Base Line Training Manual: Tactical Wisdom Series

Joe Dolio's Baseline Training Manual, as a guide for WROL (Without Rule of Law) events (he prefers this to SHTF (S*** Hits the Fan)) survival is definitely an improvement on "Concrete Jungle" and "Prairie Fire" by Clay Martin, but still has issues.One short detour through my own credentials: I have been interested in catastrophic event survival since the 70's. Back then it was nuclear war, right now it is civil war, it might be something else five years from now. I served seven years in the US Army cavalry as a scout and have remained captivated by this topic and the politics/geopolitics that inform it.First, what Joe gets right: he clearly understands that most people seeking to benefit by his book are not going to be Adonis-like physical specimens, and he makes allowances. He is very clear-eyed about what the goal is (Martin thinks it is mobilizing to combat the evil blue....Dolio knows it is survival) and much of his advice is very on point. He provides useful and accurate guidance on stuff without over-emphasizing the Cabela's shopping trip, all the while maintaining a proper regard for developing skills as well. I found his discussion of communications assets especially unusual and yet highly useful.Now, the issues: while Martin has his fixation on developing way more combat skill than one is likely to reasonably need, Dolio's fixation is on "rucking". He spends WAY too much time on the art and science of hiking around, go bags, this bag, that bag, gee, maybe we should have another bag to put inside our bag to go with the other bag. (I am not kidding, he actually recommends which bags to fill and then put inside other bags).I don't find all the hiking advice useful. Like most preparedness-minded individuals, I expect to go to a place AND STAY THERE. I expect to get to this place by vehicle, so a discussion of tactical travelling would be useful. Perhaps it comes in a later book. If so, he should at least have mentioned it. Unlike Martin, Dolio doesn't have a particular disaster in mind. This is intentional on his part. He (mostly rightly) believes that the second and third order effects of all of the WROL/SHTF situations are pretty similar. Problem is, the first order effect that causes the second and third order effects will determine much of the characteristics the second and third order effects develop. A first order effect would be, for example, a Chinese EMP attack. The second order effect is there is no electricity. The third order effect is people start trying to rob each other. As you can see, most of the WROL/SHTF situations would share these second and third order effects, but how quickly order recovers depends on the first order effect (an EMP attack would keep the grid down quite a while, a civil war only intermittently). The import of this is that the first order effect cannot be profitably ignored because the preps are different based on the situation you expect. If I expect a civil war, having my own power generation mitigates most of the challenge, but really isn't necessary unless the place you plan to ride it out is very close to a static battlefield. If I expect an EMP attack, having my own generation capacity and having it EMP hardened is critical.The other thing both Martin and Dolio ignore is the "What after?". Dolio mentions it in passing once but doesn't really address it. For Martin, we will all be too busy re-fighting Antietam to worry about day to day survival. Okay, let's say you've survived. How are you going to support yourself? Dolio mentions hunting and fishing a few times, but this is grossly unrealistic. Unless you anticipate a massive depopulation of the US during the WROL/SHTF, there are simply too many people to make fish and game a solution for any more than the very short-term. He also mentions heirloom seeds, but I got the impression he really didn't know what they were and why people think they're important. Maybe he will discuss those in a later volume.It's funny, and here is my main beef with all of the preparedness literature: none of the authors seem to get that it is not going to be "Mad Max Thunderdome" or "The Book of Eli" (even though Dolio appropriately derides these images of the solitary super-soldier). Significant segments of society will continue to function. What about manufacturing? Commerce? Banking (even if it is with gold and silver coinage...)? Commercial farming? Mining? All of these things will still be occurring, in different configurations no doubt, but occurring nonetheless. If you think in terms of the civil war model Martin does, the state governments will still be functioning and there may well be regional collections of states that band together (think the blue Northeast and West Coast or the red Southeast, Southwest and Rocky Mountain West--Dolio and my own Midwest would be a bloody, purple mess....). If you think of something like an EMP attack, various units of governments will try to reconstitute themselves and some will undoubtedly succeed.Your survival model, therefore, should speak to surviving over the hump and positioning yourself to carry on. Martial Arts and Hiking aren't going to do this. THAT is why there are only three stars...

ꔷ Well organized and very readable.ꔷ Appropriate for every level of prepper.ꔷ Each chapter ends with a “Baseline Standard” of specific steps to take.ꔷ Sturdy construction, well made with good quality paper. Should hold up well.ꔷ This book has been added to the Volusia County Prepping Quick Start Guide.ꔷ In short, it is an essential resource – buy this book.I bought this book with the idea of loaning it out to friends and family who might be ready to start taking preparedness seriously. Frankly, I didn’t expect to get much out of it, having been an active “prepper” for decades. I expected to find yet another basic prepping book. I was wrong. Yes, it is meant as a basic preparedness manual, but there is plenty in there for everyone from the beginning prepper and beyond.As with any book, you’re going to find things you disagree with – and that’s OK. Preparedness is a fairly individualized process. What is appropriate will vary depending on your location, situation, age, and a host of other variables. Baseline Training Manual does a great job of covering the fundamentals that apply to most people. It’s where you want to start, and then perhaps tweak it to suit your specific needs.Each chapter ends with a Baseline Standard – a short list of action items and objectives to make sure that you have the basics covered. This is where the book really shines. It doesn’t let you be content to simply read about preparedness – it takes you to the next step of taking action. Prepping has plenty of armchair preppers who read about it, think about it, but that’s as far as it goes. If that’s where you are, then this book is going to push you to go farther.Each chapter begins with a passage from “The Ultimate Tactical Handbook” – The Holy Bible. Taking survival lessons from God’s word adds another layer of learning, and these are not in there just “for effect” – they are well thought out, and used to illustrate a point.Some random observations about the book:ꔷ Especially for a self-published book, it is well edited.ꔷ The author’s approach to preparedness very closely follows our approach here at Volusia County Prepping.ꔷ No fluff, no long lists – just solid, real-world information throughout.ꔷ Pay attention to his recommended books – Sheep No More will probably be our next book review.ꔷ This book completely avoids the arrogant and condescending tone that far too many ex-military authors seem to take. The reader gets the feeling that this is someone sharing knowledge among friends. It is truly a joy to read. I suspect that his Christian testimony has much to do with that.ꔷ This is planned as the first in a series of Tactical Wisdom books. We’re looking forward to adding those to our preparedness library.(This review is published on the website of Volusia County Prepping)

Well organized, well written.

This is probably one of the best starting points for people concerned about the way the world is headed.Joe is an actual professional, giving you the basics of assembling your kit, your mentality, and your planning.