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SELCO: The Myth of the Perfect EDC and Bug Out Bag
SELCO: The Myth of the Perfect EDC and Bug Out Bag
In the survival-prepper world, it is very important what you carry with you and just as much so, how you carry it. But it is a giant myth that there is just one right way to do this. Despite what many people want to say, there is no perfect and universal everyday carry, perfect and universal bug out bag, car kit, or other gear.
There might be some items or universal rules that every kit should have, but everything else is based on the specific situation.
It is often misunderstood, You can see that actually when someone post his EDC for example on a social media post that you are gonna have probably many comments with specific suggestions what is right or wrong in that kit. But the problem is that lot of those suggestions (or objections) are based on the specific needs or scenarios of the commenter. The suggestions may not work for the person who has that EDC.
As a general rule, we can say that you may take advice about some item in your kit, but you should always keep in mind that you are building kit based on YOUR settings and needs.
Take, bug out bags, for example.
No matter how much we write (or read) about bug out bags there are gonna be more endless discussion about it, reasons are simply because BOBs are about having cool things (that are cool to discuss) and also because by having a good BOB we are trying to cover many problems that are gonna emerge when SHTF.
Over the time we set up our own BOB with tools and equipment that we hope are gonna work for us.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Selco’s SHTF Reality Check: 5 Deadly Mistakes That Preppers Are Making
Selco’s SHTF Reality Check: 5 Deadly Mistakes That Preppers Are Making
It is hard to bring the mindset of survival to the people who have not experienced a hard situation of at least some kind of survival event.
Over the many years of being connected with people who are into survival, I realize there are the same topics for discussion and people actually become fixated on those topics.
Inside those topics over the years “rules” are set and it is hard to change them. Opinions are formed and if you jump in with a different opinion, you are going to be ridiculed.
The survival community has turned in into a parody of itself. Something that should be free from the mainstream has turned into a very mainstream thing.
Misunderstandings.
Intentional false information.
The survival industry.
We are living in a society where we want it and we want it now, and what is most important we want it the easy way without effort and sweat.
This is true for the survival community, too.
That is the way survival myths (and mistakes) are born. Here are the 5 biggest mistakes that preppers make. Mistakes that can get them killed.
1) Making too specific a plan (and sticking to it)
Because of tons of information, we are being “funneled” into forming opinions about survival and especially about the reasons of possible bad events in future, possible SHTF situations, collapses or whatever you call it.
So we have preppers who are getting ready for an EMP, or an economic collapse, or an immigrant crisis, or a war, or simply a bad weather event.
In essence, there is nothing wrong with it, except some people stick so hard to one imagined” possible scenario that they do complete planning based on that scenario only.
As a result, if that scenario happens they could be good, but if any other scenario happens they are in deep trouble.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
An Urban Survival Course with Selco: Noise, Light, and Your Mind Playing Tricks
An Urban Survival Course with Selco: Noise, Light, and Your Mind Playing Tricks
Urban Survival: Keeping a Low Profile
Hollywood industry, fiction survival books and our imagination over the many years kinda taught us to expect big things and to think in big terms when SHTF.
As a result, a lot of preppers forgot to use common sense in preparing and thinking. Actually, they forgot to be aware and to notice little things around them. They were expecting big things so they forgot small things and techniques that are actually important. That can eventually get you in trouble or get you killed.
To understand better how things can be hard when SHTF you need to put into perspective how noise and light work in different situations, or in other words how light and noise can be your enemy or friend depending on what situation you find yourself during SHTF.
Noise
Often you have seen in the movies or read in a book how someone sneaks up on someone or through some building.
In reality, students are shown that there are no ninja warriors. Remember we are talking about average folks here. If they are forced to survive in some dangerous situations they simply need to know:
- some basic technique of walking (sneaking)
- a lot of time and patience
- proper clothes (not noisy definitely)
- proper preparations before taking action (checking for things in pockets that make noise, etc.)
- a lot of practice
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
skill.
An Urban Survival Course with Selco: Your Gear and How to Pack It
An Urban Survival Course with Selco: Your Gear and How to Pack It
Editor’s Note: Did you ever wish you could drop everything and fly over to the Balkans to be trained in urban survival by Selco? Wouldn’t it be great to be able to pick his brain and have him beside you as you learned to deal with an SHTF scenario? Well, here’s the next best thing. Selco recently finished teaching a hardcore 5-day course in Croatia. With 6 students, they went through high-stress exercises and learned about living through an all-out disaster where danger lurks around every corner. Selco has generously agreed to write a series for us so that we can learn from him. It’s not quite like being there, but it’s the next best thing. ~ Daisy
What to Pack for a 5-Day Urban Survival Course
We have just finished our flagship Urban survival course in Croatia.
For 5 days Toby Cowern and I, as instructors, taught students skills and through the different exercises and scenarios, we stress-tested their knowledge and abilities.
For me, the most important thing was to give them a piece of the mindset needed for a real SHTF event and to give them a clear starting point from where they can build more skills, knowledge, and competence.
In some moments it was hard for them, both physically and mentally, but one of the most important points, of course, was to test them in not so perfect conditions.
The whole course cannot be transferred here for reading, but some highlights can be given in a series of articles, reflecting on the most interesting moments of each day. This time, we will start out with the gear necessary for the class.
Equipment (items that you have with you)
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Selco: The Dirty Truth About Water and Sanitation When the SHTF
Selco: The Dirty Truth About Water and Sanitation When the SHTF
Note: The biggest concerns in any long-term emergency are water and sanitation because the lack of these things can cause serious illness or even death. Because water and sanitation aren’t nearly as glamorous as guns and gadgets, they’re often overlooked in a preparedness plan. I asked Selco some questions about these important issues in this interview. The truth about it is dirty, unpleasant, and something for which you absolutely must plan.
Once there was no more running water, how did you get drinking water?
Just like most other things (especially when it comes to non-preppers) it was a matter of levels and layers.
The tap water was going on and off for a few days before service went completely off, so people had a few bottles of drinking water stored. But of course, most of us thought everything going to be restored very soon so nobody had thought about storing big amounts of water.
When it comes to lack of water and being unprepared, the levels and layers that I am mentioning meant that you first looked and asked for tap water (clean) for drinking. Then collecting water from rooftops sounded like a good idea. Then drinking directly from the river was good if there was no other source. And then, finally, when there was no other source. you simply drink dirty water even when you were sure it is quite dirty.
It was a matter of low resources, desperation, and of course low skill levels.
Our main sources were rain and the river.
Can you tell us about your rainwater collection system?
It was not anything smart, especially in the beginning.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Selco: The Shocking Reality of SHTF Medicine and How to Prep for When the Medical System is GONE
Selco: The Shocking Reality of SHTF Medicine and How to Prep for When the Medical System is GONE
Editor’s Note: Something difficult to plan for – or even wrap your brain around – is a world in which medical care is not available. Even though it’s outrageously expensive here in the United States, we can still access care. We may be in debt forever, but it exists.
So, what do you do in a world in which it no longer exists? A world in which there aren’t emergency rooms or doctor’s walk-in clinics? A world in which there aren’t any well-stocked pharmacies?
Today, Selco shares the brutal reality of SHTF medicine. ~Daisy
Since there were no hospitals, how did you treat people who were ill?
Organized (system) of professional medical help ceased to exist.
Hospitals, health centers, EMS, and everything similar was gone. The most advanced medical help that you could find in the hardest period was more or less primitive medical care that some military units had, such as medics and low-level trauma care. But this was not available to common folks.
People with medical knowledge became very important because of this fact, but even the most skilled people were often completely useless because all of the other help that the system offers you is simply non-existent.
One of my old colleagues told me story that could point out some things.
His friend called him to help him with his father, who had fallen from the roof. The man climbed on the roof to repair broken tiles, and he was there in the middle of the night (which was the safest way). He fell down, and his sons found him unconscious. They brought him in the house and called my ex-colleague, a nurse, for help.
When he arrived, he checked the old man, then called his sons in other room. He explained to them that their father was going to die very soon because most probably he had internal bleeding.
The sons were mad at him and they started to threaten him, asking him that he help the old man in any possible way.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Selco: What We Ate and How We Got Food When the SHTF
Selco: What We Ate and How We Got Food When the SHTF
Editor’s Note: If a disaster is bad enough and lasts long enough, it isn’t going to take long before there is no food to be had. In this interview with Selco, he shares his real-life experiences and explains how people kept from starving to death when there was no food in the stores. ~ Daisy
How do you get food when there are no stores?
At the beginning of everything, most of the people did not have any significant “stash” of food in their homes.
In other words, the majority of common folks had food a or couple of days in their pantry and that was it. There were exceptions to that because the process of collapse did not happen in a few hours (in terms of suddenly there is no food in the stores).
When the chaos started, people looted stores after a short period of everyone buying things in a panic. Still, the majority of folks did not manage to get a decent stash of food from stores. Some did not want to believe that they were gonna need a stash. Others did not want to go out and participate in looting because it was dangerous. But I think the most obvious reason was that all food from stores was taken very fast.
In beginning period of SHTF, events unfold at a very fast pace. Actually, events go one after another so fast that if you find yourself lost in one event at the end of several events, you ask yourself, “Why in the name of God I did not go out and buy a whole bunch of food while I still could do that?”
Was gardening an option? If so, how did people protect their gardens?
Yes, it was an option, but the percentage of food from a garden was low because of a few reasons.
It was a city, without enough land for significant food growing, and the second reason is that even people who had some land (small gardens near houses) needed time to grow food there.
People usually did not grow food there in normal times, flowers, tea, maybe some particular kind of tomato, salad greens, and similar.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Selco on Martial Law: Forget your “movie illusions about being a freedom fighter”
Selco on Martial Law: Forget your “movie illusions about being a freedom fighter”
Let’s talk about martial law. This is when the normal law of the land is suspended and the authority comes from the military or federal government.
One recent example of undeclared martial law in the US was when the police were looking for the suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing and went door to door, forcing innocent people to come outside with their hands on their heads at gunpoint, while their homes were searched without warrants.
It turns out that many of us have some serious misconceptions of what it’s really like to live through a martial law situation. I asked Selco, who has personally been through it, to clear up the myths and tell us what it’s actually like.
Would you say that your city in Bosnia was under martial law for any part of your ordeal? How long did it last?
During Yugoslav wars, in different regions (states) based on particular timing and events you can say that martial law was in place, or “state of direct war threat” as some call it here.
There were different “stages” or even levels of it, but one common fact is that during that all normal civil rights and laws were completely and absolutely a matter of the will of the “war government.” (Or “military council” or “war headquarters”.)
The names were different for different regions, even cities, but the results were the same.
In the case of my city in that particular time, it was “war government” that had little influence on ordinary citizen simply because there were too many factions.
But prior to that time and after that year I experienced and went through something that looks more like real “martial law” as your readership imagines it.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
How the SHTF in Bosnia: Selco Asks Americans, “Does this sound familiar?”
How the SHTF in Bosnia: Selco Asks Americans, “Does this sound familiar?”
Selco interviewed by Daisy Luther
I was recently emailing back and forth with Selco and we were discussing the situation in the US right now, with the political polarization, the rage, and the general cognitive dissonance. I asked him if he saw any similarities between our situation and the one in Bosnia when the SHTF there during the war. When he replied I knew I had to share this information with you.
While we might like to think it could never happen here, the current events here are eerily similar to what happened there in the 1990s.
When you read this. think about recent events. The anger about immigration. The destruction of Civil War monuments. The unease between the races. The deep rage about the recent presidential election. The scorn and derision for neighbors who think differently. The way the media fans the flames of dissent between our fellow Americans.
You’ll realize that it definitely CAN happen to us…and there’s not one darn thing we can do except to be prepared.
What parallels do you see with events in the US and Bosnia before the SHTF?
US and Yugoslavia (in 1990) on first look do not have anything in common because people are going to say, “The USA cannot have anything similar to any socialistic system.”
This is true but only on first look.
Yugoslavia had somewhere around 20-22 million citizens, six republics (similar to states in the US), 3-4 main religions, and many national groups (ethnicity).
The official state policy was to build Yugoslavian “nationality” (from the end of WW1) and through different ways that effort was successful until the 90s.
We were “something big, united through differences with a strong connection to make something big.”
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
SELCO: The Brutal Truth About Violence When the SHTF
SELCO: The Brutal Truth About Violence When the SHTF
Are you prepared for the extreme violence that is likely to come your way if the SHTF? No matter what your plan is, it’s entirely probable that at some point, you’ll be the victim of violence or have to perpetrate violence to survive. As always, Selco is our go-to guy on SHTF reality checks and this thought-provoking interview will shake you to your core.
If you don’t know Selco, he’s from Bosnia and he lived through a year in a city that was blockaded with no utilities, no deliveries of supplies, and no services. In his interviews, he shares what the scenarios the rest of us theorize about were REALLY like. He mentioned to me recently that most folks aren’t prepared for the violence that is part and parcel of a collapse, which brings us to today’s interview.
How prevalent was violence when the SHTF in Bosnia?
It was wartime and chaos, from all conflicts in those years in the Balkan region Bosnian conflict was most brutal because of multiple reasons, historical, political and other.
To simplify the explanation why violence was common and very brutal, you need to picture a situation where you are “bombarded” with huge amount of information (propaganda) which instills in you very strong feelings of fear and hate.
Out of fear and hate, violence grows easy and fast, and over the very short period of time you see how people around you (including you) do things that you could not imagine before.
I can say that violence was almost an everyday thing in the whole spectrum of different activities because it was a fight for survival.
Again, whenever (and wherever) you put people in a region without enough resources, you can expect violence.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Selco: What an “Average Day” Is REALLY Like When the SHTF
Selco: What an “Average Day” Is REALLY Like When the SHTF
Did you ever think about how different your day to day life would be after an SHTF event? The little things we take for granted now, like making a meal, staying warm, or having water to drink and bathe in would suddenly become a whole lot more complicated.
Who better to tell us what that is like than Selco? For those who don’t know, Selco spent a year in a city in Bosnia that was blockaded. During that year, he and the other residents lived without our normal amenities like heat, running water, electricity, and supplies that could be purchased at the stores.
I asked him some questions about daily life after the SHTF. I think you’ll agree that his answers are eye-opening.
(Note: Selco’s interviews are lightly edited for clarity, but I want to use his own words. The authenticity of his stories remains intact. For those of you who don’t know of Selco, please note that English is his 4th language. Whiny grammar Nazi comments will be deleted. Comments complaining about my use of the word “Nazi” will be posted, however, so we can publicly mock them, and then the commenter will be banned forever for being a whiner.)
What time did you usually get up? What woke you?
A few weeks after the collapse came, all aspects of our normal life changed based on the new reality around us.
One aspect was “sleep cycle“- the time when we sleep and when we were awake and active.
One of the most basic rules that jumped in was that most of the activities got done during the night.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
