Didn't know how else to title this post, seems a bit too ominous but also right on the nose.
So I've always been a pretty big fan of movies and TV shows that depict "end of the world" type storylines. I recently read a couple of books (fiction) on this type of subject over the past few months.
The Dog Stars was one, that actually was just made into a movie, which isn't as good as the book but that's almost always the case. It's basically a story about a guy and his dog surviving with another "prepper" type fella in a world that has been devastated by some virus/sickness. What made this book somewhat unique is that the main character has a plane which he used to scout around their "compound" and to scavenge.
The other book was called One Second After, this one was centered around a family and smaller community attempting to survive in America after an EMP hits, the grids are down, and nothing electronic works. Was pretty eye opening with things that you wouldn't really think about, how bad things can get in a real hurry.
So this sparked a question that I pose to some people in conversation, which is, if there was an "end of the world" type of event, would you choose to fight for survival or just lay down and die?
I would say most people would be in the "it depends" type of answer. Say if it was zombies, alien invasion, etc, a lot of people would just rather not partake in that and would rather just lay down and die. But if it was a virus or natural disaster there seems to be a lot more people willing to stick around at least for a bit.
My older sister is kind of a "prepper" but one that treats it more like a hobby (not the gun hoarding type). She loves to read, so she reads a lot about survival, how to do things, etc. Between the books that I've read, all the unrest in the world, and talking with my older sister over the years has gotten me to think a bit more about how prepared we are for an emergency. I've been buying a few things to help us to be prepared in case of emergency, just things like a wind up radio, some extra food (for both us and the pups), first aid, etc.
I inherited my Grand Fathers camp and land, it's a pretty large piece of land at just over 15 acres mostly cleared farmland. There's a one bedroom cabin and a smaller barn. There's a dug well and wood stove so this location would be fairly ideal in an end of world type of situation. It's about 35kms or 30 minutes drive from our home and it's well off the beaten path, not many neighbors (only one visible from the property). So if the shit really did hit the fan, and it didn't seem overly safe/feasible to stay in our home, this is where we'd go. This past summer I helped my sister store some supplies out there in case of emergency, she had a lot of stuff saved in her apartment so she wanted to store some of it out there.
So as you can imagine, the answer I would give to this question is more likely that I'd try to survive but I would think that would be quite dependent on if any of my loved ones are around. I can't imagine wanting to stick around if they are all gone and I'd be just surviving on my own.
I have two go bags for the wife and I, I know where we are going where there is fresh water and deer, and enough ammo to hold off a sizeable force of <insert bad guy here>. If the weather gets froggy, I have been getting estimates from electricians to wire in a generator plug in so I can power basic necessities if the power goes out. We always have a few 24 packs of water that we rotate through the house every few months, I bought enough MREs to last a week, both the wife and I have our first aid training, and the cars are always well above half a tank. Nothing crazy, I haven't set the claymores in the front lawn yet or anything, but being prepared for emergencies is a good idea in my mind.
Quote from: Fobroader on Today at 12:25 PMI have two go bags for the wife and I, I know where we are going where there is fresh water and deer, and enough ammo to hold off a sizeable force of <insert bad guy here>. If the weather gets froggy, I have been getting estimates from electricians to wire in a generator plug in so I can power basic necessities if the power goes out. We always have a few 24 packs of water that we rotate through the house every few months, I bought enough MREs to last a week, both the wife and I have our first aid training, and the cars are always well above half a tank. Nothing crazy, I haven't set the claymores in the front lawn yet or anything, but being prepared for emergencies is a good idea in my mind.
Nothing wrong with having a plan and getting prepared just in case. I've been building out a couple of "bug out" bags that if we can't drive to the country property we'll be able to hike/bike it. It's about having options.
Now my wife isn't really into this stuff, she's one of the many who feel that nothing bad will ever happen and if it did government/society would come together and fix things. I don't have the same level of positivity with relying on government/society to be there for us when shit gets bad.
She sees me building out the "bug out" bags and she asks when I would ever expect to have to use it. For me, it would take quite a lot to happen in order for me to choose the "bug out" option. I basically said that the power, water, and communications would have to all be done, or we be at the end of a resource before I'd want to "bug out" (so if safety, water, heat source, or food run out).
As the weather is starting to change, I've been thinking about how to heat the house if there isn't any power, currently we rely on a heat pump and baseboards to heat the house. Getting a smaller generator, portable solar power station, and a diesel heater, along with enough fuel to keep the generator and diesel heater running for a week would be where I'd like to be before the weather gets cold.
I don't have my PAL but I did inherit a couple of 20 gauge shot guns and have probably 50-80 shells of bird/buck/slugs. I also have some .22 ammo, maybe 100 rounds of that, but don't have a gun for those currently. I should really get my PAL seeing as I do have a couple of guns in our house (in a gun locker with trigger guards). I did do a gun & hunters safety course back in the early 90's before the PAL came about, so I at least am somewhat knowledgeable about them.
Maybe we should make this more car related. If it's the end of the world, what vehicle would you choose to have?
Me personally I'd probably be choosing some old military truck/SUV of some sort, one that is incredibly simple, carbureted, and can run on various types of fuel (diesel, gasoline, kerosine, fry oil, etc).
12V Cummins in anything 4x4. It doesn't need power to run, will run on anything diesel-ish and is popular enough to scavenge parts for. Probably in a 80s squarebody Chev truck/Suburban, either 3/4 or one ton for the solid drivetrain. That would be my ideal vehicle to GTFO, plus, the Suburban from Dante's Peak has always been one of my favorite holywood cars
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Quote from: Johnnymac on Today at 12:55 PMQuote from: Fobroader on Today at 12:25 PMI have two go bags for the wife and I, I know where we are going where there is fresh water and deer, and enough ammo to hold off a sizeable force of <insert bad guy here>. If the weather gets froggy, I have been getting estimates from electricians to wire in a generator plug in so I can power basic necessities if the power goes out. We always have a few 24 packs of water that we rotate through the house every few months, I bought enough MREs to last a week, both the wife and I have our first aid training, and the cars are always well above half a tank. Nothing crazy, I haven't set the claymores in the front lawn yet or anything, but being prepared for emergencies is a good idea in my mind.
Nothing wrong with having a plan and getting prepared just in case. I've been building out a couple of "bug out" bags that if we can't drive to the country property we'll be able to hike/bike it. It's about having options.
Now my wife isn't really into this stuff, she's one of the many who feel that nothing bad will ever happen and if it did government/society would come together and fix things. I don't have the same level of positivity with relying on government/society to be there for us when shit gets bad.
She sees me building out the "bug out" bags and she asks when I would ever expect to have to use it. For me, it would take quite a lot to happen in order for me to choose the "bug out" option. I basically said that the power, water, and communications would have to all be done, or we be at the end of a resource before I'd want to "bug out" (so if safety, water, heat source, or food run out).
As the weather is starting to change, I've been thinking about how to heat the house if there isn't any power, currently we rely on a heat pump and baseboards to heat the house. Getting a smaller generator, portable solar power station, and a diesel heater, along with enough fuel to keep the generator and diesel heater running for a week would be where I'd like to be before the weather gets cold.
I don't have my PAL but I did inherit a couple of 20 gauge shot guns and have probably 50-80 shells of bird/buck/slugs. I also have some .22 ammo, maybe 100 rounds of that, but don't have a gun for those currently. I should really get my PAL seeing as I do have a couple of guns in our house (in a gun locker with trigger guards). I did do a gun & hunters safety course back in the early 90's before the PAL came about, so I at least am somewhat knowledgeable about them.
I get the same kind of heat from the wife as well, "oh, you expecting the zombies/russians to try to invade Beaumont are ya?!?!?!". No my dear, but electrical grid in Edmonton has been under a lot of stress the last few years and if we lose power for a week, you are going to see a lot of desperate people doing desperate people things.
An old cummins diesel 4X4 would certainly be an excellent option for sure. When I was reading the "One Second After" book where an EMP takes out the US electrical grid, all the modern cars were inoperable so only old carbureted vehicles would function. I thought about Firm and how he has a few cars that would likely still be running and he'd also have the skills and knowledge to get others running/back on the road. Having someone like Firm around would be pretty essential in such an event.
I don't think too many people understand how desperate people can get after only a few days without electricity and food.
Imagine, no tiktok and no uber eats, a certain part of of the population would just curl up in a corner and die lol
A Mossberg Maverick 88 12 gauge is less than $400 bucks from your local gun store. A 12 ga is probably the best all around firearm for getting food and keeping ne'er-do-wells at distance. Slug, buck, or bird shot can offer a wide range of utility. Also, a Ruger 10/22 should be in every house as a .22 is a good time for pest removal and plinking.
Quote from: Fobroader on Today at 01:53 PMImagine, no tiktok and no uber eats, a certain part of of the population would just curl up in a corner and die lol
There is certainly a large portion of the population that wouldn't last much longer than a few weeks if the power goes down. Would be quite humbling I think for a lot of people when they realize just how useless, vulnerable, and dependent on others they truly are.
Quote from: Fobroader on Today at 02:00 PMA Mossberg Maverick 88 12 gauge is less than $400 bucks from your local gun store. A 12 ga is probably the best all around firearm for getting food and keeping ne'er-do-wells at distance. Slug, buck, or bird shot can offer a wide range of utility. Also, a Ruger 10/22 should be in every house as a .22 is a good time for pest removal and plinking.
I've thought about this and yes a 12 gauge shotgun is one of the cheapest and ideal firearms to have in a survival situation. As is a semi auto .22.
My worry about getting my PAL is I'd get an itch to start buying more guns and ammo. It can become a rabbit hole that some people go down and go overboard with.
Quote from: Johnnymac on Today at 02:08 PMQuote from: Fobroader on Today at 02:00 PMA Mossberg Maverick 88 12 gauge is less than $400 bucks from your local gun store. A 12 ga is probably the best all around firearm for getting food and keeping ne'er-do-wells at distance. Slug, buck, or bird shot can offer a wide range of utility. Also, a Ruger 10/22 should be in every house as a .22 is a good time for pest removal and plinking.
I've thought about this and yes a 12 gauge shotgun is one of the cheapest and ideal firearms to have in a survival situation. As is a semi auto .22.
My worry about getting my PAL is I'd get an itch to start buying more guns and ammo. It can become a rabbit hole that some people go down and go overboard with.
That is an actual concern, ask me how I know......but, if you just buy the strict necessary, 12ga and a 10/22, you should be good. I don't have the self control to just do that, but more power to ya if you can.
I also sort of think that while firearms would be 100% a necessity in the US for personal safety in such a situation, I think it's less so in Canada. Of course there are a lot of hunters in the country but it's not the same type of gun ownership that resides in the US. Just had a look at the US there are just north of 120 guns for every 100 people in the US, where as in Canada that number is just shy of 35.
I'm too old and out of shape to be tussling with people
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I hear ya, but I am also one of those people that would want to avoid confrontation completely. That being said, I have 45 years of pent up male aggression and I can imagine what that could look like in certain situations where survival is on the line.
I live in visual sight of not one, but TWO nuclear power plants. So I've always had a very well stocked "Go bag" just in case. I recall the mayhem and barbarism during natural disasters in the US. So my bag has shelter, emergency food, water purification, cooking,firestarter, etc etc
As pointed out, a firearm would likely be necessary. This one has always been a paradox of weight of ammo vs effectiveness. 10 boxes of 12g weighs over 25lbs for example.A .410 weighs half that. 5 00 pellets vs 8 in a 12g shell. Plus a .410 slug flies with the force of a 44 magnum. So it provides ample "oomph" for hunting or defense. You'd probably not find replacement ammo once your cache is depleted though.
A 10/22 is fantastic as Fob pointed out! Though I prefer the 22WMR. Almost no penalty in weight, but a massive upgrade in power. A pistol round (9mm) carbine or pistol round lever action rifle would also be very good. The ultimate one firearm solution would be rifle/shotgun combo. They come in 223/12g down to 22WMR/410 and they fold in half and fit in a backpack. I'd go with the smaller calibers due to weight and packability.
My preferred options would be different if I was staying put vs on the move. If you're in a remote area, stay put might be better. Otherwise, if you're near any sort of population you'd likely want to move....
Yeah I have a lot of that stuff now. I made a big list and have been adding things to the bug out bag for the last few months. I think all I really have left is a really good map of the area, some more medical supplies, and some form of communication radio. I went with the most cost effective stuff and mostly bought from Princess auto and Amazon. I didn't skimp on the water purification, trama med bag, or rations.
Ron, I saw some videos of these shot gun sleeve (think a shot gun shell that you can put different ammo in the center to fire) that you slide into a single shot that allows you to shoot different ammo. In the video it was a 20 gauge shot gun that he could use different sleeves to shoot 410 shells, .22, .308, 9mm, etc. pretty neat but it would only be useful in single shot and I'm not sure what kind of accuracy you could expect.
I'm of the mind if I was to have an ammo cache I would want to store probably 2/3 of it at the country property and if we have to hike we would only carry a rifle each with a small amount of ammo.