msn.com- According to historian Arnold Toynbee, ‘Great civilizations are not murdered, they take their own lives.’ In some regards a civilization is often responsible for its own decline. However, the self-destruction is usually assisted by multiple factors. The nature of the societal collapse and your individual needs and priorities will vary of course, but here are 7 of the best places to go in the United States in case you’re faced with the point of no return.

Many people wonder where the safest place to retreat is should a major disaster hit, an economic collapse occur, or the power grid go down for an extended period of time.

In truth, there is no singular “safe place” where you are guaranteed to survive no matter what, but there are certain factors that make some regions safer than others.

In general, the bet regions to survive in the United States should meet as many of the following criteria as possible:

Low population density (arguably the most important factor)
Away from the coastlines
Little risk of natural disaster (tornadoes, hurricanes, etc.)
Plenty of fresh, running water
An abundance of wild game and edible plants that you can hunt or forage
Fertile land for growing crops

Long growing seasons
A current strong local or statewide economy
The ability to re-build an economy after a disaster (examples: farmer’s markets, mines, logging, oil sites, etc.)
Protected gun rights
A low crime rate
Lower cost of living/housing
Low property taxes
Away from nuclear/chemical power plants and military bases
Away from major cities that could be potential enemy targets
We’ve attempted to include regions throughout the US on our list. Let’s get started:

1. Idaho panhandle/western Montana

We’ll start out with what we feel might be the safest region in the entire United States: the Idaho panhandle/western Montana. The majestic mountains of northern Idaho and western Montana are rich in wildlife, edible plants, rivers and lakes. If you ever needed to find a retreat location in the wilderness, it’s perfectly possible to sustain yourself on natural resources here.

The population density is thin, gun rights are strongly protected, and taxes are low due to strong conservative/libertarian politics. And, the ground is perfectly fertile for you to grow a field of your own crops and/or livestock if necessary. In comparison to other states and regions, the crime rate is also low and in the event of a long-term disaster, the economy could rebuild due to a thriving logging industry, silver mines in the mountains, and a great quantity of successful farmer’s markets.

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