How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It - James Wesley Rawles [3]
Also for the sake of brevity, I use a lot of acronyms in my writings. Each acronym is spelled out the first time it is used, and in this book’s glossary.
This book provides both a challenge and a response: Are you truly ready for TEOTWAWKI? If not, then herein is what you’ll need to know.
Read this book. Give it some prayer. Then get busy!
PUBLISHER’S NOTE
Every effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this book is complete and accurate. However, neither the publisher nor the author is engaged in rendering professional advice or services to the individual reader. The ideas, procedures, and suggestions contained in this book are not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision. Neither the author nor the publisher shall be liable or responsible for any loss or damage allegedly arising from any information or suggestion in this book.
Regarding finances, this publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional services. If you require legal advice or other expert assistance, you should seek the services of a competent professional.
Furthermore, outdoor activities are by their very nature potentially hazardous. All participants in such activities must assume the responsibility for their own actions and safety. If you have any health problems or medical conditions, consult with your physician before undertaking any outdoor activities. The information contained in this guidebook cannot replace sound judgment and good decision making, which can help reduce risk exposure, nor does the scope of this book allow for disclosure of all the potential hazards and risks involved in such activities.
Learn as much as possible about the outdoor recreational activities in which you participate, prepare for the unexpected, and be cautious. The reward will be a safer and more enjoyable experience.
Finally, accordingly nothing in this book is intended as an express or implied warranty of the suitability or fitness of any product, service, or design. The reader wishing to use a product, service, or design discussed in this book should first consult a specialist or professional to ensure suitability and fitness for the reader’s particular lifestyle and environmental needs.
1
THE SURVIVAL MIND-SET FOR LIVING IN UNCERTAIN TIMES
A Very Bad Day . . .
There has been a power failure. It is a minor annoyance at first. You’ve awoken late on a winter morning because your alarm clock didn’t go off. The house is chilly, and even though you have a natural-gas furnace, the digital thermostat is not working, so there is no electricity for the heater fan to push the air through the ducts. Then you realize that with nighttime lows in the single digits and daytime highs in the twenties, if the power isn’t restored by the time you get home from work, it will be very cold in the house. You surmise that freezing rain must have knocked down some power lines.
For breakfast, you have cold cereal and juice instead of scrambled eggs and hot coffee. When will that power come back on? You muse about how long the food in the freezer will last. You skip shaving because you are running late for work and your electric razor won’t work without power anyway. Then your car won’t start. The car radio doesn’t work either. You notice that one of your neighbors is poking and prodding around under the hood of his car. The cold weather must have killed his battery too. You hear what must be a truck backfiring far in the distance. At least somebody got theirs started.
You go into the house and turn on your transistor radio. It won’t work either, which is odd, since it is both AC and battery operated. Your kid must have switched the batteries with dead ones from his digital camera. Finally, you dig out your spare transistor radio from the battered ammo can that you