re: May be time to dust off the Bug Out Bags and gear, things may get messy.

Or you can read what has already been posted which states it pretty fricking clearly.

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the concept of bugging out can give some people a false sense of security

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I dont think any of us have any sense of security considering the situation we could be in is completely unknown. I live 2000 miles from my nearest family, so obviously if shite gets bad I have to try to survive here alone. But if we're talking about a long term situation at some point I may want to try (desperately) to get to them. My odds of making it are already going to be pretty low most likely. If I'm completely unprepared then I have no chance

quote:

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My odds of making it are already going to be pretty low most likely. If I'm completely unprepared then I have no chance

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There are a couple of articles out there on the interwebz that chronicle the survival issues that people faced during the Bosnian war.

IIRC some of the "lessons learned" that one writer listed included the following:
1. Have guns and ammo. BUT ALSO have family or friends to help you defend your home/place of residence. One survivor wrote words to the effect of "if you live alone, it's just a matter of time until you die." You just can't be alert 24/7, and if it's a large building or site, you probably can't defend all points of access.
2. Have access to food & water - or you die.
3. Have a means of cooking food, and heating yourself during winter (he was in Europe, so heat is less of an issue for some of us).
4. Have first aid skills
5. Have stockpile (or access, such as bartering ammo for meds) to medications
6. Have toilet paper or a reasonable substitute.

There was a lot more - this is just a short list of what I remember. His point was that criminals will thrive when law enforcement is no longer a "thing." His advice was to prepare for brutality, and be prepared to engage in equally brutal acts to protect your family. But have some reliable help, because you can't do it alone for an extended period of time.

I don’t have any real long term storage of food, supplies etc. one thing I have thought about though is to keep a couple sticks of pvc on hand and some seeds so I can build a quick hydroponics garden if needed.