How self sufficient are you ? Honestly ?

[dave1949]

I think it is hard to over-estimate the value of community effort in a long-term survival scenario. The amount of physical labor, and calories needed to sustain that, are easy to gloss over. Your daily calorie intake would have to be north of 4000 to come close to sustaining any kind of day-after-day physical labor and transportation by foot. Winter would only add to that.

Take firewood for example, yes I am surrounded by trees, but to turn that into cooking and heating fuel it has to be cut, carried and probably some splitting too. Once the chainsaw is out of fuel, no tractor, etc., that becomes a lot of work. But, you can cook a pot of beans big enough for twelve over a fire just as easily as a pot for two.

That's the value of community--shared effort benefits everyone. While one person is gathering and cutting wood, another can be tending the garden. While one is hunting or fishing, another can be guarding the "cave" while curing meat or grinding grain. If one is sick or injured, others fill in.

Any sort of water wheel, windmill, oxen, mules, etc. that can offload some of the physical labor required would be a good thing, really a necessity in many cases, to have. There is a good reason why early homesteading communities often grew up around water-driven mills. By it's very nature, a mill implies community.

 

[EE_Bota]

I got the idea about boiling hickory root for salt from the SAS (Special Air Services) Survival Guide. It is a neat book that is appropriate to put in a pouch in your carry bag.

Sas Survival Guide (Gem): John Lofty Wiseman: 9780007320813: Amazon.com: Books

 

[Pharm]

I think it is hard to over-estimate the value of community effort in a long-term survival scenario. The amount of physical labor, and calories needed to sustain that, are easy to gloss over. Your daily calorie intake would have to be north of 4000 to come close to sustaining any kind of day-after-day physical labor and transportation by foot. Winter would only add to that.

Take firewood for example, yes I am surrounded by trees, but to turn that into cooking and heating fuel it has to be cut, carried and probably some splitting too. Once the chainsaw is out of fuel, no tractor, etc., that becomes a lot of work. But, you can cook a pot of beans big enough for twelve over a fire just as easily as a pot for two.

That's the value of community--shared effort benefits everyone. While one person is gathering and cutting wood, another can be tending the garden. While one is hunting or fishing, another can be guarding the "cave" while curing meat or grinding grain. If one is sick or injured, others fill in.

Any sort of water wheel, windmill, oxen, mules, etc. that can offload some of the physical labor required would be a good thing, really a necessity in many cases, to have. There is a good reason why early homesteading communities often grew up around water-driven mills. By it's very nature, a mill implies community.

Absolutely ... yes there will be some people who trade in the wife for a burger (hyperbole by the way... exaggeration to make a point - lets not take it too seriously) - but I think many others will form groups in order to survive. Those with know-how (like many posters on this site) will be valued members of the community - and protected as such.

 

[dsgsr]

I'm so glad that I live in Maine. Grew up almost off grid, not because it was cool but because we had too. I don't think there are many states that even have a small portion of the population that would survive like the original Mainers. Luckily, I'm only 25% of the population (original Mainers) Some of us don't need much more than a knife to survive. Can you hunt with just a knife? Do you know how to filter water in the wild? What if you lost your knife? Would you know what stone to look for?


David

 

[Jesse masterson]

Don't know much about knives but as long as I have a safe full of guns and thousand if rounds of ammo ill get by.have a pond for water and fish plent of deer rabbits and squirrel . I'd survive for quite a while, have to get a little better at growing vegetables though.

 

[Grumpy Old Man]

I'm so glad that I live in Maine. Grew up almost off grid, not because it was cool but because we had too. I don't think there are many states that even have a small portion of the population that would survive like the original Mainers. Luckily, I'm only 25% of the population (original Mainers) Some of us don't need much more than a knife to survive. Can you hunt with just a knife? Do you know how to filter water in the wild? What if you lost your knife? Would you know what stone to look for?

I can and I do, I grew up in Phillips/Salem Franklin county ,Me and when you find yourself 15 miles up a logging rd and the truck breaks down and it's starting to get dark you better hope you know what to do or your in for a world of sh-t !

 

[Fi-Q]

And if we are putting this to the exyreme, if notth america is affectes by a E-bomb ( it may not be possible, I ain't a bomb doctor), most of the stuff people have put away will be useless.

 

[Grumpy Old Man]

And if we are putting this to the exyreme, if notth america is affectes by a E-bomb ( it may not be possible, I ain't a bomb doctor), most of the stuff people have put away will be useless.

E-bomb ?

 

[Soundguy]

I think it is hard to over-estimate the value of community effort in a long-term survival scenario. .

yep.. a single person just won't make it for long... you have to sleep some time.

and a HUGE group may not make it, as the resource needs may out tax the available renewable/sustainable resources of the area. need to have group sizes based upon resources available.

 

[brin]

E-bomb ?

I think he means an EMP...Electro magnetic pulse created by a nuke at high altitude or a solar flare..