Dr. Redbeard’s Prepping Guides is Now Open for Business

I wanted to let everyone know that I finally opened my prepper library online. For years I’ve collected resources for my own preps, like many of you. People have been asking for advice or the resources themselves for quite a while, so I finally found a way to share them with you.

Be sure to check it out at Dr. Redbeard’s Prepping Guides.

All the guides and resources are on there individually, but I’ve also created a highly affordable membership option that’s much cheaper if you want a bunch of them.

If you have any questions, let me know. As I release new editions, I’ll also make them available on Amazon as Kindle and print versions. That way, if the grid goes down, it’d be great to have a print copy.

One of the first ones I’m releasing is an old US Army handbook for butchering lamb. What’s for dinner in the apocalypse? Well, I’d say lamb makes an excellent addition to your Mountain House pouches.

Here it is…

Kindle

Print

PDF

This message was written by a team of geeks, nerds, gamers, and Dr. David Powers. You can always find us at www.callsignredbeard.com. Thanks for reading!

In the words of Starship Troopers, “Would you like to know more?”

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TEOTWAWKI…say what?

If you’re new to the prepping game, you’ve probably come across this term and wondered WTW it mean, right? It’s kind of a calling card for preppers that applies no matter what brings about the apocalypse. That’s right. It doesn’t matter if it’s zombies, aliens, or a President that the women are marching against. It means…

The End of the World as We Know It

If you’re from my age bracket you’re most familiar with this term from the REM song by the same name.

In addition to that little nugget o’ information, here’s some updates for you…

I’m finally getting into HAM radios as an integral part of my end of the world communications. Took the test and now waiting on my numbers from the FCC. I’ll let everyone know once I’m up and on the air (at least legally now).

Shawn Clay, the author of When the Zombie Apocalypse Comes, You’re Toast, and I are collaborating on some new projects. It’s gonna be fun! I’ll tell you more as we launch them.

This app is pitched for remodelers, but could be pretty useful for any of you looking at using the sun more effectively…

My buddy Seth Weller at P5 Preparedness said something the other day in class that really hit the mark that I wanted to pass on…

“The have nots always want what the haves have.”

And I saved the best for last. This is purely for fun, as it may not mean much for your preps, but, behold…The Camouflage Encyclopedia.

This message was written by a team of geeks, nerds, gamers, and Dr. David Powers. You can always find us at www.callsignredbeard.com. Thanks for reading!

In the words of Starship Troopers, “Would you like to know more?”

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Prepping for the End…Pop Culture Edition

I don’t know how many of you play any of the iterations of Call of Duty, but I thought you might find this interesting. Here are a couple of the signs from the smart home in Nuke Town.

Take those signs as a cautionary tale when you invest in your house. You can have all the cool bells and whistles in the world, but those things may not stop a bunch of gun-toting maniacs from trampling all over.

Check out the comic book pages below. Is this what it will be like for you? You’ll be the only one left standing among the people you know now.

If things get pretty bad, you’ll start eating the family pets before you venture into the long pig menu…

And just when you think it can’t get any worse, there’ll be zombie dolphins.

This message was written by a team of geeks, nerds, gamers, and Dr. David Powers. You can always find us at www.callsignredbeard.com. Thanks for reading!

In the words of Starship Troopers, “Would you like to know more?”

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The Mental Health Effects of Wildfires in Tennessee and Other Disasters

Normally, most of my posts for you guys are chock full of resources and training opportunities. Not so much this time. This is a post I want you to share with family, friends, and followers who need to be ready, at least to the Bug Out Bag level.

As many of my followers know, I live in eastern Tennessee near Chattanooga. No big OPSEC reveal there as I’m pretty public about myself (at least with what I want you to know). The recent conflagration of wildfires in the southeast did not miss our area, as we’ve had dozens nearby, but none extremely large or serious. However, Gatlinburg TN, about 1.5 hours away by tactical family vehicle (minivan) was burned to a crisp.

I saw this article in this week’s paper and wanted to show it to you, to illustrate the absolute necessity of having both a Get Home Bag and a Bug Out Bag handy.

Go ahead and read the article, and then I’ll elaborate. The highlighted sections are my own addition.

Although it might seem like it most times, not everyone is crazy and just one bad day short of a suicide attempt. Most people are very resilient and bounce back well after a short time. God made us remarkable in that sense. As you’ll see from the article, it looks like many of the most severe mental health problems from the fires are the fact that people evacuated with nothing. This problem immediately brought to mind something my friend Seth from P5 Preparedness tells everyone about Bug Out Bags…

“Have everything you need in there to survive long term and create a life somewhere else if need be. Your Bug Out Bag is there in case you need to leave home quickly and never look back.”

Even if you don’t want to be a prepper and build a bunker and stockpile 1000 years of food, you should at least be prepared at the most basic level in case you need to walk away. This isn’t necessarily for zombies, aliens, or an invasion from the Bahamas. It’s for hurricanes, wildfires, and winter ice storms. The most basic level is a Get Home Bag and a Bug Out Bag.

In assembling them, there’s a quick way and the right way. For the quick way, you can just hop online, find a list, and buy a bunch of stuff and throw it together. For the right way though, go see my friends Seth and Duke at P5 Preparedness in Chattanooga TN. They’ll not only sell you the gear. They’ll also teach you how to pack it, use it, and thrive with it. I promise, you’ll leave there with a bag in your car that is functional right then and there.

If you’re thinking about cost between the two options, you’ll pay the same or less at P5. As a matter of fact, you’ll save so much on having all that stuff shipped to your house, you could pay for a trip to Chattanooga and do it in person the right way. Even better, I live near the store. Let me know you’re visiting the guys at P5, and I’ll take you out for coffee.

No matter how you do it, don’t wait to prepare. If you do, it will always be too late.

This message was written by a team of geeks, nerds, gamers, and Dr. David Powers. You can always find us at www.callsignredbeard.com. Thanks for reading!

In the words of Starship Troopers, “Would you like to know more?”

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“I am an unyielding apocalypse.”

Here’s your semi-regular update of scary and exciting things…

A little something from an awesome comic called East of West by Jonathan Hickman…

I thought this was pretty cool. Dallas TX is rolling out public access trauma kits, much like the AEDs you see everywhere in public places. It’ll be interesting to see them in use. HERE is the article. You should be carrying your own IFAK, but it helps to know where these are if you see them.

In case you forgot since the last ebola epidemic, we’re not really that safe in our nation of ‘modern’ hospitals.

The United States is covered in a map of landfills. Even though most people prefer not to know where their trash goes, knowing where these are could provide innumerable resources after an apocalypse. People are wasteful these days and throw away thing that will be treasures after a bad event. HERE is a neat graphic to provide you a little more in on what’s in landfills.

Here’s a potential post-apocalypse bicycle for you…

After my last post mentioning books by Shawn Clay (Twitter @georgiazombies), he told me that several great things are in the works. His books will be available in the gift shop in the Woodbury Shoppe in Senoia GA. If you’re not familiar, a big part of the Walking Dead is filmed in this area. Expect big things from this guy!

When The Zombie Apocalypse Comes, You’re Toast…(A practical guide on how not to become “that guy” when everything goes south) by Shawn Clay

 Will You Be Ready? The Family Man’s Guide to Basic Preparedness by Shawn Clay

This message was written by a team of geeks, nerds, gamers, and Dr. David Powers. You can always find us at www.callsignredbeard.com. Thanks for reading!

In the words of Starship Troopers, “Would you like to know more?”

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The Election is Over, and the World Didn’t End

It doesn’t matter who you voted for, because both sides said the world would end if their candidate didn’t win. It didn’t. I still notice, though, that a certain side is protesting a fair election. Tsk, tsk.

Big news…James Wesley Rawles mentioned my book on his blog yesterday!

This is big for me. I wasn’t sure what he would think about it, and I must say that I am extremely pleased he spoke well of it. I never consulted him before writing it because I wanted to write my commentary completely impartial. Check out my book if you’re a fan of Rawles and his series that began with Patriots. Rawles is also the founder of Survivalblog.com.

While we’re talking books, I wanted to mention a new friend before I wrap up. I happened to meet a guy on Twitter, and we hit it off.. We connected over talk on the usual, i.e. zombies and the apocalypse.  We’re both like-minded preppers who aren’t nut jobs but just want to make sure our families are safe no matter what. I’m sure you know what I mean. Finding other preppers you can get along with is a lot like dating, except both sides are well-armed. He’s an author who actually lives not far from me, so you can plan on seeing some joint projects soon, including a possible video series for Youtube.

You can find Shawn Clay at @georgiazombies on Twitter. Here’s the reviews I just posted on Amazon for two of his books…

 Will You Be Ready? The Family Man’s Guide to Basic Preparedness by Shawn Clay

As a purveyor of anything apocalypse related, I really enjoyed Shawn Clay’s book on family preparedness. Most preparedness guides simply relay information. Sure, it’s good information, but it’s often given in a vacuum without considering the aspects of family. In other words, there are a lot of men out there who are really prepared for the end of the world in everything from training to stockpiles to gear, but have wives and kids who just aren’t interested. Getting the whole family involved is difficult.

I enjoy how the author approaches the subject from the point-of-view of both practicality and family and then moves forward to provide solid information on many different aspects of prepping. The book is long enough to give you a firm foundation in prepping but not so exhaustive that it is overwhelming.

I highly recommend it. As a matter of fact, now that I’m finished with this book I’m moving onto another one by him.

When The Zombie Apocalypse Comes, You’re Toast…(A practical guide on how not to become “that guy” when everything goes south) by Shawn Clay

I really enjoyed the author’s other more serious book on preparedness, so I wanted to check this one out. Besides being a serious prepper, I’m also a huge zombie junkie. This book did not disappoint me at all.

If you enjoyed the primary tome on zombie survival Max Brooks’ Zombie Survival Guide, then you’ll love this one as well. It’s hilarious, but chock full of useful information as well. In the same way that Zombieland gave us useful rules for staying alive (Rule #1- Cardio), this book does the same. For example, no high heels ladies (or guys too if you roll that way).

The author is simply hilarious. I would love to see this book turned into a faux documentary at some point. If you want to learn some basic tips about staying alive in the apocalypse and learn about zombies at the same time, you can’t go wrong with this one.

Be sure to check him out. As a writer myself, I know how important it is to help support fellow authors, whether it’s the big guys like Rawles and A. American or the smaller ones like me and Clay.

This message was written by a team of geeks, nerds, gamers, and Dr. David Powers. You can always find us at www.callsignredbeard.com. Thanks for reading!

In the words of Starship Troopers, “Would you like to know more?”

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The End is Nigh…or Is It?

Welcome to a semi-regular compilation of prepper, survivalist, and apocalypse information.

How many of you have bought tactical pens? I’ve tried out a few, with some better than others. The latest I tried was from 5.11, and I wasn’t very pleased with it. As a weapon, it succeeds well, but as a pen it sucks. The barrel slide mechanisms don’t work well. The barrel tears on the fingers if you write for more than five seconds. You can do way better than this. On a good note, it passed through multiple airport checkpoints in my briefcase without ever being taken away.

For me, I’ll be going back to my Fisher Space Pen and use a real knife or a regular pen for my tactical needs.

Think the Feds or CDC were ready for the Ebola outbreak a couple of years ago?

Bought me a new inside the pants (ITP) holster for my Glock. Haven’t used it yet, so I’ll let you know if I like it or not in a future post. I tried to get in touch with the maker, but he never bothered to respond to any communications by e-mail or phone. Even if I like, I’m not sure I’ll pass on the company name. I hate to help companies with poor customer service skills. These are hand-made by a firefighter in Horry County SC. He makes a great product, but I’m not so sure how long his business will last.

What’s your favorite ITP holster?

The Mini Mjolnir drawing is mine. It’s what I call my baby.

With sea levels changing, how long are we going to keep spending tax money to shore up vacation rentals and beach mansions for the rich? Check out this blog to see the flipside when we abandon poor people whose homes fall into the sea.

Links-

5.11 Tactical Pen

Fisher Space Pen

Poor Alaskan Eskimos Get Shafted

It Could Easily Happen Near You. It Just Happened in Chattanooga.

If you think a mini-apocalypse will never happen near you, you’re wrong. They happen all the time. Just think about the constant flow of trucks, trains, and planes that occur around you all the time, no matter where you live or how well you prep.

It happened in Crazies. A simple plain crash near backwater Iowa and, next thing you know, people are crazy. In the pic you can barely glimpse the plane that crashed and sank into the town’s water supply.

It happened for real in 2005 in Graniteville SC. Two trains collided carrying chlorine gas, sodium hydroxide, and cresol. Next thing you, there’s a toxic gas cloud moving through town.

It happened in West TX at a fertilizer plant. The explosion was so huge that it even leveled nearby occupied apartment buildings.

<> on April 18, 2013 in West, Texas.

It almost happened this week in my hometown of Chattanooga. A train recently derailed right here in town after striking a semi-truck. And, yes, some of the cars were carrying hazardous materials. They weren’t spilled, as far as we know, if you really trust the media and the authorities for that kind of thing. What you need to understand is that Chattanooga and many other places are a superbusy hub of trucking and trains, and it’s a possible catastrophe on a daily basis.

I’m not trying to scare you too much, no, wait, I am. I talk a lot about big apocalyptic events, but small miniature ones happen everyday. I’m talking about out of the ordinary events that affect your way of life. You need to be ready for them.

This message was written by Dr. David Powers and his team of preppers, scientists, and reliable conspiracy theory wackos. You can always find me at www.drdavidpowers.com. Thanks for reading!

In the words of Starship Troopers, “Would you like to know more?”

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The Chattanooga Police Department’s Plan to Harass Gun Owners

Two things collided in Chattanooga TN this week. One is a new law from the Governor that allows permit holding gun owners to carry in parks. The other is the Riverbend Festival. The collision led to a plan by the Chattanooga Police Department to harass law-abiding gun owners who exercise their legal rights and have done absolutely nothing wrong.

Their crime will simply be following state law.

As people come into the festival, as the usual for any large gathering or concert, bags will be checked. So far, they’re not officially patting anyone down, but that’s probably either on its way or happening unofficially. Per state law, anyone legally carrying a concealed weapon must be able to produce a carry permit to a police officer if requested, or as the Chattanooga Times Free Press (CTFP) stated, officers may “be alerted by volunteers”.

I have a problem with this. First off, if a person is carrying a concealed weapon, no one should know. Secondly, if festival staff find out through questioning or a search, then that would seem to be going too far. Now we’re getting into ‘stop and frisk’ territory and using volunteer non-LE staff to do it.

The article in the CTFP went on to quote a great deal from Chattanooga police Sgt. Austin Garrett, who has worked the festival for almost two decades. He went on to state how safe the festival and the area are. I’m not sure where he got this information, but as a police sergeant, I would hope he has access to better intel, like the rest of us. Chattanooga is well known at this point as a city overtaken by gang violence and the frequent site of shootouts in public places. It’s happened at grocery stores, fast food restaurants, and city streets. And that’s just this year. Kids have been shot and witnesses to kids being shot have been shot. Just do an Internet search of “Chattanooga gang violence” and see what pops up.

But Riverbend and any area Sgt. Garrett knows of are immune to this violence? No need to legally carry a concealed weapon? I would say that the police department’s lack of effective protection in the city establishes a clear need for law-abiding citizens to arm themselves.

So, with all of this going on, what’s Sgt. Garrett’s plan to enforce the law at Riverbend? Is it to control the drunk folks? Keep smokers penned up in their area? Stop crazy country music mosh pits? No, his plan is to harass card-carrying, law-abiding gun owners. Seriously, it is. Here’s what he told the newspaper…

“What’s going to happen is you’re going to get stopped every 30 feet by one of us…You’re going to get tired of getting stopped.”

Sounds to me like harassment. The Chattanooga Police Department is planning on harassing gun owners until they either leave the festival or lock their guns their guns in the car.

Let’s take this a step further and ask if this is official department policy and what else may be coming down the road from the city of Chattanooga. Is this a sign of the future? Is the city planning on creating local laws that prohibit gun owners from the city limits? Mayor Andy Berke insinuated as much when he made a statement regarding local communities creating their own laws on this matter. I’d like to know.

This guest post was written by a concerned Chattanooga TN citizen who decided not to attend the Riverbend Festival due to expected and publicly posted policy of intent to harass gun owners by the Chattanooga Police Department.

Saving Space and Money with Multi-Purpose Equipment

While my compound is being saved for, I’m living in an apartment community. I gotta tell you, too, it has convinced me more than ever that small gatherings of people who aren’t like-minded are a recipe for destruction…and that’s without the apocalypse happening.

There are a lot of dog owners around here that can’t be bothered to pick up after their pets. So my feral kids can play in the courtyard, I go out there periodically and pick up all the dog crap myself so they don’t squish it and track it in the house. Last time I did this, I left the two pound bag of dog feces on the front steps of the apartment offices. They’re still mad at me about that.

I lost my little garden shovel that I used for gathering purposes and needed another one. So, I was browsing through the store and noticed that there was only a $4 difference between a new garden shovel and a folding entrenching tool. Here’s my thought process on that purchase…

• Not much difference in the cost
• Surprisingly, there wasn’t much difference in the weight
• The entrenching tool is larger and takes up more space
• Both of them pick up poo just fine, although the entrenching tool works better
• Both of them could be used as a weapon, but the entrenching tool makes a much better killing instrument
• The entrenching tool can be used for way more things than the little tiny girly garden tool
• I have dug fighting positions with an entrenching tool, but the little shovel would take forever
• The entrenching tool can be used for gardening just as well as the little shovel
• I can cut down trees with the entrenching tool

I think you can see where I’m going with this. I went home with a new entrenching tool, which was also an item I didn’t already have in my preps. The point I’m trying to get across is this…multi-purpose as many of your prep items as possible. It’ll help immensely in a savings of money, weight, and space.

Now that we’ve covered that, I’ll give you a few more updates for the apocalypse…

Here’s another interesting apocalyptic comic you might enjoy- Joe Golem Occult Detective- Drowning City. It’s coming out this summer.

It’s no doubt that sea levels are rising. If you’re planning your compound on the coast, be careful. There’s not telling where the coast will be.

Read this quote in the paper recently. It was spoken regarding the civil rights movement, but applies equally as well to the end of the world…”A strange wind is blowing and it’s blowing empires away,” Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, 1960’s civil rights leader.

Have you ever wondered what’s up with the ‘sell by’ dates you see in the grocery stores? HERE’s a good article from the Wall Street Journal that covers it.

Has anyone seen the movie Air, starring Norman Reedus from The Walking Dead? I haven’t, so I’d love to post a review from any of my audience that has.

This message was written by Dr. David Powers and his team of preppers, scientists, and reliable conspiracy theory wackos. You can always find me at www.drdavidpowers.com. Thanks for reading!

Links-

Buy the entrenching tool, not the puny garden shovel

Intel on grocery store ‘sell by’ dates

Have you seen Air and would like to write a review for us?