Strategic Relocation: North American Guide to Safe Places

359 Pages·2011·48.51 MB·English

by  Joel M. Skousen et al.

STRATEGIC RELOCATION
North American Guide to Safe Places
3rd Edition
By Joel M. Skousen
and
Andrew L. Skousen
Strategic Relocation
Cover and typesetting by Elizabeth S. Lindsay
Maps and illustrations by Andrew L. Skousen
Third Edition
Copyright 2010 by Joel M. Skousen and Andrew L. Skousen
(Original Copyright 1997, 1st Edition)
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without written permission from the authors, except
by a reviewer who may quote brief passages or reproduce illustrations in a review with appropriate credits; nor
may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means
— electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other — without written permission from the authors.
The information is accurate to the best of our knowledge. All recommendations are made without guarantee
on the part of the authors or publisher. Due to the nature of crises, disasters and threats to life or property, the
authors cannot foresee every possibility and disclaim any liability in connection with the use of this information.
For additional information please contact Joel Skousen, 290 West 580 South, Orem, UT 84058.
Printed in the United States by Printing Resource, Lindon, Utah.
ISBN 978-1-56861-262-1
CONTENTS
Preface ................................................................................
Chapter 3: Freedoms and Politics ...................................20
Introduction ....................................................................... vii Government Threats to Fundamental Rights ...................................................... 20
Freedom and Corruption .........................................................................................21
Taxes ............................................................................................................................ 22
Section One: Selecting a Safe Country ........................1
Regional Self-Sufficiency .......................................................................................... 23
Chapter 1: Essential Criteria ...............................................3
Chapter 4: Crime and Standard of Living ........................25
How Much Do You See? ............................................................................................ 3
Crime and Demographics ....................................................................................... 25
How Do You Process the News? ............................................................................... 3
Crime and Social Unrest .........................................................................................27
What Threats Do You See? ........................................................................................ 4
Pollution ..................................................................................................................... 28
How We View the World ........................................................................................... 5
Health and Medicine ............................................................................................... 30
Customizing Your Strategy ........................................................................................ 8
Schools and Education ............................................................................................. 30
Chapter 2: Geography and Climate ................................... 9
Chapter 5: Prospects for War, Invasion and Terrorism....32
Geography .................................................................................................................... 9
Terrorism .................................................................................................................... 32
Climate ....................................................................................................................... 10
Biological and Chemical War ..................................................................................33
Natural Disaster Threats ........................................................................................... 11
Nuclear War ............................................................................................................... 33
Severe Storms ............................................................................................................. 12
The Phony Collapse of the Soviet Union ............................................................. 34
Hurricanes .................................................................................................................. 12
The Start of War—How We Think it Will Play Out ......................................... 37
Tornadoes ................................................................................................................... 13
Floods .......................................................................................................................... 13
Chapter 8: Regional scorecard ....................................... 38
Earthquakes ............................................................................................................... 15
Western Europe .........................................................................................................38
Volcanoes .................................................................................................................... 17
Eastern Europe ..........................................................................................................42
"End of the World" Scenarios ................................................................................ 18
East Asia ..................................................................................................................... 42
Central Asia ............................................................................................................... 43
Southern Asia ......................................................................................................................... 44 Chapter 10: War, Invasion and Terrorism .........................96
Southeastern Asia ................................................................................................................ 44
Terrorism in America ......................................................................................................... 96
Middle East ............................................................................................................................ 45
Nuclear War ...........................................................................................................................97
The Caribbean ....................................................................................................................... 48
Chemical and Biological War ....................................................................................... 101
South America ....................................................................................................................... 48
Invasion ................................................................................................................................ 102
Africa ......................................................................................................................................... 52
Social Unrest ........................................................................................................................ 102
South Pacific Islands ........................................................................................................... 53
Chapter 11: Government Intrusion on
Australia and New Zealand ...............................................................................................53
Liberty and Individual Lives ..........................................104
US and Canada ......................................................................................................................54
Conspiracy to Control Government ........................................................................... 104
Section Two: North American Analysis .................... 57 Summary Thoughts .......................................................................................................... 108
Chapter 7: US and Canada Geography and Climate .......59
Section Three: Strategies ......................................... 109
Specific Environmental Factors ....................................................................................... 59
Climate Areas Reviewed ..................................................................................................... 62 Chapter 12: Customize a Plan for Your Own Situation ....111
Natural Disasters ................................................................................................................... 65 Assess the Threats .............................................................................................................. 111
Determine Your Financial Options ........................................................................... 112
Chapter 8: Freedom and Politics ......................................71
Consider Your Network - Family and Friends ....................................................... 115
Liberty in the US ..................................................................................................................71
Prepare Immediate Essentials ........................................................................................ 116
Canadian Liberties ............................................................................................................... 71
Demographics ........................................................................................................................ 71 Chapter 13: Choose a Safe Place ................................... 117
State Taxes and Spending .................................................................................................. 74 What is the Best Retreat Option for You?. ................................................................. 117
Property Rights ......................................................................................................................77 Farm or Mountain? ........................................................................................................... 118
Firearm Rights ....................................................................................................................... 80 Access to a Moderately-Sized Metropolis .................................................................. 118
Low Regulation States ......................................................................................................... 80 Rural and Suburban Housing ........................................................................................ 118
Vacation Retreats ............................................................................................................... 119
Chapter 9: Crime, Health and Quality of Life ..................82
Local Requirements .......................................................................................................... 119
Crime ....................................................................................................................................... 82
Pollution .................................................................................................................................. 84 Chapter 14: Make Contingency Plans: If You Must
Medical Help and Regulations ....................................................................................... 88 Live and Work near a Big City ..........................................121
Schools ..................................................................................................................................... 90 Preparations for an Urban Residence .......................................................................... 121
Cost of Living ........................................................................................................................ 92 Make an Emergency Family Plan ................................................................................ 122
Emergency Facilities at Work ............................................................................... 122 Chapter 17: State by State Review ..................................157
Mapping out an Exit Plan .................................................................................... 122
Alabama .................................................................................................................... 161
Sample Exit Plan ..................................................................................................... 123
Alaska ........................................................................................................................ 163
Arizona ..................................................................................................................... 166
Chapter 15: Prepare for the Worst .................................125 Arkansas .................................................................................................................... 168
Ideal Aspects of a Long-Term Retreat .................................................................. 125 California .................................................................................................................. 170
Preparing a Shelter and Safe Room ..................................................................... 125 Colorado ................................................................................................................... 174
Tips on Constructing Retreat Houses ................................................................ 126 Connecticut ............................................................................................................. 177
How to Get Plans ................................................................................................... 126 Delaware ................................................................................................................... 179
Stockpiling Supplies ............................................................................................... 127 Florida ...................................................................................................................... 181
Preparing to Live After a Nuclear Attack ............................................................ 128 Georgia ..................................................................................................................... 184
Summary .................................................................................................................. 128 Hawaii ...................................................................................................................... 187
Idaho ......................................................................................................................... 190
Illinois ...................................................................................................................... 193
Section Four: Regional and State Ratings ............ 129
Indiana .................................................................................................................... 195
Iowa ........................................................................................................................... 197
Chapter 16: Regional Analysis .........................................131
Kansas ........................................................................................................................ 199
Regional Ratings and Population Density .......................................................... 132
Kentucky .................................................................................................................. 201
US Northwest Region ............................................................................................ 134
Louisiana .................................................................................................................. 203
US Southwest Region ............................................................................................ 137
Maine ........................................................................................................................205
US North Central Region ..................................................................................... 139
Maryland .................................................................................................................. 207
US South Central Region ..................................................................................... 140
Massachusetts .......................................................................................................... 209
US Southeast Region ............................................................................................. 140
Michigan .................................................................................................................. 211
US Northeast Region ............................................................................................. 141
Minnesota ................................................................................................................. 214
Southwest Canada .................................................................................................. 142
Mississippi ................................................................................................................216
South Central Canada ............................................................................................ 143
Missouri .................................................................................................................... 218
Southeast Canada ................................................................................................... 143
Montana ................................................................................................................... 221
Regional Color Maps ..................................................................................... 147-156
Nebraska ................................................................................................................... 224
Nevada ...................................................................................................................... 227
New Hampshire ..................................................................................................... 230
New Jersey ................................................................................................................232
New Mexico ............................................................................................................ 234
New York .................................................................................................................. 236
North Carolina ....................................................................................................... 239
North Dakota .......................................................................................................... 242
Ohio .......................................................................................................................... 244
Oklahoma ................................................................................................................. 247
Oregon ..................................................................................................................... 250
Pennsylvania ............................................................................................................ 253
Rhode Island ........................................................................................................... 256
South Carolina .........................................................................................................258
South Dakota ........................................................................................................... 261
Tennessee .................................................................................................................. 263
Texas .......................................................................................................................... 266
Utah .......................................................................................................................... 269
Vermont .................................................................................................................... 273
Virginia .................................................................................................................... 275
Washington .............................................................................................................. 278
West Virginia ........................................................................................................... 281
Wisconsin ................................................................................................................. 283
Wyoming .................................................................................................................. 285
States and US Specific Color Maps .............................................................287-340
Resources ........................................................................ 341
Bibliography .................................................................... 342
Index ................................................................................ 344
Preface
PREFACE
This third edition is a complete re-work of the previous versions of this book and not only This is happening in all Western societies today, without exception. The end
has updated information for 2010 but entirely revised content and layout. The most sig- result is the eventual destruction of liberty, most often through war, tyranny and
nificant changes in this edition include a new world-wide analysis of countries around the economic depression
world, state and province-specific reviews of the US and Canada and dozens of new maps
and tables to make information more accessible. We hope these changes will be helpful as "Even though most people are at least partially aware of the societal problems
you consider relocation opportunities around the world and particularly in North America. around them (debt, profligate spending, war and moral decline), they almost
always fail to be sufficiently concerned to raise the alarm and change direction
before society passes the point of no return. Sadly, I feel that our Western culture
The Value of Strategic Thinking has passed that point of no return. It isn't that it can't be turned around, only that
it won't. One must understand the innate tendencies of most men in order to
What you are about to read in this book is a reflection of our world view—a view that understand why this true.
sees multiple threats to our wellbeing and liberty. Indeed, some threats loom so large they
cannot be avoided, only mitigated by moving to a strategically safe place. Although you "Consider why most people fail to come up to a significant level of enlighten-
may not agree with all our views, our purpose is to inform you of the principle threats that ment and proper action even when they know better. Although the world still has
we see, including those not generally considered by the average population. millions of good people, they almost all suffer from soft thinking habits. When
surrounded by such people, especially in high density urban areas, your personal
In our experience the process of analyzing threats will require some unpleasant consid- security is at risk because you live within an area prone to group thinking and
erations and some tough thinking to really prepare for these threats and the strategic bad judgment, manipulated by the media and the long-term effects of soft and
decisions necessary to survive the difficult times ahead. This "tough thinking" deserves mistaken social ideas promulgated in public education."
some explanation. After years of experience consulting with families about high security
residents and retreats, Joel feels strongly that soft people won't do well in a severe crisis, This "soft thinking" problem is essentially the innate resistance of some people to the tough
and neither will children from homes where their parents don't require mental and physical truths that would lead to enlightenment. Most people constantly seek comfort, look for
toughness. In the first edition Joel wrote: the easy way out, or the least painful solution to problems and ignore more permanent and
honest solutions that are tougher or more costly emotionally. Often in dealing with other
"I don't trust the commonly held, rosy-eyed view of life held by most people. people's problems, individuals evade confronting the core issues to avoid conflict. This
While not a pessimist, I believe in seeing what is real in life, not what I wish it often postpones or exacerbates problems. The same happens when people fail to confront
to be. I firmly believe that excessive optimism or positivism can lead to a partial their own weaknesses with honesty and a willingness to change.
blinding of our ability to see the future, especially relative to security issues. Today
we live in a world awash in illusions of peace, prosperity and security and if you Evading hard mental effort leads to soft thinking, which we see in popular ideas like
build your life around these illusions, they can leave you woefully unprepared "everybody is special", and "I'm OK and you're OK." The world's problems simply don't
when things get really bad. go away by making ourselves blind to the differences between us. Differences have to be
confronted, often with patience, but confronted nonetheless.
"From my observations of history and people I have come to the inescapable
conclusion that it is the tendency of all societies to slowly degenerate into chronic Soft thinking philosophies promote, for example, the illusion that out-of-control criminal
bad judgment, insensitivity to higher moral values and dullness of conscience. minds will reform if given enough "understanding" and that "self-esteem therapy" is a
vi Strategic Relocation
good substitute for real competence. These philosophies promote the idea that rebel-
lious children will "come around" if given enough "unconditional love" and acceptance.
Sometimes they do, because they have an innately good spirit, but mostly they go into
adulthood with chronic bad judgment and weaknesses. Soft thinking also promotes the
false notion that communist dictators really can be reformed by giving them enough aid
and military concessions. The list of human judgment errors is seemingly endless and,
sadly, fatal in the long-term, when done on a national level.
In our opinion the future probabilities for peace and prosperity are not good in a society
which is over-confident in its soft thinking, textbook educated to excess, sensitive only
to the comfortable things it wants to hear and thereby lacking in real wisdom. But, we
do have hope for the relatively small group of people we have seen scattered throughout
every community, who seem to sense that something is wrong with the world. This book
is written for this group to hopefully give them a strategic ability to analyze the long term
trends that will affect their safety and security so they can prepare.
The Role of an Active Conscience
You cannot develop good strategic judgment without a very detailed and accurate view of
what is going on around you. Some of it involves getting access to the right sources of news
and analysis but the most important source is good judgment as directed by an active con-
science. You can actually improve and enhance your ability to be sensitive to your feelings
by listening to them more carefully and following good promptings when they arrive. We
have two small rules which will help you and your children to develop increased sensitivity
to truth and an increased ability to follow through:
Never do anything you feel nervous about, as to the correctness.
Always do what you know you should do, especially when you don't feel like it.
These principles have served our family well for decades. We hope this book will encourage
you in your quest to make some beneficial changes in your lives and those of your children.
Otherwise, strategic relocation is just a change of scenery without improved security.
Introduction vii
INTRODUCTION
What do we mean by "strategic relocation?" In our modern culture it is not uncommon We will examine each one of the most significant threats in this book. Because of the
for individuals or families to relocate multiple times during their life. Change in employ- specifics involved in assessing the dangers to each area, we present our analysis in succes-
ment is probably the number one reason people move, but other factors usually include sive layers of detail. This book is written in four sections that describe the threats and best
proximity to family, educational opportunities and desirable climate. A less-common and options beginning at the international level and continuing on down to specific cities in
often overlooked reason is that of finding an area with better long-term security from the US and Canada.
natural or man-made disasters. Unlike most relocation books, this guide will not teach you
where to buy a house in the best school districts or how to successfully manage your move.
Strategic Relocation was written to help our readers make assessments about the strategic Section One: Selecting a Safe Country
safety of places in the long-term. Planning this move requires careful thinking about the
future and making your own plan to assess and deal with the threats that are most likely Thinking about getting out of the US and living abroad? This section introduces the strategic
to impact you. threats facing the world and then reviews specific countries in light of these criteria—
including popular tax-haven countries and cheaper Central and South American getaways.
Foreseeing future strategic threats can be very hard to do. In this book, we work to give Even if you are not planning on becoming an expatriate, we recommend reading this
you information about obvious threats, such as natural disasters and crime but also provide section since we introduce all significant threats here. This section will educate the reader
information about hidden threats like nuclear war, tyranny and social unrest. We believe on things to consider about climate and scenery, politics and taxes, crime and standard of
these latter threats to be more dangerous than any other threat in the long term and yet living. These chapters also present the prospects for war, invasion and terrorism around the
they are largely ignored by the media and, hence, the general population. world. The last chapter reviews the most popularly considered countries around the world.
Joel has spent decades analyzing current events and the actions of government leaders. Over
the years, he has watched many of the threats outlined above grow against the West and Section Two: North American Analysis
found that the actions of Western government leaders were encouraging and fomenting
these problems. These strange actions are coupled with recurring instances of clearly illegal We still consider the US and Canada the most reliable nations for safety in the future. This
activity by our democratic government. Constitutionally protected rights were inexplica- section describes the threats that are specific to these countries. We cover the differences
bly denied, established rules of law were suspended in critical court cases and government among states and provinces for factors like geography and weather, freedoms and taxes,
agents were acting contrary to their normal roles—seeming to switch to the enemy camp natural medicine, homeschooling, crime and, finally, safer areas from war, tyranny and
and even participate in terrorist attacks against their own people. social unrest.
We conclude that there is an unseen, organized power working behind the scenes to create
and use terrorist attacks, social unrest, racial tensions and war to create excuses for removing Section Three: Strategies
personal liberties. These factions have accumulated enough influence within US and world
governments that they have the power to upset and manipulate natural economic and Now that you know what threats are facing the locations you are considering, how can
political forces for evil purposes. Because of the secrecy involved, tracking these forces and you prepare for them? These chapters present the most important aspects to consider when
the threats they pose is very difficult. Despite all the rhetoric and words by our leaders, making your final choice. This section covers selecting property, building security into
actions speak louder than words and they are currently leading Americans and free people your homestead or vacation retreat and finding a balance between current life and future
everywhere toward disastrous events. security. We also discuss factors such as social networking, employment options and con-
tingency and exit strategies for living in less secure areas.