hail fellows, well met

Hello guys,
I'm a newbie, so freshly minted, the ink is still wet.
However, I have been reading here for a short while, and hope to contribute in the future.
Till then, my congratulations on the content and size of this survival section.
I became intinterested in survival sites on the net after Katrina.
After doing a search I was dissapointed at the dirth of information available to those wanting to become more self educated.
It seemed with only a few exceptions most sites existed only to hawk thier own products thinnly disguised as advising about survival.
Of the few exceptions,I noted all seemed to speak to country folks. I contacted the web masters of the largest sites, and was told universaly, that they all considered the cities as lost or not survivable.
I felt there was a huge contradiction, since all the sites were advising on how to survive until help arrived. My thoughts were, " if the cities are lost, where is the help comming from"
Since that time I have been compiling information specificly on urban survival and defence.
I look forward to reading and possibly exchanging thoughts with you here on these topics.
Till then I have only 3 words for you " Adapt, Improvise, Overcome "

And learn to sprout seeds.
And stock up on Chlorella, because those little green rascals can thrive on almost anything, as long as it's liquid ...

(I did say "almost", didn't I? ; ))

After new orleans, I realized that in an event of chaos I can call 911 but no one will answer, and while all the sheep will rush to the markets and continue to redial 911 I will be at home safe with my family eating mres and drinking fresh water, because I prepare for an event like that. Bye the way welcome to ATS I mainly joined because of this survival forum, I have meet some really educated people on here.

I too believe as you that the City's are survivable. read this thread for a few ideas.
What to do when you just cant leave (city Survival)

Also try HERE

For some good ideas. its newer but still a lot of content. My best advise is read threw these two forums and take lots of notes.

Survival doesn't have to be difficult just prepared.

tac109
Thanks for the come back.
Yeah, I joined this site based on the survival forums alone. The other plethora of reading is a bonus.
Katrina and the aftermath had a profound impact on me personaly.
I was both mystified and outraged at people dying of thirst hunger and exposer, while surrounded by all the means to provide for themselves.
I have a fairly extensive life involving survival in a multitude of circumstances. Everything from living in the swamps as a child, to surviving combat in several theaters.
When i thought about the situation in N.O.I considered the huge differences between wilderness survival and survival in metropolitan areas.
The basics are the same ie: water, food, shelter, and fire, but the means and methodologies are completely different
This led me to the other commonality, the psychology of survival.
Aside from survival technical skills, I think the most serious lack in N O was the psychology of survival.
The people who found themselves stranded without resources are the same people who were most dependent on the system in thier life before Katrina.
I don't want to turn this into a political debate, but a common thread to all Sit-x's I have read on these threads is a political influence, either due to the failure of the government, or direct actions of the govenment.
In the case of Katrina it was a state sponsored psychology of dependence colliding with a ineffective government responce to a sit-x.
I have spoken to numerous people about these topics and find roughly a third of the people I encounter are either apathetic about thier own survival, or too lazy to invest in thier own survival.
Perhaps the hardest thing for me to accept was the realization that not everyone will listen or learn, so consequently, not everyone will survive.
If your reading here we all share one thing in common.We intend to survive. Period
If your like me, you can neither comprehend, nor empathise with anyone who dosent have that same internal fire that dictates we will survive,no matter what.
I'm willing to bet all of us have peope in our lives who have called us paranoid. To those who have said it to me, my reply has been, I keep my gear ready and my skills sharp, for the same reason I carry insurence on my truck. Not because I expect a wreck, but just in case it happens.
People will spend thousands to insure against protecting thier property, then refuse to invest a dime to insure thier survival.
Ahh well, I guess a culling of the herd is long over due as it is.

[edit on 31-12-2007 by 1ShotDeal]

Im in the same situation, Im the only person in my family and friends who has this survival mentality, For example my good friends are in las vegas right now for new years, I wish I could have gone but I saw a chance to buy 3 cases of mres at a real deal so I took that instead of going to vegas too waste my money on beer, I have tried to warn my friends about having some food and water and maybe guns/ammo at their house but they just got a grin on their face like I was crazy and said their not worried. Those are the people who will spend houres redialing 911 after somthing happens, and im sorry but I will only have enough supplies for me and my family, I wont be able to help all my friends and their familys, that will be their mistake.
I too have spent time in theater. I was in the USMC Infantry, I went swimming in the sand bowl in early 04 just a few months after basic.

breaker-breaker...copy your 10-4 1-SD...

welcome...over!

Tac,
Semper Fi

Retired 75th Rangers here. Got my blood wings in 69
Ironicly enough my last theater ended the same way my first did. They pulled us out before it was over.
If we had been left to finish Sadam in my trip, might have saved yours . LOL

Citizen smith,
Silid copy, read you 5 by 5, I got the 6 we rotate on break
1-SD out and Thanks

Angry American
Thanks for the links
I teach informal unofficial classes to neighborhood groups when invited.
I talk to them about the mentality of survival as well as a plan for aquireing and practicing survival skills. I have been accumulating a body of printed material, as well as a list of links they can refernce as study guides.
I tend to try to focus on improvisation, and adpatation rather than giving them a shopping list of things they can later talk themselves out of afording.
I'm operating on the premise that what i teach them about improvising from thier enviorment will get the mind set established to use thier own imagination if the need should arise.
As the old parable goes " give a man a fish he eats for a day, teach a man to fish, he eats for a life time "
I'm currently working on compiling PDF's that will be loaded on I Pods that come with a solar recharging unit, so that everyone can have a whole library of information in a small package.
Any an all contributions to my links list and database are greatly appreciated.
Some people may not listen, but others will. Who knows, we might save a life simply by sharing here.