Is Your Survival Kit Ready for 2014?

I bet this has happened to you.

You tell your friends that you have a survival kit / bug-out bag and they look at you with a strange look. A look that indicates they think you’re paranoid.

Of course, these are the same friends who don’t have enough non-perishable food in their homes to survive more than a week if the grocery store is closed.

These are the same friends who don’t have enough potable water to survive more than a day or two if the municipal water department ceased operating or there was no electricity to run their well pump.

And, most certainly, these are the same friends who aren’t prepared to survive independently if a natural disaster strikes, much less the collapse of social and political order.

Yes, we all have friends like these.

I hope those friends read Paul Bedard’s “Washington Secrets” column in The Washington Examiner this week. The column, “Be prepared: Wall Street advisor recommends guns, ammo for protection in collapse,” should be a wake-up alarm for those who don’t maintain a survival kit / bug-out bag.

For those of us who do, wisely, keep a survival kit / bug-out bag, the column is a good reminder to be sure our kits and bags are properly stocked and maintained as we prepare for the New Year.

Here’s what Bedard writes:

“A top financial advisor, worried that Obamacare, the NSA spying scandal and spiraling national debt is increasing the chances for a fiscal and social disaster, is recommending that Americans prepare a “bug-out bag” that includes food, a gun and ammo to help them stay alive.

“David John Marotta, a Wall Street expert and financial advisor and Forbes contributor, said in a note to investors, ‘Firearms are the last item on the list, but they are on the list. There are some terrible people in this world. And you are safer when your trusted neighbors have firearms.’

“His memo is part of a series addressing the potential for a “financial apocalypse.” His view, however, is that the problems plaguing the country won’t result in Armageddon. ‘There is the possibility of a precipitous decline, although a long and drawn out malaise is much more likely,’ said the Charlottesville, Va.-based president of Marotta Wealth Management. …”

“’I, along with many other economists, agree with many of the concerns expressed in these dire warnings. The growing debt and deficit spending is a tax on those holding dollars. The devaluation in the U.S. dollar risks the dollar’s status as the reserve currency of the world. Obamacare was the worst legislation in the past 75 years. Socialism is on the rise and the NSA really is abrogating vast portions of the Constitution. I don’t disagree with their concerns,’ he wrote. …”

“’A bug-out bag is a good idea depending on where you live even if the emergency is just power outages, earthquakes and hurricanes. And with your preparedness you will be equipped to help others who might be in need,’ he wrote. ‘Be prepared. Especially because it keeps you from being scared.’”

Ok. That’s a great column by Paul Bedard and sound advice from David John Marotta of Marotta Wealth Management.

With one exception!

Notice that in the last quoted paragraph Marotta said, “A bug-out bag is a good idea depending on where you live…”

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong!

A bug-out bag / survival kit is a good idea wherever you live!

I don’t care if you live in the heart of a city or completely off the grid in the most rural corner of the United States, you must be prepared to survive on your own for an extended period of time.

It really is that simple. And, it could make the difference between life and death for you and your family.

Ok. I know. I’m preaching to the choir.

Still, I bet there are a few members of the Self-Reliance Institute (formerly the Patriot Privacy and Security Society) who either don’t have a survival kit or who haven’t checked it in a while to be sure it’s properly stocked and maintained.

So here’s a suggestion.

Check out SurvivalKitBugOutBag.com where Jeff Anderson, President, The International Society of Close Quarter Combatants, offers his guide to building a Survival Kit / Bug-Out Bag. It’s a great resource for being sure you’re prepared.

And, as we turn the corner to 2014, we all need to be prepared.

Happy Safe and Secure New Year!

Rob Douglas

PS – I’d love to hear what you’ve done to create your survival kit / bug-out bag. Have you modified it in a certain way? Have you thought of items to include that others might not have thought of? Do you agree that everyone should have a survival kit / bug-out bag? Email me and tell me. I can be reached at [email protected]