A Sarajevo War Survivor's Tips for Hard Times

Horrible things can happen in a war - death of parents and
friends, hunger and malnutrition, endless freezing cold, fear, sniper attacks. Here's a list of tips, reportedly from a survivor of the war in Sarajevo, that can make a real difference to your welfare and survival:

1. Stockpiling helps. But you never no how long trouble will last, so locate
near renewable food sources.
2. Living near a well with a manual pump is like being in Eden.
3. After a while, even gold can lose its luster. But there is no luxury in war
quite like toilet paper. Its surplus value is greater than gold's so it makes a great barter item.
4. If you had to go without one utility, lose electricity - it's the easiest to
do without (unless you're in a very nice climate with no need for heat.)
5. Canned foods are awesome, especially if their contents are tasty without
heating. One of the best things to stockpile is canned gravy - it makes a lot of
the dry unappetizing things you find to eat in war somewhat edible. Only needs
enough heat to "warm", not to cook. It's cheap too, especially if you buy it in
bulk.
6. Bring some books - escapist ones like romance or mysteries become more
valuable as the war continues. Sure, it's great to have a lot of survival
guides, but you'll figure most of that out on your own anyway - trust me, you'll
have a lot of time on your hands.
7. The feeling that you're human can fade pretty fast. I can't tell you how many
people I knew who would have traded a much needed meal for just a little bit of
toothpaste, rouge, soap or cologne. Not much point in fighting if you have to
lose your humanity. These things are morale-builders like nothing else.
8. Slow burning candles and matches, matches, matches...

How to Be a Successful Refugee

Natural resource analyst Sean Brodrick - author of "The Ultimate Suburban Survivalist Guide"- provides a sharp-eyed perspective on what may be coming in this precarious economy and how to prepare for it. The hurricane Katrina lesson he warns is don't rely on government to save you during disasters. Sean urges us to prepare for hard times while we're in good times, and outlines here how this can be accomplished - even by couch potatoes.

Here are some of the recommendations you can learn about in this video:

• Get out of debt (particularly high priced debt like credit cards - not so important for mortgage debt).
• Have an evacuation plan organized ahead of time with your family and friends - call someone who lives in a different area and offer reciprocal support if either one of you needs to leave where you are. Don't rely on mobile phones.. they may stop working!
  
• Have a 48 hour pack (I would suggest 72 hour) of essentials to tide you over in the case of emergency, and have it ready for every member of the family to throw into the car at a moment's notice (including medicines). If some calamity precipitates a mass exodus, the best place to be is at the front of the traffic.
  
• Get to know the people in your local community! (We keep hearing that great advice over and over)
• Have a few months supply of food and water stored (or a water purifier on hand, preferably the mobile sort).
  
• Keep some cash on hand - as happened in during the Great Depression a Bank holiday (where you suddenly have no access to your accounts) could be announced at any moment as the economy goes down. Those with ready cash will be the ones best able to access the last supplies of food, medicine and other essential resources.
  
• Put a little extra (if you have it) into tangible gold and/or silver assets (rather than paper derivatives).
• Grow some food, even if its just a tomato plant in a container on your balcony. By giving it your best shot, you will learn important skills.
  
• Learn a practical skill while you can... your job could evaporate in the blink of an eye. Choose something useful that you could do for other people in a hard times economic situation - it could become the thing that tides you and your family over.