Freedom and the 70/30 Rule

"I think the reason why governments tend to grow faster than they shrink is because people have lost the art of taking care of each other. They believe the government can fill a void best filled by strong personal relationships."

Freedom: The condition of being unrestrained, especially the ability to act without control or interference by another or by circumstance.

Like most people living in Montana today, I wasn’t born here. In my defense, I was a military vagabond until I was 30, living on or near military bases all over the world. Until I moved to Montana in 1993, I really didn’t have much choice about where I lived. What prompted me to move to the Treasure State was a major life-changing experience: the eruption of Mount Pinatubo.

In the late spring/summer of 1991, shortly after returning from Operation Desert Storm, I was deployed with my Marine unit to Cubi Point Naval Air Station, located at Subic Bay Naval Base in the Republic of the Philippines. On June 12th, the volcano, Mount Pinatubo, erupted, showering megatons of ash and pumice over most of Zambales Province, including Cubi Point and Subic Bay. To make matters worse, monsoon rains came, turning several feet of ash into wet cement and destroying everything from the jungles that surrounded us to the helicopter hangars and headquarters buildings on the military installations.

All forms of modern conveniences were gone. Electricity, clean water, indoor plumbing, and transportation were all critically reduced or eliminated for several weeks. Food became a critical issue, and the stress of living in damaged buildings without air conditioning—in the tropics near the equator—took its toll on folks used to modern technology. Things we take for granted, like sanitation, water and food distribution, and community standards, became leadership challenges. Thousands of American servicemen and women, along with their families living on the base, sank into a collective state of despondency. Well-educated and arguably well-trained people reverted to animal-like behaviors when their community was stripped of urban luxuries previously taken for granted.

After spending three months managing Americans who lost their ability to function, I promised myself I would NEVER willingly move my family to a place where we could be trapped by a fractured civilization—where I didn’t have the freedom to fetch and filter water, dig a latrine in the backyard, or burn my garbage if city services were destroyed. In 1993, I left the Marine Corps, and Whitefish, Montana, offered everything on my checklist.

I believe many people who move to the Big Sky Country do so for similar reasons. We all want to be removed from the dangers of societal collapse—like we witnessed during the Rodney King and George Floyd riots—as well as the frustrations with government services we often deem too expensive and unreliable. However, I was shocked to find so many Montanans living lives completely dependent on systems provided by governments or big corporations.

To be sure, most Montanans know how to hunt and fish, but few know how to butcher, process, store, and cook their animals after the hunt. In many ways, Montanans have become just as dependent on government and corporations to care for them as the communities they left behind.

Some years ago, I took an online course on complexity theory, a study which believes complex systems, such as online computing, international travel, power grids, healthcare, and food distribution, offer us many advantages. Our lives are significantly better because of complex systems. Unfortunately, complex systems are vulnerable to cascading events, where one little glitch can cause the whole system to crumble.

In 2020, few people gave much thought to toilet paper distribution until local Walmarts ran out after governments around the globe shut down our economies.

There is a joke I heard many years ago about how NASA enlisted a team of well-educated engineers to design a pen that would write in the gravity-free environment astronauts experience in space. The sophisticated pen NASA developed could write upside down, operate under severe hot and cold temperatures, and work in high and low air pressure environments. NASA spent millions and delivered on their investment. The Russians however, decided to arm their cosmonauts with pencils. The pencil was inexpensive but more importantly, it was simple and reliable. This is where I found inspiration for my “70/30 Rule.”

The 70/30 Rule is simple: Live your life 70% enjoying modern technology and conveniences and 30% perfecting 1850s technology. For example, I am not prepared to give up my radiant floor heating, but if necessary, I can heat with a wood stove just like people did in the 1850s. Most of the time, I enjoy radiant floor heat; however, I keep a cord of wood available and occasionally heat with it to maintain the skill.

As a homesteading enthusiast, I know many homesteaders and “preppers” who live off the grid and reject most modern technologies. While I salute their dedication to their ideology, I have little interest in living to that extreme. I enjoy indoor plumbing and heating, food refrigeration, electricity, and transportation, and I won’t deprive myself of the many blessings offered by the modern age; however, I have also chosen not to be a slave to them.

For me, the greatest personal freedom comes from balancing my life to ensure I know how to care for my family should circumstances take away the conveniences provided by governments or corporations.

The most important way to free ourselves from corporate and government dependence is by creating simple systems to replace (or augment) the complex systems they provide to us. Three primary systems essential for survival are heat, water, and food. We can go three hours without heat, three days without water, and three weeks without food.

Unfortunately, too many Montanans are ill-prepared for hardships caused when the power grid, water, or food distribution systems don’t deliver for more than a few hours. In 2021, the Texas power grid went down, leaving millions without power for days, or in some cases, weeks. Many Texans who relied exclusively on complex systems found themselves in a crisis. Montana arguably experiences colder weather than Texas; therefore, every Montanan should consider how they will stay warm, cook their food, or boil water for drinking during an extended power outage.

Wood is plentiful, easy to store, and very reliable, but it takes practice to use it safely and efficiently, particularly when cooking. Propane generators and stoves are nice, but they introduce an increased level of complexity that makes them vulnerable to distribution disruptions and mechanical failure. Having a cord of firewood and the means to burn it in a controlled manner is an excellent step toward liberating Montanans from reliance on the power grid should it become unreliable for extended periods.

Water is another example of a need we take for granted. When Mount Pinatubo erupted, water had to be distributed to thousands, requiring people to travel some distance to distribution points, usually on foot.

Here in Montana, we should consider having containers to store water and carts or wagons to move it. We can’t assume the roads will be operable or that our vehicles will run. By living within walking distance of a water source and having the means to purify it, Montanans can reduce the risk of a long-term water outage. This will free us from reliance on a municipal water supply that may become non-existent or polluted.

Food becomes critical when refrigerators and freezers fail, and perishable foods spoil. In my home, I have six months of nonperishable food stored in airtight, five-gallon containers, including whole wheat, rice, oats, peas, beans, and dry milk. These foodstuffs can be safely stored for years; however, they require some skill to prepare if you’ve never ground wheat, cooked rice or oats over a wood fire, or soaked peas and beans before cooking.

Learning to prepare food using simple systems is something that should be mastered BEFORE complex systems fail.

When Mount Pinatubo erupted, it destroyed the surrounding jungles, causing many animals, including monkeys, to come into town looking for food. People continued to put their trash in overfilled trash cans and left them by the street, even though there was no garbage service to pick it up.

Rather than euthanize their dogs, hundreds of people simply released their pets. As a result, dogs formed packs, and they, along with the monkeys, lived off the rotting garbage people left in front of their houses, creating opportunities for the spread of disease and illness.

In the event of a similar scenario, Montanans should consider how they will burn or otherwise manage their garbage to reduce the risks associated with letting food rot in the front yard, where wild animals and liberated domestic pets will be attracted.

Moving out of town to a rural neighborhood, I was surprised by how many people choose not to network with their neighbors. As Montana continues to grow in population—and social media makes it possible for people to stay connected to others who don’t live close—we run the risk of becoming as impersonal as the places our newest neighbors came from.

One single mother made a request on social media a while ago, looking for someone to haul a few things to the county landfill for her, and she was frustrated that the county didn’t have trucks available to help people like her. I drive by her house every day, so I told her I would be glad to assist. She seemed confused when I said I didn’t want her money; I was just being neighborly.

A neighbor who is a good friend of mine knew I needed some pallets. When he saw one in town, he picked it up and dropped it off at my barn. I think the reason why governments tend to grow faster than they shrink is because people have lost the art of taking care of each other. They believe the government can fill a void best filled by strong personal relationships.

Good neighbors can drive you to the airport, watch your kids in a pinch, or shovel your driveway when you are sick. Besides, they are fun to talk to, their kids are a joy to watch grow up, and they always seem to have a cup of sugar when you desperately need some while baking cookies.

Governments are poor substitutes for good neighbors. Like other complex systems, governments are vulnerable to breakdowns; however, strong neighborhoods that look out for each other are simple and reliable.

On that note, one of the best ways to liberate ourselves from the costs, complexities, and vulnerabilities of governments and corporations is to live close to family and, if possible, on the same property.

After decades of advising pre-retirees and retirees, I have observed countless families who were able to make living with or near their adult children work. In my own case, my son and his young family live right next door. When I need help carrying something heavy, he is right there to help, and when they need a babysitter in a pinch, we can walk right over.

We can significantly reduce the amount of government in our lives if we learn to coexist with our extended families in close proximity. I encourage all Montanans to consider the option of living with or near immediate family.

To truly live free, it is necessary to provide for ourselves many of the things governments and large corporations currently offer, even if only in marginal ways. Citizens who depend entirely on both run the risk of trading more and more of their freedoms for a security that is only illusory.

Montanans who organize their lives to incorporate other means of self-reliance so they aren’t dependent on either will maintain healthier relationships with both. More importantly, a citizenry that prefers—rather than needs—the goods and services governments and corporations offer can expect better outcomes from both as well.

The 70/30 Rule has worked for my family, and I hope other Montanans consider it as a way of keeping their relationships with governments and large corporations healthy and positive.

This column is part of an ongoing series called Reclaiming Independence by our Board Chairman Joe Coco. In this series, Joe explores ways that Montanans can assert their own independence and free themselves from reliance on government through self reliance, resourcefulness, and building communities.