A senior Iranian official just announced that Iran has the technical means to produce a nuclear weapon, and has already enriched uranium far beyond imposed limits, and can readily reach weapons grade levels. This is not really a surprise to people who have been watching Iran’s development not just of nuclear weapons grade material, but long range ICBMs. With Iran regarding the United States and “the Great Satin,” run by a fanatical, religious government this is a direct threat. Israel may well launch preemptive attacks on Iran, an ally of Russia, which could lead to a rapidly escalating conflict that leads to not just Iranian, but Russian, Israeli, and U.S. nuclear weapons exchanges.
Massive construction at Mount Weather, the massive FEMA Survival Facility for Top Government Officials
Overhead imagery shows that Mount Weather, the FEMA run survival bunker complex for Congressmen and top federal officials, a massive complex. Most of the building floorspace is underground, some very deep underground.
Huge construction and expansion is going on at the Mount Weather Federal Government Survival Facility, with no public warnings or information on what this big construction is about. I drove by Mount Weather recently while out visiting Fortitude Ranch West Virginia. Mount Weather is in VA, we are in WV, a comfortable distance away. We’re both in the area for good reason—DC a high threat area, and these forested mountains (especially ours, which is far more remote and densely forested) are ideal survival places.
I was amazed to see several massive construction projects going on at Mount Weather, lots of big new buildings, blocks of construction. Mount Weather was already a huge FEMA facility, and it is getting much larger. A massive government construction project usually yields some publicity and public disclosure, but I could find nothing on what these new buildings are for, or why this big expansion is going on. There is certainly no messaging from the Biden Administration warning people of increasing risks, though that is the reality, due not just to Russia/China/North Korea/Iran/Terrorist groups, but relentless advances in new technologies that can create new viruses, easier ways to process uranium into nuclear weapons grade material, misuse of otherwise fantastic new nanotechnology and artificial intelligence capabilities.
The threats to our survival and likelihood of collapse is definitely increasing. It is reprehensible for the federal government to be improving facilities for top politicians and bureaucrats to survive while doing nothing for the rest of us. I held Top Secret clearances, served as an intelligence officer, understand and respect the need for secrecy, but two comments are in order. First, it’s no secret at all when from the public road you see massive construction going on over several blocks, big buildings above ground and likely far more construction below in this massive largely underground secure facility. I am not revealing anything that any passerby, or aircraft or satellite above, cannot obviously see. But second, there should be a public explanation of why this big construction is taking place.
The government should be expanding emergency shelters and preparations for collapse—but they should also be offering the public an explanation for this and warnings of our need to also get more prepared for growing threats. They in fact do just the opposite—they provide no warnings of growing threats, messaging that the government will take care of you, no need to improve your preparedness. The top priority of police and the military in any disaster is “Continuity of Government”—protecting top government officials. The rest of us are on our own. Indeed, this was the theme of a documentary series, “While The Rest of Us Die”:
Its about time for citizens to demand that government stop spending to expand and improve their survival facilities while doing nothing for the rest of us.
We cannot know when a collapse will occur, but collapse experts see the likelihood rising
A New York Times article covered scholars of “collapse”—the fall of a civilization. In the 6,000 years mankind has been “civilized” enough to have cities and states, we’ve had rise inevitably followed by decline and fall. Sodom and Gomorrah may have been the first.
As civilizations grow in size, the controlling mechanisms become more complex and more costly. From overpopulation (vulnerable to pandemics or any big fall in food production) or dwindling mass support for the big government bureaucracy and ruling class, there is eventually a collapse, the civilization falls.
Peter Turchin, who teaches at the University of Connecticut, believes the trigger that leads to a collapse is the loss of “social resilience,” a society’s ability to cooperate and act collectively for common goals. That is why brilliant analysts like Ray Dalio estimate a 30% probability of civil war in the next Presidential election; our society is deeply, perhaps irrevocably split.
The article also covered Eric H. Cline, a Professor at the George Washington University, who has studied historic civilization collapses. Quoting from the New York Times article: “Today, Cline says, “we have almost all the same symptoms that were there in the Bronze Age, but we’ve got one more”: pandemic. Collapse “really is a matter of when,” he told me, “and I’m concerned that this may be the time”.”
Tainter, another scholar of collapse covered in the article, who emphasizes the risks of complexity and global economic supply networks projects that our next collapse will be “the worst catastrophe in history.” Our complex, interconnected global system of production, with long range shipping, is extremely vulnerable to collapse. Nassim Taleb, author of The Black Swan: the impact of the Highly Improbable, has warned about this for years, often quoted in Fortitude Ranch briefings and newsletters. Again quoting the NYT article, “Complexity is “insidious,” in Tainter’s words. “It grows by small steps, each of which seems reasonable at the time.” And then the world starts to fall apart, and you wonder how you got there.”
Fortitude Ranch Expanding with Franchising
While we are now pursuing our 6th FR location in Tennessee and likely the northeast US next year, we cannot possibly expand fast enough to meet demand for the thousands on our newsletter list waiting for locations closer to them to open. We have thus decided to franchise FR, allowing very carefully approved, trained, and supervised cadre to operate a Fortitude Ranch facility they finance and operate to our standards, as part of our network. Key FR practices, like the requirement that Ranch Managers have military of law enforcement officer experience are part of the requirements.
FR Franchises will offer FR memberships just like our current, corporate owned ranches, all part of the same system. Members of FR can vacation at any FR location, not just their “home fort” where their room is and supplies are stored. If a member cannot readily get back to their home fort in a rapidly developing collapse, they can shelter at any FR location. By adding franchisees, FR cannot just shelter and save far more people, but expand the number of locations members can vacation at (staying for free overnight at any FR location), or shelter at during a collapse.
A FR franchise is ideal for a remote RV Park or resort, or an existing survival community that could improve services and gain from our national sales leads. If interested in considering a FR Franchise, email [email protected]
Fortitude Ranch TX Training in August
FR Texas will host a training day on August 20 at FR TX. Topics we’ll cover include:
- Firearms training, assembly/disassembly, and cleaning
- Getting to your bug out location from home in a developing collapse
- Map reading and land navigation
- Tactical movement
- Bug out bag must haves
- First aid
- Nuclear and Biological 101
The cost is $100 per Fortitude Ranch member and $500 per person for non-members. If you know friends who may be or should be interested in joining FR, please invite them to come.
You will get to shoot your weapon if you bring it, or staff weapons. You need to bring your own ammo. If you don’t know what to bring, recommend you buy and bring:
- A box of 12 gauge shotgun shells
- 50 or more .223 or .556 AR rounds
- 9mm if you want to shoot a pistol as well
If you have an AR, bring it! We will show you how to clean it.
FR WV Collapse Simulation Training in September
Fortitude Ranch West Virginia, our longest running facility, will do a second training program this year, on September 17 & 18, focused on a collapse scenario. When you arrive, members will be stopped at the check point and asked their unique challenge question and response. The entire training weekend will be used to simulate and practice shooting, guard duty, and other jobs we would face in a collapse situation.
The training fee is $75 a day per person for members, $500/day for non-members. You can pay to reserve your spot on the Fortitude Ranch website: go to the homepage and click on the training tab, can use the PayPal link to reserve your spot.
Other training activities include feeding the livestock, gathering eggs, harvesting rabbits, chickens and quail. You will get hands on experience in slaughtering and cooking for the dinner meal using wood stoves and mess tent. Other activities include cutting down trees, splitting wood, and assembling defensive walls. Very few people have actually served a 2-hour guard duty—you will experience this. Students will also get to harvest peaches from our trees and can them, make soap from wood ashes, and other survival training exercises.
FR Tennessee Pioneer Membership Videoconference
We own 40 beautiful acres bordering the Cherokee National Forest in southeast TN for our next FR location. We are still raising funds for the buildout. If you are interested in investing in FR, contact [email protected] If you are interested in joining FR TN and want to lock in your membership price before the next price increases, helping fund the buildout of FR TN, contact [email protected] We will be offering the opportunity to make a deposit on FR TN membership that will help us accelerate the timetable for getting our 6th location open ASAP.
Interested in Joining Fortitude Ranch?
For FR WV and NV: contact Alicia at [email protected]
For FR WI: contact Abbey at [email protected]
For FR CO and FR TX: contact Anna at [email protected]
Fortitude Ranch the ideal hedge investment
When a really bad pandemic occurs, our electric grid goes down, or we get into a nuclear war, the stock market will tank and many businesses will never recover. Fortitude Ranch is an “anti-fragile” business—we thrive when disasters strike, making us an ideal hedge investment. We are now doing a Second Round capital raise to continue expanding and improving Fortitude Ranch. Due to ridiculous Securities Exchange Commission regulations we are limited to “accredited investors” a dishonest government term for rich people, those with at least a million dollars in net worth. If you qualify and would like to invest, contact [email protected]
New Fortitude Ranch businesses
Due to the increase in demand for permanent residences in the remote areas where we have FR locations, we will be adding “Fortitude Condo” to some locations.
If you want a more private, single building housing option, we are offering “FortiCabin”—a small 8 x 12 cabin that has steel/wood layers in the outside facing two walls, door on the inside of the secure FR compound. When you buy Forti-Cabin you get FR memberships for your group, the materials for FortiCabin are purchased and stockpiled at your “home fort”—but the building is not erected until a collapse. For more information, contact [email protected]
Many people have been leaving big cities and suburbs to move to more rural areas. It is not just pandemics motivating this, but a desire to escape the Big Government rules and huge taxes that plague you in states like California and big cities like NYC and the better lifestyle in a rural community. “Fortitude Village” will provide both a rural lifestyle and the protection of Fortitude Ranch. For more information, contact [email protected]
