Readiness for possible Middle East war

[Highspeed]

Review this for me and point out any holes in my thinking.

My scenario here involves interruptions to infrastructure rather than any primary threat of violence. Maybe it'll happen in the cities, but not here. Some of the following stuff is SOP at this time of year anyway.

1) Fuel shortages\no fuel at all
Fill diesel tank for central heating ( we don't use it except for heating water, it can do double duty for fuel for the truck )
Get dirt bike out of summer storage, check it over, fill tank and spare fuel cans. Maybe do quick build up of second dirt bike, currently dismantled for complete rebuild. If so will need 2 stroke oil for this one as well as fuel
Enough wood already to last for the winter. Probably. No problem to get more
Get spare propane tank for stove

2) No electricity
Make solar oven. Range is gas but oven is electric
Buy paraffin lanterns, more candles and candle lanterns
Can't heat water easily without electricity. Make solar heater
Batteries, must get batteries

3) Food shortages
Lay in stock of dried beans, pasta, cans, the usual stuff
Get air rifle fixed ( already underway ) for hunting rabbits, buy air rifle ammo ( current stock 1000 pellets, but good to have more, is very high powered spring rifle and needs constant practice with to maintain user accuracy )

4) Water shortages
Not sure about this one. Our water comes off the mountain but there is another stage ( pump I assume ) involved getting it to local homes and farms up here because sometimes it fails. Can ferry water from town, maybe when\if things go hot we'll fill the swimming pool to provide water for washing clothes and flushing toilet. Would be good to have drinking water stash
Scout location of storage tank for mountain water, may be possible to retrieve it from there directly if it has inspection hatch. Take bolt croppers, fit own padlock ?

Miscellaneous
Learn how to spell meiscellanous
Go pick up cowboy guns from friend\acquaintance over on the coast. Get\make ammo
Check medical supplies. Have my own survival med kit and two unopened first aid kits at least
Seeing as I am at risk from serious bleeding while on blood meds, get Quik Clot in case of serious cut ?

What have I forgotten\ not even thought about ?

[Aglifter]

You might see some trade disruptions and supply issues, but I don't know that... Well, it really depends what various politicos want to happen - on the good side, for you, Spain is one of the fewEU countries w.o. many Muslims, TMK...

[MelodyByrne]

All I could think while reading this is that all of these preparations are what most people in Northern Idaho do for winter anyway

2 cords of wood? Check. Secondary gas tank full? Check. Diesel? Check. Generators? Check. Food stores? Isn't that what I spent all summer doing, canning? Batteries? Check.

Not that some of the supplies couldn't be added to, certainly. Could always use another big bag of rice and my all-purpose flour stores are low. But sometimes prepared for the normal worries of nature means being prepared for the not-so-normal worries of human conflict.

[Erik]

As a general rule in preparedness, I expect anything that depends on anyone else to be out of service. If you get water from a pumpstation, prepare for it to stop pumping. And I'd make arrangements for water storage well in advance, just in case it stops suddenly.

I've read somewhere that traps are a better alternative for survival than hunting, if you know how to do it. So reading up on how to trap rabbits and stock up on traps might be a good idea. Traps also hunt 24/7, which makes them effective. An alternative is to start your own rabbit farm, I know people that did that here during the war and always had plenty of food, enough to be able to trade for other stuff.

Sanitation. Waste disposal as well as washing and cleaning. Stock up on soap and other sanitation items, and prepare for alternatives to the WC. If the water goes, the WC stops working.

Security. Even if there wont be total anarchy and open violence in the streets, there's always an element among the people that thinks any disruption of normal life is an invitation to go out and take stuff from others. So it doesn't hurt to have some preparedness for it, just in case.

[Erik]

All I could think while reading this is that all of these preparations are what most people in Northern Idaho do for winter anyway

I actually had the same thought about people in the rural areas here. Whenever there's a storm, it's never the old timers or people that grew up here that get in trouble, it's always the city folk that bought a nice house in the country, but are totally unprepared if the power goes out for an hour.

Fun story. A few years ago there was a big snow storm in the area. It took days to clear the main roads, and people started getting worried about the people living in the more rural areas, out in the woods. So they got a map of the houses that had old people living in them that no one had heard from for a few days, and sent the army out with tracked vehicles. So the army comes to one house, and all they can see is the roof sticking up through the snow. The men start digging down frantically by the front door, thinking the owner must be in bad shape. When they finally get the door clear, the door opens and the 80-year old man living there greets them. "Hi guys, come on in, I put on some fresh coffee when I heard you digging!".
The old man had lived there all his life, and he knew to stock up in case he couldn't leave his house for a few weeks.

[Termite]

The main issue in the USA will be fuel prices, and availability. Possibly some homegrown Muzzie terrorists.

[Steamforger]

Pretty much... but a major disruption in fuel prices, in winter... Is not a small thing.

This was the main reason I selected an apartment a little over two miles from the office. Easy bicycle and walking range.

[Termite]

The main issue in the USA will be fuel prices, and availability. Possibly some homegrown Muzzie terrorists.

Pretty much... but a major disruption in fuel prices, in winter... Is not a small thing.

Upside: In case of shortages of various goods, the cold weather helps keeps the dole-ites off the street.
And for those of us in the GoM region, there really isn't much of a heating issue.

[Yogimus]

The main issue in the USA will be fuel prices, and availability. Possibly some homegrown Muzzie terrorists.

Pretty much... but a major disruption in fuel prices, in winter... Is not a small thing.

We don't get our fuel from the mideast.

[Kommander]

The main issue in the USA will be fuel prices, and availability. Possibly some homegrown Muzzie terrorists.

Pretty much... but a major disruption in fuel prices, in winter... Is not a small thing.

We don't get our fuel from the mideast.

Well we get some of it, and a supply restriction there would result in the price jumping everywhere. What we need to do is war game this out and see at what point it starts to affect various regions. I'll do some thinking while I'm out shopping.