How to Survive the End of the World As We Know It Book

So, I wouldn't describe myself as a survivalist. Normally, I would distance myself fro m the public stereotype of craze paranoiac folks living off the grid with their stash of guns. Post WWII by Dad had as many Americans had, a kind of basement shelter in case The Japanese might retaliate on the US for Hiroshima with their own nuclear holocaust. We had water and food and other supplies for up to three months in one room, and during tornado warnings we went down in that room. Not quite the school version of duck and cover that we practiced iat Oakdale Elementary school, where we hid under our desks for a few minutes for the possible time the Big One might hit.

But now I am reading scary books such as The Uninhabitable Earth and Learning to Die in the Anthropocene that present realistic climate change-based disaster scenarios for our life time, not 200 years down the road as scientists had given us hints to worry about. I sometimes watch and read dystopian sci fi with my middle school kids, and on a recent backpacking trip we sort of casually strolled through with them leading the way in the talk about what could happen in decades to come and how they might best survive: Go north, find a way to grow food, stay close to the freshest water available, and so on. I try to calmly talk with them just a bit, and make sure I don't scare them with what I really think is going to happen in the next quarter century. Not scare them too much. They are already reading the news and doing climate change units in schools, so they are not naïve.

Since I did a climate change unit in my Teaching of Writing class, reading a range of works from terrifying to hopeful, I read this, thanks to Jay.

In How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It, James Rawles, founder of SurvivalBlog.com, clearly explains everything you need to know to protect yourself and your family in the event of a disaster'from radical currency devaluation to a nuclear threat to a hurricane:

Water: Filtration, transport, storage, and treatment options.
Food Storage: How much to store, pack-it-yourself methods, storage space and rotation, countering vermin.
Fuel and Home Power: Home heating fuels, fuel storage safety, backup generators.
Garden, Orchard Trees, and Small Livestock: Gardening basics, non-hybrid seeds, greenhouses; choosing the right livestock.
Medical Supplies and Training: Building a first aid kit, minor surgery, chronic health issues.
Communications: Following international news, staying in touch with loved ones.
Home Security: Your panic room, self-defense training and tools, including a guide to firearams.
When to Get Outta Dodge: Vehicle selection, kit packing lists, routes and planning.
Investing and Barter: Tangibles investing, building your barter stockpile. And much more.

I really really hope I don't have to be a survivalist soon, but I can see what my Dad would be telling me what to do, had he read what I had read in the IPCC report on the state of the climate: