The World Is Spending More on War. Here's Why That Affects Your Medical Kit.

Yeah. That Arnold Schwarzenegger.

So do Codie Sanchez, Scott Galloway, Colin & Samir, Shaan Puri, and Jay Shetty. And none of them are doing it for fun. They're doing it because a list you own compounds in ways that social media never will.

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An ex of mine was an ER nurse. I asked her what skill she'd teach every person if she could. She didn't say CPR. She said wound packing. "Most people who bleed to death do it in the first few minutes," she told me. "And they bleed to death from injuries that are completely survivable if someone next to them knows how to pack a wound."

Here's what I've got this week.

When Help Isn't Coming: First Aid Beyond the Basics

We built a medical kit in Issue 38, Bird Flu Is Culling Millions of Chickens. Your Egg Supply Isn’t Safe. This week, we're talking about the skills that make that kit useful in scenarios where professional medical help is delayed by hours, a day, or longer.

Austere first aid isn't field surgery. It's the ability to stabilize injuries, manage pain, prevent infection, and keep someone functional until they can reach a hospital. It's the bridge between the injury and the professional care.

Bleeding control is the most time-critical skill. Severe hemorrhage can kill in minutes. The sequence is direct pressure, wound packing, and tourniquet. That’s why the MARCH protocol of wilderness medicine starts with M for massive hemmorage. Direct pressure means firm, constant force on the wound with gauze or clean cloth. If that doesn't stop the bleeding from a deep wound, pack the wound cavity with hemostatic gauze (QuikClot or Celox), pushing the gauze into the wound, then apply pressure. For extremity wounds that won't stop bleeding, apply a tourniquet above the wound, tight enough to stop arterial flow. Note the time. A tourniquet can stay on for hours without permanent damage.

Fracture management is next. You can't set a bone in the field, but you can splint it. The goal is to immobilize the joint above and below the fracture. A SAM splint, padded and shaped around the injury, prevents further damage and reduces pain. Improvised splints work too: a stick, a rolled magazine, a piece of cardboard, anything rigid that can be padded and secured with tape or cloth.

Burns require cooling (cool water, not ice, for 10 to 20 minutes), covering (non-stick sterile dressing), and pain management. Don't pop blisters. Don't apply butter or ointments to serious burns. Cover and protect.

Infection prevention becomes critical after the first day. Clean wounds thoroughly with clean water. Apply antibiotic ointment. Change dressings daily. Watch for redness, swelling, warmth, and pus, the signs of infection. In an austere setting, a minor wound that gets infected becomes a major problem.

These skills require practice. Take a Stop the Bleed class (free). Take a Wilderness First Aid course (16 hours, $200 to $300). Practice tourniquet application until you can do it in 10 seconds. Knowing these steps and executing them under stress is bridged only by repetition.

Practice applying your tourniquet to your own leg.

If you have a CAT tourniquet in your kit, pull it out and apply it to your upper thigh. Time yourself. Can you do it in under 30 seconds? Under 15? Practice until it's muscle memory. If you don't own a tourniquet, buy one this week. Do not buy from Amazon. This is one of the few purchases where, if you have the misfortune of getting a knock off one, it may break when you're applying it.

65% of Civilian Medical Kits on the Market Lack a Single Tourniquet

Despite widespread awareness of bleeding as the leading cause of preventable trauma death, nearly two-thirds of civilian medical kits sold today do not include a single CoTCCC-recommended tourniquet. Massive extremity hemorrhage accounts for approximately 35 percent of pre-hospital fatalities — virtually all preventable with a properly applied tourniquet or packed wound. The kits most people have in their homes and cars are not equipped for the emergencies most likely to kill them.

The fix is simple and cheap: a Combat Application Tourniquet (CAT) runs about $30. Keep one in every kit. Know how to use it before you need it.

Source: Safety Kits Plus, MED-TAC International Corp.

The Altons wrote The Survival Medicine Handbook specifically for scenarios where professional care isn't available. Their central philosophy is "do the most good for the most people with the least resources." That mindset reframes medical preparedness from "have every supply" to "know the few interventions that save the most lives."

Their priority list is clear: control bleeding (it kills the fastest), maintain the airway, treat shock, prevent infection, and manage pain. Everything else is secondary. The Altons emphasize that 90% of austere medical care is basic nursing: keeping wounds clean, keeping patients hydrated, monitoring for deterioration, and providing reassurance. Advanced procedures matter less than consistent, competent basic care.

The Survival Medicine Handbook

Global Military Spending Hits $2.887 Trillion — Highest in 16 Years

World military expenditure reached $2.887 trillion in 2025, a 2.9 percent increase in real terms from 2024 and the highest level recorded in 16 years. Europe’s spending surged 14 percent as the Russia–Ukraine war continues, while Asia and Oceania rose 8.1 percent driven by the India–Pakistan conflict and China’s ongoing military buildup. The United States remains the world’s largest military spender, though its own expenditure declined slightly.

For preparedness, the pattern matters: sustained global military escalation correlates directly with supply chain disruption, energy price volatility, and reduced availability of medical supplies — the same resources that matter most in austere first aid scenarios. When professional emergency services are stretched or delayed, bystander capability is the only thing standing between a survivable injury and a fatality.

Source: SIPRI, CNN

SAM Splint (36-inch)

The SAM splint is a flat piece of padded aluminum that you bend into shape to immobilize fractures, sprains, and joint injuries. I've been practicing with one for about three months. It weighs 4 ounces, rolls up for storage, and can be cut with scissors for smaller applications.

To use it: pad the injured area, mold the splint around the limb (creating a C or U shape for rigidity), and secure with tape, elastic bandages, or strips of cloth. Immobilize the joint above and below the injury.

I practiced splinting my own wrist, my friends’ forearms, and a simulated lower leg fracture on a training dummy. The first attempt was clumsy. By the fifth, I had it. Practice before the emergency.

About $16 for a single splint. They last indefinitely in storage.

The same company that makes these also makes high quality tourniquets. Same rule, though, when it comes to tourniquets, buy directly from the company themselves and do not trust Amazon. The link below is only for their splints.

Budget alternative: A rolled-up magazine or newspaper secured with duct tape. Seriously. It works. The principle is rigidity plus padding. Any stiff material achieves that.

SAM Splint (36-inch)

Overrated: Suture kits. Unless you've been trained to suture (and most people haven't), closing a wound improperly traps infection inside and doesn’t stop the bleeding like in the movies. Butterfly closures and medical tape handle most wound closure needs without the risk.

Underrated: Irrigation syringes. A $3 syringe (no needle) filled with clean water lets you flush debris from a wound with pressure. Proper wound irrigation prevents more infections than any antibiotic ointment.

StopTheBleed.org — Free bleeding control classes. The most impactful medical training you can get.

NOLS Wilderness Medicine — Gold standard for Wilderness First Aid and WEMT courses.

The Survival Medicine Handbook — The Altons' comprehensive reference for grid-down medical care.

Grokipedia: First Aid — Background on first aid techniques and history.

North American Rescue Medical Supplies — Well known and respected medical supply company.

EMP, surges, and protecting your devices. What's real, what's overblown, and the cheap steps that actually protect your electronics.

PS: That ER nurse? She now teaches a monthly Stop the Bleed class at her church. Twelve people per class. She told me she sleeps better knowing her neighbors can stop a bleed. I believe her.