I know this is a survival site, and I usually try to stay away from politics, but I think what’s going on in our country is a matter of survival. The survival of our liberty, our way of life, and our traditional American values.

Can America Survive?

Let’s take a look at where we came from and where we are today.

	AMERICAN HEREOS OF THE PAST		OUR LEADERS TODAY
	Sure, we want to go home. We want this war over with. The quickest way to get it over with is to go get the bastards who started it. The quicker they are whipped, the quicker we can go home. The shortest way home is through Berlin and Tokyo. And when we get to Berlin, I am personally going to shoot that paper hanging son-of-a-bitch Hitler. Just like I’d shoot a snake!” General George S. Patton		I’ve never said that troops should be withdrawn. What I’ve said is, is that we’ve got to make sure that we secure and execute the rebuilding and reconstruction process effectively and properly, and I don’t think we should have an artificial deadline when to do that.” President Barack Obama April 5, 2004
	In war there is no substitute for victory. General Douglas MacArthur		I believe myself that the secretary of state, secretary of defense and – you have to make your own decisions as to what the president knows – (know) this war is lost and the surge is not accomplishing anything as indicated by the extreme violence in Iraq yesterday” Sen. Harry Reid
	May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won’t. General George S. Patton		The secret authorization of brutal interrogations is an outrageous betrayal of our core values, and a grave danger to our security Barrack Obama
	On every occasion…[of Constitutional interpretation] let us carry ourselves back to the time when the Constitution was adopted, recollect the spirit manifested in the debates, and instead of trying [to force] what meaning may be squeezed out of the text, or invented against it, [instead let us] conform to the probable one in which it was passed. Thomas Jefferson		I think it’s a remarkable document; the original constitution, as well as Civil War amendments. But I think it is an imperfect document. And. I think it’s a document that reflects some deep flaws in American culture……. I have to side with Justice Breyer’s view of the Constitution—that it is not a static but rather a living document, and must be read in the context of an ever-changing world. Barack Obama
	I am for doing good to the poor, but I differ in opinion of the means. I think the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving them out of it. In my youth I traveled much, and I observed in different countries, that the more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course became poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became richer. Benjamin Franklin		It’s not that I want to punish your success. I just want to make sure that everybody who is behind ‘ya, that they got a chance at success, too. I think that when you spread the wealth around; it’s good for everybody. Barack Obama
	“No free man shall ever be de-barred the use of arms. The strongest reason for the people to retain their right to keep and bear arms is as a last resort to protect themselves against tyranny in government. Thomas Jefferson		Almost all gun control legislation is constitutionally fine. And, if the court is right, then fundamentalism does not justify the view that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to bear arms. White House regulatory “czar” Cass Sunstein
	The freedom of speech may be taken away and dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep, to the slaughter.” George Washington		It should be clear by now that my focus here is not freedom of speech or the press. This freedom is all too often exaggeration. At the very least, blind references to freedom of speech or the press serve as a distraction from the critical examination of other communications policies.” FCC diversity czar -Mark Lloyd

So how does our media and our government officials responded to an attack on our country ?
Lets review:

• Almost immediately after the attack the FBI announced it wasn’t terror-related.
• General Casey stated “I’m concerned that this increased speculation could cause a backlash against some of our Muslim soldiers. And I’ve asked our Army leaders to be on the lookout for that”
• Time magazine blamed the attack on post-traumatic stress disorder
• The Washington Post ran the headline “The lonely life of alleged Fort Hood shooter,” with the subtitle: “‘He was mistreated. He didn’t have nobody. He was all alone,’ says neighbor.”
• CNN is pushing stories on “a backlash against Muslim American soldiers.”
• Chris Mathews of MSNBC asked live on air “‘It’s not a crime to call Al Qaeda is it?”

And how does the President Respond?

President Obama warned Americans “we don’t know all the answers yet, and I would caution against jumping to conclusions until we have all the facts.” (kinda strange since he had no problem jumping to conclusions when he said Sgt. James Crowley “acted stupidly”)

What we need:

American Spirit, the will to survive & the will to kick some ass!

The Seal Pup is based of the design that the Navy Seals use, so you know that this knife can take a beating. During our testing we threw everything we had at this knife and after a couple weeks of cutting everything we could get our hands, the SOG was still as sharp as the day we got it. We will be doing some more tests throughout the year and will do another review reporting on it’s long term use, but as of now I really don’t see this knife letting us down.

Seal Pup Knife Specifics

• Full tang blade
• Blade Length 4.85″
• Overall Length 9.5″
• Weight 5.4 oz.
• AUS 8 Steel
• Navy Seal Tested, including a 14-day salt water immersion test

This Knife held up to everything we through at it including:

1. Cutting wood, meats, leather, ropes, and anything we could find.
2. Used it as an Axe to cut some pretty thick pieces of wood. (still held it’s edge and no damage to the knife)
3. Used the knife point to open cans, notch wood, and jammed it into thing to see if it would break ( it didn’t!)
4. Letting it sit in water for a three days (no rust or noticeable damage)

Why We Recommend the SOG Seal Pup Elite

1. Extremely Sharp and Holds it’s Edge after rigorous testing
2. Hands down one of the best survival knifes we have ever seen.
3. Light weight and perfect for those wanting to keep down their pack weights.
4. I have seen some complaints from people who didn’t like the nylon sheath, but you won’t hear any coming from me. In fact I actually like the sheath. It feels really durable and had enough room in the pocket to stash a lighter, fishing line (a few weights and hooks), and a small flashlight. It made a nice little survival kit.
5. Very nice Grip. ( thicker and deeper finger groves than the regular seal pup)

Looking for a Good Sog Knife? I recommend one of these Sog Knives

• SOG Navy Seal Pup Elite Fixed Blade Knife – Special Edition
• Sog Seal Pup Elite, Zytel Handle, Black TiNi Blade, Nylon Sheath – Seal Pup – Knives

Knowing how to build a fire is an essential survival skill for the survivalist.

Fires are important because they give you warmth, light, the ability to cook, and peace of mind. Fire Making is one of the oldest skills known to man, it’s importance can never be underestimated.

Fire is good for:

• Keeping Warm in even the coldest environments
• Giving you a way to boil untreated water.
• Drying wet clothes
• Keeping Insects and some animals away
• Building a signal fire.
• Cooking Food.
• Comfort

Primitive methods of Starting a Fire:

• 2 Man Hand Drill
• Starting a fire with a Fire Drill
• Fire starting with a Fire Plough
• How to starts a Wilderness Fire with a Hand Drill

You should always have at least two methods of starting a fire with you at all times.

• Survival Lighters
• FireSteel
• Survival Matches
• Water Proof Matches
• Emergency Candles Candles are a good way of getting damp tinder and wet wood to start. If you only have a few matches, use your match to light the candle first. A candle will last a lot longer than a match, and gives you more time to start a stubborn fire.
• The Ultimate Survival Kit – This little kit has a couple ways of starting a fire, including something called Wet Fire. The Wet Fire tinder will burn even in the poring rain and is a must for any survival kit.

It is one of the most amazing survival stories to ever happen. The things that Shackleton and the crew of the Endurance went through are legendary. The conditions that they survived are impossible to imagine, yet they somehow lived to tell the story.

The Endurance

More Information on Ernest Shackleton and the Endurance:

• The Endurance: Shackleton’s Legendary Antarctic Expedition
• Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage
• The Endurance – Shackleton’s Legendary Antarctic Expedition
• Shackleton’s Antarctic Adventure (Large Format)
• Shackleton – The Greatest Survival Story of All Time (2-Disc Standard Edition)

The best traps are usually very simple and you will increase your chances of catching a meal by using two or more of these methods. When using traps and snares, numbers are important. The more traps that you place, the better your chances of catching something become.

Here are a few of the most common types of traps and snares used in a survival situation.

A simple snare

The Simple Snare is made from a noose. The snare is placed over a trail or den hole and attached to a stake. This type of snare can also be placed on known game trail with small twigs to keep it in place.

Make sure that the noose is large enough to allow the animals head to pass through it. As the animal moves through the snare it should tighten around its neck. The more the animal struggles to get lose the tighter the snare will get. Snares usually do not kill the animal, so make sure you use wire that is strong enough to keep the animal in place until you return to the trap.

Baiting a trap

Baiting a trap or snare will help you improve your chances of catching something to eat! Unlike a normal snare, a baited snare can actually help you draw animals in towards the trap.  Make sure that the bait is something the animal is familiar with, but not something that is so widely available in the surrounding area.

The Figure-four dead fall

The Figure-four dead fall is gets it’s name from the number of shapes that make up this trap. The Figure-four uses a trigger to drop a heavy object onto an animal. The object should be heavy enough to kill the animal on impact.

Dead fall Pit

If you are stranded for a long period of time without a gun or other means of hunting, then a dead fall pit is a great way of catching larger animals. This dead fall pit works is a good way to catch larger animals but keep in mind that it will take a lot of time and energy to build.Make sure you have a good supply of food before building a trap like this. You will need your energy!

• First look for a game trail.
• Then start to dig your pit near the trail.
• When it is deep enough to hold the intended animal, place sharpened sticks in the bottom that point up.
• When your pit is finished put together a grill of long branches and then cover them with leaves and grass.
• Place them over the pit

A word of warning

These traps are for informational purposes only, they are extremely dangerous, and some of them can be lethal. In some parts of the country using them is also illegal. You should never use traps or snares unless you are in a true survival situation.

When you have people breaking down the doors of a Walmart to save a couple bucks, just imagine what they would do during an emergency. I think the craziness of what happened during Black Friday, shows why people should be prepared and have emergency supplies on hand. If something should happen, would you really want to be in the middle of a Walmart fighting a mob of people for some bottled water?

In Case you missed what happened heres the video…..

Do you have any doubt how people would act during an emergency?

Here is a look back at some of our more popular posts over the last year.

Survival Tips

• Signaling for Help in the outdoors
• Military Survival Series
• Bug Out Bags

Gear Reviews

• Sog Seal Pup Knife Review
• Waterproof Shoes
• Trek Light Hammock
  
• Ultimate Survival Deluxe Tool Kit
• The Klean Kanteen

Outdoor Tip’s & How To’s

• Choosing the Right Hiking Boots
• How to Prevent Blisters
• Choosing the right hiking socks
• How to Fit a Backpack

Other Survival Blogs that you can read over the holiday weekend:

• DIY Gear – Survival Lamp
• Awesome Firestarter – cotton balls and vaseline
• Be Prepared: Fish At A Moments Notice
• Why Prep?
• Food Storage Tips – Preventing Corrosion on Cans
• News about survival topics
• More Survival Blogs

Why I liked the Klean Kanteen.

• If you like the taste of plastic then don’t buy the Klean Kanteen, if you like water that actually tastes like water, then this bottle will do the trick. Even after a long day of hiking your water will still taste as fresh as when you filled it.
• Nice Rounded top for drinking. While this may sound like I’m over hyping the bottle, trust me I’m not. I had a bottle from another competing brand that was so sharp It was actually kind of dangerous to drink out of.  Out of every bottle I tried the Klean Kanteen was by far the best designed bottle. ( I tried 5 other brands that all sucked!)
• Rust Free – Another problem that I had with other bottles was rust. Most of them started to rust after only a couple days. The Klean Kanteen has never had that problem. I use these things on a daily basis and I don’t think this will ever be a problem.
• Light Weight – About the same weight as my old plastic bottles without the nasty plastic taste.
• Ability to boil water in the bottle. In a survival situation these bottles can be used to boil water. Some other brands are made of aluminum and baked epoxy that can not be used to cook with.

The Klean Kanteen comes in 4 sizes, (12, 18, 27 &40oz) and has a variety of cool caps and accessories. We liked the loop cap the best because it can be hooked to the straps of your backpack for easy access while walking.

Where to buy the Klean Kanteen?

• Klean Kanteen with Steel Caps – the Original Style. All Sizes. 12 oz, 18 oz, 27 oz and 40 oz