The United States has become a nation where the pursuit of happiness and the absence of discipline has turned us into a land of politically correct, overweight, sissies intent on pointing the finger at someone else as the source of the problem rather than looking in the mirror like we should. All the kids get trophies now.
Used to be that a kid got the idea of what it took to be a winner either by winning something and knowing what it took to get there. If they lost, they’d appreciate what it took to get a trophy. Collectively, we used to know that if we put in the long hours and the hard work, it would pay off and we would be successful.
Not enough people know this now. It would seem as though we’ve lost something in our culture that we used to rely on to win. At some point in time, we became soft.
We go through our lives now from one carefully controlled environment to the next. Not many people want to work outside in the cold winters or hot summers anymore. We wonder why immigrants are taking our jobs – it’s because not many people are willing to show up and work in the fields or do the menial jobs any more.
If you’re reading this blog there’s a good chance you don’t have this attitude. Why? If you’re here, you’re probably interested in surviving a catastrophic event. Anything from a national power outage to a nuclear war; we prepare for it all. You also know that survival will mean hard work and suffering – something many, if not most Americans don’t want to experience.
I’ve talked with people in the past who have actually said, “If the power went out forever I wouldn’t want to survive.” So much for the pioneering spirit our ancestors brought with them. They would roll over in their graves if they saw what has become of our spirit.
If a little pain and suffering makes you quit, good luck when times get tough. To those with weak mental fortitude: all I can guarantee is pain, suffering, and uncertainty. If society collapses, nobody can say how others will react. Some people riot and others band together to help each other. Hopefully you live in an area where people help each other out. If society takes a nosedive, most visitors of this site will at least be somewhat prepared. Those who fail to see civilization is premised on a fragile infrastructure will be in a world of pain when conditions deteriorate.
Take the Pain!
Obese or overweight? Out of shape? Terrible diet? On a ton of medication? I’ll bet that if you lost some weight a lot of those ailments would disappear. If the idea of giving up McDonald’s food and exercising daily makes you cringe, good luck when the balloon goes up.
Ask yourself this question and be honest: if you had to bug-out twenty miles right now – right this second, could you pick up your bug-out bag and walk the distance? Could you walk it without your bug-out bag? If the answer is no, then you must consider getting yourself back in shape. It could save your life several different ways. One, by making you healthy again allowing you to get rid of the medications and living a healthy life. Two, by giving you the ability to do physical, potentially life saving activities.
Go to your local shopping center or mall and stop in the middle of a bunch of people and look around. In your opinion, how many could walk or run five miles in an emergency? I’ve done this exercise many times and I’m always surprised at how few would be able to do this.
People are more interested in a magic pill will allow us to eat and drink whatever we want. Most people avoid entertaining the idea of exercise and diet. We want all the stuff, whether that’s food, drink, drugs, or electronic toys, that will give us that little dopamine hit instead of working our asses off and being healthy. We now have a national epidemic of people taking opioids. It’s been around for a long time and it seems to just keep getting worse.
A lot of times improving yourself involves some kind of pain, whether it’s the pain of going without alcohol or drugs, or of denying yourself that extra piece of cake. Maybe it’s the pain associated with learning something new instead of watching three hours of T.V. every night. Sometimes you gotta sacrifice for the greater good. Take the pain!
No Easy Road
There’s no easy road to success. If you want more money find a better job or get better at the one you’re doing. A lot of young folks out there today don’t even have jobs and a good number of millennials are happy to live at home with mom and dad. If you’re one of these kids, I say get off your ass and get a job that will allow you to help pay the rent. I don’t care if you’re slinging burgers at McDonald’s or working on Wall Street, you need to be grown up and self sufficient because mom and dad aren’t always going to be there wiping your nose for you.
Check out this crazy story about a 28 year old man who killed his parents because he didn’t want to move out and fend for himself. Sick eh? Granted, it’s the millennial mindset taken to the extreme, but it’s telling that this happened at all. As if all that was bad enough we’ve got rich companies skimming whatever they can off the top and people who don’t want to work skimming off the bottom. Pretty soon there won’t be enough left over for the guy in the middle.
What Can We Do?
First, our kids have to know that hard work and pain is ok. It’s part of the human condition. If you make sure that your kids never feel any pain, they’ll never have a chance to grow. You’re doing them a disservice. Now don’t go around saying, “Jarhead says to starve my kids!”
Let’s not be stupid here. What I’m saying is that if your kid comes up to you fifteen minutes before a meal and says they’re hungry, it’s perfectly fine to tell them to wait instead of giving them a candy bar. If you give in, they’ll never know what it’s like to wait a few minutes. Teach them discipline.
A friend of mine came over with his son and we were all working out. My son (seven years old) gave up after ten minutes and started upstairs. He asked his friend to come with him and the friend said no, he wanted to try out for the football team.
I said, “That’s because he wants it”. My boy came back downstairs and started working out again. I didn’t berate him. I didn’t yell at him, but I opened the door to hard work by pointing out that his friend was working to achieve a goal.
Later this season my buddy called me up and told me his son was killing it on the football field. When he mentioned to his son what a great job he was doing, his boy said, “That’s because I want it, dad!” My buddy had to call me up and tell me what an impact my words had on his son. He was willing to take the pain to get what he wanted.
You don’t need to be friends with your kids. You should love them, but your children need someone who’s going to show them right and wrong and enforce it. Not a mom or dad who wants to be friends and will give in because they don’t want the kids mad at them. Guess what? If your kid has never been mad at you, you either have one hell of an exceptional kid or you aren’t doing your job right.
Set a Goal
Find something you want and set a goal. If you want to change the world you’ve first got to change yourself. I don’t care what it is, but when you set the goal follow up on it. Maybe you want to lose twenty pounds, write a book, walk five miles with your bug-out bag, race in a 5K, or give up drinking beer and eating hotdogs.
Whatever it is, this is how you do it: set a realistic goal and a completion date. Remember, a goal without a due date is just a dream and will never happen.
Next, take instant action on whatever that goal is. If you want to quit drinking, pour all your booze down the drain. If you want to write a book, make a goal to write a thousand words a day or whatever you can produce.
Whatever it is you want to do make a small advance towards that goal every day. Your kids are looking to you as an example. If you set a goal and abandon it a week later, guess what? They’ll do the same thing.
Take Responsibility For Your Actions
When I went to Marine Corps bootcamp, one of the first things the D.I.’s pounded into us was to take responsibility for our actions. If we did something stupid or screwed up, we were expected to own it. They didn’t want to hear excuses or lies, they just wanted to hear you say, “The Private screwed up, sir!”. We were then expected to do whatever we could to make it right.
I think if more people – adults and kids – were held accountable for their actions, we’d live in a different world. Then again, maybe not. If you lack integrity, all the rules in the world won’t make you a better person. What do you think? Am I way outta line here? Questions? Comments? Sound off below!
Photos Courtesy Of:
Daniel Lee
AZ Hook
Mr.Moxtra
DavioTheOne
tj.path
16 comments
You have that right. I live in Florida now and you can’t find a kid that will mow the grass. Every lawn care service around is run by a bunch of hispanics. They are the only ones willing to work outside in the heat. Kids today want to sit in their air conditioned environments and play on their computers all day. I was out mowing peoples lawns for spending money by the time I was 12 and I still mow my own yard at the age of 65.
Same thing for finding kids to shovel walks and driveways up here in Maine. Used to be a thriving business. Now… nothing!
Amen.
right this second…?
No. I’d waste a bunch of time trying to decide which shoes to put on. my bugout stuff is un-packed. I haven’t been a good Scout, I’m frequently unprepared. I’ve been a misfit, and a weakling all my life.
when “that” time comes, there won’t be time to grab your coat, much less your BOB. that said, Yes, I can walk twenty miles. there was a time, when I could have jogged the first ten. and I’ll carry a thirty pound ruck, just for fun… In my lifetime, I have seen enough people of good Character, to at least be able to recognize it. America mass produced them in the past. today they are bench-made: producing people of Character is now only a cottage industry.
Nice to hear from you, Irish! Don’t worry, I won’t be running the first ten miles either.
Inspiring post.
And, man, I have a hard time listening to people who make an excuse for not doing at least some exercise. An old injury force me into a hip replacement last year. Funds were short during recovery, so the gym was out of the question. But…
I found that the walker I used in the days after surgery made a good platform for doing dips…. Five gallon buckets can be filled with different levels of sand for doing “dumbbell” curls…a military issue duffel filled with mulch makes a pretty good punching bag. I went soon from getting around with a walker, to using a cane, to walking miles with a pack.
The only good tip I can add to Jarhead’s advice is to couple your training with something you enjoy. Use it as a reward. After about forty-minutes of daily vigorous exercise, I do Tai Chi for about twenty minutes. That’s the relaxing part for me. Knowing that I have it to look forward to encourages me to exercise regularly.
But twenty minutes of archery, horseshoes, target practice, etc…would be good too.
And I truly pity this young generation that has not realized that the best drug of all is our body’s own endorphins.
I broke my ankle in the 100 Mile Wilderness here in Maine years ago and used similar techniques to get back in shape that you describe here! Glad to see people can still tough it out.
I love this article everything in it is true I do fear for the up and coming generations it’s scary my generation I am 56 years old you couldn’t keep us inside fishing, hunting, exploring, bb guns now day’s you can’t get kids outside
never where more true words spoken YOU NAILED IT
You all are seriously whining about not be able to find a kid to do your physical work on a post about toughening up and putting in physical work!?!
WOW
I thought this was a good article till I read the comments. I guess it wasn’t that good.
I think the idea was that far too many kids don’t want to work for anything any more – they expect you to simply hand them the world on a silver platter. I know when I was a kid I used to mow lawns…or babysit…or take care of peoples’ pets when they went on vacation, if I wanted extra spending cash. IIRC, I got paid $5 per lawn – and that was in the 1980’s. Try finding a kid who will do that for less than $20 now, and I know the inflation rate hasn’t quadrupled since then! I’m divorced, and have two kids who spend most of their time with their libtard mom (thanks to a father-hating, feminazi-backed court system), and they often gripe when I assign them the simplest of chores, or even so much as suggest they go outside and play if they’re bored. Their mother lets then sit around and play video games and watch TV (when they don’t have homework to do). Play outside? Do chores? I may as well be telling them to run 50 miles nonstop uphill in the desert, or something equally absurd!
This is a very well written article with so many truths. I wish some of the close minded, self righteous, tree hugging hippy, “everybody’s a winner” parent could read this.
With the young Population needing “safe spaces”, and comfort animals because of someone’s differing opinion then theirs speaks volumes about where this millenial generation is headed. Triggered at the thought of working for something instead of handouts is not their faults, it’s the fault of our generation enabling that behaviour. It’s time to bring back values, hard work, and disipline.
We are slowing breeding weakling that will hand over the empire to the first hardworking country that doesn’t just challenge them to a video game but actually punches them in the mouth!
Kids need to be lead by example and if the parents are lazy couch potato s then thats what youll get. Im lucky I served in the Scottish division ,infantry and it was tough really tough training but it helped set me up for everything life chucks at me. Now with kids of my own who are interested because im interested in the outdoors ect they are learning. We all joined the Scouts myself as a leader and im getting to teach all the kids useful indoor and outdoor skills. Some kids get it quickly others need.more time but all the parents come to us after say a weeks camp away or a 25 k hike that they didnt think there kid could have done it and are suprised that little patrick can now prepare and cook a meal using a sharp sheath knife ect . Kids need lead same as some adults.
I read your site often and am quite grateful for it. I have an odd question for the owner/primary blogger of this site. Can you comment on the impetus behind or when you first decided to create and post this site? (I am sincere in asking this). Why now, as opposed to (if the Internet existed back then) – ten, twenty years ago,for instance?
I like to think of myself as someone who is relatively learned and open-minded. Some may say I am just a crazy government conspiracy theorist. Fair enough. I do try to do my own research from as many different sources as possible and weigh the information I gather. I am one of those annoying people who seeks a variety of solutions and opinions and questions the status quo. It was during this process that I came across your site. I have much to learn, but I feel an overwhelming sense of anxiety lately. Perhaps this “panic” is a good thing, right? Yet, I find that rather than motivating me to “get off my ass and deal with the pain” I am frozen. I admit, this is counter-productive.
Instead, much like a “ticking clock” this dread seems to drag me under. I sink further into the quicksand of immobility.
I am sure you and many of your readers at this point will immediately quip that I am part of the problem. Many perhaps will assume that I am part of this new generation of snarky, lazy swine. Those who expect everything handed to them in baseless entitlement and without accountability. One with their other hand wrapped around a beer can or joystick.
I admit I am far from the perfect citizen but I would not be completely defenseless under your scrutiny. 😉
OK then. fair enough. But is it OK if, as fat, lazy and unskilled as I am, that I and those of my “ilk,” are at least trying? Does it count at all that we are trying to do the right thing for ourselves, our families, and planet to survive? We seek out resources such as websites like yours to educate ourselves and ask questions. I know it isn’t exactly what we should be doing, but some of us are trying. And we’re scared.
Bottom line: yes, I know we should all be ready and prepared no matter what. We should all be strong and fit and drug and alcohol free. We should all be limber, athletic and able to drop a buffalo at ten paces. We should be combat-ready and aerodynamic, and eat only organic, chemical-free fruits and vegetables. We should all be able to schlep our weight in water up a steep mountainside through rain, sleet or blizzard. If trapped or if we find ourselves somewhere unfamiliar, we should know how to use the natural environment around us to survive. We should be able to construct a military-grade bomb out of a 9-volt battery, two bobby pins and a tampon.
But, well, that’s just not always the case. In fact, despite our best wishes and intentions, some of us can get downright frozen in fear.
Not to sound paranoid, (but I will anyway, so here goes) – I get a distinct feeling of impending doom. The feeling is so strong and unrelenting that sometimes I am convinced there is a ticking clock over my head, (to be a little metaphorical).
Part of me knows this kind of “doomsday” rhetoric is common. It is a phenomenon found throughout time and history. Thus, it should be taken with a careful, but measured grain of salt.
And still, there is that “little voice” inside me. You may call it a raging case of “conspiracy theory-itis,” or the paranoid delusions of an unemployed looney-tune, call it whatever you want, but this growing feeling of dread isn’t going away….and it gets louder and gains more credibility and certainty the more I read and the more research I do.
Something keeps telling me, “No, this is not a drill. This time it’s different.” Or is it? Yes, of course, it’s always best to be ready no matter what. But, I humbly ask that you put judgment aside for a moment to answer my question as best you can.
So (finally), my question is this:
Based on your intel, your vast experience and your gut instinct, without fear-mongering for its own sake – my question is – is this it?
And if so, knowing these things are never exact, how much time do we have…ballpark? I am asking this question of you, site owner, and, with your permission, I also open the question up to your site’s knowledgeable readers.
(And as an aside, I would like to make a request. I ask that people please not disparage or label other people’s decision to end their own lives. It is their life to end. And that decision does not render them weak or make them hopeless losers. Nor does it mean they are “giving up” due to a poor upbringing or inherent laziness.
I thank you all in advance for reading this and for taking my question seriously. I look forward to your thoughts and replies!
-M.D.
Dear Marion,
I don’t know your age, background, or anything about you, beyond what you’ve provided in your posting above.
I am a “Baby Boomer”, and a retired LTC (USA), with 29 years of service, so I have a bit of various experience in this and “other” scenarios.
First of all, I sense from the tone of your message, that you are an intelligent, observant, and sincere individual,… although a bit nervous,…. relax! With that being said, let me offer you some encouragement!
Remember, even the longest journey, begins with the first step! Congratulations! You have taken that first step…… Well, almost….
The true first step in solving any problem, is to identify the problem! (Now it’s time to get out a notebook that you can easily carry with you, so you can write as things come to mind… Barnes & Noble has some great and durable, pocket-sized notebooks)
So,… have you formulated, in your mind, what this potential SHTF scenario represents to you, as the most urgent problem for you and/ or your family? (You may find yourself doing this process multiple times, as you identify multiple problems!)
Next,… gather facts… when you are certain that you have identified the problem, from your perspective (because this will be different for each one of us, depending upon where we are; our experience level; our preparation level; our financial resource availability; etc.), as they pertain to you, and then state your assumptions. It is important to spell out your thinking process, so that at some future point, if a fact, or assumption, later proves to be false, you can easily evaluate the impact upon your overall planning efforts, and make whatever changes are necessary.
After you’ve identified the PROBLEM; stated the FACTS and ASSUMPTIONS; it is now time to develop, what are referred to as COURSES OF ACTION. Simply put, these are at least three, or more different ways of “solving” the problem that you’ve identified.
When you’ve developed your COURSES OF ACTION, it is now time to ANALYZE EACH COURSE OF ACTION. (This is done, by taking one COURSE OF ACTION at a time, without any thought of the other COURSES OF ACTION, and identifying in some objective manner, (e.g.) by means of either “pluses”, “minuses”, and “zeros” for neutral, the factors of each COURSE OF ACTION, by which you will base your decision, as to which COURSE OF ACTION, best “solves” the problem you have identified. You repeat this action, individually, for each COURSE OF ACTION, and summarize your results for each one.) (you could also use numerical values instead of (+, -, and 0)
The next step is called the COMPARISON OF COURSES OF ACTION. This is simply, either adding up the “(pluses)”, and selecting the COURSE OF ACTION with the most “(pluses)”, or highest numerical value, or least number of “(zeros)”,…. however you had established your ranking criterion,…. and, the COURSE OF ACTION selected, is the “solution” to the problem which you identified.
So now that you have “solved” the problem, at least on paper, what you should be left with, are a sequence of steps, which were the facts and assumptions used in your decision making, and which will now serve as the basis for subsequent “problem-solving”, or “decision-making” situations, so that you can prioritize your needs; your training; resources; etc.
I hope this has helped with your first steps,…. preparation,… like tactical defense in the military…… is never complete! Good luck, and don’t get discouraged!
I also take your question seriously.
Please don’t despair. (I look back at my old comments, once in a while to see if they hold up) Sabot 6 gave you good advice. This is “it”. every day is “it”.
the time to do one thing, is today. (that never includes harming yourself)
tomorrow, get up and plan one thing. break it into bites that you can do, and do what you can. what you can do today is live. (and let live)
Nobody is harmed, by that. Preparing for Yourself Takes Nothing at All Away from Anyone Else.