Strategic Relocation is an interesting book, and probably worth its $49.95 price, but there are some biases in the book that make you question the author’s intent, and integrity. Are the Russians destined to nuke us? Are there “safe” locations throughout the US? Or is Joel Skousen just another shill meant to stir up fear and make a lot of money while we wander in the dark?
Occasionally in this column we devolve into the reasons why many of us feel that some sort of survival strategy at this juncture is prudent. Most people are on a budget, so to divert some of your family resources to prepping that you may end up laughing about 10 years from now can seem a little, well… nuts.
Bad news is everywhere. Depending on how much time you spend on digging into it, you can find scary deceptions and back door deals related to just about every public happening going back to the Civil War. There is also perceived clear and present danger not just from Ebola, but also from the active volcano under Yellowstone Park, the Fukushima reactor in Japan, and the manufactured Islamic Jihadist crisis in the Middle East.
Our nation is now over 17 trillion dollars in debt. It has doubled since 2008. The stock market is soaring because the Federal Reserve has been feeding it for years now, yet at street level, America is not doing very well. By now even the most asleep among us are starting to question where our financial system is going to end up.
I believe that if you look at West Texas, talked about in the documentary below, you will see a gaping hole in Joel’s theory. It is surrounded by primary targets and it is rated a 3 out of five stars.
All of that sets us up for what I would call the “perfect storm.” This would be a culmination of several known issues, combined with some surprises. Remember the Anthax crisis that came right after 911? Wall Street also shut down, but for some reason the perfect storm was averted, and we were all allowed to return to normal. What happens when the expiration date runs out on the current economic bandaid? Why has the government put so much money into militarizing the police, centralized regional control of law enforcement (Fusion Centers), FEMA camps, hundreds of thousands of plastic coffins, HAZMAT suits, etc.
You can drive yourself nuts trying to figure out what is going to trigger the perfect storm, but if you want a good read on many of the factors involved, I suggest a very good book from Joel M. Skousen called Strategic Relocation: North American Guide to Safe Places. If you are not really well versed on the current dangers of the world, Joel goes through most of them. Joel also publishes a newsletter called The World Affairs Brief, and I’ll explain below how these two things tie in. Joel’s basic premise is that the Russians are planning to attack the United States with nuclear weapons in a first strike, and that bugging out to one of his preferred locations, or preferably living there now, is advisable.
Whereas Florida, along with Hawaii, is rated at a zero out of five stars, because everyone here is sure to perish. But if you look, there are few serious targets in Florida at all, and central Florida only has a seldom used bombing range. Florida is the second largest producer of beef cattle in the US, and central Florida is full of ranching and agriculture. It makes no sense, which brings into question everything suggested by Joel Skousen.
What is nice about the book is that it examines many of these issues involved with the dangers of the world, and asks the very real question on everyone’s mind: Where is the safest place to live? Joel breaks down every state in the US according to factors that he feels are salient, including current conditions and overall current “livability” of the state. There are even color maps at the end of the book outlining each state to show you where the primary and second nuclear strike sites are throughout the state. This is a $49.95 book, not your average $15 prepper book on Amazon. If you take survival seriously, and you think that something is actually coming, Strategic Relocation is not only a thought provoking read. It also will give you good solid advice as to which parts of the US are conducive for long terms survival and which ones are not.
My biggest issues with the book are that I feel Joel has some regions that he is familiar with, and some that he just went on Wikipedia to research. For instance, Florida, where I live, and Hawaii, where I have visited, are both rated as zero in his star systems. Therefore, Joel advises that you live in neither state for long term survival, despite the fact that both states are considered resort quality living, and both states are homes, second homes, and occasional homes to the richest people in the world.
That, to me, calls into question his overall objectivity, but more important, his integrity. Joel wrote books about the “Survival Home” back in the 1970s. The first version of Strategic Relocation was published in 1998, and Joel has been a consultant to the stars on the topic of survival shelters for more than 30 years. Is the intentional zero rating of Florida and Hawaii merely to take eyes off the subject of survival homes in those states, where thousands have been built, some by him? I know from experience that central Florida is a great bugout location. There are roads that extend more than 10 miles off the beaten path. Fresh water is everywhere, and Florida produces the 2nd most beef cattle in the nation, next to Texas, so there are cows everywhere. Gardening is not easy in Florida, but it can be done and done successfully. Guns are all over the place, so much so that in central Florida there was very little boom in the market after Sandy Hook. Everyone has guns, and this makes for a very polite society in “Florida Cracker” country. Joel rates Florida gun liberty as “average,” even though the state is “shall issue” for concealed carry, and all that is required is a short course and $117 fee.
Contrast that with Texas, explained in the Alex Jones interview with Joel below. Texas is a 3 star state, yet West Texas, where Joel suggests everyone in Texas secure as a bugout location, is surrounded by primary nuclear targets. Gun liberty in Texas is “very good” despite the fact that there are far more banned weapons than Florida, but otherwise the gun laws are very similar. He has entirely left out that Texas is a hotbed of military participation in community policing, military drills in civil unrest, and an egregious gateway state to illegal immigration. It makes no sense.
If we now take that variable of making no sense and apply it to Joel’s theory that Joel’s Russian Apocalypse theory, the water just gets a little too cloudy. He is so convinced that this is going to happen that he has devoted his whole career to becoming an “expert” on this premise. It sounds believable, and in the book he does go into a great deal of detail about the former Soviet Union and what evidence there is to support that belief. But in my overall analysis of the situation, I see little evidence that the current Russian government is anything more than a profiteering bunch of gangsters enslaved to the Western banks like the rest of us.
To challenge my assumption, I went ahead and subscribed to Joel’s World Affairs Brief. Here is the list of headlines from the last one, on October 24th:
- Zone Next Step in Conquering Syria
- Canadian Shooting a False Flag?
- Ebola a Hoax? Not so Fast
- Supreme Court Fails to Support Jury Supremacy
- Pro-Gay Bias at Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
- Government Waste Still Rampant Despite Huge Deficits
- DHS Preparing for Mass Integration of Illegals
- Vote Fraud an Epidemic Now
- Intel Agencies’ Control of Media
- Preparation Tip: Heating with Wood
I am not going to violate Joel’s copyright and post the contents of the newsletter, but as you can see, it is a mix of what I would call liberty grab outrage and religious points (Joel is a devout Mormon). None of these things are novel or what you won’t hear on just about any liberty website, podcast or Youtube channel.
Noticeably absent, after 3 months of my subscription, is any inside information on what the Russians or Chinese are doing to prepare for a nuclear war against the United States. There hasn’t been anything in his newsletters of a particularly exclusive nature at all.
Below is the 2:41 long Stategic Relocation interview with Joel by Alex Jones that was released as a documentary. And below that is an infographic demonstrating over 12 trillion in missing money, including almost 4 trillion by the Department of Defense, all of it unaccounted for in fighting an endless supply of enemies. Is Joel Skousen just another government shill pimping Russia as the old enemy turned new enemy turned imminent enemy? Please share your thoughts below in the comments.
I am having some doubts about Skousen. I like him and he seems sincere but I just don’t know. He’s recommending areas that are too cold to survive in. The jury is still out.
I think various locations rec’d a 0 rating for a combination of factors, foreign invasion/attack yes..but also the location’s vulnerability to weather hazards ie: tornados, hurricanes and earthquake… So Florida and Hawaii – completely under water due to a weather event would be a big negative.
I watched a video of the author being interviewed about this book and subject and he definitely included weather hazards in the rating.
Can someone explain why Hawaii is rated a zero?
Reason is if it was occupied by Russia or china how you plan on getting off a island. There are more reasons that are covered in video.
Volcano activity. severe weather(typhoon/tidal wave)…and vulnerability to invasion…limited natural resources to support population. no where to evacuate to …
Having grown up in the Colorado mountains I have a deep appreciation of local terrain as we would hike and play in numerous granite outcroppings.
Since it was during the Cold War there was ample justification to believe or plan for the apocalypse. My family did that. In spite of its fortress like quality the high mountains are very sparse in wild food, also have a long icy winter, that requires a lot of fuel.
My point being that every place has pluses and minuses. Hawaii would be a great place if you knew it well. There’s wild food, dense terrain and a year round climate. Downside it’s expensive and you will be haoule to the locals,
Survival wherever you are is an art which requires strategic awareness of your location. It’s best to cultivate options in whatever area you call home, since that is what you know and the community your mesh with. While I would rate places like Arkansas extremely high, I lived there and it has no local economy.
Go with what you know well with as your life has to work on all levels. If you have lots of stuff what’s to keep locals from taking it? You might say my gun collection! That’s just a deterrent, better left unused. If it’s one vs many you won’t win. Best make all those arrangements well in advance. Full Contingency planning is impossible. None of us knows what we will do if it all goes to hell but personally I don’t see that happening. I lived thru much worse times.
One of my neighbors was killed Halloween night, hit by a car. Luckily his 4 year old son survived. It was a stark reminder.
If you bet that it’s all going to hell, it’s a pretty long bet. Accidents, old age and disease have always been more likely outcome.
Havent read his book, but can tell you for a fact that Nuclear attack of any sort from Russa or any other Power would be a Global Dustruction Event period. We would launch and that would be the END. This AINT going to happen, but I do see a major terriost group setting off some sort of device in or near one of many of our majore cities. We have let the government add new agencies to protect us but who are they really protecting? It is going to be left up to YOU to be able to defend your loved ones and what ever you own for as long as you can. So be prepaired to take what ever comes your way and ADAPT, and OVER COME.
Check out how much property the LDS church owns in central Fl. I think I smell a rat.
They don’t own any. Likes brothers owns it all.
There is not a thing written that is going to do any good at all for the poor old farts like myself.
We don’t have the money for the food, survival supplies or relocations. Over the years I have sold off all my firearms just to get by.
I would think that I’m not the only one that has had to do that. I have a machete a few hunting type knives and my stick with a sharp point. I’m 73 and will not last long in a fight but by damned, I won’t go down alone.
There will be blood in the streets and as I see it, it will start here in this country either with the Islams, or the trucking industry will be shut down by the Government. Just how long will it take for the stores to run out of food. I’ll stop now…………………….
You take everything with a grain of salt however there is location. I’m soooo far off the grid that one has to travel 10 miles or so to get to a grid. The nearest town is 20 miles away and only has 2900 residents. The access to mine is a dirt path off a seldom used dirt road. The nearest blacktop road is over 10 miles away. It also sits on one of the largest aquifers in the southwest so water is not a problem.
I have the book. I am not Mormon. I don’t think Russia is going to attack.
I do believe a civil war is on the horizon due to politicians balkanizing the people of the US, the economy collapsing, etc. I also think it is more likely that Mexico and Jihadis will invade than Russia.
But that’s just me.
I believe Joel gave Florida and Texas zero stars because they were over-the-top vulnerable. Florida is surrounded by water and can be accessed from almost any direction by an invader (remember, he believes Red Dawn is how America will fall… Damn Russians!). Texas is similar, being flat, exposed, and dotted heavily with military targets. Heck, he even gives land-locked Kansas zero stars because its so easy for tanks and troops to march across. So even though I think his Russian/N. Korean/Chinese invasion scenario is super unlikely, I can see why those states being somewhat vulnerable. That is why all of his mapped retreat locations are in hilly, rural areas, usually more than 50 miles from major highways.
So if you think 10 miles from a major road is far enough, and you don’t expect the golden hoards of Cuba to swarm the aging population of Florida, then buy land in the everglades! Take his research and use it as an information resource, not as a guide, and let your decisions rest on your own judgement, not Joel’s.
I do, however, think it is wise to live in the place you believe you should retreat to. Which is why I bought his book and am making plans to move. His book helped me make my decision.
I have to admit that I have not read Joel’s book. However, I agree with his overall assertion that Florida is not a great place to be in a SHTF situation. Why? Two problems (of many): The state, which has grown tremendously over the last thirty years, is way over populated for the available resources. Second, much of the aformentioned population growth has been in the “under class” (and I’m not talking race but rather the ignorant, uneducated, unprepared, media-obsessed, government-take-care-of-me types). I think anyone living in Florida needs to be prepared to repel – using deadly force – massive “zombie hoards” of desperate under class types in any really bad situation that lasts more than a week or two. Thus the reason I now live in North Georgia after living and working in Central Florida from 1988 to 2012. Thanks for reading my respectful disagreement. Cheers! DB
I’ve heard so many good things about N Georgia and would love to get more input about the area.
You can email me if you would be so kind.
I live in Central Florida … and I plan to get out. If one looks at all the military installations that dot the State of Florida …. there will be plenty of Atomic Nuclear cloud overlap.
Mobile ALA … not safe …
Precious metals, barter, bullets and bandages.
Those crazy people in CO buying the old missile silo’s …. not so crazy anymore ….
I’ve not read the book … but from the sound of things … a little internet research and a little Southern boy common sense can do much better
I read this book about a month ago and I have to agree with this article, regarding the conclusions the book reaches. I would also point out that an excessive amount of space is dedicated to pushing the author’s belief system on readers. For me, this detracted heavily from an otherwise informative read. My suggestion to others is to take the raw information presented, mix in your own beliefs about our future, and arrive at your own conclusions regarding the best locations.
I personally don’t buy into the nuclear strike theory. There are no winners in a nuclear strike, because the after effects are global in scale. If Russia or China nuked us, they would contaminate their own air and water from the fallout. They would also trigger an ice age which would inconvenience them as much as anyone else. We wouldn’t even need to strike back. Their own people would die slow painful deaths from the worldwide radiation. They’re not simple-minded zealots. They’re people who have the same goals and desires we have. They’re also not morons.
On the other hand, there are so many other potential causes for a societal breakdown, that something is very likely going to happen. It may be economic collapse. It might be a super volcano eruption. It might be a solar flare killing the power grid of the entire world. Preparing makes sense, no matter what you believe is going to be the cause of societal breakdown.
I would suggest anyone who wants to see what will happen to this country read Civil War II. The author who has been a mercenary in several civil war around the world. Shows why we will end up here and what triggers it. Russia is not mentioned as a supporter of any faction in a civil war here. China is because they will support their people who are here and will attempt to take the Northwest of the USA. but nothing nuclear. The only nuclear he mentions is the political class of the USA setting them off on their own people in an attempt to stop them from taking out the political class. I think the safest place if you are white is as far north as you can get. Hispanic will need to be in the southwest to start. The suspect is Mexico will engage on the side if Hispanics here and that will be the major war. Blacks are on their own as no one in the world sees value in them., So no one will step up to help them. It is a good read and you will find where he feels that you want to bug out to. I will share this with everyone. You do not want to be anywhere near a big city. Make sure you are many miles away from the out lying areas of any city. Those areas will see millions dead and chaos the ruler of them.
Here is a likely fact: if you need to go somewhere after things go SHTF, you will most likely die soon.
Simple reason, if you do not live where you are going to need to be, getting there will likely get you killed or stranded along the way.
Look around your house, do you really think you and/or you family will be able to survive for more than a couple of days without the shelter of your home and the stocks of food, clothing and etc… contained within it?
Do people really think having a bugout bag with maybe 30-40 pounds of gear is going to do you any good after a few days?
Are people really so stupid they believe they will be able to get 200-300 miles or more to what they consider their safe place?
Largely what I have seen is a lot of money being screwed out of people by convincing them the movies are right! You will be able to drive long distances, over abandoned roads to get to your “safe” place. Or better yet, fly a plane out of the airport to some special abandoned air field. LOL
If you are not able to survive where you currently live, then you need to think about why you live there.
If you think having a gated community gives you extra protection, you are a fool. If you think having barbed wire around you home is a good idea, you have spent too much time in the military, or not enough.
While Alex has some ideas, several of them are easy to see as just plain stupid wrong!!
If one is concerned about nuclear war, then you look at the target areas, (easy to find online ) and compare those to wind patterns. Stay out of being downwind!!
If you just think society is going to collapse, then don’t live in a city!
If you think about food being short, remember cannibalism has been common through out history when food becomes short. If you are squeamish, then you will not survive a truly bad collapse of society.
The single most important question to ask yourself is this; will I want to live after the fall?
Many people in the United States have no idea what it means to live as people do when a third world county collapses. If we had a truly catastrophic collapse of our country, who would be coming to help? Now or later???
Would the Russians or Chinese really want to come over to our glowing landscape? Knowing that even if our military did not exist any longer, we have millions of well armed people ready to kill them just to eat their rations.
They would have serious problems of their own, and between the two, they are not coming over here any time soon to see what they could pick up in real estate!
Lots of stuff written, lots of stuff speculated about, one guarantee though, it will all be largely wrong!
So read his book, not much worth reading though, or think it through after looking at the Sudan, Bosnia, Chad, The Congo, to name a few. See what has happened, is happening then make some decisions about what to do next.
Hell just look at the Watts riots or the Rodney King riots for a small taste of just how well things will go and be handled! Or better yet, look into Haiti. See just how poorly government helps the people during a time of crisis.
You are right, sir. Except, I think, if you have a private plane, and keep it fueled up on an airstrip at your house, and also have an airstrip at your destination, then that is a pretty reliable way to get anywhere within its range — certainly better than driving. But I bet you’re right about most people who would buy one of these properties: They are wasting their money if they are dependent on getting through traffic and to a working airport, both highly questionable activities in many SHTF scenarios.
While Florida would seem to me to be the best place in the country to be in a scenario with no electricity for the long term (i.e., a Carrington event / solar storm, or nuclear EMP, or economic collapse or cyber war) because you won’t freeze to death and you can grow food, fish and hunt year round, perhaps the book downgrades it because it is mostly lower than 100 feet above sea level. So Florida is the last place you’d want to be during massive waves due to a large meteor hitting the Gulf or Atlantic, or enormous sea level rise due to global warming. (Personally, I see those scenarios as very unlikely to affect central Florida within the next century, much less likely than a Carrington event.)
Excellent points on the review of Skousen’s latest book. While I AM a “devout Mormon”, I disagree completely with his premises he touts for many states. I believe, from reading that book, that he has not visited most of the states he rated low, nor is he all that familiar with them, other than the tourist traps and metropolis centers. When I lived in southern California during my first professional career, the “crush of humanity” was a daily reminder to get out of there. With natural disasters, the few roads OUT of southern California, it is indeed a terrible place for “strategic living”. He also has highly rated southern Utah, which haven’t spent a great deal of time there, I can attest that GOOD water(much less any water) is difficult to find anytime of the year, and the land itself is not conducive to having a meaningful garden of any kind, the winters can be brutal,and the summers are extremely hot and can be extremely humid as well, when the monsoon humidity blows up from Phoenix-which happens all the time. While I’m not a “fan” of Texas, even with the military bases there, (many of which he lists, have been de-activated) the prevailing weather patterns are far more conducive to living even in the event of nuclear strikes on the bases he mentions, than most other places in the country. I have family living in north central Florida, they have abundant water, good land, decent weather, don’t get direct hits from hurricanes, cost of living is better than most places in the country, and most of the people in that region are pretty decent folks, to boot. I don’t “get” Skousen’s analysis at all, and to me, it smacks of another agenda altogether. Good review. Please keep telling it like it is.
One aspect about rating states is that one has to take into account the state firearm laws and how they affect someone from even being able to amply prepare. Florida should damn well be near in the top for this. I agree with the author’s finding – it doesn’t make sense why Florida would be rated low. The climate and resources (growing-raising food, water) are tops but more importantly, what are you going to do when a 100 person mini Viking-style tribe comes knocking at your door? That’s what the world will be like – those with the guns will get all the gold. In Florida, we can own anything that can be owned Federally so NFA stuff galore. In places like the northeast or West coast, you cannot defend yourself with a deer gun. Not against a large group of raiding rapists which will surely make up our demographic after the collapse. Everyone should be thinking where they can live that makes sense AND allows one to adequately prepare in the weapons department.
I have a friend who was once voted one of the top ten gunsmiths for something he does by some sports magazine. He pointed out what I saw in ‘Nam – a lot – if you have a good deer rifle (say a Rem. 700 or equivalent in .308 or larger) and you practice, by the end of day one you will be able to pick up any fully-Semi-auto firearm of your choice from the ‘fields of battle’. I’ve thought that over MANY times over MANY years, and think: yes. VERY true. ONE shot from outside the range of the full-semi-auto, and THAT firearm and what is on the body is now yours for the taking. So while I may or may not have an Awesome 5.56 or 7.62 around, I may or may not also have some VERY accurate bolt action rifles with some glass that turns time-to-quit-evening into maybe another hour or more of hunting. And here’s the scary thing: it may just be someone on THIS list whose rifle I take for mid-range targets – in the home a pistol or shotgun.
And as for ‘hunting’ WTSHTF, figure most all your large animals will go away real fast leaving your two best firearms for ‘survival’ a .22LR or one of the .17’s for rodents, and a nice 12 ga. pump for birds. And without veggies, an knowing how-when to grow a garden and preserve food, you’ll just get sick and die. It’ll all work itself out –
But people on this list ought to be thinking about how to grow food (and preserve it) and nurse the ill FAR more than they need to add another firearm to their armory.
And you’d be surprised the effect of people being hit before they hear the report of a rifle has on a band of marauding rapists — it scared the crap out of ME when I was in ‘Nam and I ran around with Marines. ONE round can make you think far more than once about moving again right away. You kind of want to hunker down and think things through – after your first spray and pray. Now think TWO or three people go down before you hear the report. It might be time to move away really fast. Single, well considered, shots can be devastating to any group- large or small.
Joel is correct on one point at least. The end of this country as we know it is fast approaching, and the wise are doing what they can to prepare for it. The bottom line is that whether from a war or economic collapse, etc., we are already collapsing. The stupid and the unprepared are going to die by the 100’s of thousands when they can’t get the day to day necessities of life. I am preparing for an economic collapse, but any of the various scenarios one can imagine will likely cause an economic collapse on top of whatever else may be precipitating it. Its an ugly thing to consider, but the wise are preparing. Look at the Federal government, they are the biggest preppers of all, and they are doing it with our money. They fully plan to survive their own self inflicted mess, and use us as the slaves to keep them afloat through it all. Get ready, as best you can. Maybe it won’t be enough, but we have to try.
I agree with you on this article as I to live in central Fl. I have read Joel’s book a few years back and disagreed with a few of his choices along with others who rate states for relocation.
…well, Mr/ Joel has a book, consulting services, et. al. to peddle. He’s just “marketing” all this stuff. Hey, what business person would not?
TAKE HOME: It is up to YOU to sort out fact vs. fiction. TRUTH vs. falsehood.
Don’t be so quick to hang labels on people.
Sift things out. If you glean one “gem” from a person, including Joel, you’re ahead of the game.
KNOWLEDGE=POWER.