Table of Contents
Preface xvii
Part I Thinking About Risk 1
1 A Method to the Madness 3
A Method for Reducing Complexity 4
A Model for Quantifying Risk 5
The Challenge of Crony Beliefs 6
2 The Specter of Humdrum Calamities 9
Unemployment and Insolvency 10
Loss of Shelter 11
Loss of Basic Utilities or Transportation 12
Unintentional Injury 12
Theft, Harassment, and Intentional Harm 13
Illness and Death 14
But Wait, There's More! 15
3 Exploring Large-Scale Risks 17
Natural Disasters 18
Industrial Accidents 19
Social Unrest and War 20
Economic Crises 22
Pandemics 25
Terrorism 26
4 Oh No, Zombies! 29
Uniquely Virulent and Deadly Diseases 32
Runaway Climate Change 33
Other Planetary-Scale Natural Disasters 34
Exotic Physics and Miscellaneous Space Phenomena 35
Unimpeded Rise of Totalitarian Regimes 36
Global Thermonuclear War 39
Nuclear Electromagnetic Pulse 40
Ghosts, Bigfoot, and the Coming Robot Apocalypse 41
The Scourge of Extraterrestrials 43
Looking Beyond Doomsday 44
Part II The Prepared Lifestyle 45
5 Mind Over Matter 47
6 Building a Rainy-Day Fund 49
Finding Ways to Save 50
Compartmentalizing the Funds 52
Dealing with Debt 53
Knowing Where to Stop 54
7 Safeguarding Your Savings 57
The History of Currencies 58
Debt as a Currency 59
The Age of Coin 60
Fractional Reserve Banking and Fiat Money 63
Cryptocurrencies 66
Revisiting Dangers to Liquidity and Capital 68
Loss of Access to Bank Accounts 68
Adverse Judgments 69
Gradual Inflation 70
Hyperinflation 71
Confiscation of Wealth 72
The (Monetary) Zombie Apocalypse 73
Methods for Mitigating Risk 74
Physical Cash 75
Diversified Bank Deposits 76
Bonds 77
Simple Currency Hedges 78
Equities 79
Stock Options and Commodity Futures Options 81
Precious Metals 83
Real Estate 85
Physical Collectibles 86
Cryptocurrencies and NFTs 87
Insurance Policies and Separation of Assets 87
Portfolio Design Strategies 88
8 Engineering a Doomsday-Proof Career 91
9 Staying Alive 95
Defensive Driving 96
Working at Heights 98
The Enemy in the Medicine Cabinet 99
Alcohol and Recreational Drugs 100
Workshop and Power Tool Safety 101
Fireproofing the Homestead 103
Other Dangers in and Around the Home 104
10 Protecting Oneself in the Digital and Physical Realm 105
Dealing with Online Fraud 106
Maintaining Privacy on the Internet 109
Minimizing the Impact of Burglaries 111
Responding to Muggings and Home Invasions 112
Fending Off Pickpockets 113
A Word on Kindness 114
11 Getting in Shape 115
The Folly of Miracle Cures 116
Establishing a "No Diet" Diet 117
Calorie Restriction vs. Exercise 117
The Importance of the Long Haul 118
12 Building a Community 119
13 Hatching a Plan 121
Jotting Down Scenarios of Concern 122
Modeling Sequences of Events 122
Defining Basic Strategies 123
Identifying Indicators and Decision Points 123
Planning to Fail 124
Facing the Final Contingency 124
From Plans to Supplies 125
Part III The Essentials 127
14 The Discreet Charm of the Bulletproof Vest 129
15 Water 131
Estimating Water Needs 132
Household Storage Options 133
Hydration on the Road 134
Long-Term Storage Tips 135
16 Nourishment 137
Estimating Bulk Calorie Needs 138
Nutrition in the Long Haul 139
Picking a Storage Strategy 140
Keeping Stockpiled Foods Fresh 141
Stocking the Doomsday Pantry 142
Specialty Survival Foods 143
Backyard Gardens as a Source of Food 144
17 Sanitation, Hygiene, and Health 145
Waste Disposal 145
Containment of Flooding and Leaks 147
Dishwashing, Laundry, and Other Chores 148
Personal Hygiene 149
Medication and Medical Supplies 149
Medical Skills 151
18 Fuel and Electricity 153
Keeping the Lights On 154
Powering Small Electronics 155
Staying Warm 156
Staying Cool 157
Cooking 158
Getting Around 158
Looking Beyond Short-Term Outages 159
19 Household and Vehicle Tools 161
Storm Cleanup Equipment 162
Dealing with Car Malfunctions 163
Other Household Gear 164
20 Evacuation Gear 165
General Preparations 166
Setting Up a Camp 167
Bad Weather Preps 168
Food and Water in the Wild 168
Knives and Other Camping Tools 169
Wildlife Management and Physical Security 171
21 Protection against Pollutants and Disease 173
Human-to-Human Transmission of Diseases 174
Zoonotic Disease Vector Control 176
Smoke and Industrial Accidents 177
Nuclear Disaster Preps 178
22 Emergency Communications 181
The Lost Art of Pen and Paper 182
Satellite Communications 182
Two-Way Radios 183
Understanding the Range of Handhelds 184
Radio Bands and Types of Service 186
Digital Radios and Data Transmission 188
Licensing Requirements 189
Looking Beyond Handhelds 189
23 Entertainment and More 191
Part IV Active Self-Defense 193
24 The Politics of Putting up a Fight 195
25 Standing Up for Your Belongings 199
What You Aren't Allowed to Do 200
Buying Some Peace of Mind 200
Buying Time 201
26 Fighting for Your Life 203
The Legalities of Self-Defense 204
The Right to Arm Yourself 205
The Merits of Unarmed Combat 206
Less-Lethal Defense Tools 206
Weapons That Kill 208
27 Understanding Firearms 211
Handguns 212
Semiautomatic Pistols 212
Revolvers 213
Other Concealable Firearms 213
Deciding on Handgun Caliber and Size 213
Long Guns 214
Rifles 215
Shotguns 216
Ammunition 217
Firearm Safety Rules 217
Firearm Storage 218
Getting Good 219
Epilogue 221
Notes 223
Index 237
