Destiny Survival

Below is an excerpt from the September/October 2010 “Backwoods Home Magazine” to jump start your creativity.

The simple steps they want people to take are: Get a Kit, Make a Plan, Be Informed and Get Involved. Their site includes info for individuals and businesses, and you can check it out by clicking here.

Of course, September is the month in which the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon occurred in 2001. Promoting preparedness is a way to keep that in people’s minds.

But it also sends the message that Uncle Sam isn’t going to be there to hold your hand in the event of emergencies or natural disasters, such as hurricanes, which have a nasty habit of making themselves known in a big way during September.

You’ve probably heard public service announcements on radio or TV. It’s part of the Ready Campaign, which goes throughout the year. But they choose September to spotlight what they do and recruit new coalition members to promote preparedness awareness.

FEMA’s campaign is making an impact. Last year almost 2,700 organizations joined the Ready Campaign to promote the message of preparedness.

National Preparedness Month (NPM) coalition members pass along preparedness info to their members, employees, customers and communities. NPM Coalition membership is open to all public and private sector organizations.

Citizen Corps is what FEMA describes as their “grassroots strategy to bring together government and community leaders to involve citizens in all-hazards emergency preparedness and resilience.” Got that? It’s typical bureaucratic language, isn’t it?

What it means is that local Citizen Corps Councils are designed to bring about collaborative planning between government and civic leaders. They also support programs and exercises to educate the public.

Perhaps you’ve heard of places like hospitals and schools having emergency drills in your area. Maybe you’ve participated in such drills.

The Ready.gov kit recommendations have been criticized as being minimal, but it’s still good info. The info on making plans is basic, too. But if you’re new to preparedness or know someone else who is, it’s a place to start.

You have to admit. We all do indeed need to be prepared for emergencies and disasters. And we can’t and shouldn’t count on the government to be there. Focusing on preparedness this month is one thing the government gets right.

How are your preparedness efforts coming along?

I think most people would agree that what happened economically in 2008 was the equivalent of an economic earthquake. And we’ve had several smaller aftershocks since then.

The authors of a book called Aftershock saw the trouble signs ahead of time and predicted the events of 2008. Aftershock predicts more to come.

The complete title of the book is Aftershock: Protect Yourself and Profit in the Next Global Financial Meltdown, by David Wiedemer, Robert Wiedemer, and Cindy Spitzer, published late in 2009.

In spite of all that has happened, the media can’t publish or broadcast a news story about the economy without referring to “the recovery,” or how the recovery is slow or even in danger. It’s as if there’s an unwritten law that sets forth some kind of quota about mentioning recovery.

If you’ve lost your job or home, or if you know those who have, you’re no doubt saying, “What recovery?”

The authors of Aftershock are right there with you. Things will never be the same again. We’re in uncharted waters. More bubbles will pop.

The real estate bubble, stock market bubble, private debt bubble, and discretionary spending bubble have supposedly already popped. Yet to pop are the dollar bubble and government debt bubble, which will change the face of the world, so to speak, when they go.

Get ready for inflation and perhaps 40-60/% unemployment. Expect national sales and value added taxes.

Of course, predictions are just that. They may or may not happen. But reviewers say Aftershock is excellent for its analysis of what’s happening in the economy. And I’d hate to bet against the predictions.

So what’s a person to do? If you’re prepping, you may already be on the right track. Do whatever you can to get liquid. Get out of the stock market. Have currency you can use. Have barter items.

Here are some more suggested solutions from an article you can view in full here.

One thing seems certain. We’re being lied to by the government and the media about the economy, and it’s likely to get worse. Brace for the long haul. Keep prepping.

If you want to check out possible scenarios of what may soon be in our future, buy your copy of Aftershock by clicking on the image of the book below and order it through Amazon.com.

It could be a life saver when your cupboards are running low.

The video below tells more about parched corn and shows you how to make it yourself. You’ll be pleasantly surprised how easy it is to make.

The article notes how globalization and cut-throat corporatism has led to loss of jobs, and those jobs aren’t coming back. Get used to it because this is the new norm.

A couple of times the article states that there aren’t enough jobs to go around. Who says? Are jobs a finite quantity? Only so many, and that’s it? To overuse a worn out cliché, can’t we think outside the box? Why can’t we create our own jobs? Am I being idealistic or naïve?

Like the author of the article, if I worked at it, I could also write an analytical article describing how we’re being enslaved, forced into serfdom, etc., but what good would it do?

Why complain about the state of our sick world? If you’re prepping, you’re already at some level of awareness and are taking steps to improve your own situation.

It could be you want to get prepared, but you don’t have money to get the storage food or other survival supplies we’re really like to have. Maybe you’re struggling to make ends meet. Maybe you’re out of a job already. Don’t give up. Tiptoe toward preparedness.

More and more sites are popping up about living a more frugal and self reliant lifestyle. Swapping and bartering are on the rise. I suspect the underground economy is growing.

Some communities are also doing innovative things, such as creating local money and putting their own value on goods and services. Ithaca Hours is one example.

I applaud these efforts. Why aren’t more of us doing it? Why should we believe there aren’t enough jobs to go around? Why can’t we pave the way for survival in the new norm?

But have you considered growing your own grains in your survival garden? An article called “Growing Your Own Wheat” offers a brief primer.

A reader’s recent inquiry prompted me to bring this up. He asks, . “Does anyone know about emmer wheat? Could it have survival value? Where can you obtain seeds?”

A company I’m not affiliated with, called the Sustainable Seed Company, offers emmer wheat as well as other heritage and heirloom grains. They sell in small quantities to gardeners. By the way, they offer another wheat with the unusual name of Wit Wokoring.

Emmer wheat was one of the earliest wheats grown in the Near East and was widely grown in the ancient world. It’s able to produce well in poor soils and has a high disease resistance.

A hulled wheat known as faro, emmer is experiencing a resurgence among gourmets and health conscious people. That’s because it’s nutritious and flavorful. Emmer combined with legumes makes for complete protein for vegetarians.

Wit Wokoring, originally from South Africa, is a tall wheat that’s good for organic growing. It can outgrow many weeds and is said to be easy to harvest. Reportedly it makes a good bread flour.

If you’re ready to make a place for some grain in your survival garden, below are three book suggestions to get you going. Click on any one of the images to be taken to the Amazon.com page featuring that particular book.

So what do you think? Is there survival value in growing your own grain?