Survival? Slim and none

Recently, I made a joke on Facebook about an unfunny subject. Trump has cancelled a nuclear weapons control treaty with Russia dating back to the Reagan era. I said I was seriously thinking about becoming a survivalist. A friend said I was one of the few who had survival skills. I replied that if she was referring to my life on the road living in a travel trailer and driving all over the country, I had constant supplies of fuel and food. I didn’t mention that virtually all of my money was in my bank and I could get it at any ATM. I also had nearly $20,000 in credit at that time.

But while I could survive an ecological disaster, such as a hurricane, I doubt that I could survive an EMP.

We don’t have to worry about a nuclear exchange. We don’t even have to worry about ICBM (intercontential) missiles. If you want to destroy America or any other nation, all you would need is about one-to-three IRBM (intermediate range) missiles. Fire them into space and explode the nukes over the east and west coasts and the Midwest and we’re dead without one person dying from atomic radiation and fallout is non-existent since fallout comes from the ground when a nuke explodes. It’s what creates all the smoke in a blast.

The result would be an EMP (electromagnetic pulse) that would destroy anything with a electronic chip or something that is plugged in.

Let’s look at what would happen.

Within one second of the blast, power would be gone everywhere. Your car would not work unless it was built in the 1980s. Because all those fancy things you have won’t work due to the dozens of chips that most cars have. The best time to blow up the nukes would be around noon…lunchtime. Imagine if you will that you work in New York City and lived in New Jersey or on Long Island. How would you get home? The trains and buses won’t work. The trains are electrified and even if you have a diesel engine, they use chips. Buses won’t work either. You will have to walk. You can’t even get cash because the ATMs won’t work. So unless you are in REALLY good shape, you won’t get home because very few of us can do even ten miles a day. If you see a bicycle, you will steal it, and chances are someone will try to steal it from you. Food supplies will dry up within a couple of days because stores and restaurants won’t get their deliveries. By the third day there will be food riots.

Are you a diabetic? You die when you run out of meds. If you use insulin, it needs refrigeration. About ten days is all you will last even if you have a year’s supply. Same thing for people with heart problems. If you have a pacemaker or other electronic implant, you would die within seconds of the blast as it shorts out. 

If you are subject to stress, chances are that would kill you.

Suppose you are in a hospital or nursing home? Without power, the environment would soon be fatal. There’s sealed windows but no climate control and germs would spread from the sickest patients sooner rather than later. How many health care workers would abandon their duties to care for their own? Bedridden people will foul the environment with waste and even other patients would probably not have enough water pressure to flush. Forget about babies and children.

Within a couple of weeks, we would have a very healthy population. But not for long. Flu would be pandemic and there would be no more flu shots, not to mention other vaccines. Adults who were vaccinated would be OK for a while, but those born after the blasts would have no immunity at all. If you say, cut your finger. You could die from infection. Eventually you would even run out of aspirin.

Mental hospitals and prisons would shut down and the most violent members of out society would be turned loose to loot, murder and otherwise rampage. Let’s say you are a perfectly respectable person. There is little, if any, food and your children are starving. Would you go searching in someone’s home? There will be people so desperate that they would kill you to get your food.

If you live in a climate that has winters, you could freeze to death. If you live in Florida, or other places where there is swampland, you’ll die from all the disease coming from mosquitoes – there will be nothing left within a week or so to treat it. Chances are even if you had a well-stocked pharmacy, junkies will rob it to feed their addiction before they die from withdrawal.

Same with the southwest as it reverts to desert, as the irrigation pumps won’t work.

Obviously, people will head for rural areas, seeking out farms for food. Good luck with that. Farmers use tractors and other machines that no longer work. Hungry raiders will kill all the livestock for food. And since there is no longer refrigeration, the animals’ rotting carcass will lie in the fields being fed on by flies. Care to share? The meat is diseased and you will die of food poisoning within a few days.

And there will be power struggles among the few survivors. There will be cults and other groups that we would consider nut jobs that will take over.

What is the government doing? Very little. Without communications, you won’t know. It’s entirely possible that the President and key people will be on Air Force One within minutes after those missiles are launched as AF-1 and every other plane in the air will crash. The only government you will deal with is a local one. Police, fire and rescue personnel will be your main government employees. But since currency is worthless, they will become volunteers.

So how will you survive? Become a “prepper.” Here’s what is required:

First, have enough food stored to last a year, in two places. You should have medicine and medical equipment to last a couple of years. If you can’t get enough prescription drugs from your doctor, don’t overlook your vet. Many animal and human medications are the same.  

In addition to your hoarding at home, You will need a place to “Bug out.” It will have to be rural where few know of its existence. And it will have to be well guarded and camouflaged. It will have to have a clean water source in addition to the thousands of bottles of water you will store there. You need to clear land for crops, and at least a two-year supply of seeds. Don’t overlook everyday essentials such as female sanitary needs, tissue and toilet paper. Laundry detergents for cleaning clothing and dishes are also necessary. Pack all the clothes you can and have clothes in all sizes if you have children. Have them anyway. You may need them.  Your “bug out” site shouldn’t be more than 90 miles from your home location, so you can reach it safely.

If at all possible, have it equipped with solar panels. DO NOT use wind turbines, as they will reveal you location.

And Bug out as soon as you can. The longer you wait, the more treacherous the roads become. Be prepared to kill people.

Be armed. You will eventually have to defend yourself. Have a pistol, rifle and shotgun with thousands of rounds for each weapon and every person. And train at local rages, even the kids.

You will need at least one vehicle – pre 1980s without any chips. You should have it constantly filled with gas and it has to be in top shape. Have new tires on each wheel and a new spare for each wheel as well. Have a new battery and a new back-up. Try to have a vehicle for everyone – licensed or unlicensed – who is capable of driving.

Equip all everyday vehicles you have with a “bug out bag”. That’s a bag or backpack that will include water, food and clothes to last long enough to walk home if your everyday vehicle dies from the EMP. Be sure to include shoes you can walk in. A woman in heels won’t be able to walk more than a few miles.

There are electronics you can save by placing them in metal containers such as ammo boxes that could insulate them from the EMP. Wrap them in towels to prevent short circuiting. Try to have at least 4 walkie-talkies that operate on the same frequency. E-Readers are essential. Pack them with lots of books – especially about pioneer skills. But also pack them with fiction and non-fiction books, music plus games. They can bring comfort and entertainment. Be sure to add chargers designed for cars. They can be modified to charge the readers. I said readers – at least three or more -- and the contents should be identical in regard to reference materials. Why? They might break or more likely need to be recharged while you are in the middle of reading something important. Take an old cell phone just in case service is restored. You may want to download some games for entertainment.  If you are able to get solar power, bring a laptop or two and lots of DVDs. But don't run the lights at night. It makes you much too visible.

OK, you get a general idea about what “prepping” is. But the most important thing is people. We live in an age where work skills revolve around the computer. People without other other skills could be useless. Yet the larger your group is, the easier it is to defend your bug out locale from marauders. First and foremost, be very careful whom you ask to join you. People who learn about your prepping but don’t want to join you will suddenly want to be a part of your plans when the shit hits the fan, but they haven’t done any prepping. You can’t afford to feed them. Keep your bug out local secret. If they insist on knowing, give them a false one in the opposite direction. Skills such as farming, carpentry, electricians, mechanics, plumbing and other skills are necessary. And having a nurse and/or EMT is a blessing. Military people will not only guard against outsiders but are usually disciplined enough to do other tasks. Most soldiers have a combat skill and another skill.

OK, I’ve just spent about 1700 words trying to give you an idea on how to survive an EMP attack. If this happens, perhaps 10 percent of the population will survive. I’ve deliberately created a horrible scenario because only the strong, smart and skilled will survive. And they will need to be all three. Two out of three ain't bad but won't survive, nor will our way of life.

As for me, l plan to go to the cellar with whatever I have stockpiled and wait to die. I’m too fucking old and too fucking sick to survive.

JUST AN AFTERTHOUGHT:
If this happened, it would end the threat of global warming for some time to come. Perhaps saving the human race would be something better than destroying the United States?