Coronavirus Prep

UPDATE: Due to the uncertainty of the virus'  incubation period, there are recommendations to be prepared for four weeks of staying home. This means no grocery shopping, and I doubt the grocery delivery services will be available. Check the Coalition and CDC web sites below, for a thorough lesson on being prepared. (2/25)

I've been keeping an eye on the progression of the coronavirus of the Johns Hopkins map:

Johns Hopkins Coronavirus map

It focuses on Mainland China, but you can scroll the list on the left to select another country.

Meanwhile, over on Twitter, @BryanDeanWright is (rightfully) grousing that the CDC is saying "Get prepared" without saying about the 'how'!

So, as a public service, I am posting a link to @TreeHuggingSis' blog post on hurricane prep. While you don't need to board up the house, it's got tons on infor for all of your prep needs.

Coalition of the Swilling Disaster Prep

I did mention to Bryan that the CDC does have prep info on line, at the Zombie Apocalypse page. So here is a link to that:

CDC Zombie Apocalypse Page

Because you never know!

DVD Archiving

If you are like me, and want to make back-up copies of your DVDs, but find that they are stubbornly encrypted, here is a free (for the rest of the month) tool to help you:

Passkey can run in the background, so when you insert a DVD into your computer, it will make it ready to be backed up. Once it's ready, you can use something like ImageBurn to either burn a new DVD, or write a DVD (.iso) image to your hard drive.

From the folks at DVDFab.

Welcome (Back) to the 1950s

After reading this,

I had to:


Good advice in the Instapundit article, and great nostalgia for us boomers in the latter.

Remember the 10 AM last Friday of the month drills? The air raid sirens would wail, and we would duck and cover under our desks.

Daily fallout levels as part of the weather forecast.

A very graphic article in the L.A. Times Sunday edition about what would happen if a 10 or 20 kiloton A-bomb were detonated in the L. A. Coliseum. (My house was almost, but not quite on the edge of not being FUBAR'd.)

The Home section at the L. A. County Fair featuring fallout and bomb shelter displays.

Good times.

Whimsey du jour..

...lifted bodily from Gerard:

Bay Bridge's mysterious protector out of hiding

The troll, who has no name, was created and surreptitiously installed in 1989

on a quickly fabricated section of bridge deck that replaced the pieces that collapsed in the Loma Prieta earthquake. He remained out of sight - only bridge workers and boaters could see him on the north side of the span - and cast his magic to protect the bridge and its users. In early September, when the new eastern span opened, the troll was spirited away by ironworkers, who wanted to make sure he was free before demolition of the old span began. - - SFGate

Thanks, man.  I needed that.

P S A

From Maggie's Farm

Day of Resistance

What started out as the morning dog walk tuned into a peaceful assembly/protest.  Who knew??

I didn't know anything about it until I turned the corner onto Main St. and saw this:

We cut  the walk short, and went home.  I swapped my Breakers cap for my NRA cap, and went over to join in and get some photos:

The crowd across the intersection.

Two speeches were given.  Acoustics were crap, but I caught quotations from the Declaration of Independence.  We were exhorted to read and know the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.  He said (I paraphrase) "The Second Amendment is the gun law for this country."  We recited the Pledge of Allegiance.

A couple of folks came bearing arms.

Nifty signs

I haven't been to a demonstration since the 80s.  This one seemed to me to be important to participate in.  The direction President Obama is taking this country is wrong.  No government should have as much control of peoples' live has his assumed, from health care to unconstitutional laws trying to disarm the citizenry.

I have not been this afraid since the early 60s, when I wondered every day if  the Russians would push the button down.  I do not want the sheriff coming to my door to inspect my guns.  I want to afford to shoot  them, which means nothing but sales tax on ammo.  I don't need expensive liability insurance because I own guns.
The people I met today seemed decent, rational, and patriotic.  Several people recommended a particular gun club to me, and I plan on joining.  I don't want to be alone in this mess.

Main and Broadway is a busy intersection, PA routes 24 and 74, from the MD state line, up to York and Carlisle.  We got a lot of support from passers-by, honking horns, waving, and giving thumbs-up.  I'm happy be where the kind of government intrusion Obama seems bent on will be resisted.  I am glad I wound up here.

(Cross posted over the Window on Red Lion)

Bits and Pieces...

For starters, my first lesson for the Education Portal has been published.  For a definition of "programming", got here: Introduction to Programming

Next, I got my License to Carry today!  Amazingly, I sent the application in yesterday, and got an e-mail early this afternoon to go up to the Sheriff's office to pick it up.  He said they were processing about 100 per day.  And that's just York County!

Finally, this, from Holger Awakens:

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Executive Order On Gun Violence? Oh Really....

To: Governor ______________
Rep. __________________
Senator ________________
Senator ________________
State Rep. ______________
State Sen. ______________

From:  (Your Name)
             (Address)
           

CC: Sheriff ________________

RE: Executive Order Regulating/Banning Firearms in America


I am writing today to remind each of you that any executive order issued by President Barack Hussein Obama dealing with regulating or banning firearms in the United States of America is not a law. An executive order does not follow the constitutionally mandated method of enacting laws in this country and in regards to firearms, the 2nd amendment to the U.S. Constitution forbids the infringement of the Federal government on the right of the people to bear arms.

Thus, I am insisting, as a citizen of the State of ___________ and a citizen of the United States of America, that you, as my representatives in a constitutional republic, communicate clearly to me and the other citizens of this state that such an executive order is null and void in this state. I further expect you to enact legislation that spells out in no uncertain terms that the County Sheriff of the counties of this state must prepare a plan to defend the citizens from any sort of harassment, threat or encroachment by any Federal law enforcement official.

I will not follow any such executive order issued and it is your responsibility to be sure that no citizen of this state is duped into believing such an order to be valid.


Respectfully,

( Your Name)

 And, that's been my day!!

"We're screwed..."

...okcupid has a wicked sense of humor!!

We’re screwed. You should be too!

This was in my in box right now, followed by a link to a potential match.

Oh, my!

The New Revolutionary War

The ever-suave and lucid Steven Green has a post up about Michael Cannon's article in the LA Times.  The gist is, many states are not implementing the exchange infrastructure required to make Obamacare "work" (sorry).  He posits that this will make the true costs of the monstrosity visible  to all, causing massive sales in torches, pitchforks, rails, tar and feathers.  (OK, he didn't say the part about increased sales.  But it's a happy dream... .)

Vodkapundit doesn't think this has much of a chance.

This all got me to thinking (uh-oh), which started to coagulate what's been ricocheting around my cranium since the election.  Here's my comment:

"I've been contemplating may navel since the election, and I'm coming to the conclusion that the only way to stop this frikkin' nightmare is to fight and beat it at the state level.  (And by "frikkin' nightmare", I mean the whole greedy, bloated Federal Government!)

State laws prohibiting state enforcement of Federal mandates.

Lawsuits, lawsuits, lawsuits.

States, start to wean yourself off the Federal dime.  Keep your own tax money.  Don't send any money to Washington.  Pay for your own schools and roads.

Keep as much activity and business in-state as you can, to circumvent the commerce clause.

Make yourself business-friendly.  Low taxes, right-to-work.  Train literate and numerate workers - teach them reading. writing, arithmetic, history and computers; art, literature.  Yeah, world art & lit, but make sure there's a solid foundation in American and Western history, lit and art.  Give the kids their heritage, not someone else's.

It doesn't have to be a shooting war, but it is a war."

If we aren't going to start a shooting war, which, I think, is a really bad idea, we need to entrench and start resisting through the "system" at the state level.

But we must fight back, because it is a war.

Thank God Bush Isn't In Charge... (Updated & Bumped x3elebenty

...or Ray Nagin.

Update VI:  Jewel, over at Gerard's, tells a great story:  

"Today, my husband witnessed a wondrous act of resourcefulness. A man with a horse trailer hitched to his truck was filling up individual 5 gallon jugs of gas in order to transport them back to New Jersey. He went out into the wide world of American plenty that lies just beyond disaster. He didn't wait like a hopeless fool in a line of idling cars for gasoline that is rationed by the spoonful. His neighbors hired him because he had a big, gas eating truck, and gave him money and jugs and sent him to Lancaster County to go shopping. He brought back not only gasoline, but food, water, clothing, blankets, batteries, and other things they might need. Those people are heroes, because they used their God-given talents and brains and didn't go crying to the cameras, asking for the government to come and help."

It's easy to get "wrapped around the axle" in a mess like Sandy.  Jewel's post is a wonderful reminder that everything you need is available a couple of hours away.

Update V:  Daily Caller reports that the IBEW sent a letter to the Florida electrical utility demanding that the emergency workers join the (damned) union.  Class act, brothers!

Not to be out done, nanny Bloomberg answers THS's question.  Seems he disapproves of the National Guard's policy of carrying weapons, particularly guns.  He's afraid of "martial law". (Ed Driscoll at Instapundit)

Did I mention that truth is stranger than fiction, because fiction has to make sense?  Yeah, 's true.

Update IV:  Tree Hugging Sister over at the Coalition asks:

FEMA Is Out of Water Redux ~ Anybody Ask the Army Corps of Engineers for Help?

Seems they are waiting to be activated, but none of the super-geniuses in charge have thought to do that.  So supplies that are pre-contracted (like water and ice) are gathering dust while everyone waits for FEMA to get a contract out.  Tomorrow.

And this, from the New York Post: "Some Rockaways residents who work as firefighters in The Bronx and Manhattan were fuming yesterday — sitting idly in their firehouses while their neighbors and family members miles away struggled to get help."


Update III:  The proverbial $64.00 questions that need asking are, "Why weren't Cuomo and Bloomberg setting up relief sites two weeks ago?  Why weren't they pre-positioning bottled water, MREs and blankets?  Who says you have to wait on FEMA to do it??  WHO??"

They have let down the people who have (foolishly) trusted in them.

Update II:  You have to, HAVE TO  be ready to live in isolation for at least a week after something like Sandy or Katrina or the Sylmar quake.  There just aren't enough Official First Responders to come and wipe your nose!!  So far, the only real assistance in Rockaway or Staten Island has been neighbors helping neighbors.  And that is how it happens - you take care of yourself, your family, and your neighborhood.

Update: Mary Katherine Ham at Hot Air has a great piece up about Federal vs. local disaster recovery management, and (of all things) "The Waffle House Index".

Previously:

From Drudge:

I am willing to bet that I am not the only one who was paying attention to the news, particularly the weather, in the last two weeks or so.  I made sure the truck had a full tank.  I made sure that I had propane for the camp stove, batteries for flashlights and camping lamps, a well-stocked freezer and fridge, a clean bathtub full of fresh water,

 Here's the money quote from nanny Bloomberg:

“We are, over the next few days, going to have to work out some procedures to make sure people can get food,” Mayor Bloomberg insisted.

Let that sink in.  Like New Orleans in Katrina, whose disaster preparedness plan amounted to "We should have one".

Yup.  He obviously took lessons from Nagin.

Grab 'n' Go

"Grab 'n' Go" Bags" are you first line of defense in a disaster.  They should be in a place where you can grab them on your way out the door.  These are from the Huntington Beach CERT organization, which I belonged to for a couple of years.  Their purpose is to keep you going if you have to evacuate on short notice.  The contents of these are based on the Southern California environment, so adjust accordingly.

 I sent these to Mr Bingley at The Coalition of the Swilling, and decided that with the approach of Sandy, I put them up here, along with my comments to Mr. B.  (Click for full size)

Sone notes:

Adult, left column: 

• Radio - I have one that runs on its own solar cell, batteries, or juice from its hand crank
• Money - change, $1s, $5s, and $10s.  If you don't break down your $20s, you'll find that everything costs $20.00
• Whistle - make sure it's a damned loud one, not a cheapo toy store one.
• Okay/Help signs - 8 1/2" x 11", 72 point print, red text "Help", green text "OK"  Put the appropriate one in a street-facing window - lets first responders know how you're doing.
• Out of state contact - I expect you might be that for your family down south.  If they can't raise each other, they call you, and you relay messages.
• Important docs - old driver's license/passport
• First aid - no kit is too big.  I like the ones at Sam's - $20.00, great for BLS.  I'd make sure I had tubes of anti-biotic and cortisone creams as well.  Eye drops/wash.  Low dose aspirin, just in case.  Written first aid guide.  

Right column:

• TP - the new cash.  Need I say more?
• Good book - bring some of your favorite adult spirits along w/ the books and cards
• Blanket/tent, etc - I have my camping gear backed in a couple of large plastic storage boxes.
• Dust mask - I can't use the disposable ones - they fog my glasses when I exhale.  I broke down and got an inexpensive (not "cheap") respirator at Home Depot.  Works much better...
• Tools - I have an old catalog case that I keep my hard hat and misc b & e tools in (I was the CERT ligtht urban search & rescue team leader for a year.)

 

Pets - most of the first aid items listed are in a good first aid kit (like the one from Home Depot)

 

Car

• Get an inverter that will run out of the cigarette lighter - this will allow  you to charge things like laptops, that need a 110/120 v AC outlet.  Got mine at Sam's.

 

Random Notes:

• I have "FirstAid", "iTriage" and the "U.S. Army (sorry, Marines) Survival Guide" apps on my 'Droid. 
• Keep a phone charger in your car!!
• Make sure you have an extra phone charger for each phone.  Radio Shack and Office Depot both sell chargers that have interchangeable plugs, so you can use 1 charger to charge several phones (mine plugs into the wall, the cig lighter, and even take a 9v battery!)
• Or just get a cigarette lighter powered USB outlet.  (Apple people, YMMV)

 A good practice is to check the batteries on your smoke alarm, and inventory your survival stuff twice a year, on the day the time changes (or on New Year's Day and the 4th of July if you don't switch to/from Daylight Savings Time).  Make sure batteries are fresh (or charged), rotate water and other perishables.

A bottle or two of your favorite Adult Beverage is not a bad thing to have on hand, either.