The Tactical Life

Off Topic
3417

Ill refrain from addressing the preamble or #7 haha.

To add though (because it applies equally well to natural disasters):

Cash- take a few hundred out, but in $5 bills. You want small denominations so you dont get hustled with the “Ive got no change” bit.

Camping stoves and propane tanks- you can run either backpacking stoves, or car camping stoves off of normal BBQ propane tanks with a $10 hose attachment. Always keep a full spare propane tank around for when the BBQ dies in the middle of cooking chicken thighs, or for when you need to gtfo after a natural disaster.

3418

Idaho already covered this, but I did an experiment on the first case I bought and kept two until last year, at which point they were about 8 years old from the pack date. They were totally fine. Basement storage the whole time though.

I used them more when my boy was younger because he loved them for canoe and backpack trips. Now I’ve got a bunch of 25 year shelf life dehydrated food on hand that won’t need to be rotated out until I’m close to retirement. Hopefully I’ll still be camping, backpacking and canoeing then.

They can stay good for decades, insomuch as you may not die if you eat them. One of my favorite late-night youtube channels is a guy who is essentially an MRE historian who opens both new and VERY old MRE’s and let’s you know what they’re like.

1 Like
3419

I’ve been working through a case I bought ten years ago. Which is the last time I bought MREs. The main entree is sealed in a heavy foil or maybe Mylar pouch. It would probably be good for another decade. All the other stuff, cookies, crackers, etc are sketchy as hell.

They’re expensive and the nutrition value is pretty awful. One entree is maybe 600 calories with 20ish grams of protein. Better than nothing I suppose.

3420

Hell, I was issued C-Rations that were made in the 50’s while on training exercises in the early 80’s.

3421

Thought for the day:

Identify your weaknesses and train until they’re a strength.

A follow up from my preparations post:

As cliche as it might sound, we put in the work during peace time, so we may bleed less during war time.

This mindset applies well beyond the military. How many times has your lack of preparation caught you out?

Regardless if it’s physically, financially, academically or during a physical pursuit of some kind, I bet you can remember a time where your lack of preparation let you down. .

Take this as an accountability check, put in the work now, so you don’t have to suffer greater consequences later. .

2 Likes
3422

Speaking of which, I was voluntold that I was going to be on the swift water rescue team at work, and I can’t swim for shit. I love canoeing and kayaking, but usually wear my lifejacket, and even without that I can doggy paddle or backstroke my way to the bank.

Swim lessons have been humbling, but I’m making steady incremental improvements and can almost say that I’m swimming three or four times a week, not just flailing from one side of the pool to the other like an embecile.

It’s great learning a new skill, you can feel the neurons firing.

2 Likes
3423

I’m high angle rescue certified (Technician level), but haven’t been to swift water yet. While swimming is always a good skill to have and excellent form of conditioning, my understanding of swift water rescue is it is built more around technical aspects (rope systems and such) and not necessarily swimming. Having said that, shit happens and having some swimming skills is a great idea for survivability, both on a rescue team and in general.

From one shitty swimmer to another, if I could do one thing different back in the day, I would get a coach (since we are talking about professional responsibilities here). Can’t say how much better I would have been obviously, but it probably would have sped up my progression considerably.

3424

I’m not sure if I scrolled past an update, but Pat McNamara’s instagram page is functional again. He’s also got a back-up page now too.

3425

I love the rope, con space, and heavy rescue disciplines, which is why I got on the team, but we’ve had a huge increase in water rescues (and recoveries) in the last 3 years, more than all of the other disciplines put together.

Operationally, everything we do would be in a PFD, and maybe even a dry suit. But for Swift Water Technician there is a pretty tough swim test, which is good. Its been on my list for years to learn how to swim, but having a test coming up has gotten my ass in gear.

3426

Swimming pools don’t teach it i imagine, but being very comfortable in and under moving water will be helpful. People panic quickly and do real stupid shit if they get held down for a bit, or get taken by currents. Also, victims will legit try and drown you so they can get way out of the water. My BIL is on water rescue for a large FD and says that a lot of folks are good on the swimming aspect, but struggle with simply being comfortable in water. He credits surfing more than his D1 swimming background.

3427

The first water class I took was Surface Water Rescue, a large portion of which was “combat swimming.” We took turns trying to drown/rescue each other, first with the instructors, then with our brother firefighters.

Of course the instructors would eventually let you win, but with your brother firefighters, everyone was hypercompetitive, and we tried to drown each other for ten to fifteen minutes at a time. I had bruises in the shape of hand prints from some of the gorillas I work with.

3428

This has been my mantra for athletics and life.
a coach whom I should have recorded their every word-
told me to
‘get good at what you suck at- even if its to be less anxious.’

even if its just to train your weakness or bad work practices, til they are not taking up any space in your head
It helped me allot.

My two cousins - dared me to eat an MRE that I know was from the korean war - their dad had it in the garage - this was in like 1984.
It was horrible but Ive eaten worse food.
( like at work - provided meal)

3429

@bagofbro,

Good to see you on here again. Always respect your input. I hope the knee is at least recovered enough not to cause you daily pain. I hope you and your family have dodged the COVID mess, considering in are in ground zero. Don’t be a stranger and be safe.

1 Like
3430

Thought for the day:

Training and practice are processes of continuous action, not events. The only way to own physical skills is to habitually train them.

portland.PNG

This is in no way a criticism of the victim’s actions. A man steps forward to intervene in a street situation and almost gets beaten to death. Like any after action reports, we can all learn something from each encounter. Maybe, you can too.

Portland attack victim says he tried to stop robbery: ‘They wouldn’t let me get up’
“Before I even got my door open, someone was yanking me out and I hit the ground,” the victim says

Adam Haner said he and his girlfriend went to a convenience store in downtown Portland, Ore., on Sunday night when they saw a woman being robbed of her backpack and tried to intervene.

After 80 plus days of rioting, going to a convenience store in downtown Portland was not the most tactically sound decision. If you are going to make the decision to intervene in a street robbery, what are your skills to win? If you are going to intervene, what happens to your girlfriend? Is she skilled enough to protect herself? Are you armed? If not, and the trash doing the robbery was, what are you going to do?

Further more, to anyone reading this, what would you do?

But the crowd of attackers taunted him, called him a white supremacist and shoved his girlfriend to the ground and punched her, Haner told FOX 12 of Oregon.

Well, that answers what happens when you make the decision to take your girlfriend to downtown Portland. If you are going to make decisions that may put you danger, leave behind the untrained. I will not get into race, but being white and being there was not sound decision making.

Haner and his girlfriend, Tammie Martin, quickly decided to get in their separate vehicles, which were parked nearby, and leave the area, he said. But soon the power steering failed in his pickup truck, and he stopped at an intersection.

Don’t really understand the separate vehicle issue. Probably communication between you and your girlfriend to meet at this convenience store, so, both of you driving alone on streets known for rioting? Situational awareness is knowing your area, why choose a
downtown location? Portland doesn’t have stores in the non effected areas?

But soon the power steering failed in his pickup truck, and he stopped at an intersection.

I am no auto mechanic and if I am wrong here, please, correct me. Based on my experience, unless the power steering fluid line is cut, the power steering motor doesn’t immediately fail. It usually starts making a whining sound before it goes out, ample warning to have it repaired.

I wrote this just three days ago:

Transportation : You live in Portland and the terrorists are starting to invade the neighborhoods of the city, burning homes, looting and destroying everything you have worked for. You need to get your family and leave, but, your vehicle has been neglected by your laziness and has a dead battery, or the fuel is low’ or your tires are slick and bald. Your family is trapped because you failed to plan and used the old time worn excuse” I will do it next week”. I have evaded more trouble by being able to egress than I ever have shooting it out.

“And before I even got my door open,” he said, “someone was yanking me out and I hit the ground. And then I sat there for a while and they wouldn’t let me get up,” Haner told FOX 12.

Video seen on social media shows multiple attackers striking Haner – leading up to a brutal kick to his head at the end of the clip.

Decide now, if you are ever being pulled from a vehicle what you are going to do. To me, someone pulling me from a vehicle means a deadly force situation and I will response accordingly. A heavy adjustable wrench or small crowbar is better than nothing. The average person doesn’t know how to respond to violence, hopefully, you do.

“Getting a drink at a 7-Eleven in Portland, Oregon, is a different story than it was two months ago,” he observed, referring to the change in the city since almost nightly rioting began about three months ago.

I am glad you realize that now. Know your environment.

The events of Sunday night appeared to leave Haner bewildered about the state of Oregon’s largest city.

“I was just standing for myself as a citizen,” he said, “and if you can’t do that on a street, then what can you do?”

**When you live in a lawless city controlled by domestic terrorists, you had better decide to learn how to be tactically sound, obtain the training and equipment needed to protect yourself, because, no one is coming to save you. **

That is a very hard lesson for anyone to learn.

potland 2

3431

Yikes, racoon eyes are a classic symptom of a traumatic brain injury, but as I recall don’t show up for awhile after the injury (so don’t go looking for them in the field). Glad he is still alive.

3432

Just sickening. But typical of the “mostly peaceful protestors” our mainstream media keeps telling us about. There is another lesson here too: For those of you of a liberal political bent, don’t think for one second that your progressive politics will save you in a situation like this. If these mad dogs get you in their sight, no protestations along the lines of “But I support BLM!” will make one bit of difference. You will get hit with whatever is convenient - fists, feet, bricks, bottles - right in the middle of your explanation of your woke left-leaning politics. This is not a battle of left v. right; this is a battle of decent people v. thugs.

3433

It can happen suddenly. The whining is a sign of a loose belt I believe. With that said, if I had to guess, he probably ignored some of the signs of the motor going because he couldn’t afford to maintain his vehicle properly.

1 Like
3434

You can still steer with a lot more effort at slow speed turning.

3 Likes
3435

This. Power steering failed suddenly once on my Suburban while I was turning into a parking lot space. Not fun.

3436

Learned how to drive a car at about start of teenage years.
Grandfather’s late 50s pickup. Gear on the column, floor starter, window wings for a/c.

Of course no power steering.

He only had 1/2 of amputated arm, so it had a ball like a forklift to help turn the wheel.

Further on topic - don’t stop, don’t unlock and get dragged out of your vehicle in dicey surroundings. It’s more protection than anything l can think of against most types of attack.

2 Likes