Just for Fun, Design Yor Apocalypse Vessel

Canada protects her borders.
But if society collapsed, I don't think we are restricting to a national catastrophe.
The current world is so interdependent, I imagine it would be global anarchy, a domino effect.
National borders would become meaningless and unpatrolled.
Who wants to do police work for free? Folks will still defend their territory, but dramatically down sized.

 

True, but deserts, swamps and mountains are not survivable for long, and the competition for any game, water arable land would be fierce.

Sure there would be no government, but that would mean no police, army etc to protect you in your search for food and shelter.

But then - it all depends on the type of disaster I suppose, there are any amount to choose from,

I was just watching a show called Preppers - and the two main characters, hoarding away years of food etc.

check them out - you can see why they are soooo concerned about foooood

 

I think that you need to describe how you imagine an apocalypse. Where and how does it happen? Even the extinction of bees and other pollinating insects would be an apocalypse, with no need for huge tsunamis, earthquakes or devastating hurricanes. A quiet but deadly food-starvation apocalypse. No boat could save you from that one.

 

No wifi.

 

OMG!!!

 

I don't hoard food. I'm not a prepper and wouldn't need to anyway. I can live off the land most anywhere in the USA. All you need is information and will power. Knowing what wild plants and insects are safe to eat, and the will power to chew and swallow unfamiliar and less than delicious foods. Water is obtainable even in most American desserts. If you know how. Our deserts are not like the sahara.
If nobody told you raw oysters were good to eat, would you be the first to try one? Would you eat road kill rather than starve? You have to be determined to survive. WANT to live.
As far as game goes, I have eaten and enjoyed monkey. Tasted like high grade pork. Don't have wild monkeys in the USA but didn't the south pacific islanders call human flesh "long pig"?
It ain't the zombies plump preppers have to worry about eating them! But unscrupulous submariners marauding from a submerged fortress in the swamp!

I am, just in case, hoarding web pages so I can read them if I don't have internet. Filled up two external hardrives with saved pages this forum alone.

The desert plants pictured contain water. Extract with a simple solar still made from plastic sheet, a pot, a depression scraped in the ground,and a pebble..

 

The actual chain of events in any drastic scenario that causes a world wide break down of society as we know it is a very interesting study full of variables. I'm willing to bet that sociologists and other researchers work on this question at Universities and Think Tanks a lot more than they used to. Obviously its become popular with numerous television shows and movies based in post-apoc scenarios. I think the keystone to begin speculating how it will play it out is the nature of the disaster itself;
Zombie Apocalypse - Highly Unlikely, see 'The Walking Dead' and dozens of films for reference, but at least the afore mentioned TV show deals with the chain of events in the most realistic manner I've seen.
Solar Flare of Meteor/Asteroid Collision - Most agree the odds are highly unlikely, but you could ask the dinosaurs I suppose, they might have a difference of opinion.
Global Nuclear War - Probably more likely that an Asteroid, but hopefully less likely than we might imagine. Depending on where you are in the world it could be survivable and a good knowledge of weather patterns to avoid fallout would keep you alive for awhile, but depending on the level of radiation present in the atmosphere it would probably catch up with you no matter where you go.
Massive Natural Disaster (earthquakes, volcanoes, typhoon/hurricane, tsunami, etc) - The odds are against this happening on a Global scale. These things happen often enough but are confined to a small region of the globe at any given time.
Viral Pandemic - Probably more likely than all of the above, but still remote. Luckily we do have some technology in medicine on our side and well organized groups of professionals dedicated to identification, containment, and treatment of serious contagious diseases.
Economic collapse followed by mass civil unrest, rioting, civil war, etc. As unlikely as this may seem to the conservative minded I still believe this is most likely scenario to actually happen within my life-time. I believe all the elements currently exist that would kick off a chain of events like falling dominoes.

No matter what the scenario, many experts (and I use this term loosely) believe there will be common reactions and stages that will occur. The population at greatest risk are those in densely populated urban areas. Roads and highways will immediately become full stopped jammed as the panicking sheep attempt to flee. At the same time mobs will overrun all manner of retail outlets, some looting for supplies while others loot for anything. Police and Emergency Services will quickly become overwhelmed. Marshall law will follow, its speed determined by the given scenario. Military and Military Reserve elements will be hampered by the inability to recall personnel and deploy, as they will be stuck in the same gridlock and chaos on the highways as everyone else, feel compelled to protect their own families, and when confronted with the order to use force on fellow citizens many will choose not to and abandon posts, possibly taking military equipment and supplies they have in their charge and keeping it for their own survival. Situation dependent and based on escalation speed of conditions, eventually there will be mass desertion of military ranks, possibly even the formation of small rebel military factions who remain banded together. With a lack of any peace-keeping force, police or military, bands of raiders, pirates, and general scum will form to take food, weapons, and supplies by force, raping and killing at will. This is just a quick outline... People who see the writing on the wall early enough will steer clear of all of this. Urban dwellers who have enough early warning and avoid lanes of mass transportation will escape the area before all routes of exodus become blocked. This why those 'preppers' have a 'bug out' route planned on foot leading to a hidden vehicle or other out of the way means of transportation to escape a city. People in rural areas will be afforded more time to react, however their isolation can also play to a disadvantage if 'refugees' or raiders sweep into the area looking to take what they can by force.
In any case, I can see the water from my front door and I can get to it without using the highways. When push comes to shove my 2 & 1/2 ton 4x4 has a good deal of 'shove' in my favor. My problem is getting my boat out of the bay without running into trouble, which leads me to consider a marina that has direct access to the ocean, but would be farther up the coast. In that case I'd need to keep a RHIB handy that I could launch from my truck bed, a good outboard with enough power and fuel capacity to make it North 40 miles. Launching without a trailer is no problem, I'll just sink the truck ;-) Besides, once I siphon the remaining fuel out what good is it to me anyway? The easier solution... I should start looking for a house farther up the coast and out of the city!

 

WIFI Hoarding - Now I know why my connections been slow

 

I wouldn't worry about it. In fact I don't.
If you have a successful career, successfully raised or raising a family, have formed long term friendships, then you will survive any situation that isn't a direct assault on you, such as catching a bullet, or lightning striking you. You already KNOW how to succeed. How to survive.
You are perceptive enough to get your boat out of the bay ahead of the pack, if that's what is needed, because you will have seen the clues sooner than most. You are comfortable making hard decisions and carrying them thru. You do it all the time.
Unless you see signs of imminent collapse, (please post if that's the case) then upsetting your lifestyle prematurely isn't indicated, I think.
You can hone survival skills and learn new ones. Gives you confidence.
Can you throw a net? Can you MAKE a net?
Do you know what wild herbs and saps have pharmaceutical value? For example, pine sap is antiseptic and can glue non lethal wounds together.
Most spices have medicinal uses. Some as anaesthetics.
Ginger and cloves are topical anaesthetics. Oil of clove is used in over the counter tooth ache medicine.
It's claimed when Hipocrates was teaching medicine, he sent his advanced students into the world searching for a plant with no medicinal value.
When the frustrated and sad student returned after long search, and apologized for failing to find any plant that didn't have SOME use as medicine, Hipocrates consoled him saying "Congratulations DOCTOR!"
There is a lot of interesting things to study and learn that have value in normal life even if catastrophe DOESN'T strike! Let's hope and pray it doesn't.

 

Actually there is a very scary story trending as we speak (post).

A Liberian man got on a plane to Lagos, started with diarrhoea then vomitting - after collapsing and being quarantined he died shortly after from Ebola,

The remaining 70+ passengers have been identified and quarantined.

The scary 'what if' part is that had he flown a day earlier he would have been roaming around a city of 21 million people unchecked!

 

Sure, but at least he took himself to hospital.
Far more worrying is the woman whose relatives broke her out of a hospital.
I think she might have died now, but she and her relatives were in contact with others in the hospital and who knows where else.

 

I don't believe so? his sister died of the virus 3 weeks ago. He only ended up in the Hospital after collapsing on the flight.

Incubation times are said to be 2 days to 3 weeks (so close to the limit) with no known antiviral or vaccine available - the mortality rate is 70-90% and much of the survival is attributed to nutrition and combatting dehydration.

And yes the BBC site has confirmed the AWOL lady in Sierra Leone re-admitted herself but died shortly after, though 2 of her relatives are still at large despite being believed to be showing symptoms.

There is a rumour that the government medical officer in charge of combatting the spread has also been hospitalised after testing positive...

 

There are other diseases more frightening than ebola, which is not airbourne.
Contagion requires direct contact with carrier or their bodily fluids.

The black plague which devastated Europe several times during middle ages, was transmitted by fleas, which can jump amazing distances.

Diseases such as malaria, transmitted by flying insect bites, are much more difficult to avoid.

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs103/en/

information about ebola in above link.

If you really want to avoid hazard to your health, read the next article, "The Hidden Epidemic"

http://news.streetroots.org/2012/03/28/hidden-epidemic-medical-errors-are-leading-cause-death-us

Then search internet for leading causes of death statistics. Many sources place doctor error among the top three causes of death in US.

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs310/en/

The World Health Organization (above) doesn't include doctor error at all as causing death. Neither does CDC on their sites. Of course WHO and CDC are run by doctors. But isn't that TERRIFYING? Not only are doctors THE leading cause or among the top three LEADING causes of death, but THEY are covering it up! Lying about it. Hiding the TRUTH.

Chances of encountering a ebola infexted person? My guess very slim unless you are n africa.

Chances of intentionally putting yourself in the hands of a physician?

The answer is obvious ladies and gentlemen.
Avoid visiting Africa or doctors offices.
AVOID them like the PLAGUE!

So what do I do when I'm ill?
I'd see a veterinarian.
They are trained to treat humans as well as animals.
In many locales, the vet is nearest thing to a doctor within 100s of miles.
Vet schools know this and train students in treating human illnesses.
Veterinarians think differently than doctors.
They keep farmers livestock healthy.
Livestock doesn't have health insurance.
A quick effective cure is the vets agenda.

Of course if you are infectious and a danger to others? They just shoot you.

 

Strange isn't it that some 7 centuries after the bubonic plague, children still sing the nursery rhyme - Ring o Roses

The roses being the rings of blisters on the skin. The cause was thought to be bad air and sniffing strongly scented herbs would prevent it - 'a pocketful of posies'. sneezing was also a symptom and mortality was high... 'Achoo, Achoo - we all fall down'

Such folk songs were often used to pass on knowledge within a population where illiteracy was the norm.

Usefull post apocalyptic survival tips in song form...

Further to YoBarnacles post on the uses of herbs - Listen to the folk song Scarborough Fayre - it has many veiled meanings - Parsley Sage Rosemary and Thyme - can be used for either their contraceptive or abortive qualities - references to the dry well and the thorn which never bore fruit since Adam was born are found through the lyrics...

 

Uh ? Yeah sure.

I will totally avoid Doctors when I have a severe pain - even though for the last 60 years they have reduced it considerably, prescribed treatments that worked and managed to make cut and broken bits of my body work properly again.

That statistic is pretty strange.

"We define it as a combination of medical errors where the doctors, nurses or health care workers make mistakes: health care acquired infections, misdiagnoses, medication errors, surgical errors that produce either fatality or some form of morbidity, blood clots, hospital-acquired diarrheas that they can’t control."

"A third of people who are dying are dying because they’ve had some kind of relationship with their health care delivery system"

- is just too high to be true




Death numbers vary widely, depending on the study and methodology:

Between 44,000 and 98,000 Americans die each year in U.S. hospitals due to preventable medical errors (Institute Of Medicine, 1999).

195,000 Americans die a year due to preventable errors (HealthGrades, 2004)

32,500 patients die as a result of preventable medical errors in U.S. hospitals. The HHS number was lower than the IOM study because it only examined deaths resulting from 18 specific types of medical injuries. (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2003)

http://www.leanblog.org/2009/08/statistics-on-healthcare-quality-and/



At your article
http://news.streetroots.org/2012/03/28/hidden-epidemic-medical-errors-are-leading-cause-death-us

it says

" (and report) we have 100,000 medical errors. But people get misled by that number. These are means, these are scientists picking out the middle value. So, picking the middle value, you still get 788,558"

How is MIDDLE figure of 100,000 = 788,000 ????