Reader Questions of Collapse Factors

UrbanSurvivalSkills.com received two e-mail questions and we're going to respond to in a single post.
 
Wayne asked:  "Sovereign Man said that two things – economic deterioration and the increasingly heavy hand of Big Brother– are the essential ingredients in revolution.   When combined, widespread social upheaval is nearly a foregone conclusion.  Then he went on to state that thinking people need to recognize the risks and consequences at stake, and formulate a plan to prepare for them. My ultimate recommendation is to set up a safe haven location outside of your home country– a crash pad in a stable place where you can feel secure in your family’s safety and watch the turmoil on television instead of from your front porch. (p.s. these are almost verbatim).  What do you think of this and is there any relation to the riots you wrote about last week?"

UrbanMan replies:  I have not read Sovereign Man for awhile, but he is dead on the mark.  Excessive government regulation which tends to take freedoms away from people as well as destroy the economy, and the economy tanking making it harder for people to make ends meet will set the stage for riots,....be it food riots, riots against authority,...anything excuse or reason will do to serve as a catalyst for the people's frustrations.   And I think we are seeing the leading edge of riots in this country that have plagued Europe.  It will get worse as this country runs out of money to pay entitlements.  The "entitled" will think they are getting the short end of the stick and these groups are largely in urban densities.   Can anyone say "Detroit"?    

As far as Sovereign Man's recommendation to set up a safe haven outside of your home country?   Where the hell is that going to be?  Costa Rica or some other Central American country where the military rules and gringos have second class rights?   No thanks, I'm sticking to the good ole U.S.  The more of us are prepared, the better off this country and also better the chances of rebuilding something worthwhile.......and preparation be it for natural disasters, economic depression or a total SHTF scenario, are becoming much more mainstream.
 
Anonymous wrote:  "There is an article in the New York Times talking about a severe shortage of drugs especially for infections.  The article also stated that since supplies were so low, people were paying sometimes 20 times, yes 20 times!!!!! the regular price.   This scares the shit out of me as my wife and son are pretty prone to getting infections and going on antibiotics.  Is this something that is going to get better or worse and will it cause a pandemic?

UrbanMan replies:  Yes, I have been keeping on top of this.  A couple friends of mine reported that their hospitals reported they "don't stock" a certain medication,...probably a political correct way of saying "we can't get it".   Viral infections can be spread causing a pandemic in the worst case, and I believe it is harder for bacterial infections to spread.  My base preparations for the increasing chances of sickness and disease is to use good hygiene; be prepared to quarantine any people you take in during a collapse;  and maximum use of nutrition and supplements to build our immune systems as a prophylaxis (preventative measure) to sickness and disease.   My base thinking is that this will not get any better unless the economy rebounds and costs of medical treatment are reduced.