Rule of Threes

One of the things that drives me up the wall is how hard people make the survival thing. The basics are dead simple, and should be taught to every man woman and child, and is called the Rule of Threes:

A bad decision can kill you in three seconds.
No air can kill you in three minutes.
No shelter can kill you in three hours.
No water can kill you in three days.
No food can kill you in three weeks.

Yet surprisingly, most survival pundits will have you prepare in reverse order. I think it should be the other way round.

For starters, don't make dumb decisions like, oh, running a barbeque in an enclosed space. Been done, killed people, end result was a tiny improvement in the average intelligence of the race. That's Darwinism: The dumb ones die off. Thinking about possible scenarios and what YOU would do is the best cure for this.

I'm assuming you get the air thing..in with the good air, out with the bad air...excellent!

Then make sure you've got shelter (and heat): Ever notice how disasters seem to strike on warm summer afternoons? Well, they don't. If you have a blizzard that knocks out your power, how will you heat your home? If you have to abandon your home will you have shelter the first night you stop? These are easy fixes, but do you think many people have a wood stove? Or a decent tent? Think on it.

How about water? Can you find some? Is it safe to drink? Can you make it safe to drink? Do you have the knowledge and equipment to make it safe? Have you any water stored?

NOW we talk food. And believe me, you likely have three weeks or more of food in your home right now, used properly. But you should add to that. Start a food storage program that won't break the bank. It isn’t rocket science.

Then, if you want, get fancy: arm yourself to the teeth and buy a tank, become multi-skilled in blacksmithing, carpentry and basket weaving, buy a fully equipped field hospital, whatever steps you think are necessary and makes your socks roll up and down. It's your nickel.

Just remember: All of the extra stuff is optional add-ons. If all you do is consider the rule of threes, and make preparations for those areas, you'll be ahead of 99% of the population.

It's not hard.