Poor Man
Survival
Self
Reliance tools for independent minded people…
ISSN
2161-5543
A Digest of Urban Survival Resources
"A society of sheep must in time beget
a government of wolves."
-- Bertrand de Jouvenel
(1903-1987)
-- Bertrand de Jouvenel
(1903-1987)
How things have changed in the Prepper
Community
How things will be changing with
the Poor Man Survival site and blog…what would happen if all governments and
religions just minded their own business?
I’ve been offering preparedness and
political information since 1999 when a small group of us used to meet monthly
at our 38-acre farm. I always baked up
batches of goodies along with coffee and other refreshments and we often had
guest speakers including shooting instructors, like-minded politicians and
others.
Our discussions centered on politics
and self reliance strategies including first aid, small farming resources and
disaster preparedness (I had taken the FEMA course and was a certified
instructor).
Our group was frequently
profiled in the news and national magazines as we hosted a toll-free number and
free basic instructional booklets. The
idea of prepping [outside the Mormons and the Boy Scouts] wasn’t bandied about
much then. Much of my initial education
on the topic stemmed from John Shuttleworth, the founder of Mother Earth News.
I had met John in 1984. More than
a dozen years after he began his magazine (ironically, we both owned publications
which were launched within 40 miles each other in NE Ohio].
Here are few things I’ve come
away with since then.
·
There are more prepper sites and groups than
ever before but in reality, fewer seem truly engaged as the collapse hasn’t
happened yet. As a result, there is less
participation overall and many Americans in general have become lazy.
·
Fewer citizens have a grasp of our history or
how politicians have ruined our nation, in particular, the Middle Class. Fewer show an interest despite the fact
politics are at the root of our problems.
Ironically, as our nation loses its top dog role in world, fewer
Americans seem to have any interest in how invasive and destructive our
political system has become at every level.
·
Prepper skills do seem to fall along gender
lines…men are more interested in guns, hunting and the like while women seem to
be more interested in gardening and preservation skills.
·
The average American has the attention span of a
gnat, even more so among the younger generation who overall seem to have little
grasp of world events, our own history, economics or even why they have a
dismal economic future. I see them as a
rebirth of sex, drugs and rock n roll with only slight changes (primarily,
their heads are glued to their phone and texting with little actual human
interaction].
·
Fewer people today read. Everything now is a sound bite or a brief
text message. This has further eroded
the intelligence level of many. [Have
you ever witnessed a young person’s attempts at counting back change if the
cash register is broken? So much of the
money geared toward education seems to be wasted].
·
As our nation and its schools adopt more
ideology from the Planks of the Communist Manifesto, fewer students today are
taught how to think or how to perform independent research. As a result it is no wonder that as our
nation heads south in terms of world leadership, few seem to understand the
underlying reasons for our demise.
As fewer people demonstrate an
interest or ability to become aware of current events, the political elite are
happy at how easily fooled and led the masses have become. The old maxim of ‘those who refuse to learn
from history are doomed to repeat it,’ holds true for America as well.
Our distracted society
certainly follows the path of least resistance for everything and the younger
generation in particular, seems to have less class than any other that I can
recall.
Bear in mind that life is
like the English language in that there are exceptions to every rule. Also, everything in life is cyclical. Our nation and its freedom are eroding. There is little question that we’re no longer
the shining beacon of freedom, privacy and economic opportunity we once
were. Eventually, we’ll likely hit rock
bottom, perhaps a revolution will take place [our government is certainly arming ALL federal agencies
and local police as if they are expecting one].
There are only two types of
people: the people who want control over others and the people who just want to
be left alone.
What would happen if ALL
governments and religions simply minded their own
business? The world would probably be a
safer place for all!
What will a new American era
bring? I have no clear idea, only
speculation. Perhaps enough patriots
will rise to the call to reignite real freedom again or maybe we’ll become a
caricature of the book 1984.
One thing which never changes is the axiom that there are
those in this world who make things happen, those who watch what happens and
those who haven’t a clue as to what just happened!
The Changes I’ll be Making to the Poor
Man Site & Blog
There are now 100s of prepper sites out
there, some good, some bad and most are trying to build a consensus of
support. The Poor Man is dropping his
prepper related focus as few seem interested and even fewer of those sites have
ever supported us [despite our repeated show of support over the years at
announcing their shows and sites]. We’re
renewing our focus on helping folks to
retain their middle class status, to help them save a buck [ make a dime do the work of a dollar]!
We’ll also explore the concept of mini-grants, mini-loans,
mini-businesses and eventually, mini-training programs in an effort to put more
money into your pocket.
The
one-percenters in our country have enjoyed a 60% increase in earnings during
the past 10 years while we have lost nearly 15% of the middle class, which have
been struggling during the same time frame with low wage jobs without
benefits. We’re seeing corporations
reduce hours further due to Obamacare while costs for everything continue to
head skyward! Overregulation is killing
the small business job engine as well.
Lost in the rhetoric about the
decline of the middle class is the reality of the decline. Nearly everyone is
aware that the middle class is struggling, but few understand how the struggle
plays out in everyday life.
Our
primary focus has always been on helping the shrinking middle class to survive,
something only a few others devote time to.
Over the next few weeks I’ll be redesigning our main site with this
renewed focus in mind, dropping some sections, adding new ones. We’ll also be dropping much of our political
news as well – few care, few know what to do, but all will experience the same
results in the end.
Take
a peek at our many updates and free downloads we’ve added throughout the site
at: www.PoorManSurvival.com
As
always, your suggestions are welcome.
10 Signs US Families are Falling Behind
Additional useful gems for making life better…
Before You Move
I've worked for a moving company and something has always
baffled me. Why do people move old, heavy stuff cross country that they can
easily replace when they get into their new home?
For instance, I've seen people pay good money to move old
refrigerators and sofas that they could have sold before the move. Get $50 or
so on Craigslist and add to it the amount you saved by not moving it. Buy a
used one when you get settled.
Find DIY and Homemade ideas here:
Yours in freedom,
Bruce ‘the Poor Man’
Got a News Tip or Resource to Share With the Poor Man?
Send it to: PoorManSurvivor@Gmail.com
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