It can be difficult to predict what might be in store for the coming decade. However, there are some events the new decade is very likely to hold in store. #urbansurvivalsite #shtf #disaster #doomsday #collapse
The post WARNING: The World After 2020 appeared first on Urban Survival Site.
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Security overload leads to apathy. How often do you hear a car alarm go off and roll your eyes hoping the owner would disable the blasted thing before the incoming headache comes a knocking? The primary objection I have to such systems is they work too well. Every week I hear an alarm being triggered […]
This is just the start of the post Security Information Overload: From Panic to Apathy & the Remedy. Continue reading and be sure to let us know what you think in the comments!
Security Information Overload: From Panic to Apathy & the Remedy, written by Thomas Xavier, was created exclusively for readers of the survival blog More Than Just Surviving.
Security Information Overload: From Panic to Apathy & the Remedy Read More »
Purifying water can be critical during an emergency. The Kelly Kettle combines an efficient design for boiling water with the ability to be fueled with biomass. It seemed like a great idea, so I ordered one for testing.
Review and video | Base Camp Kelly Kettle as water purification tool Read More »
Not every wound will be as dramatic as a gunshot wound to the femoral artery. You may encounter a situation where someone has a significant laceration that can be treated with direct pressure. The following situation is where the H Bandage or Thin H Bandage would come in handy. The flat fold Thin H Bandage […]
H&H Medical: H Bandage and Thin H Bandage Read More »
You know what is good for your well-being? A week in nature in the far north. I just came back from a trip to Saariselkä, and here are some visual impressions to get you into ???? autumn mood!
Disclosure: This trip was supported financially by the Arctic Outdoor project. As you know: I’m keepin’ it real and tell you how it is – I maintain full editorial control of the content published on Hiking in Finland. Read the Transparency Disclaimer for more information on affiliate links & blogger transparency.
I started my trip in Lapland with five days of backpacking in the Hammastunturi Wilderness Area.
Golddiggers, fast-flowing rivers for fishing and packrafting, cozy open huts, almost no people, beautiful fjells with great views, Hammastunturi has it all.
I’m looking forward to returning to Hammastunturi, with more time and a packraft.
After five days in the wilderness I returned to Saariselkä, had a hot shower and Sauna, and enjoyed several Polarlife Outdoor experiences. First I went hiking with Henna from Lapland Life in her backyard. A backyard with some stupendously good views, too.
The next day Minna from Arctic Sky Lapland went mushroom and berry picking with me, and then she prepared over the fire the most tasty vegan meal out of it. My mouth is watering just thinking about it now!
And on the third day Tiina and Reima, the owners of Saariselkä Training, showed me their local Mountain bike trails. And let me tell you, they’re nothing short of amazing!
Obviously there also was tasty food in the village of Saariselkä, Sauna visits, dips in a lovely stream, and hikes in the Urho Kekkonen National Park.
All of this you’ll be able to read about before the beginning of October! You can watch all the Insta Stories via the Highlight on my Profile, or watch the short teaser video on Facebook.
Impressions From the Far North Read More »
My time on the GPT was now slowly coming to an end. With less than two weeks left before my flight back to Germany it became clear that I would probably not be able to hike all the way up to Santiago de Chile. Therefore I was not very disappointed when I heard that section 5 was closed due to another volcano alert. I skipped forward to section 4 which was not rated as particularly attractive. As I was soon to find out this rating is completely wrong.
After more than one day of continuously ascending in dry mediterranean landscape I reached two alpine lakes – and a herd of wild horses and cows.
As I did not want to be woken up by a four-legged friend, I camped a bit further up and away from water. When I looked out of my tent into the sunrise I saw a big cloud of smoke in the distance and realised only after a while where it came from. This was not a forest fire – this was smoke from an active volcano! And this volcano was the reason why I was not able to hike section 5! Although this volcano was more than 50 kilometers away I felt pretty uncomfortable and tried not to think about a volcanic eruption … But when I woke up in the morning the sky was clear again and all the smoke had disappeared.
After some climbing over rocky slopes I reached another beautiful mountain lake in the morning and could not resist the temptation to take a swim. Continuing up to the next pass I came across two arrieros on horse back – and right on top of the pass 4 G cell phone reception …
I must admit that I ignored the spectacular mountain scenery for half an hour while checking on my smart phone what had happened in the world.
The descent was as long and dusty as the ascent and when I finally reached the valley bottom I could not even find a campsite!
A small water fall in the valley was a very popular picnic spot and very crowded in this hot summer evening. Luckily I did not have to pay the entry fee as I was walking out. First it was too busy and crowded to camp, then everything was fenced in and in the end I had nearly reached the road. With a little detour I eventually found a decent campsite but I could still hear the noise from a nearby youth camp.
I woke up next morning to a rare phenomenom in this area: fog! I even had to pack a wet tent …
As soon as I had reached the road I came across a mini-market where I could buy some more snacks and delicious freshly baked bread. I needed this motivation because there was a long road walk ahead. It would have been unbearably hot and dusty in the sun, therefore I was more than grateful for the fog.
But where the route presumably turned off the road there was a huge fenced-in private property with a farmhouse right at the entrance. No way I would be able to sneak in there. So grudgingly I continued walking on the tarmac road which meant a huge 10 kilometer detour!
When I saw a bus shelter next to the road I decided to try my luck, sat down and waited. And for sure, after only half an hour a bus arrived and saved me 16 kilometer road walk! I was so happy that I bought some ice cream in a mini-market before finally embarking into the mountains again.
The GPT route took me along a very popular valley where now dozens of families were picknicking and camping. At the end of the dirt road a locked gate was decorated with several “no entry”-signs. All the locals ignored it and there was even a soical path around the gate …
Unfortunately a couple of kilometers later there was another gate like that with even more “no entry”- signs. I climbed it and felt very uncomfortable. I walked several kilometers with seeing anyone and already felt relieved when all of a sudden I heard a truck approaching. I disappeared into the bushes. The car stopped just a couple of hundred meters later. I decided to walk around it off trail. Very bad idea! I ended up fighting my way through blackberry bushes, lost half an hour of time and got several scratches.
Plus I discovered that there were discarded beer cans and old fire rings all over the place. Despite all these “No Entry”-signs this was a popular fishing area. The people I had tried to avoid were probably harmless fishermen trespassing here as much as I did.
When I climbed out of the valley I encountered a group of arrieros descending you told: “If we had know that you are here we would have brought wine …” Luckily they were going the other way …
And when I finally had found a nice campsite I was visited by a lonely cow.
Next day was very hot and very dry – and unfortunately I had not brought enough water from the last water source. The trail dragged on forever under the relentless sun and I was cowering under a bush to get some shade during my thirsty lunch break. When I finally reached a water source in the evening I drank 1,5 liters straight …
I was now a bit worried about the rest of this section because there was a river crossing ahead which Martin had not been able to do two months ago. I hoped that the river would now be passable after snow melt. I fortified myself with a lot of blackberries which were growing at lower elevation.
The river was very cold and very swift and I had to concentrate hard to find the best way but I made it safely to the other side. Relieved I took a thorough bath to wash off all the dirt before I started another long ascent.
I had been warned by other hikers but the route now took me through one of the worst bushbashes of the entire GPT. Apparantly now cattle was driven up here and therefore there was no trail. But when I finally reached the pass the view into the next valley more than rewarded me for all the hard work. It is so typical for the GPT to go from “this is horrible” to “this is so beautiful” within five minutes …
Unfortunately on this occasion it changed back to “this is horrible” within one hour. As usual the “trail”, in this case a faint horse trail” was routed high above the river in the valley and in several places I was afraid of slipping. But by now I was already so used to this kind of hiking that I just walked on until I found a flat spot near the river for camping. Although I did not know it then this was my last night on the GPT … In the morning I wondered if I could make it out to civilisation in one day. It was more than 30 kilometers to the next road – but God, I needed some time off the trail after the last hard days.
And the day started difficult indeed: Within half an hour of walking the trail disappeared completely into blackberry bushes. I first tried to fight my way through the thicket with the help of my trekking poles but I soon gave up. Without a machete there was no way I could make it through several hundred meters of the thorny jungle. I ended up wading directly in the river! Eventually in lower elevation the trail got better and better and I was hiking faster and faster despite the fact that I still had to get up and down several little passes. In the evening I passed some wonderful campsites and stopped briefly. I could stay here another night and hike out to the road next morning instead of rushing it now. But I felt that the hike was over for me. As spectacular as it had been – I have now had enough!
But this is the GPT and therefore it had another surprise waiting for me: When I emerged onto the brandnew and paved road there were plenty of trucks carrying sulphur from the mines – but no bus!
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| Beach near Valparaiso |
There was a huge container building nearby in the middle of nowhere so I walked over and asked the security guards about public transport. There was none – I was told. But this was workers’ housing and I could ask people exiting the premises. The first truck was occupied by three worker who happily gave me a lift into the next village from where a bus took me to Rancagua. I must admit that I booked myself into a push four star hotel to get a bit of luxury.
After some brainstorming in the hotel I decided next morning that I would indeed spend my last week in Chile sightseeing instead of returning to the trail. The last missing sections were not the most attractive ones and I basically had had enough. I spent my last days in Valparaiso and Santiago de Chile before flying back to Germany.
Greater Patagonian Trail: GPT 4 – 3 Read More »
Crystal Clear Arc Shots showing How to TIG weld Stainless
How to TIG Weld Stainless Steel Read More »
“Best” is an adjective that starts fights faster than quick. No sooner than you declare something the best you have a dozen folks ready to refute you with master-crafted rebuttals, Powerpoint presentations or name calling. This is true of the gun world as with any other.
You might even make a reasonable argument that even dabbing that most irritating of descriptors onto any professed information is simply a recipe for disaster.
Can you really declare anything as best? Gun, ammo or otherwise, considering how many variables there are to consider? How different people are? Is there any point?
Yes. Yes, there is. When it comes to self-defense, the terrible arithmetic and attendant chaos of a gunfight demands that you seek every possible advantage beforehand.
Choosing the right ammunition is essential in order for your shots to have maximum effect on your adversary. Over time and through our mutual history of shooting one another, humans have learned some basic rules, some fundamentals, as to what the best way to shoot someone is, and with what.
The somewhat grisly science of wound ballistics has yielded actionable data, and shaped modern ammunition design accordingly.
In this article, we’ll be taking a look at what makes for good self-defense ammunition, and I’ll be offering my top three recommendations for defensive loads in the ubiquitous 9mm Luger.
Before we begin, let’s put to bed permanently a few egregious but persistent myths surrounding the wounding mechanisms of bullets, specifically handgun bullets. I have no doubt that most all of you reading have heard of such terms as “stopping power,” knockdown power,” “hydrostatic shock” and other pseudosciencey vernacular.
“.45 is the best cause it has the most stoppin’ powah than the 9mm!” “I use a big .44 Magnum cause it causes more hydrostatic shock effect,” and so on and so forth.
These terms are nearly totally meaningless. Hydrostatic shock is often an erroneous misnomer for an occurrence known as temporary cavitation (more on that in a moment), but in the general lexicon is often used to describe some mysterious effect where the impact of a bullet causes such disruption of the tissue in the body it causes a sort of system-wide shutdown.
This is bunk, at least, bunk in as much as what happens when a person “shuts down” after being shot may result from one of several causes, causes like a central nervous system hit, or a psychological stop resulting from the person simply falling down and giving up.
Either may occur, or may not, but the former is caused by physical destruction of critical organ structures in the body and the latter for reasons beyond our control as they are dictated and calculated in the shootee’s mind.
“Stopping Power” is a long runner piece of treasured shooter lingo that simply does not mean anything in a quantifiable sense. But words must mean something, so in most cases the person using it is making a proclamation that Cartridge A is better than Cartridge B because it is bigger or faster or something.
How do you calculate such a thing, and why once calculated to we see multiple, repeated failures of bullets to have effect on a target, even bullets with commonly accepted “high” stopping power?
Knockdown power is an utterly meaningless term; no bullet from a shoulder fired gun or a handgun can knock someone down. It’s simple physics, and not in any way, shape, form or fashion open for debate. If a fired projectile could blow the target off their feet, the shooter would likewise be bowled over.
What either above term may be referring to is a colloquial ranking of “effectiveness.” This is a little more forgivable, as bullets and cartridges are not created equal, and some are decisively more effective against humans than others. Even with this explanation, what makes Cartridge A more effective than Cartridge B?
There is the question. But to answer it, it is illuminating to answer another question first: just how do we damage and incapacitate, or stop, an attacker as quickly as possible?
Very briefly, there are only two ways by which we can stop an attacker with gunfire, and of those two only one is reliable or predictable in any real sense.
Those ways are physiological in nature and psychological in nature. As you have no doubt intuited, one has to do with physical bodily processes and the other has to do with mental and emotional processes.
A physiological stop results when the person can no longer physically continue their action against you. This result itself could be one of several outcomes: a loss of blood pressure or volume severe enough that physical movement is impossible, or destruction of central nervous system targets responsible for the voluntary or involuntary control of the body and its many processes.
In essence, if we shoot an attacker, we punch a hole in them in addition to damaging or destroying any tissues in the bullets immediate path. Any bullet wound will result in a certain amount of blood loss. Once blood volume and pressure in the body is insufficient to sustain movement, the body collapses.
If the brain is not supplied with enough oxygen, consciousness is lost. If we strike more “valuable” targets in the body, e.g. major cardiovascular tissues and organs, heart, aorta, major arteries, etc., and strike them multiple times, then we can generally depend on a correspondingly faster loss of blood volume and pressure, and less oxygenated blood staying in the system, thereby resulting in faster incapacitation.
A solid hit to the central nervous system, specifically the brain or upper spine, is the most typical cause of true instant incapacitation, but even that is no guarantee.
A person struck in the spine may lose partial or near total body control, but may have enough control left to pull a trigger or swing a knife. Often referred to as “off switches” in LE and military vernacular, they are still not 100% infallible.
But on the other hand we must consider psychological incapacitation. These factors we have little control over, as they solely between the ears of the person being shot. Psychological factors essentially boil down to the person being shot giving up, either from mental or emotional distress.
These are the reasons why some people, when shot, fall down and are done for as far as the fighting is concerned. These are the reasons why some people will actually die from minor, non-life threatening hits; they always believed that people, when shot, die. And so they do.
Psychological factors are also the reason why some people can fight on, fiercely, after sustaining severe, even mortal, wounds. They may or may not be in agonizing, excruciating pain.
But remember what we just learned: if sufficient blood volume and pressure exists, movement is possible. If enough oxygen is supplying the brain, consciousness is possible.
If highly motivated, enraged, trained or otherwise sheer force of will may keep them in the fight until their body is either mechanically disabled or they succumb to their injuries.
If our attacker is shot and gives up, or quits, that is great. But we cannot count on it. We can count on, eventually, enough blood loss occurring or enough damage to the CNS occurring to result in dependable incapacitation.
So, in summary, to stop an attacker reliably we must:
To do this, we need bullets that will reach the targets we need to strike in the attacker’s body, and do so reliably. Reliably meaning it can penetrate deeply enough through both flesh and any reasonable intervening barrier, and that the bullet is of sufficient diameter to actually cause adequate destruction on its passage through the target.
To be considered a good bullet for self-defense, we are looking for a couple of specific characteristics. We need a bullet that will penetrate at least 10 to 12 inches into a human body, and do this after defeating intermediate barriers it may encounter on the way, barriers like clothing, a limb, glass, and so on.
This is why FBI testing standards mandate a bullet penetrate at least 18” into calibrated ordinance gelatin to be acceptable for duty use; you don’t always get to shoot someone broadside when they have a t-shirt on.
A bigger hole is better than a smaller hole, but over a certain size, about .36 caliber, handgun rounds all perform about the same with modern ammo.
Additionally, a bullet that retains its weight inside the target, that is, a bullet that does not break up or fragment, is desirable as this ensures its momentum and overall diameter will be preserved as it passes through the target, maximizing the amount of destroyed tissue, and creating a greater wound.
Bottom line: handgun bullets do damage reliably only by piercing the body and destroying the tissue along their passage, not from shock effect or anything else.
A bullet that will expand, i.e. a hollowpoint, will create a larger path of destroyed tissue and is desirable, in addition to minimizing the chances that the bullet will exit the body. A bullet that is more likely to stay together and not break apart is more likely to perform well at the above requirements, and is desirable.
Considering all of the above attributes together, the bullet that most reliably and consistently performs accordingly is the best bullet for the task at hand.
The list of 9mm loads below is based on objective performance as tested according to FBI protocols, and is the most reliable laboratory-based testing measures for handgun bullet performance to date.
Please note, all of these loads are excellent, and any will serve you well as a primary self-defense round.
Not all ammo is created equal. If you have the funds and opportunity, you should not be shooting FMJ or lead ball for defense of life. Take the time to get educated on handgun bullet performance, and choose a round that will do the most work when the stakes are high.
The Best 9mm Luger Ammo Read More »
