think it would look alot like the one I built! I tried covering every aspect of disaster, such as natural, man-made, civil unrest, terrorist attacks, nuclear war etc...

I'd have to say with that i mind I think I did a fairly good job!

Check it out SurvivalTime.org

Great thread Karl, I would like links to low cost good supplies for the larger family. Including vitamins and such, many of the sites are just impossibly priced.

Hi! I am going to be funny and dead serious. CHOCOLATE, WINE, DIET COKE, SCENTED SOAP, HANDLOTION, PERFUME, KIDS CANDY, THEIR BLANKETS, COMPUTER GAMES, the family dog, books, dvds, swim suits, beach towels, beach umbrella, tent, who want to live with out their comforts? We are all going to be in deep shi##.

I'd like to read up on:

* How to treat various diseases and types of illness that one might get from long periods in the wilderness. Not only by regular medicine, but also from nature own drugstore (actually mainly the latter).

* Proper treating of wounds and fractures.

* Winter survival! Most survival guides tend to think it is high summer all the time.

(more to come as I get time to think this one over)

All of this will be featured on your blog, right?

[edit to add:]
Oh, first hand experinces, of course! Especially from those who ended up in survival situations by accident.
I could actually contribute with some stories myself, even though I would be writing about somebody else's story...like a second-first hand story...kinda... Nothing in my life happens by accident. It is all meant to be
There was some great journals at the end of a military survival manual I read once. Just gotta find it.

[edit on 26-1-2010 by Raud]

I really liked Inannamute's idea. But for my own I would probably make something more information wise and have the following.

Safe Zones/Habitats - Information on what a safe zone should entail, and information on different habitats and seasons.
Identification of Mushrooms, Plants, Trees, Animals, Reptiles, Amphibians, Fish, Insects, etc.
Knowledge of Edibility and Medicinal Purposes of the above.
Gardening, harvesting, and preserving your harvests.
Knowledge of fire building using multiple techniques.
Knowledge of working with clay to make pottery.
Knowledge of working with wood to make shelter structures & furnitures.
Knowledge of hunting wild game by tracking, trapping, and use of home made weapons. Field dressing.
Knowledge of direction by use of a compass or by celestial means.
Knowledge of time by use of the sun and celestial means.
Knowledge of preservation techniques like dehydrating, pickling, and smoking.
Knowledge of fishing by line & pole, to spearing, netting, and trapping.
Knowledge of travel by swimming, boating, sking, horse riding, sledding, etc.
Knowledge of finding clean water, purifying it, digging wells, and irrigation.
Knowledge of raising livestock, domesticating wildlife, animal training, etc.
Natural Birthing***
Soap & Candle Making
Making Sugar, Yeast, Flour, Toothpaste, etc.
Natural Remedies & Antibiotics

I could probably add some more to this list but I'm getting tired and think I'm going to start winding down for the night. Fun topic though!