Whether you’re on-grid or off, information is king. The data traveling around us via radio and microwaves can provide a wealth of intelligence about what’s going on, be it in our neighborhood or around the world, for anyone who can tap into it and make use of it. Thanks to advances in Software Defined...
When it comes to survival gear, much like military equipment, utility is just as much a feature as an aesthetic. This fusion of both form and function manifests in EDC equipment, as well as gear built for expeditions, adventures, and travel. In our digital age, the fusion between a classic adventurer's notebook and the...
The cost of entry for becoming night vision capable isn't nearly as high as it used to be. Only a few years ago one would not be faulted for believing that the required equipment: Night Vision Goggles, and a functional IR laser and illuminator, were arbitrarily out of reach of non Military or Law-Enforcement...
Few tools have as many practical applications as a pry bar. The mechanical advantages of the leverage that can be generated with a pry tool makes it the perfect implement for a variety of everyday tasks. Unfortunately, a standard crowbar isn’t the most convenient tool to carry around. Not only is it heavy and...
The new survival gear to be found in OFFGRID #44 includes some items that do not technicaly qaulify as life-saving equipment, on the outside. But dig deeper and we find that culture and community are vital to both surviving communities and ofted defines the ones that thrive. Here's a few things to look for,...
There are platitudes that we grow up with: small phrases, parables, and proverbs that apply to a specific situation, or lessons that have a near-universal application. They are less than laws of nature: they are not absolute, but are as close to it as you can get. Imagine the phrase: “Just because you can,...
To legalize or not — that seems to be a burning question for most of America’s 50 states in the 21st century. The legalization of marijuana for both medicinal and recreational use has not only saturated politics within the United States, but has opened the floodgates for American entrepreneurs looking to stake their claim...
My grandfather Willie was a practical man. A retired coal miner who built his cinder block house with his own hands, he kept hogs, a fully stocked cellar, and a three-acre garden. He didn’t abide frivolity. He didn’t hunt or fish for sport — he did it for protein. There were no ornamental flowers...
From theatrics to tactics, smoke has many uses other than perfecting roasted meat and getting in our eyes around a campfire. Whether to obscure movement or to signal allies, the use of smoke long predates firearms, harkening back to the days of large-scale maneuver warfare. In the 21st century, as both technology and industry...
Traumatic injuries occur in the tens of millions every year in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), close to 2-million victims of trauma require hospitalization annually. In normal times, trauma victims have the benefit of an infrastructure that allows rapid stabilization and transport to a modern medical...
