Survivalist Anthologies Volume 1
Page 37
2. Tea Tree - A powerful anti fungal (fungicide, kills fungal infections), antiviral (kills viruses), powerful antibacterial (kills bacteria), antiseptic and analgesic. Use with a carrier oil (CO) for dilution, like almond, coconut or olive, in a 1:9 ratio of EO:CO. Good for acne, athlete’s foot, skin wounds and irritations, cuts, warts, cold sores, and insect bites. Anti parasitic and insecticide, good for lice and scabies, also in the garden as a pest and disease spray. It is an expectorant (loosens lung congestion), decongestant (relieves sinus congestion) and immune stimulant. For these conditions, use as a cold or steam inhalant. Do not use internally. May be mixed with lavender, lemon, thyme, rosemary and ginger oils.
3. German Chamomile - An anti-inflammatory (decreases swelling, redness, irritation) and analgesic. When mixed with a CO, use for insect bites, burns, diaper rash, eczema, psoriasis and many other skin conditions. Relaxing effect, use EO as inhalant to help with insomnia, nervousness, anxiety and cramps, also available as a tea for internal use. EO hot or cold compress works well for headaches and menstrual pains: Apply externally to affected area.
4. Peppermint - An antiseptic, antibacterial, decongestant, anti emetic. Also helps with digestive disorders such as IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), lactose intolerance, heartburn, and abdominal cramping. Apply EO daily every morning to the bottom of feet for prevention and treatment of chronic conditions. A good headache treatment is a massage of 1 drop EO to temples. For sudden abdominal cramps, achy muscles or painful joints: massage weak and diluted EO externally into affected area. To use for heartburn relief, place 1 drop EO on tongue.
5. Eucalyptus - An antiseptic, antiviral, decongestant, and excellent insect repellent. “Cooling” on skin. Aids with all breathing issues and boosts immune system. Use for flu, colds, sore throats, coughs, sinusitis, bronchitis, and hay fever. Best used as a preventative of viruses when exposure is expected. May be used as a massage, steam inhalation, and bath additive. For respiratory problems, massage EO:CO 1:1 dilution on the chest . Also helps acne. For external use only.
6. Clove - Considered the most diverse universal medicinal remedy! It is anti-fungal, antimicrobial, antiseptic, antiviral, analgesic/anesthetic, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and sedative. Clove combats, prevents and treats infections naturally instead of using antibiotics. Eugenol, clove’s principal constituent, is a natural pain killer and sedative, and is used for toothaches/dental pain. Toothpaste is made by combining clove oil and baking soda. It is an anticoagulant (thins blood), do not use with other blood thinners. Mix clove with geranium for open wounds, cuts, abrasions and burn treatment.
7. Lemon - Immune stimulant (increases white blood cells), antiseptic and disinfectant. Using EO as a cold inhalant promotes clarity of thought, boosts immunity, and induces relaxation. Helpful in treating wounds and infections, dilute EO:CO in 1:1 ration (50/50) for external use. Good household disinfectant, cleanser and deodorizer.
8. Geranium - Antibacterial, antioxidant, antispasmodic (relaxes muscles), anti-inflammatory, hemostatic (stops bleeding), anti-fungal, improves blood flow, and dilates bile ducts for liver detoxification. Undiluted EO helps dermatitis, eczema, psoriasis, ring worm, and acne. May lower blood sugar. For injuries, apply 2-4 drops EO directly to wound/burn area immediately and cover lightly with gauze.
9. Rosemary - Antibacterial, anti-fungal, anti-parasitic, liver-protecting, antispasmodic, disinfectant and enhances mental clarity/concentration. Inhalation is used in respiratory problems, such as congestion and asthma, to open airways and fight infection. EO:CO 1:1 dilution is used as a massage for headaches, muscle pain and soreness. As a disinfectant it is used in mouthwashes.
10. Helichrysum (italicum) - An analgesic (pain reliever), antibacterial, anti-coagulant, regenerates nerves and is one of the strongest anti-inflammatory EOs. Known for “deep healing” and for tissue “regeneration”. Increases circulation of blood and lymph systems. Good for bruises, chronic pain relief including fibromyalgia, arthritis, tendonitis, carpel tunnel syndrome and red, irritated skin conditions. May be helpful for heart palpitations, irregular heart beat and panic attacks. External massage neat (undiluted) 2-4 drops on location, temple, forehead, back of neck or outside of ear, or blended with lavender, clary sage, german chamomile, or geranium. Also used as a cold inhalant.
There are other important essential oils that could be part of your natural medical kit, such as: thyme, hyssop, cinnamon, wintergreen, clary sage, blue tansy, frankincense and thieves blend. Start with the top ten essential oils described above and add others as you begin to feel comfortable with essential oil remedies. Nature is a wonderful medicine chest, just respect its power and always use EOs sparingly. Make sure you buy only high quality, organic, therapeutic-grade essential oils.
“Nurse Amy” Alton is an Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner and a Certified Nurse Midwife, as well as an avid urban homesteader. Amy is also a State-Certified Master Gardener in the state of Florida and the co-host of “Dr. Bones & Nurse Amy’s Doom and Bloom Hour” on the Preparedness Radio Network.
Did Western Civilization Already Peak in the Early 1970s?
by Jerry Erwin
Roughly three years ago, a woman posted on Jim Rawles’ Survivalblog.com regarding a break-in at her Utah home. The author hit on the idea that TEOTWAWKI (The End of the World as We Know it) already took place in the late 1960s.
As Commander Spock from an old Star Trek episode would have said, “Possibly some gifted insight.”
Based on my own knowledge of history, a number of critical events occurred in the early 1970’s. The purpose of this article is to answer this question by describing the converging period where these events take place, from roughly the late 1960’s, to the early 1970’s. This article will also attempt to describe what will happen yet still, as a result of these events, and what can be done to prepare for them.
In December, 1970, domestic US oil production peaked at roughly 9.5 mbl/d (million barrels per day) production (source: US Energy Information Agency), and has since gone into a gradual, year-over-year decline (without going into detail, we now produce roughly what we once did during World War II. In other words, US energy independence is a fantasy). This includes the North Slope of Alaska, which previously peaked in the late 1980s at roughly two mbl/d, and now produces a little over 600,000 bl/d. Overall US production now sits at just over six mbl/d.
For those unfamiliar with the concept of Peak Oil, it is the study of an area of oil reserve, whether a single well, a field, or an entire country (or the entire planet Earth, for that matter), where the rate of production increases to a certain point (a peak), then begins a terminal decline, until the daily/monthly/yearly oil production drops to a point where it is no longer cost effective to maintain the wells, rigs, etc. At present, world conventional oil production (to include heavy oil from tar sands and condensates, appears to be at a plateau, with an all-time peak having occurred in July, 2008:
In other words, the absence of a continually growing source of energy (oil, in this case) means the end of perpetual economic growth.
While US oil production has peaked, and gone into decline, to about six mbl/d it also appears that world oil production is doing the same. Oil is a finite resource, the result of millions of years of heat and pressure on fossilized plant and animal life, which exists in an “oil window,” roughly five to 15,000 feet below the Earth’s surface. Any deeper than that, and the crude oil “cracks” (much as in a refinery), into natural gas and white oil (condensate). There is no creamy nougat center at the Earth’s core, constantly producing crude oil. This is known as the Abiotic Oil Theory, and has been completely dis-proven.
In Peak Oil Theory, the peak in discoveries of proven reserve always precedes the peak in production. For instance, US oil discoveries peaked in 1932, with the discovery of West Texas oil. US oil production then peaked in 1970, just as M. King Hubbert, the father of the Peak Oil Theory had predicted. World oil discoveries peaked around 1965, with discoveries in the North Se
a and Alaska. Since that time, less oil has been discovered, year-over-year.
In 1971, President Nixon ordered the cancellation of the direct convertibility of the United States dollar to gold (DeGaulle wanted France’s loans repaid in gold bullion. This was primarily a result of the Vietnam War and the space programs of the 1960’s). As Peter Schiff once said, “We went into debt in the 1970’s, to pay for everything we did in the 1960’s.”
During December, 1972, the last manned Apollo mission to the moon took place (we have not seriously entertained the thought of going back there since). Currently, the US Space Shuttle program has been terminated, and the International Space Station is scheduled to be de-orbited in 2020.
The Arab Oil Embargo of 1973 was the result of Arab retaliation against the US for its support of Israel during the 1973 Arab-Israeli War. The resulting world-wide oil shortage had disastrous effects on the global economy, and permanently devalued the US Dollar (I need not mention the anarchy that occurred at gas stations, the gasoline thefts, etc).
The ending of the Vietnam War, with the US withdrawal from South Vietnam in 1973, and Saigon being overrun by 1975, marking the US’s first overseas defeat (not that the US actually ever intended to “win” the war). For the real reasons as to how the US got directly involved militarily in Vietnam, I suggest Googling “Geneva Conference.” By international agreement in 1956, Vietnam was supposed to be split into two halves for only two years, while the country took a popular vote. When the Eisenhower Administration learned that the majority was voting for Ho Chi Minh, the US intentionally violated the international agreement and popular vote by permanently creating the country of South Vietnam.
The war itself, particularly with the release of The Pentagon Papers, literally blew a hole in The Matrix (i.e., the simulated reality from the allegorical movie with that name), revealing the imperial nature of US foreign policy.
An income inequality indicator known as the Gini Coefficient had bottomed-out during the late 1960’s. One of the reasons cited for the current disparity of wealth in the US is the 90% tax bracket having been lifted, at that time. This had been a tremendous discouragement for accumulating vast wealth. The Gini Coefficient has been on a gradual incline ever since.
Will these developments manifest themselves in the future? In reality, they already are. Since Nixon took us off of the last vestige of the gold standard, the M2 money supply has increased (and rather exponentially in recent years), since there is nothing to keep the US Treasury from printing more dollars. Throughout history, this has led to hyperinflation, which in-turn, has resulted in the collapse of entire empires, if not civilizations.
Peak Oil theorists refer to the period we are now in as “the bumpy plateau,” where the resulting effect of high energy prices leads to economic downturns, which create “demand destruction.” This is currently taking place, as the price per barrel of oil appears to be dropping.
While Peak Oil is a serious threat to our civilization (due to the lack of any combination of alternative energies, with the energy density of crude oil), it is not an immediate threat, due to the demand destruction caused by the current global economic downturn. However, based on the decline rates of the largest oil fields on the planet, in particular, we will begin to see a gradual, year-over-year decline in conventional oil output. Right now, the more immediate threat is the 40 years of global fiat currency, as the US Dollar now represents the longest standing currency in the history of civilization, which is not backed directly by anything tangible.
In addition, we may not see gas station lines, as in the 1970’s. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) was created in response to the 1973 oil shock. The purpose of the SPR was to have a crude oil reserve available, in the event of any actual shortages, not as a hedge against high oil prices. There were some advocating the release of oil from the SPR just recently, when the actual smart play (which has taken place in recent years) has been to add to the SPR’s inventories (how’s that for prepping?).
What to Do: Solutions?
As far as public policy is concerned, the broad spectrum of doomers, survivalists, and societal collapse theorists all agree that we are now beyond the point of being able to change anything through voting, activism, protests, etc. We now appear to be in a period very similar to that of the Soviet Union in the late 1980’s, where our leaders in particular are only concerned with their own political (and eventually physical) survival.
One could dissent by simply distancing themselves from the monetized economy as much as possible, i.e., living debt-free, bill-free, using barter, and creating a job/business for themselves within the underground economy (survival expert Ragnar Benson has written on this subject in detail). For instance, according to a recent post by Jim Rawles at his well-known Survivalblog website, Montana is regarded as being one of the poorest states in the US, according to the mainstream media. However, this is primarily due to the levels of self-sufficiency and barter, in that state.
Many of the readers of Survivalist Magazine are already prepping for the worst-case scenarios that they can possibly imagine, the logic being that if you prepare for the worst situations, any other smaller ones will be easy to deal with.
As each year gets just a little worse than the year before it (except for the occasional man-made or natural regional disaster), it is imperative to continue prepping and learning survival skills, in order to become as self-sufficient as possible.
Jerry Erwin is a semi-retired US Army Reserve Intelligence Officer, and Preparedness Consultant. He was the editor of the (too) popular Suburban-Self-Reliance website, which has since been shut down.
References: “Gini Coefficient.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gini_coefficient. 17 September 2011.
“International Space Station.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Space_Station. 18 September 2011.
Karnow, Stanley. Vietnam: A History. 2nd Edition. Penguin. 1997
Frugal Fire Lighting
by Jim Cobb, the frugal prepper
Being able to get a fire going is critical to your survival if lost in the woods or in any number of other crisis situations. Fire will warm your food, boil your water for purification, dry out your clothing, signal for help, and it is just a great morale boost. But if the weather is foul, you might have a hard time finding dry tinder with which to get the fire going. This is where pre-made fire starters come in.
There are any number of manufactured fire starters you can purchase for your various survival kits. Some work better than others but all are better than nothing. While they aren’t inordinately expensive, this is one item you can make very cheaply yourself, using just items you probably already have in your home. Plus, many of these DIY fire starters work just as well or even better than the commercially sold ones.
As I like to say, every dollar you can save elsewhere can be used toward your preps. If you don’t have to spend $10 on manufactured fire starters, you can then buy another eight or ten boxes of .22LR ammunition, right?
One of the best fire starters comes to you ready to go without much of any additional preparation. Dryer lint will catch a spark very easily and usually burns long enough to get your other tinder to catch. Some people have reported a foul odor from using dryer lint in this way. That stands to reason, given there is likely to be a fair amount of human and pet hair mixed in with the cloth fibers. But, if you’re lost in the woods and need to get a fire going, a brief odor is probably the least of your worries. We keep an old hot chocolate canister sitting near our dryer and every time we empty the trap, the lint goes into this canister. Just put a few clumps of it into a zip lock plastic bag and toss that into your kit.
A step up from dryer lint is to use cotton balls soaked in petroleum jelly. Again, these catch a spark very well. Put a good dollop of the jelly into a plastic bag and add a dozen or so cotton balls. Mash the cotton balls and jelly together in the bag for a while, really working them together. You can fit several of these cotton balls in an old 35mm film ca
nister, which seals watertight. To use, take out a cotton ball and fluff it up so the fibers are pretty loose.
Fire straws take the cotton ball and petroleum jelly fire starters to the next level. Get together a few plastic straws, like you’d get at a fast food restaurant, a candle, pliers, and a few toothpicks or bamboo skewers. Cut the straws to your desired length. I make them short enough to fit into an Altoids tin survival kit. Hold one end of the straw over the lit candle for a couple seconds, just long enough to soften the plastic a bit. Crimp that end closed with the pliers. Use the toothpick or bamboo skewer to stuff the straw with a few of your petroleum jelly soaked cotton balls. Once the straw is full, crimp the other end closed like you did before. You now have a completely waterproof fire starter. To use, slit the side of the straw with a knife, then pull out a bunch of the cotton fibers and fluff them up. If you don’t have a blade with you at the time, you could just bite it open.
If you have kids, odds are pretty good you have a mess of broken crayons lying around. You can use those crayons to make some nifty fire starters. The first step is to melt those crayons. What we’ve found works very well is to take an old, washed out soup can and fill it with crayons. Be sure to peel off the paper wrapping on the crayons first. I break them up into small pieces about an inch long. Fill the can about three quarters full with the crayons. Get a small saucepan and fill it with a couple inches of water, then place the soup can into the water. Heat the water to boiling. As the crayons begin to melt, stir them around. I just use a twig from outside to do this so I don’t end up with melted wax all over any kitchen implements. As the wax is melting, take a cardboard egg carton and fill each section with dryer lint. Some folks add sawdust to the dryer lint before filling the egg carton but I’ve never found that to be absolutely necessary. Pack it down pretty tight. Pour melted wax into each section, sealing the dryer lint inside. Once the wax has cooled and hardened, you can cut the sections apart. You’ll find these are probably a little heavier than you might expect. But, they burn very well and plenty long enough to get your fire going. Just light one corner of the cardboard and let it go. The downside to these is they aren’t truly waterproof so you need to keep them sealed in a plastic bag until you need them.