Israel Notes

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In Israel there are very few police. The police cars do not have sirens, and their roof lights are always on. You can see them coming from a mile away. Without cops, people drive however they want. It is a freeing feeling...but there are accidents and a lot of bad driving.

There are armed soldiers all over the place, and there are armed security guards for some tour groups. The soldiers carry M-4s or Tavors, some with grenade launcher attachments. The private security personnel dress as civilians and carry M1s or pistols. If I was Israeli, I would have worked in private security after my mandatory armed forces stint.

At no time in Israel did I ever feel remotely unsafe. It is fair to say that from a crime perspective, Oakland is far more dangerous than the entire country of Israel. In fact, Oakland is an insane nightmare in comparison.

I am told that every house in Israel has a bomb shelter. The private homes I stayed in were more secure than stateside homes, with 3-bolt locks on the front doors and steel window shutters on all windows and sliding glass doors.

Above, high quality windows with outer steel shutters, a pull-down screen, and locking inner steel-framed window. Many windows have steel security shutters that are electrically raised and lowered.

Israeli plumbing: Cheap and innovative. Typical plastic, bendable S-bend and pipe. Why don't we do that in the US? It's effective and no plumber is needed to unclog the S-bend.

Above and below, mandatory solar water heaters on the roofs of houses. Very simple setups with small water tanks and small black solar heating units, no electricity required, no expensive photovoltaics needed.

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Japan Slippage Hearkens Immense Earth changes

There is a newspaper article making the rounds today, and it is both frightening and illuminating. I quote directly:

The March 11 earthquake that hit eastern Japan was so powerful it pulled the entire country out and down into the sea. The mostly devastated coastal communities now face regular flooding, because of their lower elevation and damage to sea walls from the massive tsunamis triggered by the quake.

Some areas in Ishinomaki moved southeast 17 feet (5.3 meters) and sank 4 feet (1.2 meters) lower.

"We thought this slippage would happen gradually, bit by bit. We didn't expect it to happen all at once," says Testuro Imakiire, a researcher at Japan's Geospatial Information Authority, the government body in charge of mapping and surveys.

Imakiire says the quake was powerful enough to move the entire country, the first time this has been recorded since measurements began in the late 19th century. In Tokyo, 210 miles (340 kilometers) from Ishinomaki, parts of the city moved 9 inches (24 centimeters) seaward.

Many predictions -- actually, virtually all the predictions -- concerning the Age of Transition that we live in mention immense earth changes, including massive earthquakes that transform coastlines and landscapes around the world. Penny Kelly mentions such changes in ROBES, and Edgar Cayce mentioned such changes in his predictions of the 21st Century. Until now, such catastrophic predictions have seemed impossible and outlandish. And yet, with the Japanese quake, we see what is truly possible when the earth decides to shift. And I pose the question, Is this just the tip of the iceberg? If we have just now witnessed the earth shift 17 feet sideways and 4 feet down, isn't it possible that the earth is capable of far greater shifts? For we are in for stormy weather, and the storm is just beginning.

GAH-dening, DAH-ling. GAH-dening!

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Tis the season to garden, & patio gardening we are. Planted: 5 varied tomato plants in earth boxes, 6 arugulas, 6 dinosaur kales, 2 chives, 16 strawberries, 6 potatoes. The peach tree which grew from a seed I threw in the garden & which I transplanted into a wine barrel 7 months ago has finally come out of dormancy & is now covered in buds which are doubling in size every day. There are still a few onions from last year. The aloe plant is doing well & I used a piece of it yesterday to treat sunburn. It worked wonderfully. Aloe is an incredible plant, one we should truly be thankful for!

Why should we all be gardening right now? Because in today's world, food is becoming more expensive, & the economy & the oil-dependent food infrastructure of the United States are in ever-increasing danger of catastrophic failure. Gardening takes time to learn. You need to start yesterday so that when TSHTF you are at least partly self-sufficient. It's either that, or risk starvation at a later date. Also, home-grown food is good for you, unlike much of the processed crap we buy at the store.

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Two forms of probable post-Peak Oil transport:

The Eastern European-ish "stripped wreck"-type vehicle that -SURPRISE!- still runs. Why not, I say? It weighs a hell of a lot less than a regular car and it's a great use of material that has already been thru the industrial process. Use it or lose it. Keep it running til it just don't run no more. Then, cut it in half and...

...create a single-horse cart with rubber tires & steel springs out of it. Can't wait to see these puppies come back, actually. A much saner form of transport than automobiles. More relaxing, less dangerous, less energy-intensive. And, horses eat grass, not oil.

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The neighbors had chickens for 2 years but now their chickens are gone, along with the fencing & the coop. Why'd they gave it up?

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Self-sufficiency is the goal for Hippie Survivalists, don't let anyone convince you otherwise. Inter-dependence is a great & trendy New Age concept, but it might not feed you after TSHTF, you dig? Even Penny Kelly, who is damn New Age-y, promotes self-sufficiency in both her lifestyle on Lilly Hill Farm & her book ROBES. Community is great, but the goal is to make your community self-sufficient. And as for sustainability, I'm all for it. I believe that self-sufficiency must incorporate sustainability. But never forget...your focus should always remain nothing less than total self-sufficiency, or your Lifeboat might not make it thru the coming storm, Brethren. ONWARD! Amen.

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Zoom Got Lifted

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A much higher & heavier feel now. That lurching sensation & a raised center of gravity. He's different. Not at all sure he's better. Every modification I make to Zoom leaves me wondering if he was better off stock. The K&N cold air filter and cat-back exhaust system gave him more power, but lowered his overall fuel efficiency. The ARB bumper & winch gave him more capability and front end strength, but added weight & increased his wind resistance & lowered his mpg even more. I predict that now his fuel economy will dip again, and he will be more difficult to drive on the highway, even though he will perform better off road & over rough terrain. Still, no regrets. Zoom is a work-in-progress, an experiment, & in some strange way a piece of survivalist art. & he's not finished yet.

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Shtuff

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Am twizzled on tequila, beer, vodka, cigarettes, etc. BUT, here is today's copy nonetheless:

•Lightning Striking White House During Easter Means World Is Ending Seriously, let's not fuck around, OK? Fuck.

•OK, here are 70 cool post-apocalyptic novels. This list contains the whole shebang, including the best PA novels I've read, plus a slew of novels I have never even heard of but now want to read.

•Fucking incredible lyrics from a song by Richard Thompson. I am told the lyrics are straight from a letter that an American soldier wrote from Iraq:

(Richard Thompson)

Out in the desert there's a soldier lying dead
Vultures pecking the eyes out of his head
Another day that could have been me there instead
Nobody loves me here
Nobody loves me here

Dad's Gonna Kill Me
Dad's Gonna Kill Me

You hit the booby trap and you're in pieces
With every bullet your risk increases
Old Ali Baba, he's a different species
Nobody loves me here
Nobody loves me here

Dad's Gonna Kill Me
Dad's Gonna Kill Me

I'm dead meat in my HumV Frankenstein
I hit the road block, God knows I never hit the mine
The dice rolled and I got lucky this time

Dad's Gonna Kill Me
Dad's Gonna Kill Me

I've got a wife, a kid, another on the way
I might get home if I can live through today
Before I came out here I never used to pray
Nobody loves me here
Nobody loves me here

Dad's Gonna Kill Me

Dad's in a bad mood, Dad's got the blues
It's someone else's mess that I didn't choose
At least we're winning on the Fox Evening News
Nobody loves me here

Dad's Gonna Kill Me
Dad's Gonna Kill Me

Dawn Patrol went out and didn't come back
Hug the wire and pray like I told you, Mac
Or they'll be shoveling bits of you into a sack

Dad's Gonna Kill Me.

And who's that stranger walking in my dreams
And whose that stranger cast a shadow 'cross my heart
And who's that stranger, I dare speak his name
Must be old Death a-walking
Must be old Death a-walking

Dad's Gonna Kill Me

7 muzzle monkeys standing in a row
Standing waiting for The Sandbox to blow
Sitting targets in the wild west show

Nobody loves me here

Dad's Gonna Kill Me

Another angel got his wings this week
Charbroiled with his own Willie Pete
Nobody's dying if you speak double-speak

Dad's Gonna Kill Me

(Richard Thompson)

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Up-Armoring My GOOD Vehicle

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Since nobody has yet published a manual on how to up-armor civilian vehicles, I am on my own and in un-charted territory. Here are my efforts and notes to date, based on viable commercial options, common sense and imagination:

Checklist w/notes:

2003 Nissan Frontier 4x4

Engine:
•3.3 Liter Supercharged V6 w/manual 5-speed transmission (210 HP) (stock)
•K&N cold air filter (12 HP) (add-on, complete)
•cat-back exhaust system (8 HP) (add-on, complete)

Slowly but surely turning Zoom from a stock cat into a survival lion. Stock mileage is 15/18; his current gas mileage is about 16 mpg, with an around-town low of 14 and an Interstate high of 20 (cruise control set at 59 mph w/a tail wind). Nothing left to upgrade on the engine except battery, ignition wires & spark plugs.

Suspension:
•2.5-inch lift kit w/shocks, swing arms, springs, etc. (add-on, in-process)

Paid for, scheduled installation is this Friday. A quality lift-kit with serious off-road capability.

Armor:
•ARB front bumper w/winch (add-on, complete)
•steel rear bumper w/trailer hitch (stock)
•plate steel ram plate (add-on, concept)
•3 tires mounted to front bumper (add-on, concept)
•ballistic film for windshield & side windows (add-on, inquiry phase)
•sandbags in truck bed (add-on, bags & shovel in truck box)
•run-flat tires (add-on, inquiry phase)

The ARB bumper is a serious ass-kicker. Spot-welding additional plate steel to it is always a viable option. If TS ever HTF, I will fasten one big tire to its center and a smaller tire on each side, for added ballistic protection and cushioning :-).

Tail gates are hollow. Is it possible to drill a hole in one and fill it with gravel for bullet-dampening effect? Probably.

To bullet-proof a truck bed, fill it with tires and line it with sand bags.

In Vietnam, some of the US helicopters had thin magnesium skin that did nothing to slow bullets. The workaround? The pilots sat in bullet-proof titanium seats, and the soldiers in the cargo bay sat on their helmets or on segments of armor plating. Am wondering if similar means could be applied to a vehicle cab. The driver and passengers could wear flak jackets or bullet proof vests. Or, segments of bulletproof plating such as the BALLISTIC CLIPBOARD could be attached to the seatbacks or to the inside of the doors/cab.

Ballistic film can be purchased via Amazon for $360. Am inquiring into professional installation. Ballistic film purportedly prevents smashing entry thru windows/windshields and reduces effect of bullets up to 44 Magnum. Will ballistic film strengthen metal if it is applied to the inside of the interior of the door as well?

Preliminary research into run-flat tires seems to indicate that they are problematic, expensive and may not be available for trucks. More research needed.

Gas prices keep climbing.

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This Is Urban Warfare

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The following images were culled from cyberspace. They were photographed during the heavy fighting that has raged between Loyalist and rebel forces in Misrata, Libya for the last 2 months. Note the extensive use of cars and piles of sand as roadblocks. As of Friday April 22nd, Loyalist forces were in retreat.

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