“Aim above morality. Be not simply good, be good for something.”  Henry David Thoreau

Survival is the state or act of continuing to live or exist, typically in spite of an accident, ordeal, or difficult circumstances. Recent popularized media events have caused a massive growth industry in survival gear and advice from barely qualified salesmen. Populist blogs such as survival blog and others capitalize on the fears and religious inclinations of the masses. However, in almost every case,  the promoted ideal is living off grid.

Living off grid is a wonderful ideal. However if you have children, this is not always a beneficial approach. Another promoted ideal is expatriation; moving to alternative locations. Many very intelligent individuals promote this, again, a beneficial approach for some. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford this. What many refuse to acknowledge is that where you are is far more important than where you may be. Community solidarity, working with your neighbors, what should you be doing or possibly considering locally to ensure you thrive instead of simply survive.

As an individual who owns myself and understands the value of true freedom, my idea is simple; benefit those around you by seeking personal benefit. Selfish behavior can include, but is not necessarily limited to, excluding others in ones behaviors. Selfish behavior also includes doing that which benefits self. In a society without rule of law or state to guide its every decision, one can do that which benefits them, and will quickly find that by working with others, they will in fact benefit themselves.

 

Where I live in Arizona, water is at a premium and as a result, there are many community-based programs on water recycling, rain water collection and more. There are people involved who have decades of experience growing in the local climate and our local farmers market is consistently filled with premium produce grown locally. Spending time frequenting these markets and becoming involved in the various associations of gardeners and water harvesters one can easily learn to grow more than enough produce for their individual family, and have left over to trade or sell to others as well. This area has a large population of Mormons, and by frequenting their free seminars you can learn to effectively store the produce left over.

Again, working with your neighbors you can gain knowledge in addition to the knowledge you already have and in turn share your knowledge with others. I am a superb instructor in firearms, tactics and self-defense. I have traded my knowledge and time for the knowledge others have as well as trading my time for products I cannot personally produce. The local network is substantial, with some individuals raising emu's, yak's, goats, cattle, sheep and other farm animals all fed on local fauna. Others produce substantial crops and vegetables, and still others have willing backs and additional beneficial abilities. For all intents and purposes regardless what happens tomorrow in the world of finance and government supported entities our county can be and currently is quite self sufficient.

This brings us to the next step in learning to embrace and promote community solidarity. Differences in belief and political stance. Everyone will have differences in these areas, some are more vociferous about it, while others personalize and rarely speak of it publicly. Some individuals feel that people must be friends to interact on the personal level required to promote community solidarity. I disagree, I know from experience that I can have stable business relations with any number of people that I cannot and generally will not spend time with in personal relations. This is the beauty of a voluntary lifestyle. By only acting voluntarily and never forcing interaction with others regardless their beliefs or yours, one can easily enter into mutually beneficial business agreements with a number of people regardless personal feelings.

Integrity is essential in the effective promotion of community solidarity and beneficial business relationships. Integrity is the quality of being honest acting with moral principles. This does not mean one insists on their morals as being of sole importance. In fact, it means that ones personal morals are not forced onto others through use of popular opinion, community backing or in other ways. Instead it means that people should interact within a general set of accepted social morals. The easiest approach to this is by following the Non Aggression Principle, Harm Principle or the Golden Rule. It is my personal observation that by following this approach we can easily work with others who we may see as wrong based on personal morals or religious principles and see mutual benefit as a result.

So how are you working to benefit your local community? Do you know your neighbors? Have you ever spoken to them about that small garden they have going? Do you even know their names? Maybe it is time to stand up, walk away from the computer or your own personal space, and interact with them. Bring a bottle of wine, loaf of fresh bread or some other introductory gift and get to know those who live around you. If you live in an apartment complex, ask the manager or owners if you can set up a community garden. Many will see this as a benefit, and if they do not, remind them this is good for the environment and for reducing community crime. Working together for mutual benefit will in many cases either severely reduce and possibly even eradicate most crime.