Today’s consumer culture makes it hard to believe that there could ever be a time when resources are scarce. Thanks to smartphones, we can order anything we want at the push of a button. It’s all just so easy.
But in the future, there is no reason things have to be that way. We’re living in surreal times where technology, energy, and human ingenuity are holding back nature. But our collective efforts will only work temporarily. Eventually, the natural world will retake its dominant place at the center of our lives, and all our attempts to tame it will fail.
Very few people are prepared for “s*** hitting the fan” situations. They think that bad things can only happen in movies. But the truth is that all these fictions are based on events that could quite easily occur in real life (with the exception of zombie apocalypses, of course).
Imagine, for instance, what would happen if the electricity grid went down for a week. What would happen at night? How would you protect your family? How would you cook your food?
These are all important questions. And you’d have to find answers to them quickly in an emergency situation. If you didn’t, you could go hungry. And in some worst-case scenarios, you might lose your life.
Remember, if there is a widespread disaster, the authorities might not be able to save you. Police could be spread thin across the city, or not even functioning at all because they have to care for their own families. In these situations, you have to rely on yourself.
When times get tough, people start to do crazy things. If the proverbial does indeed hit the fan, members of the community will start behaving differently, doing things they wouldn’t usually do.
In Hurricane Katrina, for instance, looters ravaged the city. That’s because they knew that the situation was chaotic. They could break into stores with impunity, without risking a police response.
In situations like these, you need to have the right gear. But what exactly should be in your arsenal?
Pepper Spray
Pepper spray is an incredibly effective tool. And it’s not just for women to carry in their purses. It is an effective non-lethal form of defense that everyone should have access to.
The great thing about pepper spray is that it’s remarkably cheap. You can pick up canisters for as little as $10, giving you fantastic bang for the buck.
German Shepherd Dogs
When the lights go out and everything goes dark, you need tough animals with you that have super senses. That’s where German Shepherds can help. These bruisers are the toughest dogs on the block and the same breed that the police and military use for their frontline operations. German shepherds have a strong bite and are a real deterrent for any criminals considering intruding on your property.
Emergency Food Supply
In tactical and emergency situations, food supplies can run short. That’s why it’s a good idea to have a lot of spare food in the pantry, just in case things go horribly wrong with food supply chains.
We’ve already seen some of the disruptions that can occur during COVID-19 to consumer goods. If something similar were to happen to the food supply, a large segment of the population could go hungry. And that might lead to disease, political turmoil, uprisings, and war.
Canned foods, white rice, and other desiccated foods can last a long time, even in humid environments. Shelf lives are anything from two to ten years, giving you plenty of protection.
Freeze-dried foods kept in sealed Mylar bags, however, are the most shelf-stable. Manufacturers tout these as lasting for twenty-five years, though this is likely a conservative estimate.
You can buy freeze-dried meals in bulk online. You can also purchase freeze-drying machines and make your own meals the way you like, catering to any dietary requirements that you might have.
If you plan on being out of the house, you might want to take emergency food rations with you. For instance, you might have to move because of a flood, and bringing your entire food supply with you simply isn’t practical. These rations are essentially small, self-contained meals that you add hot water to. After a few minutes, they bulk out all the food, making it ready to eat.
Tactical Belts
Tactical belts are accessories that let you hold all your gear while making it relatively easy to move around at the same time. They have multiple pockets and pouches, as explained by Tacticalbrute, a website dedicated to covering all aspects of survival gear.
Tactical belts are also helpful for situations requiring an immediate response. You can quickly access the items you need to defend yourself.
Water Filters And Water Supply
During a disaster, you may lose access to fresh water supplies. And when that happens, desperation can set in quickly. You may have to drink local ditch water or go without any water at all until help arrives.
That’s why having either a freshwater supply or filter can help enormously. Filters let you take whatever water is available and filter out all of the nasties it contains to yield pure water that is safe to drink. Having a freshwater supply, from a well or aquifer, for instance, gives you a limitless supply of water should things go wrong.
In a survival situation, you’ll need about two liters of water per person, per day. Less than that and you run the risk of dehydration. If the weather is hotter than usual, people will need to increase their uptakes.
Water Purification Tablets
On a similar theme, you might want to bring water purification tablets with you if you can stomach them. Aid agencies have been using these for decades and have successfully decontaminated around 3 billion gallons of water globally.
Tablets take around 30 minutes to work. After that, you can safely drink the water. Just beware that these tablets don’t remove all the gunk and grime in the water. And they won’t protect you from heavy metals or other chemical toxins.
