beat the odds t a e B t a e B s d d o the SURVIVAL MANUAL TIM MACWELCH Illustrations by TIM MCDONAGH and Conor Buckley C O N T E N T S YOUR LUCKY DAY 8 SURVIVAL BASICS 10 HISTORY REPEATS LET’S KEEP IT CIVIL 16 MONEY TROUBLE 22 MASSES GETTING SICK C O N T E N T S 32 WIDESPREAD FAMINE 44 THE EARTH MOVES 58 ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS 66 DEATH FROM ABOVE 74 PRESENT TENSE LOST IN THE WILD 86 STAY AFLOAT 94 STORM WATCH 102 WALL OF WATER 110 BURSTING INTO FLAMES 116 PERSONAL SAFETY 126 MASS TRANSIT 136 CAR TROUBLE 144 THE FUTURE ON THE RUN 156 INVASION 160 GRID DOWN 166 TERRORISM 172 NUCLEAR WAR 180 A.I. TAKEOVER 186 ARE WE THE ENEMY? 192 Y O U R L U C K Y D AY hen it comes to matters of belief, we all wrestle W with the same questions: Where did we come from? Why are we here? What are we supposed to do? These are complex issues, yet one thing is clear—no matter how complicated our views may be, they can divide us into two simple groups. The first group consists of people who believe that everything happens by random chance. The second is those who believe we are all part of a predetermined plan. You may have randomly picked up this book with the goal of increasing your chances of survival and your success during the unpredictable risks of the future. It’s your lucky day. And if you believe the universe is governed by something larger than us, then maybe you were meant to learn the skills in this book. So, did you pick up this book by sheer chance? Or was this all part of your fate? There are questions here that we can’t answer today, but there’s one thing that’s clear and I think we can all agree upon it. Whether you picked 8 up some survival skills as part of the cosmic plan or you just got lucky, when push comes to shove and your back is up against the wall, you’ll be the one who takes care of yourself, your family, and your friends. So, in the myriad of different emergency scenarios that could unfold in our lifetime, how can we effectively become the protector in every situation? Well, don’t lose too much sleep over it. Instead, read on! We’re going to study the past, look to the future, determine the most likely threats and gain the practical, real-world skills to fight those threats. Learning survival skills is a lot like investing in a life insurance policy, though in some ways it is much better. For one thing, you get to use it while you’re still alive; and for another, you can use it to keep your loved ones alive too. Whether you picked up this book out of sheer luck or whether it was meant to be, we’re here to help you. TIM MACWELCH 9