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Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Minimalist mini guide to get a prepper started.

Anonymous said...

i'm scared. i hate this. I don't know what i'm supposed to be doing, stocking up food or trying to buy a gun or getting what little money i have out of the bank or what!

love your site FerFal. read it daily even though some of it scares the crap out of me...

I live in California


Please, don’t panic. The boogy man isn’t going to snatch you or anything, ok? :)

Don’t have much time right know but I think a lot of readers are in a somewhat similar position.

1) Don’t panic, don’t get paranoid.
Does you no good and certainly doesn’t help when trying to solve a problem. Besides, there’s nothing to panic about. Tomorrow is just going to be an ordinary day like always.
What you have to do is implement a few lifestyle changes, learn a few skill and VERY carefully spend some of that hard earned money in some gear if you don’t have it already.

2) My friend, if you don’t have a gun, buy one.
I cant emphasize enough the importance of being armed.
The problem with handguns is that you can’t find them easily when you need them the most unless you bought it before. And when someone brakes into your house or tries to rape you in the parking lot that not the time to buy one and learn how to use it.
Buy yourself a handgun, right now.
The gun you need to buy is called Glock 19. It will come with an extra mag (if bought new), preferably buy two more magazines at least. And ALWAYS keep two 50 round boxes of Gold Dot brand JHP ammunition. ALWAYS. Some people have been caught with lots of guns and not a single round. Not much use for the gun without ammunition.
Take a basic handgun class. You’ll enjoy it!
There hasn’t been a single person I introduced to shooting, male or female, that didn’t go out of the range with an ear to ear smile, wishing to go back soon.
So it’s fun and can save your life, what’s not to like?
Also get a safe for your gun, a small one with digital combination will do.
All this requires some money, but trust me. It’s better than using a Tramontina kitchen knife when there’s a serial rapist loose, like some women did here.
Why I am adamant about owning at least a gun? Because crime will get worse due to the economic problems and I know very well what that means. Having a gun has saved my life more than once, without ever needing to shoot anyone.
My wife, and ex anti gun person, can’t imagine being in a house without a gun anymore.
If you just hate firearms but at least understand what I’m saying, then maybe get a 2” 38 Smith and Wesson revolver. At least you’ll have something to point and shoot if someone kicks down your door at 2 AM.
But again, the responsible thing is to buy a Glock 19 and learn how to shoot it (take a class), visit the range at the very least twice a year.



3) Do what you should normally do anyway, crisis or no crisis. Don’t throw away your money, try to build up savings every month. Also work out.

Get in shape, or stay in shape if you are already there. since you are getting in shape, ask at the gym for self defense classes, boxing BJJ or some other martial art.
Avoid Krav Maga like the plague.
It creates a false sensation of “superman/superwoman” and that’s ok for Israeli soldiers because they carry a combat rifle, but its not your case.

If you don’t like striking do Judo instead. Judo makes GREAT fighters and it’s easy on women that don’t like the idea of getting punched or kicked in the face.

4) Last but not least, Build up your food and water supply.
Ordinary supermarket food works just as well. Buy canned vegetables, tuna, cornbeef, tomato sauce, meats, canned food lasts many years beyond its expiration date, hopefully you’ll rotate before that. Don’t buy cans with bumps. Dried pasta has lots of carbs, and it also lasts forever. Also get rice and lentils, learn to cook meals with those.
Little by little build up your food supply. Maybe spend a couple 100 bucks to get a few weeks work if you don’t have any food stored at all. Don’t forget, sugar, powdered milk, potato dehydrated flakes, coco, salt and cooking oil.

5) Store water: Lots of it, it’s important, that's why I'm repeating myself here.
Fill up gallon jugs or pop bottles but build up a supply that at least lasts two weeks, estimating a gallon of water per person per day. This is important, FREE, and most people forget about water.

6) Then there’s other gear you’ll need like enough warm clothes which you probably already have, flashlights (LED) and lots of batteries. Also a first aid kits ( the know hoe of hoe to use it, preferably a first aid class) as well as medicines for any chronic illness you may have.

This is pretty basic but with the right mentality it’s a good place to start. All points are important, but get a gun an learn how to shoot, serious.

Hope that helped a bit.

7)If you have it, get at least 50% of your money out of the bank.

And put 60% of that 50% you got out into mostly gold and some silver. These are all broad estimate %, but you get the idea.
DO NOT trust banks.
They only look after themsleves and things aren't very clear these days so better to have at least 1/2 of your money under your control.
Guys they robbed you all with the bailout.
You think the powers to be wont allow it with the banks as well? A day too late makes all the difference.
If you only have a few thousnads in the bank then in my opinon, at least these days, it's not worth the risk.

FerFAL

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

hi Ferfal, awesome blog, would like to know how do you think Mexico will do given a potential severve crisis in the US.

last big crisis over here was 94-95, peso vs. us-dollar came down from 3 pesos:1 dollar to 9 pesos: 1 dollar these years

Best wishes

Anonymous said...

Supporting comments... please buy a gun AND go to more than an NRA safety class to learn to use it. Personally, I attend a 3 Day tactical handgun class twice a year to ensure I practice the skills I need to use. Water...drain and flush your water heater - there's 40 gallon of potable water. Lastly, I learned solid skills from Ron Wood's Urbanmaster DVDs. Very practical not Tin Foil tips. He's at www.survival.com.

Anonymous said...

Hi FerFal,

Great blog! Extremely useful info on scenarios likely to happen in the U.S. Thank you for sharing your experience and knowledge.

I have to disagree about avoiding Krav Maga. It's an effective fighting system. The problem is the "Superman Syndrome," not the fighting system. Anyone who believes they are the ultimate fighting machine who can never be defeated is just an idiot waiting to become a victim, no matter what discipline they practice.

Anyway, thanks again for all your hard work and sharing your expertise. It's more valuable than you know.

Pura Vida,
Cliff

Anonymous said...

Ferfal,

Very handy list to have, thanks!

I am wondering why you said to avoid Krav Maga.
You recommended it as a good starting point in
one of your previous articles. Since Krav Maga
is designed to be taught quickly (in a matter of
weeks) wouldn't it be ideal if you're worried
needing those skills soon?

I respect your opinion and would like to hear
your reasoning.

Thanks

Blackeagle said...

If I can add one more thing to what FerFAL and A Mean Green Bean said:
1) Buy a firearm for self defense
2) Get good training on how to use it for self defense
3) If you want to keep the right to legally own that firearm when you'll really need it JOIN THE NRA!

Anonymous said...

FerFal,

Your posts are really great, worth their weight in gold. It is is really invaluable to get some perspective on living in a post crash society.

I am surprised however to see your criticism of Krav Maga. I've been taking classes for the last month or so, and while I'm only a beginner, I believe Krav Maga is the ultimate self defense martial art to study for those concerned about living in a society facing increased crime. After all, there are no competitions in Krav Maga, you aren't training for a civilized sporting competition, where your family comes on a saturday to cheer you on. Krav Maga is for the streets where there are no rules, no restrictions to the techniques. It is all based on street scenarios where there are no rules for either you or your attacker to follow. In a recent class our instructor taught us how to bite down on an attackers neck as a means of escaping a choke. Most defenses involve kicking or crushing your opponents balls. I don't think these types of vicious street wise survival techniques are taught in Judo or BJJ.

Unknown said...

Ferfal, I love your information and look daily for any tips to keep the awareness up. One thing I was thinking about today, as I was remodeling my kitchen,is that very few survivalists discuss hand tools. Every self reliant person needs to keep a basic tool kit available to repair things around the house, the car, guns or what have you.

I work in healthcare and am a tech of sorts, so I specialize in tools that most would not be familiar with, but I am still handy with a hammer, wrenches,reciprocating saw among others and just about anything you can imagine.

One of the most useful tools I keep around the yard is the Pulaski. It is an ax on one end and a wide pick on the other. It is great for digging and chopping and is essentially two tools in one. I mentioned a reciprocating or 'sawzall' earlier. With it, I have trimmed trees, cut boards, pipes, steel re-bar, demoed sheet-rock.... well you get the picture. A person doesn't need a lot of tools, just a few of the most versatile ones that will get him/her out of a pinch. Keep it up and I promise to keep reading and passing the information on.

Anonymous said...

thank you Ferfal for the article. I'm printing it out and going to start stccking the food and water. With my tax refund I plan to purchase a gun and enroll in a training class for it.

Thank you again for addressing my earlier comment on your blog.

I live in California... :)

Fletch said...

I live in California too, and make sure you do all your buying BEFORE April 1st when the tax increase starts! The difference won't be hundreds of dollars, but a few twenties will buy 20 pounds of rice and beans :) Nation-wide gun shops (turners, etc) appear to be out of popular semi-auto pistols (glocks, XDs, 1911s), but don't be discouraged. They apparently just aren't trying hard enough. Look around and call other smaller gun shops in your area, you will be able to find a shop that has a Glock 19 in stock. See if you can order/pick up a few more magazines when you make your purchase, and make sure you can find a local shop with the ammo you want. The ammo may be harder to find than the gun :) Call around, you may have to drive depending on your location. Ordering ammo over the internet for delivery to Ca can be cumbersome.

Don't forget that there is a 10 day waiting period for any firearm purchase, so don't think you can wait until things get real bad before you buy your firearm. Definitely don't forget that during the LA riots California thought suspending guns and ammo sales would help.

Oh yeah, once you get your gun, you need to practice practice practice! A gun is practically worthless if you can't hit your target. Don't simply believe you know what you're doing; put shots on paper, and test yourself.

Jeff Anderson said...

You live in California, so you should probably buy a Glock 27 which is 10 rds (the most you can LEGALLY get in CA) of concealable .40 S&W.

I would get a back up (same caliber) and learn to reload fast.

Urge your reps to vote for the CCW law in Cali right now as well, which you NEED.

Anonymous said...

Ferfal, may I recommend a Bogolight to avoid spending oodles on batteries for lights? It has a solar panel that charges some rechargeable batteries which light LEDs in a flashlight/lantern.

Anonymous said...

Interesting comments on Krav Maga. I've done both for years. While KM teaches some good moves, I think most people would forget them under the adrenalin dump of a self defence situation. Whereas with Judo/BJJ the moves become second nature because you actually grapple every class and also compete.

I've noticed this in KM classes - we do a scenario, my opponent has to pause and think "which technique will I use now?", and in that time I've got their back and am choking them - thanks BJJ :-)

But I've also learnt things from KM eg responding to a mugger "interviewing me" - ie more psychological stuff.

Anonymous said...

Good extra advice on #3...guns won't be of much use if the .gov issues the "Mr and Mrs America, turn 'em all in" order...and the worse things get the more likely that is to occur!!!

1) Buy a firearm for self defense
2) Get good training on how to use it for self defense
3) If you want to keep the right to legally own that firearm when you'll really need it JOIN THE NRA!

And I'll add another vital # to the mix:
4) Besides the NRA and/or GOA, SAF and other NATIONAL orgs, join at least one STATE-level 2A org to protect your gun rights at the state level. Here in NC we're fighting hard to try and repeal some ridiculous CCW restrictions we have on the books...