Thread: BASIC LIST / SUGGESTED ITEMS FOR LONG TERM SURVIVAL

Home Remedies for High Blood Pressure

Mike Barrett
NaturalSociety
March 28, 2012

High blood pressure is experienced by nearly 68 million adults in the United States alone — that’s 1 in 3 adults. Often accompanied by excess weight, high blood pressure is a major risk factor for stroke, congestive heart failure, kidney disease, and the leading killer — heart disease. If you are someone who has high blood pressure, the mainstream medical industry wants nothing more than your eternal business, buying their pharmaceutical drugs that never really cure anything. But instead of doing that, try utilizing one of these natural solutions.

Drink Coconut Water to Combat High Blood Pressure

Coconut water is a tasty and nutritious beverage which has also been shown to be effective at lowering blood pressure. In one study where authors investigated the effects of coconut water when regularly consumed, they found that coconut water was able to significantly lower blood pressure in 71 percent of the study participants. This refreshing beverage has also been shown to rise above sports drinks in hydration while causing not nearly as many stomach pains.

Apple Cider Vinegar

Effectively helping thousands of health ailments such as strep throat and acid reflux, apple cider vinegar is also a fantastic solution for high blood pressure. Just a few tablespoons a day for one month could have a dramatic impact. I have seen people’s blood pressure go from 150/80 to 130/80 in just a month while taking 2 tablespoons of ACV a day. Many others have experienced the same scenario, and blood pressure medications are often chucked. It could help you too.

Vitamin D

Research points out that vitamin D can be an effective solution to lower blood pressure, promote vascular health by helping blood vessels, and contribute to healthy arteries. While helping to lower blood pressure, this powerful cancer fighter can also protect you from the flu 800% better than any flu vaccine.

Aloe Vera, Hibiscus Tea, Cayenne Pepper

Aloe, cayenne pepper, honey, and tea are all fabulous for helping with a whole host of health problems. They are often used in combination to treat anything from strep throat to lowering insulin levels to boosting overall health. Not surprisingly, some individuals have also found this combination to effectively lower blood pressure.

”One yr ago I started having headaches and Dr. found I had high blood pressure 187/100 yikes. I was told I needed to take meds for life. I refused to believe that and have been searching for a natural cure since then. I have found it drinking fresh Aloe every morning. I take a medium leaf wash and remove thorns, put it in the blender, with one lemon and one tablespoon raw honey. Strain and drink on an empty stomach after one month I am off meds and my readings are 109/65!!!!! I also drink one cup of hibiscus tea a day and eat cayenne pepper with meals. My friend also tried this and she is a diabetic her blood sugar is now an average 80, and off insulin.” Iamurelia on EarthClinic says.

In addition to all of these solutions, living an overall healthy lifestyle with some exercise will also help greatly. This means avoiding fructose, which has been shown to up the risk of having blood pressure levels of 160/100 mmHg by 77 percent with the consumption of 74 grams (2.5 sugary drinks). Maintaining a healthy weight while reducing fructose intake to no more than 20g per day are excellent preventative measures.

Home Remedies for High Blood Pressure | Natural Society

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Bug-Out Survival Lessons

Brandon Smith
March 30th, 2012
Alt Market
Comments (12)

This article has been generously contributed for your consideration and reading pleasure by Brandon Smith of Alt-Market.com.

Editor’s Note: While primarily focused on cold weather bug-out lessons, much of the information Brandon provides below is applicable to hot weather scenarios as well. If you’ve ever gone through a heat spell or drought in the Southern states you’re keenly aware of the dangers posed in the event of an emergency situtation that would require you to bug-out. Excessive temperature swings, lack of food and water, and insufficient shelter, just as in winter scenarios, can be a killer in temperatures that exceed 100 degrees. The lessons outlined below, namely community and team building, the concept of caches, and overall preparedness and planning can be life savers regardless of the climate conditions you may face.

One of the fantastic advantages of living in what James Wesley, Rawles often refers to as the American Redoubt is the ample opportunity for full-spectrum training in some of the roughest terrain in the United States. In the Flathead Valley of Montana in particular, preppers and survivalists abound, with the organizational help of Stewart Rhodes and Oath Keepers, Chuck Baldwin and Liberty Fellowship, and my own Montana Safe Haven Project, liberty minded residents here are surrounded by an atmosphere of independence and self reliance. If you want to completely immerse yourself in the survivalist dynamic, this is one of the best places to do it.

Spring is now breaking through the winter snows, and soon even more training will be possible, but during the icy months I did get an opportunity to engage in some hands-on practice with a team of people in what I feel is probably the WORST possible scenario for the prepper; the cold weather bug-out.

The bug-out strategy in general is for all intents and purposes a last ditch effort at survival. It is used only when a collapse is at its apex, your homestead is under siege or at risk of being overrun, or when your secondary retreat location is compromised and unsafe. During wintertime, the danger is increased tenfold by multiple factors, including:

Limited Mobility: There are ways around it, but usually snow and ice make bugging out, especially on foot, a real headache.

Limited Food Sources: Is wild food still available? Yes. But nowhere near as easy to gather than in warmer seasons. Without intense preparation for a winter bug out, you will starve.
Warmth Dominates Time: In a rushed escape into back country during winter, the desire to stay warm will rule over almost every decision you make, and can eat up precious hours of the day better spent gathering food and planning a defense. It is a distraction you cannot afford.

Fire Building Frustrations: In the event that you are lucky enough to not have to worry about light discipline, snow covered forests can still make fire building an exhaustive affair. With wet or buried tinder, rock solid frozen ground, and difficult mobility, just putting together an adequate blaze could be maddening. After your fire is started, keeping it fed through the night can lead to limited rest and eventual sleep deprivation.

Condensation: This is the arch nemesis of the survivalist in the middle of a winter bug-out. Forget wolves, bears, and hungry hordes of the unprepared roaming the hills; the incessant collection of water condensation on clothing, gear, and stocked tinder, is a heat depriving force to be reckoned with.

At bottom, the methods for bug-out training we use often in the spring, summer, and fall, just don’t cut it during the winter. In places like the Redoubt, they can be shockingly ineffective. Remember, if you find yourself in the middle of a winter bug-out, you have likely hit absolute rock bottom, but the pain can be eased or even nullified with heavy planning over the course of the next six months. I recommend every prepper take advantage of the planting season not only to build their gardens but to also set aside the following provisions, just in case…

Bug-Out-Bag Upgrade
The following is a list of items that made our lives easier (or would have made our lives easier) in the rugged backwoods of snow laden Montana. If you don’t have these tools in your BOB, get them!

Best Tinder: Searching tree wells for dead wood and tinder is all fine and good, but even then, much of what you collect will have soaked up at least some condensation. You need to pack tinder that burns extra hot, or extra long, to compensate for this. The most effective tinder we used included cotton balls soaked in petroleum jelly, small firestarter bricks (pieces can be shaved off as needed), strike-a-fire tinder (tinder sticks that light like matches), and magnesium shavings (collect shavings into rolling paper and add a chunk of firestarter). Water proof matches and flint are a must, obviously.

Hand Axe: A good hatchet with a steel handle that is melded perfectly into the blade is a timesaver, and a life saver. Hand saws and wire saws are mostly a waste of energy.

High Grade Camp Knife: A fixed blade camp knife with a full tang along with a small knife sharpener is an absolute necessity. You will use it constantly, especially in the cold when making tinder is an uphill battle.

Waterproof Tarp: In rain or snow, your makeshift shelter will eventually start springing leaks unless you have a heavy duty trash bag or tarp overhead. Folded up, this item does not take up very much weight or space in your pack, and makes life in the woods so much more bearable.

Snow Gaiters: Even with the best waterproof boots, trudging through the snow tends to draw moisture into your pants and socks, and there is nothing worse than being stuck with wet socks in the middle of a cold bug-out. Snow Gaiters wrap around the top of your boots and bottom of your pants, providing extra protection against moisture.

Extra Socks: Most preppers have at least a couple pairs of wool socks in their pack. I recommend a minimum three pairs just to be sure.

Snow Shoes: Before heading out into the mountains for our cold weather survival training, we held an indoor class on essential items and strategies attended by a large number of people within the Liberty Movement community here in the valley. One of our primary focuses was winter mobility. Depending on the amount of snow and how compact it was, skis could be a fantastic tool for a cold weather bug out. Most of us, though, used snow shoes, which work adequately even when snow is iced over and compacted. Without snow shoes, we would have gone nowhere fast, and they are a must for any survivalist who may have to traverse icy terrain.

Biomass Stove: A “biomass stove” is just a fancy name for a portable camp stove that burns wood. For those taking a jaunt into the woods for the weekend, a Jetboil with its limited fuel canisters is fine. But for those facing a bug-out situation, a Bushbuddy or similar stove which uses fuel readily available everywhere is the correct choice. Biomass stoves also greatly reduce light and heat signatures over the use of an open fire, in case this is a concern (which it might be).

Thermal Blanket: A thermal blankets adds mere ounces to your pack and if used correctly, can help to maintain warmth consistency within your shelter. I recommend wrapping it around the inner roof of your lean-to, A-frame, or even your 4 season tent, allowing it to bounce your body heat and campfire heat back at you.

High Grade Sleeping Bag: This is perhaps the single most important item you could possibly have in your bug-out bag. More important than your knife, your compass, or even your gun. Without a sleep system rated for at least ten degrees below zero, your life after bug-out will be unmitigated hell. Even where light discipline is not an issue, keeping a fire going all night long is not fun, and destroys healthy sleep patterns. Where light discipline IS an issue, a winter bug-out is impossible without a solid sleeping bag.

The primary trouble with sleep systems is the weight they tend to add to one’s pack. Spend the extra money. Get a higher end synthetic sleeping bag with lighter weight technology (some weigh only a few pounds), and a compression pack which will strap onto your BOB. Seriously folks, find the cash, and make it happen.

Plan Ahead
Bugging out without a destination (or several destinations) set up in advance is rubber-room crazy. During the warmer months this year, make it your mission to have your bug-out retreat locations squared away. Find multiple sites and take the extra time to set up each with care, while simultaneously maintaining camouflage and concealment techniques. Here are just a few suggestions that can help…

Set Up Shelter Before Hand: Make-shift shelters can do the job in a pinch, but setting up more permanent dwellings, from a lean-to or hut with all the fixens’, to a low profile cabin, is really the ideal. Survival sleep pits can be dug out while the ground is unfrozen and then covered for later use. At the very least, you can find and memorize the locations of the largest and best tree wells that can be used for expedient shelter.

Find A Water Source: Our training class chose a location that had a natural spring nearby, which was an excellent source of water. Find a stream, a spring, a well, a pond, anything, but find it well in advance of any threat of a bug-out. Set up your shelters nearby, but not too close, for better security. Make sure to bring a filtration system with you so that you can collect water on the way to your destination.

You Must Cache: The bug-out survivalist slogan should be “Cache Or Die!” Caching is truly that important, in winter even more so. Wild edibles are scarce during winter. And, snaring, trapping, and hunting are a gamble at best, at least in the first couple weeks as the prepper gets situated at his new retreat. Without several caches of food, tools, tinder, ammo, and even an extra sleeping bag, your bug-out may be short lived (and not in a good way). Imagine all the items that would ease your survival that are impossible to take with you on a bug out trek. How about a full sized ax? An extra .22 caliber rifle? Large quantities of ammo? A week’s worth of freeze dried foods? All of this and more could be waiting for you at caching sites surrounding your pre-chosen retreat if you make the extra effort now.

Build A Team: At Alt-Market, we push for people in the Liberty Movement to build communities first. The ultimate survival strategy is one that involves back-up economies, back-up trade skills, and a large number of participants working together to insulate their town, county, or state, from financial and social collapse. However, within these communities, there should be teams formed to deal with the possibility of the very worst such a disaster has to offer. Going it alone, especially during a bug-out, is a nightmare proposition.

Train A Guard Dog: During our excursions into the Montana wilderness, a great source of comfort was a large guard dog which a member of our team brought for protection. In Montana, wolves and bears are not a rarity; they are commonplace, and having the dog walking the perimeter of the camp allowed us to sleep without worry. This made me realize the incredible protection that these animals provide, even against would-be human intruders.

The common argument against guard dogs is that they can make noise and draw attention. But, with the right training, they will only make noise when you need them to make noise; to alert you to danger, or to ward off those who were hoping to use the element of surprise against you. Train your dog now for watch duty, and bring him with you if disaster rains down in your neighborhood. You’ll be glad you did…

There Is No Calamity, Only Lack Of Preparation
There is no such thing as a national or local catastrophe that cannot be survived as long as the intelligent prepper makes the right choices ahead of time. Cold weather training allowed those within our community here in the Montana Safe Haven to get a taste of the worst case scenario, make some mistakes, and learn from them quickly. The result is a stronger and more informed knowledge base to draw from, and a sense that the man next to you knows exactly what he is doing. I look at such training and preparation as a surefire investment. The advantages and dividends will undoubtedly outweigh the costs. For those who see the above suggestions as “paranoia”, all I can say is, they have missed the point.

Survivalists learn so that they do not have to fear. True preppers live in a state of tangible and sustainable calm. The ignorant live in a similar state as well, but only as long as the system they blindly believe in and embrace continues to give the appearance of functionality. Under the thin veneer of the skeptic and his happy-go-lucky lifestyle there exists the unconscious echo of dread and dead panic, ready to be unleashed at the first sign of abnormality. In crisis, they will fold and wimper, while the prepper goes on with his day as always…

You can contact Brandon Smith at: brandon@alt-market.com

Alt-Market is an organization designed to help you find like-minded activists and preppers in your local area so that you can network and construct communities for mutual aid and defense. Join Alt-Market.com today and learn what it means to step away from the system and build something better.
To contribute to the growth of the Safe Haven Project, and to help us help others in relocating, or to support the creation of barter networks across the country, visit our donate page

Cold Weather Bug-Out Survival Lessons

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Just In Time: When the Trucks Stop, America Will Stop (With Immediate and Catastrophic Consequences)

Mac Slavo
April 2nd, 2012
SHTFplan.com
Comments (26)



Most Americans take for granted the intricate systems that make it possible for us to engage in seemingly mundane day to day tasks like filling up our gas tanks, loading up our shopping carts at the local grocery store, obtaining necessary medications, and even pouring ourselves a clean glass of water. When we wake up each morning we just expect that all of these things will work today the same way they worked yesterday. Very few have considered the complexity involved in the underlying infrastructure that keeps goods, services and commerce in America flowing. Fewer still have ever spent the time to contemplate the fragility of these systems or the consequences on food, water, health care, the financial system, and the economy if they are interrupted.

A report prepared for legislators and business leaders by the American Trucking Associations highlights just how critical our just-in-time inventory and delivery systems are, and assesses the impact on the general population in the event of an emergency or incident of national significance that disrupts the truck transportation systems which are responsible for carrying some ten billion tons of commodities and supplies across the United States each year.

A shut down of truck operations as a result of elevated threat levels, terrorist attacks, or pandemics would, according to the report, have “a swift and devastating impact on the food, healthcare, transportation, waste removal, retail, manufacturing, and financial sectors.”

So too would events such as an EMP attack or a coordinated cyber-attack that could shut down global positioning systems and the computers responsible for inventory control. Another potential scenario that is more likely now than ever before is liquidity problems within the financial system stemming from currency crisis or hyperinflation. All of our just-in-time delivery systems are built upon the unhindered transfer of money and credit, but when credit flow becomes restricted or money becomes worthless, no one will be able to pay for their goods. Likewise, no one will trust the credit worthiness of anyone else. This is exactly the scenario playing out in Greece right now and the consequences on the health care industry in that country have left many without life saving drugs. When there’s no money, no one will be transporting anything.

The effects of a transportation shutdown for any reason would be immediate (in some cases, within hours) and absolutely catastrophic.

Excerpted from the American Truckers Associations report

Food

• Significant shortages will occur in as little as three days, especially for perishable items following a national emergency and a ban on truck traffic.
• Consumer fear and panic will exacerbate shortages. News of a truck stoppage—whether on the local level, state or regional level, or nationwide—will spur hoarding and drastic increases in consumer purchases of essential goods. Shortages will materialize quickly and could lead to civil unrest. (We’re seeing this in the UK right now)

Water

• Supplies of clean drinking water will run dry in two to four weeks. For safety and security reasons, most water supply plants maintain a larger inventory of supplies than the typical business. However, the amount of chemical storage varies significantly and is site specific. According to the Chlorine Institute, most water treatment facilities receive chlorine in cylinders that are delivered by motor carriers. On average, trucks deliver purification chemicals to water supply plants every seven to 14 days. Without these chemicals, water cannot be purified and made safe for drinking.

Health Care

• Without truck transportation, patient care within the truck stoppage zone will be immediately jeopardized. According to Cook, many hospitals have moved to a just-in-time inventory system. In fact, some work from a low-unit-of-measure system. This means that essential basic supplies, such as syringes and catheters, are not ordered until the supplies are depleted. These systems depend on trucks to deliver needed supplies within hours of order placement. Internal redistribution of supplies in hospitals could forestall a crisis for a short time; however, in a matter of hours, hospitals would be unable to supply critical patient care.
• If an incident of national significance produces mass injuries, truck transportation is the key to delivering urgently needed medical supplies necessary to save lives.
• Hospitals and nursing homes will exhaust food supplies in as little as 24 hours
• Pharmacy stocks of prescription drugs will be depleted quickly. According to the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, most of the nation’s 55,000 drug stores receive daily merchandise deliveries by truck.

Transportation

• Service station fuel supplies will start to run out in just one to two days. An average service station requires a delivery every 2.4 days. Based on these statistics, the busiest service stations could run out of fuel within hours of a truck stoppage, with the remaining stations following within one to two days
• Air, rail and maritime transportation will be disrupted.
• A fuel shortage will create secondary effects. Without access to automobile travel, people will be unable to get to work causing labor shortages and increased economic damage. Without cars, many people cannot access grocery stores, banks, doctors, and other daily needs. Public bus systems will cease to operate as well, preventing many disabled and elderly people from accessing these necessities. Without fuel, police, fire, rescue and other public service vehicles will be paralyzed, further jeopardizing public safety.

Waste Removal

• Within days of a truck stoppage, Americans will be literally buried in garbage with serious health and environmental consequences. Further, without fuel deliveries, many waste processing facilities will be unable to operate equipment such as backhoes and incinerators.
• Uncollected and deteriorating waste products create rich breeding grounds for microorganisms, insects, and other vermin. Hazardous materials and medical waste will introduce toxins as well as infectious diseases into living environments. Urban areas will, of course, be significantly impacted within just a couple of days.

Retail / Manufacturing / Economy

• Replenishment of goods will be disrupted. Many of the nation’s leading retailers rely on just-in-time delivery to keep inventory levels as low as possible. Similar to the low-unit-of-measure hospital inventory system, these stores rely on frequent deliveries to replenish basic goods. Often, delivery of a shipment is not triggered until the current inventory is nearly depleted. Without truck deliveries, retailers will be unable to restock goods, including consumer basics such as bottled water, canned goods, and paper products.
• Consumer behavior during emergencies triples the rate of inventory turn-over.Since many large retail outlets typically keep inventories as lean as possible, problems often arise quickly during truck transportation slowdowns that occur from crises such as hurricanes.
• Just-in-time manufacturers will shut down assembly lines within hours. Major American manufacturers, ranging from computer manufacturers such as Dell and Compaq to major automakers such as GM and Ford, rely on just-in-time manufacturing. Without truck deliveries, component shortages and manufacturing delays will develop within hours

Financial Sector

• ATM and branch bank cash resources will be exhausted quicky. In today’s fastpaced, high-technology economy, consumers access cash 24/7 from 370,000 ATMs nationwide. JP Morgan Chase, the nation’s second largest consumer bank, replenishes its 6,600 ATMs via armored truck delivery every two to three days. Given the increase in ATM activity that occurs before and after any type of crisis, ATMs would run out of cash much sooner.
• Small and medium-size businesses will lose access to cash.
• Regular bank functions will cease.

While an event that disrupts truck transportation systems may be unlikely, recent history suggests it is fully plausible and the blowback can be devastating. A day after Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans, panicked government officials stopped all transportation flow into the region, forcing hundreds of trucks loaded with emergency supplies like food and water to wait for permission before they could enter the area. As a result, thousands of residents of the city were left without items essential for survival. It took days before truck routes were re-opened and supplies were allowed to flow. Government officials acting on limited information, lack of knowledge and personal politics were responsible for restricting the flow of goods into New Orleans, potentially killing hundreds of people in the process.

What this incident demonstrated is that when the trucks in America stop, all commerce and delivery stops with it.

Now consider what may happen if the emergency is more widespread, affecting not just a city, but the population of an entire region or the United States in its entirety.

Via SHTFplan

Just In Time: When the Trucks Stop, America Will Stop (With Immediate and Catastrophic Consequences)

Intelligence Gathering For Personal Safety

April 2, 2012 by Tom Givens

USCONCEALEDCARRY.COM

One of the most common threats right now is that of the violent youth street gang, whether that gang has its origins in the black, Latino, Southeast Asian or white communities.

My dictionary defines “intelligence” as follows:

1. Capacity for understanding and for other forms of adaptive behavior; aptitude for grasping truths, facts, meanings; 2. Good mental capacity; 3. The faculty of understanding; 4. The gathering or distribution of information, especially secret information; 5. A staff of persons engaged in obtaining such information.

The selected definitions listed above accurately reflect what we mean when we refer to gathering personal intelligence. Make no mistake, the law-abiding populace of this country is at war with the criminal subculture. The gathering of accurate intelligence on the enemy’s identity, location and strength is a vital part of planning your overall defensive strategy.

Unless you are aware of the threat, how can you plan to counter it?

In this article we will examine some of the facets of personal intelligence gathering and processing to assist you in a realistic threat assessment of your environment, and to provide forewarning in street encounters with likely threat sources. While this will not be an exhaustive examination of every threat, it will at least expose you to the main elements of some of the more common criminal types with which you will likely deal.

The purpose of this endeavor is to allow you to recognize subtle danger signs that will be present prior to an assault. By recognizing these cues, you can place yourself on alert, and be thinking about a planned response. As we discussed previously, being aware of a threat and having a plan in mind to deal with it greatly decreases reaction time and helps overcome the mental inertia that slows down our response.

When interacting with strangers, these subtle cues, once learned, can assist you in evaluating the proper degree of vigilance and readiness to act.

Be alert for these signs as you go through your daily routine. Forewarned is forearmed.

Street Gangs
One of the most common threats right now is that of the violent youth street gang, whether that gang has its origins in the black, Latino, Southeast Asian or white communities. Street gangs, once confined largely to places like Chicago and Los Angeles, have now spread throughout the United States, driven largely by the lucrative market in illicit drugs — particularly cocaine and crack.

Street gangs become surrogate families of sorts for many members, providing the companionship, support, affirmation and respect missing from their home life. This mutual bond among gang members is the source of one cause of violence against non-members. “Dissing” a gang member (showing disrespect to him or his associates) causes him to lose face in the eyes of his peers unless redeemed by violence against the person showing the real or imagined disrespect. Since there are usually multiple members present, you are faced with an attack by all of them (fight one, fight them all).

Other attacks are motivated by desire for your money, and carjacking is a common crime among youthful offenders, who take a new vehicle each night to use in the “cruising,” robberies and drive-by shootings they have planned for the evening’s entertainment. In some organizations, gang members must commit a serious crime, such as shooting a stranger (you) in the presence of a senior gang member in order to move up in the social order. Regardless of the intent, these are dangerous individuals, and they must be taken seriously as a threat.

Gang graffiti is not just vandalism; it is a form of advertising and communication. Gangsters use graffiti to mark territory and to establish dominance, just as a predator might urinate on the tree trunks around the perimeter of his home range. Gang graffiti must be taken seriously as a red flag; its appearance around your place of business means that you must be on the lookout for gang members and activity.

Black street gangs in this country are typically affiliated with one of several major national groups. The best known of these are the Crips and the Bloods, which originated in Los Angeles, and The Folk Nation and The People Nation, which originated in Chicago. All of these groups have sent recruiters throughout the United States, and there is now no area of the country completely free from their influence.

Bear in mind that graffiti is not the only form of expression in which gang symbols are used. The same images often appear as tattoos, and these provide a ready means of identification. In the past, gang members usually sported “colors,” readily identifiable pieces of clothing, which made identification easier for both friend and foe.

Examples included red or blue bandannas, and “dressing right or left” which means cap brim turned in a certain direction, or one pants leg rolled up and the other not. In most areas these practices have been abandoned, as they lead to attention from law enforcement officers on patrol. Now, tattoos are probably your best means of identifying gang members.

Among the major Latino gangs are the Mexican Mafia and Nuestra Familia, which originated in Southwestern U.S. prisons, and the Latin Kings, a common street gang. Tattoos are a prevalent form of communication among these gangsters, with often ornate, colorful and extensive coverage. The Mexican national emblem, the eagle and snake, are common, as well as stylized initials like eMe (the pronunciation of “M” in Spanish, for the Mexican Mafia), and a crown in Latin Kings tattoos.

Among the most dangerous of the white gang types is the Skinhead, a white, neo-Nazi type who specializes in personal brutality, particularly violence directed toward Jews, blacks, homosexuals and others they consider to be “inferior.” Skinheads got their name from the practice of shaving their heads, but again, this has been largely abandoned to prevent harassment (oops, I meant monitoring) by police.

Heavy boots, suspenders (braces), muscle shirts and black leather jackets or military style jackets are the principal mode of dress. Again, tattoos are your best indicator. The Celtic cross, Nordic or Viking artwork, and Christian religious symbols are the most common form of tattoos.

The other predominately white threat group is the biker gang or outlaw bikers. Bikers live in a culture all their own, in a world dominated by their motorcycle, degradation of women, drugs and violence. Bikers seldom work in the traditional sense, but make their living from prostituting their “old ladies,” selling drugs and working as enforcers for other criminal enterprises.

Bikers tend to be extremely violence prone, especially if they perceive weakness in a victim or opponent, and they tend to be both well armed and, often, better skilled than most other gang types. This makes them formidable adversaries.

Obviously, the most common indicator is the biker’s motorcycle, but this is not always present. Bikers often travel in other vehicles, and a group of bikers traveling on “business” will often be accompanied by a van containing backup members, heavy weapons (including automatic weapons), and extra ammunition.

The primary indicator is the biker’s colors: a vest adorned with the symbols of his gang and of his personal achievements. A biker wears his life story on his vest, with his status within the gang, his rank, his past deeds and other information proudly displayed, although somewhat encoded. A biker will usually die before he will surrender or risk loss of his colors. The same markings found on his colors will often be found in tattoos, which are quite common among bikers.

Drug Abusers
According to many authorities in law enforcement, as much as 80 percent of the crime in the United States is driven by the use of illegal drugs. From turf wars among drug dealers, to robberies to get money to buy dope, drug abusers are your single largest threat group.

According to a recent detailed study by the FBI, 80 percent of the offenders studied who had killed police officers were under the influence of drugs, alcohol or drugs and alcohol at the time of the fatal assault. Many types of drugs lower social inhibitions (this is why alcohol is so important to so many people at social functions). Unfortunately, these social inhibitions include the inhibition to kill a fellow human being.

The most commonly abused drugs in this country include: cocaine, crack, amphetamines, methamphetamines and other nervous system stimulants; PCP, LSD, MDMA and other hallucinogens; marijuana; anabolic steroids; and, of course, alcohol.

Different types of drugs can cause different physical symptoms, of which you need to be aware. In addition, certain drugs can cause psychological effects on the offender for which you must be prepared. Remember that different people can have different reactions to drugs. A complete discussion of these drug types and their effects is outside the scope of this brief article, but the information is readily available.

Mental Cases
In any major urban area, street contacts with mentally or emotionally disturbed persons are practically unavoidable. According to the American Psychiatric Association, one of every three Americans will suffer some form of serious mental or emotional illness at some point in their life. I’m OK, but frankly, I’ve been a bit worried about you.

The most common group of mentally disturbed persons you will encounter is the street person, typically a homeless drifter or bum, usually shabbily dressed, unkempt, bearded and dirty. A lot of people will try to tell you that these people are helpless, harmless victims of the failed mental health care system. This is not typically true.

It is now extremely difficult in this country to involuntarily commit someone for a mental illness — even a serious one. Even disturbed persons who kill are typically stabilized with medication and released back into the public, with the frail hope that they will continue to faithfully take their medication without supervision. Most mentally ill street people have been placed in care homes or mental institutions at some point, but since they cannot be held there against their will, they left and went back on the street.

In my experience, many of these persons prefer uncertain life on the street to the structured and confining life in an institution. Of course, once on the street and broke, they have no access to medications, and no one to evaluate their progress or deterioration.

In my area, for instance, I used to patrol a residential area which was a short distance from the main concentration of hospitals, including mental health facilities. We would arrest these “disturbed persons” for theft, burglary or assault so many times we knew them all by name. Some were not violent; some were. In court, the judges recognized them as persistent offenders but understood that they were seriously mentally ill, so they were reluctant to put them in jail. In jail, true criminals horribly victimized these typically unhealthy people. The judges were powerless to commit these individuals to mental institutions for any length of time, as the admitting psychiatrists would judge them not to be “an imminent threat to their own safety or that of others.” Back on the street they went in 24 hours.

One night, one of these “repeat customers” of ours, a 50-ish female of slight build, knocked a man down, sat astride his chest and cut out his heart with a steak knife. Sometimes, three or four of us would have to “pile up” on one of these offenders to get him into custody without having to kill him. Harmless? Hardly. In fact, almost all of these people have an extensive criminal record, and a surprising number of them are registered sex offenders. They also tend to carry such diseases as HIV, hepatitis and tuberculosis.

A large percentage of these street people are armed, usually with crude weapons such as knives, screwdrivers, straight razors or improvised weapons. They are often very territorial about “their home,” which may be a cozy spot behind your office’s dumpster. They also tend to be very touchy about personal space, and inadvertently getting too close to one may be interpreted as the worst sort of aggressive attack against him, resulting in a furious assault against the intruder: you.

Aside from the obvious bum, be on the lookout for behavior such as a shuffling, uncoordinated gait; a vacant, thousand-yard stare; incoherent mumbling; talking to himself or unseen associates; and other bizarre behavior. With anyone you suspect to be mentally disturbed, try these tips to avoid or de-escalate a contact:

• Remember his personal space, and don’t invade it.
• Do not try to touch him, unless you are prepared to fight him.
• Do not make sudden, rapid or startling movements.
• Speak quietly and slowly. Do not shout.
• Try to increase distance and get an obstacle (parked car, fence, etc.) between you both, because if he is armed it is probably with an edged weapon.

Just Plain Criminals
Criminals must go through certain specific stages of activity before they can assault, rob, abduct, rape, etc. These stages will differ slightly in different types of crimes, but will generally fall into the following categories:

1. Selection: The criminal views you as a prospective victim. He looks at your “victim potential” on two separate bases. First, do you have the type of car he wants, are you wearing expensive watches and jewelry, have you flashed a roll of cash, do you fit his rape victim profile? We think of this as: “Do you have what I want?” If the answer is, “Yes,” he moves to the next question.

He then evaluates you as a threat to him. First and foremost, are you paying attention to your surroundings? Are you aware of his presence? Do you look like you might be a physical problem? Do you look like you might be armed? I assure you, he goes through these questions. We think of this as, “Can I get what I want from you, safely?”

If the answer to either question, “Do you have what I want, and can I get it from you, safely?” is “No,” then off he goes, in search of easier prey. Thugs are not looking for a fight. What they’re looking for is the easy mark. Someone they can get to, get what they want from and get away from, without being hurt and without being caught.

There were some fascinating studies done in which incarcerated career criminals were shown video of people walking down the street and asked to pick out the ones they would victimize and the ones they would pass.

Although interviewed separately, the thugs almost always chose the same people to victimize. The “victims” walked with a less purposeful stride than the non-victims and often had their heads down, unaware of their surroundings. People who walked with a confident stride and their heads up were not selected routinely by the criminals.

There are signs that a potential attacker is evaluating you. They include:
Anyone who appears to be watching you. If every time you look up, the same guy is looking at you, ask yourself, “Why?”

Anyone who is inactive until you approach, then tries to look busy.

Anyone whose activity is geared to yours. You speed up, and then he speeds up, etc.

2. Positioning: Once a criminal selects a victim, he must move into a position from which an attack is possible. Always remember that to assault, rob or rape you, he must be close enough to talk to you. He will attempt to maneuver into this position by stealth (which is defeated by being alert) or by ruse. He may ask you for the time, for change, for directions, anything to distract you and preferably cause you to look away from him. When you look away, here comes the blow!

The best course of action is to politely refuse any request, no matter what it is. Keep your eye on him and say, “No.” Anything you agree to is the springboard for the next request, which then escalates to demands. Just say, “No.”

Positioning prior to the assault is vital to him, as he relies almost totally on surprise for success. If you avoid his attempts to properly position himself, you forestall the attack. Be alert and watchful for these cues:

Anyone who falls in behind you after you walk by.

Two or more people who are together, but split up as you approach.

Anyone staying in one place, observing, but begins to move toward you.

Two or more people lined up along a wall or fence.

Anyone who moves to block an exit after you enter a confined space.

If you see one of these cues, cross the street, change direction, turn a corner. If he alters his course to match yours, he has tipped his hand. Get mentally prepared and start planning an escape or response.

3. The Attack: The attack phase can only come after the evaluation phase and the positioning phase. It is simply not possible to attack you until these first two stages have been completed. The very best defense, therefore, is to circumvent the attack by not allowing the evaluation phase and the positioning phase to be fruitfully completed.

Every single attack you avoid is a battle won. In every attack you fail to prevent, you are at enormous risk. A one-eyed, three-fingered jackass can miss you by 10 feet with a handgun and ricochet a round off the pavement and into your femoral artery. Although you are “accidentally” dead, you’re still dead. Be alert and use your head and you won’t have to use your pistol nearly as often.

4. Behavioral Cues To Impending Aggression
With the exception of the true sociopath (more on him later), there will normally be cues, principally body language, which will assist you in forecasting aggressive activity by an individual you are observing. Being aware of these cues is vital to your accurate threat assessment.

Of course, verbalization by the offender is a critical cue. Someone cursing, shouting epithets and generally being verbally aggressive is a likely candidate for physical aggression. Bear in mind, however, that 80 percent of human communication is non-verbal, and you must be aware of, and watchful for, these sometimes-subtle indicators.

One of the most reliable indicators of an impending assault occurs when you are in a position of authority and the offender fails to comply with or contemptuously ignores your commands. If, for instance, you encounter an intruder in your home and he does not immediately comply with your commands, you are in for a fight.

Other definitive indicators can include these, alone or in combination:

• Hands on hips.
• Cocked head.
• Arms folded across the chest.
• Fists clenched or clenched and flexed alternately.
• Jaw clenched.
• Spitting.
• Deliberate avoidance of eye contact.
• Continuously looking around.
• Sustained verbal rationalizations.
• Continuous yawning and stretching.
• Target glancing.

Target glancing refers to brief, repeated shifting of the offender’s eyes to your chin, your nose or your weapon. Repeated target glances to your chin or nose means he is gauging the distance for a punch. Target glances at your weapon indicate a gun snatch may be imminent.

Always, when the pre-attack indicators are present, shift to the highest level of mental readiness and be geared up. If at all possible, extend the distance between the two of you. Have a plan and be ready to move quickly.

–Tom Givens

Intelligence Gathering For Personal Safety : Personal Liberty Alerts=

Homemade Yeast

By Jeffrey Brian Airman, eHow Contributor

Dough rises to double in size after kneading when yeast is active.

You can capture airborne yeast to make a homemade sourdough yeast starter. Yeast is in the air from many varieties of plants that make up the surrounding environment. Setting out a flour and water mix creates the perfect breeding grounds for these wild yeast strains. When wild yeast strains are strong enough to kill off bacteria and begin to thrive, the starter can be used to make multiple batches of high rising, freshly baked bread.

Things You'll Need

• 1/3 cup white flour (bread, all-purpose)
• 1/2 cup (8 tbsp.) bottled water (drinking, spring)
• Kitchen thermometer
• Mixing bowl
• Thin kitchen towel
• 1-2/3 cup wheat or rye flour
• Plastic wrap

Instructions

1. Open a small bottle of water and warm it in the microwave in 30-second intervals until it is just above 85 degrees F. Test the temperature with a kitchen thermometer.


2. Combine the white flour and one tbsp. of the heated bottled water in a mixing bowl with your fingers to form a small ball of dough. Knead the dough inside the bowl for five to eight minutes, sprinkling in slightly more white flour if the dough is sticking to your fingers.

3. Cover the bowl containing the dough with a slightly damp kitchen towel and place it in the warmest part of the kitchen for 48 to 72 hours. Ideal temperatures for the yeast starter are around 80 degrees. The dough is ready for use when it has crusted over and shows trapped bubbles in the interior when the crust is peeled away.


4. Peel away and discard the hardened outer crust on the dough ball and mix the remaining dough with two tablespoons of room-temperature bottled water and 2/3 cup of wheat or rye flour to form a firm ball of dough.


5. Place the damp kitchen towel over the newly refreshed ball of dough in the bowl and allow it to rest in the warm spot for another 24 hours.


6. Peel away the hard outer crust before mixing in a full cup of the wheat or rye flour and 1/4 cup of bottled water. Bring the ingredients together into a tight ball once they have been evenly incorporated.


7. Rest the dough ball covered inside the bowl for another 8 to 12 hours in the warmest part of the kitchen. When the wild yeast starter is done, it will stay dented when you press on it lightly with a finger.


8. Cut off small 1/4-cup sections of the dough to mix into breads and other baked goods. The natural yeasts from the starter will thrive in the new dough and cause it to rise. The dough ball will have a smell that is similar to stale beer.


9. Stretch a piece of plastic wrap across the bowl holding the finished wild yeast starter and slide it into the fridge until it is needed. The yeast will survive in the refrigerator for about three weeks, or longer if it is taken out and refreshed with new water and flour.

Tips & Warnings

Try jumpstarting a natural yeast starter by replacing half of the water with a natural fruit juice like pineapple or grape. The extra sugars give yeast more food for faster production.


Chlorinated water will kill the wild yeast and bacteria that is essential to developing a usable yeast starter.

http://www.ehow.com/how_6532295_homemade-yeast.html

LRP ration

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Food Packet, Long Range Patrol or "LRP ration" (pronounced "Lurp") was a U.S. Army special field ration. It was developed in 1964 during the Vietnam War (1959-75) for use by Special Operations troops on long patrols deep in enemy territory, where the bulky canned MCI ration (formerly known as the C ration) proved too heavy for extended missions while afoot.

Contents 1 Origins 2 Contents 3 Criticisms 4 Food Packet, Long Range Patrol 5 Revisions 6 See also 7 Notes LRP ration - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

FOOD PACKET,LONG RANGE PATROL

This is a LONG RANGE PATROL RATION. These rations were first used in Vietnam, These were the first freeze-dried combat rations in the military. The ration was carried by SPECIAL FORCES, SEALS, LRRP'S and PATHFINDERS. They were used where troops would operate up 10 days without resupply. There is afreeze dried main dish, Cereal or candy bar and packet containing coffee, cream, sugar, gum, tp, matches and a spoon. These rations were designed to be eaten without hydration, but I can attest that they were very tasty when hot water was added.

"MENU NO.2 CHILI CON CARNE" Cottonduck Rubberized Aluminum package.
"MENU NO.5 CHICKEN STEW" OD plastic package.
"MENU NO.3 SPAGHETTI WITH MEAT SAUCE" Blown plastic package.
"MENU NO.2 CHILI CON CARNE" Clear plastic package.Experimental model.

"LWP" (LIGHT WEIGHT PATROL) CHICKEN AND RICE.Canadian LRRP ration

MEAL,READY-TO-EAT,INDIVIDUAL
"MENU NO.6 FRANKFURTERS,BEEF" Modern ration.
"MENU NO.5 SPAGHETTI WITH MEAT SAUCE" Modern ration.New type

MEAL,COMBAT,INDIVIDUAL Normally C-RATION