Well over a year ago now, I spent some time and reviewed David Morris’ Survive in Place Course and was relatively happy with it as the course provided me with more information that I honestly expected. This year I decided I was going to keep searching for other useful survival courses, those that I could learn from and of course you, the readers, as well. And so I started with something that definitely “hit home” for me, and that’s this Family Survival System. After all, I have a family and children to protect.
Now, from watching and listening to the sales pitch video the course promised to show me:
- the true risks in America right now and how to prepare for them
- how to use the trash in your garbage to provide enough water for your family for a month
- how to ensure your family never has to go without a hot meal
- how to save a life, even if you have no medical experience
- the types of guns to have and what to do with them
- exactly what knowledge to have and how to trade it for food, money, and more
- learn where the safest place is for your family
- how to turn your home into a fortified bunker without expensive equipment
- what the single most tool you can have to protect your family
- and more…
That sounds promising, doesn’t it? After all I wanted to know “how to use the trash in my garbage to provide enough water for my family!” Had I thought about it for a few moments I probably would have figured it out but the answer didn’t dawn on me at the time. The other topics sounded great too. Gee, maybe I don’t know as much as I think I do? Regardless, I should point out that all of the information comes as immediate-access PDF files. There are four in total. The main file, in my opinion, is very short. Too short to explain all this. There are, fortunately, three additional files detailing additional topics including food storage, handguns, and specifics of prepping with children.
Let me state that I wanted to like this survival system. I really did. The problem is that it’s just missing too much. Here’s a few things that bothered me:
- Like I said above, the main guide is fairly short. I read it in less than an hour for sure. That’s not to say the guide didn’t provide any useful information. It did. It’s just that if you’re looking for details and specifics, you’re not going to find them here. And for me, well, I need the nitty-gritty.
- Speaking of which, times when I would have preferred some recommendations I didn’t get any. The author reiterates the critical need for water (which is a good thing) but when I expected to hear exactly what types of water filters I should buy to keep my family healthy and safe, I didn’t get them! Instead, I got several guidelines that pointed out what I should look for in a quality filter. Why not just tell me? After all, that’s what I’d expect from an expert… tell me what YOU know so that I don’t have to waste my time or, worse, get it wrong. The same can be said for other recommendations as well.
- There were entire aspects of prepping that were ignored. I don’t recall reading anything about lighting (other than perhaps mention of a flashlight for my bug out bag). What, am I supposed to wander around in the dark the entire time? Similarly, I didn’t see anything about power, batteries, the ability to charge equipment, keep things like refrigerators running and so on. Perhaps there’s an assumption that if I have a flashlight and radio then I must have enough batteries for them? OK, but there’s a lot more to the subject of power than assumptions. The same can be said about keeping warm in the winter or cool in the summer… guess I should figure that one out on my own too.
I’m sure there’s more to gripe about but that’s a good start. Now, let’s focus on some things I felt were good:
- It’s concise. Yes, I know I just complained about that but I also understand that not everybody wants the long-winded and boring details. Personally, I do and think it makes a huge difference, but maybe not you.
- The book does cover water, food, and security/safety decently. In fact, the PDF on food was a good read and decent strategy except for the fact that you’re working towards 3-month of food storage over the course of two years. That’s just too long to take if you ask me. You can do much more much faster and not spend a ton doing it if you pay attention to sales and coupons, buy at places like COSTCO or Sam’s Club, and visit your local LDS home storage center (if there’s one around).
- And, while the PDF on prepping with children was most likely common sense if you think about it, I did like the fact that the author choose to discuss them specifically as they are likely the reason why we do most of this stuff to begin with.
While I strongly feel like the Family Survival System course is missing some critical areas you do need to focus on at some point in your prepping, I’ll try to remember that it does focus on THE main areas, including water, food, and security. In most situations, covering these areas WILL keep you alive… assuming you’re not going to freeze to death in the process. 😉 And, so, I can see merit in this course if you’re (1) truly just getting started with prepping and (2) don’t need or want all the fluff that I would prefer!
If this sounds like you then give the Family Survival System a chance. Listen to what he’s got to say–he does make some very good points in the video–and give it a try if you like. There’s no harm as you can always ask for a refund if it doesn’t do what you expected… or keep it for reference like I did.
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