Re: "Sitrep from Puerto rico post Hurricane" in forum "Off Topic".

[weekendracer]

I would love to get a night vision scope for one of my rifles, but at $3-4K, it will not be in my budget anytime soon.

It doesn't have to be on your rifle. Chances are, you don't want to engage in a SHTF situation anyway. Even a low budget NV can give you a significant situational awareness advantage. Don't overthink it.

Edit: Good number of reviews, the majority are high rated reviews, if you believe it:

http://www.cabelas.com/product/hunt...s-x-nightvision-monocular/752232.uts?slotId=7

 

[Jason m]

It doesn't have to be on your rifle. Chances are, you don't want to engage in a SHTF situation anyway. Even a low budget NV can give you a significant situational awareness advantage. Don't overthink it.

Edit: Good number of reviews, the majority are high rated reviews, if you believe it:

http://www.cabelas.com/product/hunt...s-x-nightvision-monocular/752232.uts?slotId=7

I was going to say that Cabelas one for the money works pretty darn good. It will give you the edge over someone coming at you in the pitch dark. It has its limits like not be able to mount it to a gun, but that also has its limits to that specific gun when another firearm might be needed.

Jason.

 

[xero2099]

having heard form relatives there some shops are open but need cash to pay for the stuff since most banks and Atms arent working best to have some cash handy

 

[cockpitbob]

having heard form relatives there some shops are open but need cash to pay for the stuff since most banks and Atms arent working best to have some cash handy

Part of anyone's preps should be a stash of cash at home. Some people keep some cash in their safe deposit box, but the banks probably won't be open or able to open the safe without power. And in this day of sub-1% interest, why not stuff your mattress with some cash?

As I think someone mentioned earlier, things have to get really bad (the .gov has broken down) before things like gold and silver become commonly traded. Cash is king for a non-apocalyptic SHTF.

 

[KBCraig]

Part of anyone's preps should be a stash of cash at home. Some people keep some cash in their safe deposit box, but the banks probably won't be open or able to open the safe without power. And in this day of sub-1% interest, why not stuff your mattress with some cash?

As I think someone mentioned earlier, things have to get really bad (the .gov has broken down) before things like gold and silver become commonly traded. Cash is king for a non-apocalyptic SHTF.

Gresham's Law says the cash will be the most important at first, but will soon fall victim to hard currency.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

Gresham's Law says the cash will be the most important at first, but will soon fall victim to hard currency.

I don't think that will happen in PR, since the disaster did not wipe out the nation that supplies the currency. If PR printed its own currency, reversion to hard currency would be a very real possibility - but I don't see the US dollar becoming less accepted in PR because the disaster is not going to materially effect the actual perceived value of that fiat.

There is a time when cash is better than "hard currency". Try going into the supermarket when the power has been out for 5 days, all the banks are closed and ATMs down, and you are trying to buy a few loaves of bread for American silver Eagles and want "spot value" for them. Not going to happen, though you may be able to unload them at a discount.

My disaster plan is a $20 in my car in case I forget my wallet and still want a sammich.

 

[garandman]

Part of anyone's preps should be a stash of cash at home. Some people keep some cash in their safe deposit box, but the banks probably won't be open or able to open the safe without power. And in this day of sub-1% interest, why not stuff your mattress with some cash?

Some Mormon friends taught me a technique. Pay for every transaction you make for a week in $20’s. Keep all the small bills you receive as change and put it in the safe.

Turns out in extended outages where folks are getting money from ATM’s, they only have $20’s and shops quickly run out of small bills.

I continually debate how much cash to keep at home.

 

[Another_David]

Typical 3rd world protocol is no one makes change. So if you negotiate a ride for $2 and only have $5s, you're paying $5

Same happens in a disaster.

 

[MisterHappy]

Typical 3rd world protocol is no one makes change. So if you negotiate a ride for $2 and only have $5s, you're paying $5

Same happens in a disaster.

That makes the ride worth $5.

 

[Uzi2]

I was going to say that Cabelas one for the money works pretty darn good. It will give you the edge over someone coming at you in the pitch dark. It has its limits like not be able to mount it to a gun, but that also has its limits to that specific gun when another firearm might be needed.

Jason.

Anything can be mounted to a gun.

 

[qqac]

Tincture of iodine. 10 drops per liter kills bacteria. Google it for backpackers. Lasts forever instead of those short-life water purification tablets. Good for disinfecting cuts. In water, it gives about 30x the daily recommended dose of iodine to flush the thyroid (think nuclear incident). You don't need potassium iodide pills.

3 wonderful things in that tiny bottle. Keep many on hand. I do. Buy them at the drug store.

On the phone, so sorry for the cryptic text.

Sent from the Warlock Command Center

Iodine water tastes terrible, but activated charcoal will help neutralize the taste.

 

[Jason m]

View attachment 209142Anything can be mounted to a gun.

Ah the Red Green handy mans secret to optic mounts.

Jason.

 

[weekendracer]

Iodine water tastes terrible, but activated charcoal will help neutralize the taste.

I went and bought some scotch for Hurricane Nate. That should cover the taste of the iodine water?

 

[namedpipes]

I went and bought some scotch for Hurricane Nate. That should cover the taste of the iodine water?

It'll either cover it or allow you not to care. Works either way!

 

[KBCraig]

I went and bought some scotch for Hurricane Nate. That should cover the taste of the iodine water?

Unless you bought Islay malts, then you'll need some iodine to get the scotch taste out of your mouth.

 

[weekendracer]

Unless you bought Islay malts, then you'll need some iodine to get the scotch taste out of your mouth.

I almost bought Glenlivit (sp), but dear lord, I'm a cheap bastard I guess. Ended up with a much cheaper brand.

 

[Lcstyle]

There is a time when cash is better than "hard currency". Try going into the supermarket when the power has been out for 5 days, all the banks are closed and ATMs down, and you are trying to buy a few loaves of bread for American silver Eagles and want "spot value" for them. Not going to happen, though you may be able to unload them at a discount.

FerFal wrote about this in one of his books. The point of PM's is to protect yourself from inflation. Here's a real world example:

Today 1 oz silver is worth x # of "Pesos". So you go to a place offering to buy PM's (everyone wants PM's to escape the inflation, and didn't think to do this pre-collapse, so there's a huge demand for PM's). You exchange your 1 oz in PM for that X number of Pesos.

Tomorrow 1oz silver is now worth x + y (inflation) number of pesos. So you exchange your PM's for that amount of Pesos.

The cost of everything is skyrocketing, but that doesn't affect you, because you are holding wealth in PM and exchanging the PM for the current exchange rate on a daily basis.

Of course according to FerFal's writings, the prices of items was being adjusted several times A DAY to reflect the skyrocketing inflation, so you're still going to suffer some slippage.

Better to take an ounce or two of gold, and exchange that for "pesos" to buy yourself a few plane tickets out of there (no matter what the cost).

 

[headednorth]

FerFal wrote about this in one of his books. The point of PM's is to protect yourself from inflation. Here's a real world example:

Today 1 oz silver is worth x # of "Pesos". So you go to a place offering to buy PM's (everyone wants PM's to escape the inflation, and didn't think to do this pre-collapse, so there's a huge demand for PM's). You exchange your 1 oz in PM for that X number of Pesos.

Tomorrow 1oz silver is now worth x + y (inflation) number of pesos. So you exchange your PM's for that amount of Pesos.

The cost of everything is skyrocketing, but that doesn't affect you, because you are holding wealth in PM and exchanging the PM for the current exchange rate on a daily basis.

Of course according to FerFal's writings, the prices of items was being adjusted several times A DAY to reflect the skyrocketing inflation, so you're still going to suffer some slippage.

Better to take an ounce or two of gold, and exchange that for "pesos" to buy yourself a few plane tickets out of there (no matter what the cost).

Don't recall if this was told by the same guy, but he suggested holding PM's in the form of jewelry. People would buy basics like bread by clipping a few links off of a gold chain which the shopkeeper would weigh and they would come to an agreement on price that way. Easier than trying to buy a loaf of bread with a 1oz gold coin.

 

[Lcstyle]

Don't recall if this was told by the same guy, but he suggested holding PM's in the form of jewelry. People would buy basics like bread by clipping a few links off of a gold chain which the shopkeeper would weigh and they would come to an agreement on price that way. Easier than trying to buy a loaf of bread with a 1oz gold coin.

Indeed it was the same guy. In a "things-gone-awry" situation, where people are starving, the last thing you want is to go around flashing a bunch of PM's or gold coins. However anyone has a couple of pieces of jewelry, that doesn't necessarily mean they're hoarding a stockpile. So, it wouldn't be considered "out of the ordinary" in the same way that trading gold or silver coins is.

"Junk Gold" is a good idea for that reason.

 

[namedpipes]

So what's going on in PR now?

Is food getting distributed again? Etc.?

 

[cockpitbob]

The cost of everything is skyrocketing, but that doesn't affect you, because you are holding wealth in PM and exchanging the PM for the current exchange rate on a daily basis.

Great way to put it. I hadn't thought of PMs that way. Similar to how a friend describes people in impoverished nations doing mostly barter. He said "Even in massive inflation, your cow is still worth one cow."

 

[xtry51]

http://www.npr.org/2017/10/13/55710...-infrastructure-puerto-ricans-flee-to-florida

http://www.wsj.com/articles/a-daugh...ly-parents-stranded-in-puerto-rico-1507907485

http://www.scientificamerican.com/a...roject-loon-balloons-to-restore-cell-service/

http://www.fastcompany.com/40478304...volunteers-are-dropping-supplies-by-parachute

 

[Jason m]

My sister and brother in law lost half of there barn, and lost most trees they had on the property. The owned a small farm and lived mostly off the grid. But simple things like running water and basic supply's they miss but are managing without.

My sister in law travels into town to get what little WiFi she can to send out a few quick messages. She lost half of the chickens but still are trading eggs for other stuff. One thing she is taking away from all this is basic things like eggs are very sought after in trade.

Jason.

 

[Uzi2]

My sister and brother in law lost half of there barn, and lost most trees they had on the property. The owned a small farm and lived mostly off the grid. But simple things like running water and basic supply's they miss but are managing without.

My sister in law travels into town to get what little WiFi she can to send out a few quick messages. She lost half of the chickens but still are trading eggs for other stuff. One thing she is taking away from all this is basic things like eggs are very sought after in trade.

Jason.

They live on an island where commodities can quickly become limited, the place experiences major storms on a routine basis, they apparently have a clue about living a Spartan life if they're mostly off grid.

Serious question here, not meant to offend.....How can they possibly explain that they did they not have a back up plan with their water situation? Containers, filtration, manual pumps, etc.

It blows my mind that so many people don't realize how critical it is to have a secondary source of potable water, even if you have to make it potable yourself.

I wish them well and hope they learn from their major mistake.

 

[Admin]

Power is still out for most of the island, phone lines are up and down constantly.

 

[Jason m]

They live on an island where commodities can quickly become limited, the place experiences major storms on a routine basis, they apparently have a clue about living a Spartan life if they're mostly off grid.

Serious question here, not meant to offend.....How can they possibly explain that they did they not have a back up plan with their water situation? Containers, filtration, manual pumps, etc.

It blows my mind that so many people don't realize how critical it is to have a secondary source of potable water, even if you have to make it potable yourself.

I wish them well and hope they learn from their major mistake.

Notice what I said, "running water". They have a river near by and Im sure they are collecting rain water as it rains and rains heavy there some times daily enough to where my brother in law has a pic of himself taken a shower in the heavy rain.

But nothing beats just turning on the sink or shower inside your own safe private house I think that's what they miss the most.

Jason.

 

[mibro]

One thing she is taking away from all this is basic things like eggs are very sought after in trade.

Chickens are amazing creatures, much underappreciated, bug to egg converters.

 

[garandman]

Chickens are amazing creatures, much underappreciated, bug to egg converters.

”Farm animals” are prohibited in Boston, but a lot of people wanted chickens. So the city changed their classification to “Domestic pets.” They usually become neighborhood celebrities: I’ve met “Hennifer Lopez.”

 

[MisterHappy]

I was there, a couple of weeks back.

Actually, we'd booked a cruise last March, and it was too much of a PITA to change it.

We went to San Juan on 11/6. The van driver from the airport to the ship now had a 2.5 hour commute, as the roads from his home to the job mostly weren't there. He also had no water, or electricity. The airport was normal, but the view on Final approach was a lot of blue tarps.

About half the stores were on generator, some portables, some trailer-mounted. Everyone was trying to get back to business. In Old San Juan, the older buildings were pretty much intact. On the drive from the airport, there was a lot of damage. I'm sure that part of it was that the old buildings, that would have not survived, were blown away long ago. There were a couple huuuge trees that the storms took out.

We hit several other islands, some more stomped, some dodged the bullet. In St Croix, there was an older Carnival ship, tied up, acting as a floating hotel for FEMA. They got it bad. In fact, we were not supposed to stop there, but they opened up at the last minute, and we docked there. No excursions, but the water and sand was still there. Only down side, was as I was getting my money's worth of UV, one of my kids asked, "Are you going for the 'corpse look' or 'whale on the beach'?" Little snot. I taught him well

My take: when you get a bit away from the touristy areas, the people mostly have not much. The good of that is that it's easy to get back to where you were; the bad is that it was not much above nothing. On most of the islands, concrete block is the basic house material, because hurricanes.

Interesting trip.

 

[JayMcB]

It doesn't have to be on your rifle. Chances are, you don't want to engage in a SHTF situation anyway. Even a low budget NV can give you a significant situational awareness advantage. Don't overthink it.

Edit: Good number of reviews, the majority are high rated reviews, if you believe it:

http://www.cabelas.com/product/hunt...s-x-nightvision-monocular/752232.uts?slotId=7

You can get a digital NV scope and mounts for <$500. It's not $4k+ Gen IV, but it's a lot better than nothing. Sightmark Photon XT. Works in a pinch as a day scope, but really designed to be a night scope. I have one set up on an AR whose nickname is Justin Case. It gives you a significant advantage if you want to engage targets at night.

I suspect it pisses off my NH neighbors when I am pinging my steel target at 100 yards at night the handful of times I've practiced with it. With a good IR illuminator, I suspect you could go further.