Joel Skousen
Encyclopedia
Joel M. Skousen is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...

 political commentator non-fiction
Non-fiction
Non-fiction is the form of any narrative, account, or other communicative work whose assertions and descriptions are understood to be fact...

 Survivalist author, and retreat consultant who specializes in preparedness topics, particularly survival retreat
Retreat (survivalism)
A retreat is a place of refuge for those in the survivalist subculture or movement. Retreats are also sometimes called Bug-Out Locations...

 and fallout shelter
Fallout shelter
A fallout shelter is an enclosed space specially designed to protect occupants from radioactive debris or fallout resulting from a nuclear explosion. Many such shelters were constructed as civil defense measures during the Cold War....

 design and construction, as well as in what he calls "strategic relocation." Skousen is the founder and chief editor of World Affairs Brief, a weekly news-analysis service. He has offered in both North
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

 and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...

 consultation regarding architectural and retreat design.

Skousen has written several books. including Essential Principles for the Conservation of Liberty, Strategic Relocation—North American Guide to Safe Places, The Secure Home, Survival Home Manual: Architectural Design, Construction, and Remodeling Of Self-Sufficient Residences and Retreats, and How to Implement a High Security Shelter in the Home. He also published a booklet titled 10 Packs for Survival, which he has also posted to several web sites.

Skousen designs and consults on hardened retreat homes, often including fallout shelter
Fallout shelter
A fallout shelter is an enclosed space specially designed to protect occupants from radioactive debris or fallout resulting from a nuclear explosion. Many such shelters were constructed as civil defense measures during the Cold War....

s with HEPA
HEPA
High-Efficiency Particulate Air or HEPA is a type of air filter. Filters that are awarded the HEPA accolade are used in various locations, whether in medical facilities, automotive vehicles, airplanes, home filters, or wherever very pure air is sought. The filter must satisfy certain standards of...

 air filtration systems. In the book Dancing at Armageddon: Survivalism and Chaos in Modern Times by Richard G. Mitchell, Jr., (2001) Skousen was quoted: "'You never want to make a house look like an obvious fortress. Those who want in can always move up a bigger gun. There is no way you can design a home to withstand RPG (Rocket-propelled grenade) rockets and tanks. I design these homes so you virtually cannot tell inside or out that they are any different from a conventional home.'"

Because of its low population density and diverse economy, both Skousen and survivalist writer James Wesley Rawles
James Wesley Rawles
James Wesley, Rawles is a New York Times best-selling survivalist-fiction author, blogger, and survival retreat consultant. Rawles is a Christian conservative. He is the editor of SurvivalBlog.com, a blog on survival and preparedness topics...

  recommend the Intermountain west
Intermountain West
The Intermountain West is a region of North America lying between the Rocky Mountains to the east and the Cascades and Sierra Nevada to the west. It is also called the Intermountain Region.- Topography :...

 region of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, as a preferred region for relocation and setting up survival retreats
Retreat (survivalism)
A retreat is a place of refuge for those in the survivalist subculture or movement. Retreats are also sometimes called Bug-Out Locations...

.

Skousen was raised in Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

 and later served as a USMC
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

 fighter pilot
Fighter pilot
A fighter pilot is a military aviator trained in air-to-air combat while piloting a fighter aircraft . Fighter pilots undergo specialized training in aerial warfare and dogfighting...

 during the Vietnam Era
Vietnam Era
Vietnam Era is a term used by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs to classify veterans of the Vietnam War. The Vietnam Era is a considered to have begun in 1964 and ended in 1975. The U.S. Congress, U.S...

. During the 1980s Skousen was the Chairman of the Conservative National Committee. He was also the Executive Editor of Conservative Digest.

In late 2007, Skousen gained attention when he gave his support to Ron Paul
Ron Paul
Ronald Ernest "Ron" Paul is an American physician, author and United States Congressman who is seeking to be the Republican Party candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Paul represents Texas's 14th congressional district, which covers an area south and southwest of Houston that includes...

 rather than to fellow LDS church member Mitt Romney
Mitt Romney
Willard Mitt Romney is an American businessman and politician. He was the 70th Governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 and is a candidate for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination.The son of George W...

 in the 2008 US presidential campaign, in a widely-circulated YouTube video clip. After John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....

 became the Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

's presumptive nominee in early 2008, Skousen also endorsed Pastor Chuck Baldwin
Chuck Baldwin
Charles Obadiah "Chuck" Baldwin is an American politician and founder-pastor of Crossroad Baptist Church in Pensacola, Florida. He was the presidential nominee of the Constitution Party for the 2008 U.S. presidential election and had previously been its nominee for U.S. vice president in 2004...

 of the Constitution Party
Constitution Party (United States)
The Constitution Party is a paleoconservative political party in the United States. It was founded as the U.S. Taxpayers' Party by Howard Philips in 1991. Phillips was the party's candidate in the 1992, 1996 and 2000 presidential elections...

: "As Ron Paul goes back to Congress to continue the fight there, I believe Chuck Baldwin is the person to continue the fight during this election cycle and beyond."

Joel Skousen is the older brother of Mark Skousen
Mark Skousen
Mark Skousen is an American economist, investment analyst, newsletter editor, college professor and author of more than 25 non-fiction books.- Early life, education and family :...

 and the younger brother of Royal Skousen
Royal Skousen
Royal Jon Skousen is a professor of linguistics and English at Brigham Young University , where he is editor of the Book of Mormon Critical Text Project...

. The three Skousen brothers are the nephews of conservative author and commentator Cleon Skousen
Cleon Skousen
Willard Cleon Skousen was an American author, conservative American Constitutionalist and faith-based political theorist. He was also a prolific popularizer among Latter-day Saints of their theology...

.

Books

  • Survival Home Manual: Architectural Design, Construction, and Remodeling Of Self-Sufficient Residences and Retreats, ISBN 1199306396 (1982)

  • Essential Principles for the Conservation of Liberty, ISBN 1199306614 (1984)

  • How to Implement a High Security Shelter in the Home, ISBN 1199306524 (1998)

  • The Secure Home, ISBN 1199306720 (May, 1999)

  • Strategic Relocation—North American Guide to Safe Places, ISBN 156861053X (various editions, latest listed is February, 2006)

Quotes

  • Many Christians think it is wonderful anytime government officials mention God or quote from the Bible. I take strong exception, and not because I believe it is improper for government officials to appeal to God. I simply object to dropping the name of God or quoting scripture to cover for evil, and otherwise convince naive troops and Christians in general that an evil cause is just.

  • More than ever, I still consider the nuclear attack on America as inevitable, both because the real axis of evil (Russia and China) are still building for that attack, and because our own government is controlled by those intent upon destroying US sovereignty and delivering our nation over to a socialist New World Order (NWO). [2006]

  • The one thing you can learn from the liberal and controlled media, including arch liberal newspapers like the Washington Post, NY Times, and LA Times, is the direction in which the conspiracy against liberty is going. I spend about a third of my time watching what the opposition does. When they start uniformly promoting certain issues in all the liberal journals (global warming, smart growth, gun control, etc.), it is obvious that there is some coordination going on. But remember, you can only learn to see through the selectively filtered news dispensed by the establishment media if you have other sources that feed you the missing pieces.

  • In terms of unity, we are at a real disadvantage up against the left. It only takes one thing in common for “liberals” to unite. It only takes one difference of opinion for conservatives to divide.

See also

  • Self-sufficiency
    Self-sufficiency
    Self-sufficiency refers to the state of not requiring any outside aid, support, or interaction, for survival; it is therefore a type of personal or collective autonomy...

  • Intentional Community
    Intentional community
    An intentional community is a planned residential community designed to have a much higher degree of teamwork than other communities. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, political, religious, or spiritual vision and often follow an alternative lifestyle. They...

  • Blast shelter
    Blast shelter
    A blast shelter is a place where people can go to protect themselves from bomb blasts. It differs from a fallout shelter, in that its main purpose is to protect from shock waves and overpressure, instead of from radioactive precipitation, as a fallout shelter does...


External links

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