The Modern Survivalist Live Stream with Matt Bracken

 

America 2020: Learning to Live with Violence

Ferfal, Been watching your interviews with Matt Bracken; there is really nothing else like them on the internet right now. Very timely.

I'm wondering if you can talk more about your experience in Argentina living day-to-day with increased violence; was the transition from "normal" sudden or gradual, when did you know it was different, how did you adjust? I'm finding right now, most people I know think they are going to be walking around with their ARs and plate-carriers all the time. Others don't think the violence (or hunger) will affect them.

I've been reading your blog since 2011 and your descriptions of the type of violence really made an impression on me. I remember one story in particular about a lady at a party stuffing food into her purse talking about how nice all the food was because she was starving. I also bought my first Glock 19 and box of Gold Dot several years ago based on your recommendation. So thanks. Look forward to the next interview.

Hope to hear you tell some stories about how things deteriorated and how you adjusted to daily life with violence. Best,

Pete

 

Hello Pete, thank you for your email.

First, allow me to apologize to everyone for not keeping up with the website as usual. The reality is that youtube, Instagram and facebook have been taking up most of my time. Those are where I reach the most people and that keeps me busy, especially since I’m also doing Spanish content too, which is fortunately doing very well. The Spanish translation of “Street Survival Skills” called “Manual de Supervivencia Urbana” is the #1 selling survival book in Spanish and just reached 100 reviews in amazon.es. I also finished a French version which will be available soon after the translator checks the proof copy. As you can imagine, this plus family including a baby and a teen about to start college keep me pretty busy. 

I do want to take the opportunity to plug my latest book though, “Street Survival Skill”, which is a practical survival manual for the kind of thing you are seeing currently in America and my first book “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” that is about to reach 500 reviews in Amazon, very relevant too.

I’m glad you are enjoying our podcasts with Matt Bracken. Guys, check it out this Saturday 3PM live. You can also watch the previous ones as well.

Living with violence… man, I’ve been writing about that for over a decade now, where to start? Best way to describe it is yes, some things happen fast and catch you by surprise. For example the kind of violence you are seen in the streets right now, you can see people get attacked in roadblocks, shot at, and it’s just stuff people didn’t expect to ever see in their country, certainly not in their own community. So that sort of thing tends to catch you by surprise. Then again, a lot has also been going on for quite some time. It’s just that now it’s more visible, more 3^rd world-like so as to put it some way. I bet most Americans never thought they’d see this kind of barbaric, primitive behaviour. When you see those images of “peaceful protesters” tearing down statues and monuments, attacking the police, its looks like straight out of a third world country.

Many of these things you end up adapting to. You mention your Glock 19, something I always insisted on. Now, more and more people see that their low capacity 380ACP pocket gun is… inadequate to say the least given the mobs of “peaceful protestors” rioting and attacking innocent people.

I don’t know how you get used to it. Truth be told you still have a long way to go until levels of crime dictate the kind of security that is mandatory for most of the 3^rd world, but you still have to start watching your back more and be more careful. Some of these things I describe quite in detail in “Street Survival Skills”, especially in regards to the grey man approach, keeping your opinions to yourself and avoiding confrontation. Doesn’t make much of a political statement but it’s the best way to stay out of trouble. These days, people are getting fired for even posting that all lives matter online, something that was rather obvious until not that long ago.

I will say though, although you CAN learn to live with violence, it’s not fun and it drains you mentally, physically and emotionally. These are times in which you really want to look around you and ask yourself if this specific place is where you want to be when things get considerably worse, as they most likely will.

FerFAL

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

Preparedness for Diabetics

I am 70 years old and a type 2 diabetic. With the health care and
insurance regulations I can only stockpile a maximum of 90 days of
medications. If I plan on cutting all my medications in half that
leaves me at most 180 days of survival. With no other family to plan
for why should I try to stockpile other supplies for longer survival?
-Jim

Hello Jim, sorry to hear that.
There are a few things you can do though. Fist, I found this link to be worth the read, written bit a diabetic prepprer.
www.survivalsullivan.com/prepping-as-a-diabetic/
Try to stay as healthy as possible, eating well and exercising. Eating more of a plant based diet, avoiding junk food and sticking to quality sources of protein, no smoking and no drinking, that and doing cardiovascular workout at least for 45 minutes, 3 times a week (go for an hour if you can) will greatly improve your overall health and immune system. I know you already know all of this but man, I have to remind it to myself as well!
I’m no athlete and the idea of going to the gym alone bores me to death. So I just got one of these:

Schwinn Compact Elliptical Machine

Any mid-price elliptic a trainer allows you to climb on it and work on your cardio without leaving your house. Don’t get the cheapest model, get something solid with a reasonable flywheel weight, say 12kg.
What I do is find some TV series to get hooked on and watch it while I work out. Try Vikings on Amazon prime if you haven’t seen it already.
Other than that, the precautions we’ve gone through here as well. Wear a quality mask (not some political statement cloth mask, but a real mask) use gloves for shopping or use hand sanitizer after touching things in stores.
You may try asking your doctor for additional medicine given the situation.
As of why bother with anything else given your medication limit, well, it would suck to somehow come across more medication and be lacking a number of others things you could have prepared for.
Best of luck!
FerFAL
Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

Preparedness in the Year 2020: BLM and Modern Survivalism

ISIS and BLM sure act very similar...

Look! More thugs and terroris- I mean "protesters"... destroying our cultural legacy... I mean "expressing" themselves.
Hmmm... I swear I've seen this somewhere else rather recently...

ISIS Smashes Priceless, Ancient Statues in Iraq

Shattered treasures include winged bulls that guarded entrance to ancient Nineveh.

Protesters tear down Christopher Columbus statue outside State Capitol

Protesters tear down Alabama Confederate statue, Birmingham mayor vows to 'finish the job' with others

Yup, walks like a duck and quacks like a duct, then it must be a duck.
Get Ready people! These are the warnings you should notice.
FerFAL
"Street Survival Skills" https://amzn.to/2KxdbHe
"The Modern Survival Manual" https://amzn.to/2lX5TlB

Riots in America: Secret Service agents wounded outside White House, Trump was taken to bunker

America is changing.
The racial tension was already there and has been getting worse these last few years.
Coronavirus added even more fuel, and the full economic impact of coronavirus plus the current civil unrest is still around the corner. You've had more than enough time to prepare, prepare for real. Prepare for THIS sort of thing. I hope everyone did.
The Skills you need so as to be ready for this "New normal" are precisely what I explain in "Street Survival Skills" https://amzn.to/2KxdbHe and "The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse" https://amzn.to/2lX5Tl

Secret Service agents wounded outside White House, car bombs feared; official says Trump was taken to bunker

Thrunite T1 Review: Neat little EDC light +35% Discount!

ThruNite is making a flash sale on its official website: www.thrunite.com Use code "FS" at checkout to get: the all-new Desert Tan T1 for 35% off, the bundle of a T1 and a TC20 for 35% off, or a TC20 for 35% off!

Survival Prybar: 7 Uses During Disasters & Emergencies

Pandemic Preparedness: Do Filters Expire? Which ones should I Buy?

If you STILL dont have a mask, here are a few options available in Amazon:
3M makes a solid product. These are not military grade, but its a quality full face mask and the filters are cheap and enough for coronavirus

3M Safety 142-6800 Safety Reusable Full Face Mask https://amzn.to/35B1Ezq
3M 60926 Multi Gas, Vapor Cartridge, Filter, P100 https://amzn.to/3cdEsty

If you have the pockets for it, the FM53 is the latest generation in gask maks and it uses 40mm
NATO filters.

AVON Protection FM53 Mask https://amzn.to/3dlmdTi
3M FR-M40B https://amzn.to/3cawVvJ
Filter Canister 40mm https://amzn.to/2Ww8nXw

FerFAL

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

Coronavirus: Social Unrest and Famines of "biblical proportions" within Months

Radio for Preppers 101: Some Basic Concepts you Need to Know

Little intro vid on the topic of radios for those that dont know the first thing about them and are interested in learning more. The Baofeng UV-5R is the classic starting point, but dont forget about CB radios, FRS/PMR radios and something not mentioned all that much, a nice short wave radio.

Links for some of this stuff . The UV-5R is dirt cheap and a great starter HAM favored by most preppers, but for a couple more bucks you have units that are a lot nicer. A digital short wave radio is a must have in my opinion.
BaoFeng UV-5R https://amzn.to/354pm7f
BaoFeng BF-F8HP (A bit better than the UV-5R) https://amzn.to/2VogXrP

Motorola T100TP FRS/PMR (no license required to talk) https://amzn.to/2RWChTd
Retekess V115 Portable AM FM Radio with Shortwave Radio https://amzn.to/2RVzucW

Midland Radio 75-822 Portable Mobile CB Radio (no license required) https://amzn.to/2VpGdOi
FerFAL
Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

Revolver Barrel Length: Which One is Better and Why?

Something Ive been asked several times these last couple days on Instagram (@ferfal308), which barrel length is best.

4" vs 6", is a 2" snubby a good idea and so on. I try to answer that and look at the pros and cons in this video.

 Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

Coronavirus: Turns out Many Preppers Weren't that Well Prepared

Covid19 is exposing many weakness in people’s preps: A lack of certain supplies, masks and respirators but even food and ammo. Most of all, the poor physical preparedness of many, seriously overweight and in poor health, even the mental preparedness to make hard decisions and overcome tough times.

How to make a Simple Face Mask with Household Supplies

Doing a DIY mask is a good idea if you have nothing else, and it does seem to provide a very acceptable level of protection according to some new studies, but whenever possible its always a good idea to have actual respirators and masks designed for this kind of use.
THIS is what I recommend, while the supply lasts:

3M Personal Protective Equipment, Full Face 6800, Medium, Plus 4 Particulate Filters 2097, P100
If not, then at least get a half mask.

3M Personal Protective Equipment Half Facepiece Reusable Respirator 7501/37081

 Mask Full Face Head Ventilative Biochemical Gas Mask

How to Make Bread: Fast, Easy and actually Good

Coronavirus: Current Situation and What’s Next?

Amazon shipping my books normally again

It seems that the delays are over so its a good time to order if you are missing one!
Lots of you probably read "The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse" which is once again very relevant given the economic impact of the pandemic. If you liked "Surviving the Economic Collapse" then you'll love "Street Survival Skills" , my latest book which is packed full of practical advice for surviving tough times.
https://amzn.to/2V7qe6v

Real Survivalism at Work and How the World has Changed in a few Days

Quarentine Preparendess: 10 Things You Need to Know

Get your Preps, Gear and Supplies while you still Can!

As if it’s not obvious enough, time is running out. Get your preps while you still can.
Amazon BANS sellers shipping non-essential items to its warehouses and will prioritize food, diapers, household cleaning products, and pet and medical supplies
Just like toilet paper was taken for granted, the ability to just order anything online as you wish may be next.

Anything you believe you may be needing, if you do have the money for it and were considering buying it eventually, get it now. Get the last few things before it’s too late. I’ve been posting about respirators and masks for weeks. I cant post links to them any more becuase they are all gone now (unless you buy a two pack, 12 units left). Same for hand sanitizer and many other pandemic related preps.

You probably have guns but may be missing things such as optics and night vision goggles. Anything you were thinking about buying eventually, you may not be able to do it tomorrow, either because of Amazon or because the company building it is on lockdown.

Aimpoint Micro H-2 Red Dot Reflex Sight

ATN NVM14-4 Gen 4 Night Vision Multi Purpose Monocular

Prepare for the quarantine as well. Get some books. Of course I recommend my own books, my last one “Street Survival Skills” and “Survivng the economic Collapse”.

Get yourself some new videogames.

Red Dead 2, Witcher III GOTY, Zelda BOTW should keep you busy for a long time. If you have small kids and want to play with them, get Terraria, you'll thank me later.
I’ve been having a bit of fun today with my Food safer.

Foodsaver FSFSSL2244-000 V2244 Machine for Food Preservation

Preparing some of the extra food I have for long term storage, vacuum sealed. While at it, I used it to seal some ammo and clothes for the kits so as to make it more compact and waterproof.
Of course, if you don’t have enough food already, order lentils, rice and pasta. Don’t forget about food for your pets.

These are just a few things that come to mind. There's hundreds of others that may apply to yourself and your situation. Check my youtube channel, TheModernSurvivalist, I'll be talking about tihs some more.

Don’t believe for a second coronavirus won’t be hitting you as hard as it did in Italy. Its just a matter of time, and by that I mean a matter of days.

FerFAL

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

No TP? No problem! The Bidet: The unsung Hero of the Coronavirus Crisis

Luxe Bidet Neo 120 - Self Cleaning Nozzle

You’ve seen them. The neckbeards hoarding all the TP like lunatics, just like they did with 22LR.
Any prepper knows that TP must be stockpiled. In theory, months...no! years of the stuff should be stored! TP is of course important for obvious reasons but there IS another way.
The bidet.

For those of us that grew up with these stupid things in every bathroom (the real bidet, a porcelain one similar to a toilet), it was just a place to leave your dirty clothes when you took a bath, like a porcelain laundry basket that everyone knew what it was for but no one in the house used. More of a tradition that the folks brought from the old world than anything else.

Initially rejected by Americans when the attempt to introduce it was first made, today many Americans love their bidets.

Greatic Bidet Attachments, EB8200 Ultra Slim Self Cleaning Nozzle Hot&Cold Fresh Water Non-Electric Mechanical Bidet

Like it or not, from a practical preparedness angle the thing does allow you to greatly minimize the use of TP while using very little water and, all jokes aside, it can be a big advantage during a long term crisis where TP is unavailable.

I included a couple affiliate links to the best-selling models in Amazon in case you want to give one a try or at least have one just in case you one day run out of TP.

Stay safe folks!
FerFAL

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

How to Care for Someone Infected with Coronavirus

Markets Crash as Coronavirus Soars: Get your Preps while You Still CAN!

Not much time left people.
If the pattern continues (and at this point its unavoidalbe), USA will be in the same position Italy is today, in about 8 or 9 days.

Coronavirus in America: What you need to Know & How to Prepare for It

Guys, I know many of you don’t like videos and prefer a short article. This time though, do try to take the time to watch it. I explain several key pieces of information you need to know so as to prepare for this pandemic, which is already on its way and it will eventually reach you, sooner than you think.

I address a few of the lies out there: It’s just a regular flu (no its not), respirators don’t work (yes they do) just wash your hands (that’s just one precaution, hardly the main form of transmission) .
You need certain supplies, which I’ve mentioned and linked to before but here it goes again, with the link in case you still need sot stock up.
Get yourself a Full-facepiece respirator (while you still can!) https://amzn.to/3cuRFyM
Get yourself meds for Cough & Cold, https://amzn.to/2TqIoAu
Advil (ibuprofen) https://amzn.to/2PKwtef
Tissue paper https://amzn.to/3cwIG0c
Nitrile gloves https://amzn.to/2VJcbG0
Laser Thermometer https://amzn.to/2TlssiG
Vitamin C for kids and adults https://amzn.to/2xbNCY6
Disinfectant Spray https://amzn.to/2TrvDpj
Hand sanitizer https://amzn.to/2PMrsSI
Duct Tape https://amzn.to/2VNew2v
You should have months worth of food already. Dont forget water!
For the economic crisis that will follows this mess, get  acopy of my first book "The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse", currently with a 10% discount. Get  acopy of "Street Survival Skills" while you're at it if you havent done so already.
While it is true that most people that get sick will get over it, especially younger, healthy people, many others will end up in ICU with pneumonia and many will die.
Best thing to do? Prepare, have the supplies listed above, so as to quarantine and shelter in place. If the situation calls for it, take the precautions you need when out running errands. Wear that respirator you bought, wear the gloves, use the hand sanitizer. Sleep well, try to lower your stress levels, work out and eat well to boost your immune system.

FerFAL

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

Coronavirus Impact: Bank stocks dive, JPMorgan off by nearly 4%

Bank stocks dive after the Fed slashes rates to curb coronavirus impact, JPMorgan off by nearly 4%

Preparedness wise, on a pandemic level, we still need to see how things keep developing to know for sure how bad it will get.  Let’s keep an eye on the economic aspect as well. The impact of the pandemic is already huge and the worst is yet to come.

Stock up on the essentials while you still can. many cities are already seeing empty shelves. N95 respirators have mostly sold out by now, but you can still get 3M half-masks in Amazon, better yet, get the full face masks from 3M. Alcohol based hand sanitizer? Forget about it. Sold out and worth a fortune. Check the prices in Amazon if you have the stomach for it. A small bottle of Purell goes for like 40 bucks.

Even food is starting to sell out, fill any gaps you may have in your stockpile with bulk staples such as rice (Lundberg Wild Blend, 4 Pounds) Pet food is something else you should consider buying extra of.

I keep listing these things because I keep getting asked about them. People want to know which masks would work (the ones listed do, N95/FFP2 or better) and what else they should be getting. This is all classic preparedness gear most long term preppers have, but there's just not enough when everyone goes after it at the same time and prices and "out of stock" signs reflect that.
There's still time, but not much. Things are likely to get "complicated" soon in many places.
Good luck folks.

FerFAL

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

How Do You Prepare for Coronavirus? Just Follow These 6 Steps

CDC confirms first ‘unknown origin’ coronavirus case in northern California
Right now, many Americans are starting to realize that coronavirus isn’t so much an “over there” thing, but is already an “over here” thing as well. When you see Italians emptying shelves, stocking up on toilet paper, respirators and food instead of chilling with some pasta and wine in the town’s plaza you know shit is getting real.
The WHO directives (like WHO general director Tedros Adhanom) and doctors with good intentions going online and begging people “Don’t panic!” while wearing faces that look as if they’ve just been told their puppy was thrown into a wood chipper, that´s not very encouraging either.
The good news is that you don’t have to go nuts over this either, ESPECIALLY if you are a true survivalist or prepper. If that the case, then you have ALREADY been doing many of the key things you should be doing to prepare for a pandemic.

Common sense Preparedness

There’s a methodology, a logic to preparedness. You analyze which things you need to do so as to survive and sustain a certain quality of life, you research potential threats given your location and personal circumstances and you prepare so as to be in a better position to deal with them. It’s as simple as that.

This is the kind of mythology I used for my book “Street Survival Skills”. I need it to live? I need to cook? To purify water? Or, I need to defend myself? Fine, which no BS method or strategy should I apply? Because of this methodical approach, I explain the importance of having at least one month worth of food stored (one month minimum, 12 would be ideal), and means of cooking it. Water is critical too, as well as means of filtering and purifying it.
One of those supplies to have listed were N95 respirators. Why? Because of pandemics, volcano or fire ash, sand storms and dust after structures have collapsed. Because you can’t live more than three minutes average without breathable air, that’s why you need to take care of air. As it so happens, anyone that took that advice seriously has a supply of respirators already stocked, those that didn’t are rushing and looking at $200 for a pack of 5. Hand sanitation was also explained in the book, including means of making your own hand sanitizer in case it sells out. Why? Because dirty hands kill more people than bullets, especially during a disaster.

Staying healthy and in shape is also an essential aspect of preparedness and it covers most of the key aspects to survival such as being strong and healthy, capable of working, fighting, bugging out or in this case boosting your immune system. Even basic aspects of financial preparedness such as the importance of precious metals plays a role, with gold again going up as investors seek shelter because of the impact of coronavirus.
Preparedness done wrong can be a lot of fun. You can focus only on guns for shooting zombies and building bonfires, we all love that stuff, but real, methodical preparedness, while not always a lot of fun is something else: it WORKS. When shit does indeed hit the fan like we are now seeing with coronavirus, it works.

What to do

1) Don’t panic. Coronavirus is basically a very strong flu. Yes, it will most likely reach wherever it is that you live. No, there’s a good chance it won’t kill you. In fact, there’s a good chance you’ll hardly distinguish it from any other flu if you are young and in good health. It is still a highly contagious deadly virus and needs to be taken seriously. It’s also a “new” virus and a big concern are recent reports that people that recovered from the disease can have relapses and may even fall sick again.

2) Who is more vulnerable?  The older you are, the more likely you are to suffer complications. Fatality is as high as 15% for those 80 year old or older and it drops the younger that patient is. Smokers and people with preexisting cardiovascular conditions are a lot more vulnerable too. Children, teenager and young adults seem to deal with it a lot better. Past 40, the older you are, the higher the mortality rate is.

3) It is HIGHLY contagious. This is why officials are having such a hard time containing it. When people sneeze, cough or even talk, they spit small droplets of saliva that stay in the air for some time and people can just breathe them in. This seems to be the more common form of contagion rather than touching contaminated surfaces and then touching our mouths, nose or eyes which is more common with the common flu. People may also be asymptomatic, but still spreading the disease for two weeks before showing signs or maybe dealing with the virus well and not showing signs at all.
4) Do prepare. Remember to wash your hands very often, use hand sanitizer when out and about. Eat well, sleep well and work out. Take lots of vitamin C. Once believed to be hype, recent studies show it does boost the immune system and helps fight flu like viruses. Prepare to shelter in place if you have to. No matter where you live (some of the towns quarantined in Italy are 1k population towns, one of the infected is a farmer) you may be asked to stay quarantined so you need to have a reasonable food stockpile.  If the disease spreads and you are seeing more “community spread” cases in your area, you want to take extra precautions such as wearing an N95 respirator or proper NBC mask when around other people that may be infected. Remember that you need to SHAVE to get a good seal on a respirator. Forget about disposable respirators, they are impossible to find and way to expesive anyway. Get an actual full face mask while you still can!

3M Full Facepiece Reusable Respirator 6800
5) Stay informed. Information is key at this point and will be the data you use so as to make the decision that is best for you and your family. Should we stay put, shelter in place? Should I work from home? Should the kids not go to school for some time? What precautions do we start taking now?

6) Make your own decisions. In “Street Survival Skills”, page 219, I quote a great line from Hippocrates, “If you are not your own doctor, you are a fool”. I wish I had known and understood the implications of this quote a long time ago. Doctors can give you, literally what is only an educated opinion, but you know you, you know what’s best for you and what risks you want to take and how you want to live your life. Ultimately, it’s your responsibility. Also, you need to know that sometimes you are simply being LIED by those that believe to know what’s best for you. When a WHO or other health officials say “you don’t NEED respirators” I think “fine, that’s your opinion”. Now when they say respirators don’t “work” to prevent the disease, then that’s just BS and I don’t like being lied to. If respirators don’t “work” then why would people treating those infected use them? The WHO and CDC want to control the panic and most of all, they want to stop people from buying this equipment because they need it themselves and the emergency personnel in the communities. That is still not enough of a reason to lie and trick people.

Learn to read between the lines and know where the information you are receiving is coming from. It’s likely not all in your best interest.

Folks, stay calm. After all, this is the kind of thing we prepare for.
FerFAL

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

Coronavirus Update and How to Prepare for It

Coronavirus: Time to get ready is running out.

The WHO alerts of a possible "pandemic"

Hundreds infected and at least 7 dead in Italy. 10 communities with restricted travel, schools closed and people are already stocking up and leaving shelves empty.
If you still dont have full face respirators, nitrile gloves, and face masks, (links inlcuded) Get them while you can. Dont forget the alcohol based hand sanitizer. These will all run out once people see on the news that there's an outbreak near by.

And food! You should have a respectable stockpile already in case you have to Shelter in Place.
If you dont, check out this video list so as to know what to buy and head to the store as soon as possible.

Chances are there's not much more time and a pandemic will be declared soon.
Now is not the time to panic, but it is the time to take those steps if you havent taken them already.
Dont wait until the last minute.

FerFAL

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

Several GREAT Lessons in this Police Shooting Video (Bodycam)

Take the time to watch this one, several lessons here:

1)Why some people are better off with a revolver than with an auto
2)Why an auto has many advantages, but only if you train so as to run it properly when under stress.
3)Why you want to keep your distance.
4)Why we shoot center of mass.
5)Why you dont want to mess too much with your service/carry gun

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

Seven of the Best Survival Knives in the Market 2020 (so far...)

“Fernando… is this a good survival knife?” is a question I get a LOT, usually by someone showing a knife that is rather mediocre if not downright bad for a survival role. The problem is that with so many offers, it’s easy to get lost and end up with a tool that will not perform well.

Knives have been around since the beginning of time, and there’s been countless blade shapes and designs, but a survival knife, at least the way I conceive one, needs to be more than just an edged cutting tool. A steak knife, a razor blade, even a butter knife can cut, but a survival knife is something else. It’s a tool that cuts, chops, carves, digs, pokes, pries, scraps and hammers. It’s a tool that fills in not only as a knife, but as a shovel, crowbar, axe and hammer, plus working as a deadly weapon if needed. To me, that’s a survival knife, and not just any knife will do. It needs to be of a certain size and length. It needs to be as a tough as they come, yet sharp. Not too big that it won’t be with you when you need it, not to small that it fails in some critical role. In spite of the huge number of blades in the market, few of them fulfil this role well enough so as to be survival knives I would recommend.

Of those commercially available, these are the ones I feel most comfortable recommending:

Glock Knife

Glock, OEM Field Knife, 6.5" Fixed Blade, 1095 steel
This is my go-to advice for anyone looking for a solid survival knife. Few people know that Austria’s service bayonet preceded Gaston Glock´s famous pistol but it did indeed, the Glock of the knife world. Tough as they come, yet light weight, minimalistic yet tremendously practical. You can fight with this thing, you can baton, you can put a mean edge if its not all it should be right out of the box (it usually is, but Ive come across some that could use a bit of touching up). Thanks to its great design and light handle, it even chops better than you´d expect. 1095 steel, 55RC, perfect for a utility blade. These are made in Austria and maybe the best value in the list.
Eickhorn FK2000

Fk2000, 7 inch blade, black finish 55Si7 spring steel
Think of this one as the Glock knife’s fancier, German brother, with somewhat of an Heckler & Koch attitude. It’s made in German in the fabled city of Solingen, as tough and finely crafted as any bayonet I’ve ever seen and it’s reflected in the price. Great blade and sheath (works as a wire cutter) and very comfortable handle.
Becker BK7

BK7 Knife 7" Blade, 1095 Cro-Van  HRC 56-58
The BK7 is a knife Ethan Becker didn’t care for much. They asked him to make fighting/utility knife, basically his version of a Kabar and the BK7 was his answer to that. No problem, even if he doesn’t care much for it, it’s still a great blade, tougher than a Kabar for sure and just a fgreat medium sized survival knife, with the thin tip being its only minor weakness. That and the textured finish I don’t care for much.
Cold Steel SRK

Cold Steel SRK, 6 inch blade, sk-5 Steel

The Cold Steel SRK has been around for a long time and slowly gained a reputation as a no-nonsense survival/rescue knife that is just as home in the bug out bag as it is in a navy SEALs kit, which by the way are currently issuing it.
Mora Bushcraft Black

Morakniv Bushcraft Knife, 4.3 inch carbon steel
The Bushcraft black is the smallest and lightest survival knife I would go for. Many believe it to be ideal, and it is in fact a typical Mora on steroids: Ticker stock and bigger tang with an outstanding tacky grip and smooth black finish. Given its size and weight, it wont do much chopping and even for battoning the lengh limits is quite a bit, but it carves and cuts beautifully and is solid enough to pry with. Just a great pukko style knife.
ESEE Junglas

ESEE Junglas  Blade Length: 10.375", 1095 Carbon Steel
On the other end of the spectrum you have the Junglas, not so much a machete as it is a big full tang knife. This blade will chop, and cut and pry or even dig if needed. The size and weight is there, but this is without a doubt a large, solid survival knife and I’d gladly grab it if this will be my only tool for long term survival in a wooded area.
Cold Steel Bowie Machete

Cold Steel bowie machete 12 inch, 1055 carbon steel
Now this is a real machete right here, cheap, thin and fast, yet plenty of steel to go around. Big knives are usualy expensive but not this one. Fantastic value and you can put a mean edge on it. Light weight too and a good chopper.

FerFAL

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

Five Survival Questions With FerFAL and Selco

Guys, this was a GREAT conversation with Selco, covering some key important points regarding survival and preparedness.

• Your Thoughts on Sweden’s “If Crisis or War Comes” brochure (link to free Pdf)
• What important points is it missing?
• Which 5 items and 2 Skills would you rather have before war starts?
• Which are the early signs to look for?
• If you see those signs, what’s the first thing you do?

For those of you in Sweden, remember we are doing an event in Uppsala, , April 4^th. (link for tickets)

Also, if you haven’t done so already, check out my latest book “Street Survival Skills” which already has over 30 positive reviews in Amazon. The Spanish version of this book “Manual de Supervivencia Urbana” is the #1 best-selling survival book in Amazon.es, best selling survival book in spanish!

TMS Podcast #6 - Interview with Selco Begovic, April 4h Event in Sweden

Interview with Selco and Event in Sweden in April!

Coronavirus: What happens when you get Sick? Mortality Rate?

HK P7 Review: One of the Best Pistols Ever Made

We are Organizing Classes Across Europe!

Coronavirus Outbreak: Five easy Tips to Boost your Immune System

China's coronavirus is 'spreading quicker than Sars'

Ok people, listen up. Coronavirus is spreading, people are freaking out and although we all need to chill and grasp that thousands of people die every flu season anyway, it is indeed wise to prepare for it as best as we can.

We already covered respirators and facemasks. I wont bother including an Amazon link, if you didn’t get some already, they are sold out in most places (check stock with this link  https://amzn.to/31090u6  ) . We covered washing our hands often, using hand sanitizer and avoiding crowds as much as possible. Avoiding contact with sick people is of course the best defense, how far you want to take this depends on how events keep developing.

I’d like to take a minute to go through something pretty important yet not often covered in as much detail. Something that a) Reduces the chances of getting sick b) Even if you do get sick, increases your chances of dealing with the virus a lot better.

I’m talking about boosting your immune system.

1)Vitamin C. Get as much of it in your system as you can. It benefits your immune system and specifically helps you fight flu. https://www.bustle.com/p/how-vitamin-c-works-to-prevent-the-flu-19300887

2) Don’t drink, don’t smoke. You shouldn’t be doing these anyway. Come on now.

3) Work out. I just finished doing an hour in the elliptical trainer and some dumbells. Combined with 24hs intermittent fasting I’m feeling pretty great. I’m also losing weight and sleeping a lot better. Which brings me to the next point.

4) Get youself plenty of rest. Make sure you sleep well. My wife recently bought a Fitbit and the thing montiors your sleep, tells you how many times you woke up during the night or how deep you slept, scoring your nights rest. Now to tell you the truth, I’ll shoot my hand off with my 12ga shotgun before going out in public wearing that thing, but I’m man enough to admit that I borrowed it a few times to monitor my heart rate and sleep. If you want to give it a try, the Fitbit is under $200 bucks in Amazon and there are cheaper models too. Maybe I’ll get an all-black model eventually.

Fitbit Versa 2 Health & Fitness Smartwatch

5) Minimize stress. Working out, getting plenty of rest and eating well should reduce stress already, but at the end of the day its up to you to calm down and take life in general at a different pace. Calm down, laugh a bit more, take a chill pill. Worrying all the time does make you sick and it’s not just flu you should worry about. I’m doing my best to follow my own advice here. As Zombieland Rule #32 says, Enjoy the Little Things.

Hope that helped some and with a bit of luck, we’ll be just fine.
One more thing. Amazon is still doing a big discount on “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse”, my first book. If you don’t have it, now’s the time. Also, get a copy of my latest book “Street Survival Skills: Tips, Tricks and Tactics for Modern Survival”.  It’s packed full of hard-earned information and the Spanish version the #1 best-selling survival book in Amazon.es.
Take care people and have a great day,

FerFAL

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

Coronavirus: 10 Simple Steps to Prepare for the Pandemic

TMS Podcast #5 - David Jones "The NBC Guy": Coronavirus, pandemics and Nuclear Warfare

World braces as Coronavirus Spreads: First case in US Confirmed

First case of China-linked coronavirus reported in US, federal officials say
So it has been confirmed that the coronavirus recently spreading in China does transmit from human to human. The SARS-like virus has even scared Wall Street and as its often the case with these diseases it’s hard to say how bad it will get.
The sensible thing to do though is take another look at our preps and maybe fill a few of those hole we have left.
The CDC has some common sense advice to keep in mind.

Prevention
There are currently no vaccines available to protect you against human coronavirus infection. You may be able to reduce your risk of infection by doing the following
-wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds
-avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands
- avoid close contact with people who are sick
If you have cold-like symptoms, you can help protect others by doing the following
stay home while you are sick
-avoid close contact with others
-cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze, then throw the tissue in the trash and wash your hands
-clean and disinfect objects and surfaces
Treatment
There are no specific treatments for illnesses caused by human coronaviruses. Most people with common human coronavirus illness will recover on their own. However, you can do some things to relieve your symptoms
- take pain and fever medications (Caution: do not give Aspirin to children)
-use a room humidifier or take a hot shower to help ease a sore throat and cough
If you are mildly sick, you should drink plenty of liquids, stay home and rest.

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/about/prevention.html
If the virus spreads then take measures:
1)Avoid masses of people as much as possible, better yet, avoid people all together if things get REALLY bad.
2)Get yourself a respirator. We covered the importance of air many times before. If you need to interact with people, this is your first line of defense. Get a 10-pack N95 Respirators. If you cna, invest in one of these as well:
PD-100 Full Face Organic Vapor Respirator

3)Wash your hands often and disinfect them with alcohol based hand sanitizer after touching surfaces that may be infected.
4)Try not to touch you face, nose, eyes and mouth.
5) Have supplies so as to shelter in place for a long time if need.

FerFAL

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”

What are Latin Americans Preparing for? 6 Key Important Lessons

“The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” on SALE in Amazon!

If you still don’t have a copy of my first book, now is the best time to do so!
“The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse”  has a nice discount on Amazon so get it while it lasts.
Also, a big thank you do everyone that picked a copy of my latest book “Street Survival Skills”.
If you liked it, consider leaving a review in Amazon. It takes just a minute and they do help a great deal so I genuinely appreciate those as well.
Take care folks!
Fernando

TMS Podcast #4 - Eric from Rule The Wasteland: Situation in US, Europe, EDC, Guns and Martial Arts

Another Podcast, this time with Eric from Rule the Wasteland. We had a pretty nice conversation and talked about everything from US and Europe current events and politics to guns, EDC and martial arts. I had a blast.

The sounds is crappy the first few seconds but its over soon. (working on fixing it, likely need to use headphones to keep the sound from looping).

Oh, one more thing. I'm enjoying doing these chats with folks, but let me know if you like them or not or if you'd rather have more typical content here.

Take care!

 FerFAL

Check out my new Book “Street Survival Skills” . Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”