Why Things Are Seen

What’s going to get you killed faster then anything in the wasteland is not paying attention to your surroundings. Frankly if your situational awareness of your environment sucks your dead that simple. One lesson when I was in the army that was drilled into my head was why things are seen; being able to look at the ground, study it and spot potential dangers. Or in the case of the post apocalyptic world, not only spot dangers but potential supplies, as well. Here’s how you do it.

Divide The Ground

Simply put you take the ground you’re looking at and divide it into three parts near, middle and far ground. This will allow you to take in more of your surroundings and memorize them. If you need to imagine a line dividing the three areas to help you focus do it, there’s no wrong way to do this so whatever works best for you. However you choose to do it though I recommend you start from what’s closest and work to the far ground, the last thing you want to do is be on the lookout for a threat from a distance and not see the one that’s only a few feet away.

Go Against The Grain

When were looking around at something we tend to look from right to left. When your scanning go in reverse (Left to right) this will force you to slow down because it’s generally not something you’re used to. This will allow you to take in more detail.

What To Look For

Shine - mirrors, binocular lenses, rifle scopes

Shape - shapes that don’t blend in with their surroundings round shapes in a field for example

Shadows - either shadows where there shouldn’t be one, shadows that disappear and reappear, or that don’t fit with the object their attached to that could be hiding someone

Texture/Color - a black object against a green backdrop for example or an object that is discoloured or brighter then its surroundings

Size - Look for objects that look out of place such as objects that are using a camouflage tarp or netting to conceal a vehicle

Remember

Don’t just take a long look at your surroundings and then do whatever, memorize them. Remember where the building and roads are, how many windows or doors it has because those could be perfect spots for a sniper. What the road signs said, any graffiti or other signs to show territory or a warning. Here’s a few examples




Your probably thinking this is a pretty obvious one, after all there very easy to see. While that is true remember if you’re in the woods and their even as close as twenty or thirty meters and you’re not paying attention you would probably totally miss them. What gives them away is two things 1. The round shape of their heads. 2. Their hair color stands out from the surrounding background.

Sure this is a cheesy one and not real (I think) but if the circle wasn’t around the alien it would probably take you a few seconds of looking at the picture to find it. Now imagine your in the woods haven’t slept in two days, a little dehydrated and worried about about not finding enough food, you would miss it completely. It’s smooth texture and lighter green color do make it stand out but not that much if it’s perfectly still.

Though this soldier is keeping a low profile by lying on the ground there are a lot of giveaways for you to spot someone like this. The first is the color; his uniform is brighter and doesn’t match the terrain at all. And his weapon is black which doesn’t match the surroundings, remember though he would probably be farther away waiting to ambush so remember to always keep scanning the ground and look for anything that doesn’t fit in with the environment regardless of whether it’s in the woods or an urban setting.

What Mad Max Can Teach Us (Part 3 Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome)

This movie takes place almost twenty years after the first movie, and that world has been turned to dust. And like the other movies in the trilogy there are some unique lessons that can be learned despite its sometimes cheesy moments (It also has one of the most iconic soundtrack theme songs ever).

The First is just how quickly society (What’s left of it) will change. Those with the means and knowledge to gather and organize the survivors regardless of their social standing before will be the future leaders. In the early days of rebuilding things will take on almost a wild west feeling (Example Bartertown) laws are simple and enforced with brutal efficiency. Also don’t expect it to be anything fancy. At the very best it will simply be a re-occupied and fortified pre apocalypse town, at the very worst, some mud huts at the base of an irradiated swamp.

The second is never underestimating human resourcefulness. In Bartertown they managed to regain electricity and fuel cars with pig dung converted into methane, this renewable source would have made Bartertown the beginning of a town that would have become the center of a new trading empire, had Mad Max not trashed the place first. Depending on where people settle and the resources at hand. They may be able to harness wind, solar, or even hydro-electric power from a nearby dam.

The third is never underestimate human stupidity. Humans are capable of doing great things, but in the case of the third Mad Max movie we can’t seem to figure out that greed was the thing that leads to fighting and nuclear Armageddon in the first place, and it’s what leads to Bartertown loosing its source of power. I really don’t think that’s something will ever be able to get rid of, and it will probably lead to our destruction.

The fourth is just how fast our knowledge can be lost. In one generation the world goes from an advanced civilization to a tribal superstitious one. This is represented by the children survivors of a plane crash who rescue Max. Because they were so young at the time they never were able to learn what their parents had and so that knowledge was lost to them. What they did remember was turned into folklore and myth; they even had cave drawings like our caveman ancestors. If you think that’s far fetched play a game of telephone and you’ll see just how fast a message can get distorted through a small group of people. Even if the message makes it through, its meaning may be lost. The same is true for civilizations. If ours was destroyed tomorrow it would only take a couple of generations to go from what we know to legends like the lost city of Atlantis.

The fifth is that even in the worst case scenarios there is always some glimmer of hope, unless of course the world explodes, or those damm dirty apes take over.

What Mad Max Can Teach Us (Part 2 The Road Warrior

The Road Warrior for me is the best of the three Mad Max movies, it also can teach us some valuable lessons for what the world will be like in the immediate aftermath of the apocalypse. The story of The Road Warrior takes place approximately five years after the events of Mad Max where Max, broken and having lost everything leaves the dying embers of civilization behind him as he ventures into the wasteland and the unknown.

The first thing the movie can teach us is that no matter how things come to an end, the cities that most of us live in won’t be suitable to live in anymore. Once the oil, electricity, and water stop pumping into your home you won’t be able to live there, unless you have access to fresh water and land to farm. The decay will almost start immediately. People will be wandering looking for a new home and place to start over again. This will also be the most difficult time after the apocalypse, as survivors fight for the scraps of what’s left or new land to call their own. There is no set time line for this transition period, depending on how things go down and the level of destruction it could be a matter of a few weeks, to years.

This brings me to my second point, the oil refinery that Max discovers has been surrounded by a biker gang led by The Humungous, a hockey mask wearing psycho bent on destruction. As the new lines are being drawn those with the ability to group together large bands of survivors will use them to get what they want, most likely through violence. If this sounds far fetched go back to your school days when you had to fend of bullies trying to steal your lunch money. This will be the new law of the land. Those with the means will exert their control on whoever they want, and their won’t be any repercussions to them.

Isolation will be a brand new experience for the survivors, something those trying to make it in that refinery would have known all to well. We exist in a world of constant interaction via the internet, TV, and other forms of media. Every year with new tech for phones and Ipod’s as well as faster smarter computers the space between us shrinks. Now imagine suddenly that everything is turned off, no phone no internet, no TV, you go from fully wired to flat line in a short period of time. Back in the 80’s when The Road Warrior was made this wouldn’t have been much of a problem, today however expect a dramatic increase in suicide, depression and nervous breakdowns from those that survive. For the first time in many of our lives we will feel truly alone.

Also Max shows us that eating dog food is part of a balanced breakfast.

Mad Max Tribute - Motorhead - Ace of Spades
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