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Rise Of The Preppers: 50 Of The Best Prepper Websites And Blogs On The Internet

February 6, 2013 by

The following article was written by Michael Snyder on 2-1-2013 and was originally posted here on his blog The Truth Wins. I want to thank Michael for selecting Prepared Christian. I feel honored to have been mentioned.


Rise Of The Preppers: 50 Of The Best Prepper Websites And Blogs On The Internet

Are you preparing for the collapse of society?  If so, the truth is that you are definitely not alone.  The number of preppers in the U.S. has absolutely exploded in recent years.  It has been estimated that there are now approximately 3 million preppers in the United States, and “Doomsday Preppers” is currently the highest rated show on the National Geographic channel.  In fact, you could be living next to a prepper and never even know it.  All over America, families are transforming spare rooms into long-term food storage pantries, planting survival gardens, unplugging from the grid, converting their homes over to alternative sources of energy, taking self-defense courses and stocking up on just about everything that you can imagine.  The re-election of Barack Obama and other recent events seem to have given the prepper movement even more momentum.  For example, in January the U.S. Mint broke all kinds of records and sold nearly half a billion dollars worth of gold and silver coins to the public.  Not only that, Americans bought enough guns during the last two months of 2012 alone to supply the entire armies of China and India.  When it comes to prepping, nobody can match the passion that Americans put into it.

So what are all of these people prepping for?

Well, the truth is that no two preppers have the exact same motivation.  There is a general consensus among preppers that our world is becoming increasingly unstable, but when you sit down and talk with them you find out that there are a whole host of different civilization-killing events that various preppers are concerned about.  Some are preparing for the collapse of the economy.  Others are extremely concerned about the potential for crippling natural disasters and catastrophic earth changes. To other preppers, the rise of the “Big Brother” surveillance grid that is being constructed all around us is the greatest danger, and many of them warn of the tyrannical agenda of the New World Order.  Terrorism, killer pandemics, EMP attacks, World War III, martial law, solar megastorms, asteroid strikes and societal chaos are some of the other things that many preppers are worried about.  There are even some preppers that are not worried about any “threats” at all – they just want to get “back to the land” and want to become less dependent on the system.

Whatever the motivation, it is undeniable that the prepper movement has gotten very large and that it continues to grow.

In fact, there was a recent article in the New York Times about preppers that was actually written by a prepper entitled “The Preppers Next Door“…

To the unprepared, the very word “prepper” is likely to summon images of armed zealots hunkered down in bunkers awaiting the End of Days, but the reality, at least here in New York, is less dramatic. Local Preppers are doctors, doormen, charter school executives, subway conductors, advertising writers and happily married couples from the Bronx. They are no doubt people that you know — your acquaintances and neighbors. People, I’ll admit, like myself.

I was absolutely amazed that one of the key mouthpieces of the establishment, the New York Times, would publish an article that was mostly positive about preppers, because the truth is that prepping is essentially a huge expression of a lack of faith in the establishment.   Even the article admitted as much…

PREPPING IS THE BIG SHORT: a bet not just against a city, or a country or a government, but against the whole idea of sustainable civilization. For that reason, it chafes against one of polite society’s last remaining taboos — that the way we live is not simply plagued by certain problems, but is itself insolubly problematic.

And that is exactly right.  There are millions of us that are entirely convinced that the world around us is becoming increasingly unstable and that “the system” will not be there to take care of us when everything falls to pieces.

With each passing day, even more Americans lose faith in the system and begin prepping.  If you are one of those new preppers, there are actually dozens of great websites out there on the Internet where you can get an education about prepping for free.  The list of websites and blogs that I have compiled below contains more articles and resources than you could ever possibly need.  Hopefully many of you will find this list to be extremely helpful.

The following are 50 of the best prepper websites and blogs on the Internet…

1. Survival Blog

2. American Preppers Network

3. The Survival Mom

4. SHTFPlan.com

5. Survival 4 Christians

6. Urban Survival

7. Backdoor Survival

8. Off Grid Survival

9. Modern Survival Online

10. The Survivalist Blog

11. The Suburban Prepper

12. The Great Northern Prepper

13. Prepper Website

14. The Survival Podcast

15. Doom And Bloom

16. Provident Living Today

17. Prepper.org

18. Prepared Christian

19. SHTFblog.com

20. Survival Cache

21. Modern Survival Blog

22. Rural Revolution

23. Preparedness Advice Blog

24. Prep-Blog.com

25. Survival And Prosperity

26. TEOTWAWKI Blog

27. The Neighbor Network

28. The Apartment Prepper

29. Armageddon Online

30. The Berkey Guy Blog

31. The Home For Survival

32. My Family Survival Plan

33. Prepography

33. Prepper Dashboard

34. Bacon And Eggs

35. SHTF School

36. Canadian Preppers Network

37. Maximum Survival

38. Survivor Jane

39. Prepping To Survive

40. SaltnPrepper

41. SGTReport

42. SHTF Wiki

43. Jewish Preppers

44. Survival Magazine

45. Survival Week

46. Prepper Forums

47. Survivalist Boards

48. Tactical Intelligence

49. The Prepared Ninja

50. Common Sense Homesteading

The sad truth is that our world is becoming increasingly unstable in a whole bunch of different ways and we all need to learn how to prepare for the difficult years ahead.

Unfortunately, most Americans simply are not prepared for much of anything.

For example, a large percentage of Americans do not even have enough savings to get them through a single financial emergency.  According to one recent report, approximately 44 percent of all households in the United States are just one unexpected event away from financial disaster.

Most American families do not have much food stored up either.  One recent survey discovered that 55 percent of all Americans have less than three days supply of food in their homes.

Could that possibly be accurate?  Do people really keep that little food in their homes?

Another survey asked Americans how long they think they could survive if the entire electrical grid went down and there was no more power for an extended period of time.  Incredibly, 21 percent of those who responded said that they would survive for less than a week, and an additional 28 percent of those who responded said that they would survive for less than two weeks.  Close to 75 percent of those who responded said that they would be dead before the two month mark.

So who are the crazy ones?

Are the people trying to become more independent and self-sufficient crazy, or are the people who have complete and total faith that the system will take care of them no matter what happens actually the crazy ones?

I don’t know about you, but I would prefer for myself and my family to at least have a chance to survive if society melts down for some reason.

What about you?

Are you a prepper?

Do you know some preppers?

Do you believe that people should be prepping?

Please feel free to post a comment with your thoughts below…

Filed Under: General Preparedness

Soil Amendments to Improve Garden Growth

February 4, 2013 by

There were a couple comments about poor soil types in the forum and I listed a couple things that could be done to improve soil types.  I thought I would give a few more ideas here for everyone to see.  I don’t personally like using fertilizers in most situations so with these tips you can improve most soil types naturally.

I am by no means a master gardener, but I have picked up a few things over the years.  I wrote an article last spring called Principles of Gardening.  In that article I covered some of the basics of gardening that I’ll not touch on here.

 

Raised Beds

If you have truly awful soil, you can build raised beds and bring in soil.  By managing the soil in the raised bed, you will, over time, improve the soil below the bed.  I like raised beds for many reasons.  You can read more about it in a review I did of Mel Bartholomew’s book All New Square Foot Gardening.

 

Organic Matter

Whether you have too much clay or too much sand in your soil, you can improve it by adding organic matter.  There are a few ways to do this that I’ll list below.

 

Composting

The following is from the article I wrote on Principles of Gardening.

Composting is more than just throwing out kitchen scraps, but that is part of it. Making your own compost and adding it to your beds is a great way to amend the soil and get rid of kitchen scraps as well as leaves and grass clippings. Here is a site with a huge amount of Information on composting. One of the mistakes I made was buying one large bin and continually adding to it. I have heard Jack Spirko from the Survival Podcast say, “That is like adding more cake mix, when the cake is already half baked in the oven.” He recommends using three small compost bins and cycling them, so you fill one, leave it alone and start filling the second and so on.

There are often community compost sites.  Many times you must pay to deposit leaves, grass or other compostable materials.  However, you can, in many cases, take composted material for free.  You just have to shovel it yourself.  These sites may use chemicals to speed the process of composting, so if you want to remain natural, you should check with the facility.

Manure can be a great source of nutrients to add to your compost.  I was able to find plenty for free on Craig’s list.

 

Mulching

Mulching is taking organic matter and placing it over the soil.  This will do multiple things; it will bring in other nutrients, it will keep the soil moist and it will prevent evaporation among other things.  You can use many things for mulching: leaves, grass clippings, shredded newspaper and even wood chips.  Carmen commented in the Principles of Gardening about a video done by a Christian called Back To Eden.  It’s about a man who says God showed him how to use wood chips for mulch.  If you leave them on the topsoil this will work great, but do not mix them in with the soil.


Cover Crops

Here is a great article called Cover Crop Basics, written by Organic Gardening, a great publication that we have received for some time.  The article is well worth reading, so I will just touch on the highlights.

Cover crops can help bring organic material to your soil.  They are also a great way to stop erosion.  The process is fairly straight forward.  You plant a crop, give it minimal care and then either chop the top off, letting the plant regrow to chop the top off again later (this process is often called “chop and drop”) or you kill the cover crop completely.  In either case the organic material is left to return its nutrients back to the soil.

There are many types of things you can use as cover crops; ryegrass, barely, buckwheat and legumes, to name a few.  The benefit of using legumes is that they bring nitrogen into the soil, which is often deficient in poor soil types.   You can also use a mix of ryegrass and legumes, to get the benefit of both.

 

Final Thoughts

These methods will fix a lot of problems with your soil, such as; adding nutrients, stopping erosion and adding organic matter.  While these things can be used to improve poor soil quality, you can keep doing them to keep improving the quality.

 

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Filed Under: Food, Preparedness Tips Tagged With: ,

What to do if Your Spouse doesn’t Want a Gun in the Home?

February 1, 2013 by

I don’t usually post things that could be seen as controversial.  Today might be a little different.  It is not my goal to offend anyone, and I apologize if I do. I realize that either sex could be opposed to a gun in the home, but the vast majorities, in my experience, are women.  The advice I am going to give today is from the perspective of a man.  Ladies, if you’re in favor of a firearm in the home and your husband is not, most of what I have to say applies to you as well.

 

Why Are They Opposed?

The first step is to find out why they are opposed.  In my experience most objections to firearms from are either based on a lack of understanding about firearms, or are an emotional response.  Don’t poke fun at their opposition, or minimize their concern.

If it is a lack of understanding, one thing you could do is see if they would be willing to get some training.  One thing I have learned (yes the hard way) is that spouses don’t always take direction from one another.  Find an experienced firearms instructor and, if possible, a female instructor.  You could also attend a First Shots class together.  First Shots is an introductory class on basic handgun safety and operation.

If their response is emotional in nature, find out why they feel the way they do.  If your spouse is generally an open minded person, you may be able to show them facts that back up your support of firearms.  It is my experience that when anyone bases their argument on an emotional response, you’ll have a hard time getting them to see differently.

 

What To do if They Won’t Budge.

Let’s say you’ve discussed the issue and tried to get them to see your point of view, but they still won’t relent.  What should you do?  I believe that men and woman are generally equals in a marriage.  When it comes to the safety and security of the family, that role generally falls to the man.

If you feel that a firearm is the best way to protect your family against a multitude of possibilities, purchase one.  Explain to your spouse that you have heard their point of view, but that you feel it is your duty to keep your family safe, and to do that you feel you need to be on level playing ground with the criminal element.

Assure them that you will be safe, you will get training, a gun safe, keep the firearm stored safely.  Do not rub their nose in it, do not flaunt it.  You should also be prepared to spend some time in the dog house.  I am blessed to have a wife who thinks much like I do, but if she was opposed to guns, I would reassure her, purchase the gun and think it worth being in the doghouse it to feel like I did everything I could do to protect my family.

 

Closing Thoughts

I wrote last week that Security is a Woman’s Responsibility Too and I stand by that, but let me clarify.  I think, in this one area, it is the man’s primary duty to protect the home.  Ladies, if you have a husband who is anti-gun or can’t fulfill his duty to protect the home, I believe that the duty now falls on you.

 

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Filed Under: Security Tagged With:

NPE Syndrome – Not Prepared Enough

January 30, 2013 by

NPE Syndrome – Not Prepared Enough.png

I get an email every once in a while from someone who has just started prepping and feels like they are way behind and won’t have enough time to get prepared.  I think this is a pretty common reaction when someone “wakes up” and see’s that there are some very real dangers that they need to prepare for.

I went through something similar and I am sure many of you did as well.  I discovered that there were things that could have a very real impact on my life.  I was also kicking myself for not waking up sooner, amazed that some of the things I was now seeing slipped by.

Then the amount of things I was unprepared for set in and I was sure there was no way I could get as prepared as I needed to be before these looming disasters set in.  I had far more questions than answers; where should I start? How was I going to pay for all of this?  What is the biggest danger?  How many things are there that I don’t know about? And on and on…

Luckily I found some good sites and spent countless hours researching to learn about preparedness.  At the time I could only find the occasional blog post or forum post about prepping and Christianity.  This is a huge part of why I created this blog.

I discovered that few people ever felt like they were prepared enough.  Many who had been at it for years would say they wish they were better prepared.

 

Encouraging Words

Above all things; keep praying about it and keep seeking His guidance.

Here are some things I tell people who email me and have a case of NPE.

You’re not alone.  The anxiety you feel is fairly normal and happens to many people when they “wake up”.  Don’t kick yourself for not starting sooner!  You’ve taken the most important step!  You’ve started!

Don’t let yourself get overwhelmed.  You can burn out that way.  You may feel like you’re quickly running out of time.  You’re not too late!  There is still time!

Don’t go in debt to get prepared.  There are inexpensive ways to get prepared.  You don’t need to go from a week’s worth of groceries to a year’s worth overnight.  Slowly increase the shelf stable foods you already eat, get a means to purify water and a means to defend your home.

Be careful who you tell about your new found realization that you need to prepare.  Many of the people in your life are still asleep and it’s not likely that you’ll be able to help them wake up.  Many Christians think preparing is showing a lack of faith.  They, of course, are mistaken.  The other reason to keep a lid on your preparedness is something I call Being gray.  Essentially it means not drawing unneeded attention to oneself, so as not to be a target.

I also try to give some ideas on where to start.  I often discuss the five basic human needs and link to a page written for those new to preparedness called Getting Started.

 

Final Thoughts

Truth be told, there are still things that start in the NPE Syndrome.  I have learned to see it for what it is.  Turn it over to the Lord and rest in the fact that you ARE prepared.  As with everything, it is God’s hands.

What encouraging words may you have for those with NPE Syndrome?

 

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Filed Under: Mind Set, Preparedness Tips

Security is a Woman’s Responsibility Too

January 25, 2013 by

I have noticed that almost half of the people that like the Prepared Christian facebook page, and roughly half of the people that sign up to receive email updates are women.  This article is directed at all of my female readers as well as any man that has a woman in their life.

In many homes the job of seeking out the cause of things that go bump in the night is relegated to a man.  But what happens if the husband isn’t home or is incapacitated?  Then consider single moms or single women that live alone.

According to the Rape Trauma Services website there are “1.3 women (ages 18 and over) in the United States are forcibly raped each minute. That translates to 78 per hour, 1,871 per day, or 683,000 per year.” I believe these statistics were taking from 1992, but I have a hard time believing they would be any lower today.

Whether it is seeking the source of something that went bump in the night, or fending off an attacker, security is a woman’s job too.   The most important self-defense tool you can have is your mind, so I want to discuss mindset, I will also list some tools available to keep you safe.

 

Mind Set

The statistics turn my stomach, but they are eye opening.  It’s something men might think about as a danger for the women in their lives, but not as an ever present danger to themselves.  But the truth is, it is an ever present danger to women.  If you’re reading this there is a good chance you are a prepper, someone who is awake to potential dangers and someone who takes measures to mitigate them. Rape and other violent crime is another very real danger, in fact it is more of a danger than most of the other things we prepare for.

The Gift of Fear and Other Survival Signals that Protect Us From Violence is a book everyone should read, but especially woman. It explains that there are things that happen that we might overlook, but our subconscious picks up on.  I wrote a review of which can be found here. Once you open your eyes and see that there are dangers and you decide to take precautions, you can do things like practice situational awareness and use the Cooper Color Code, these two things will help you be more aware of potential threats, which can help you avoid possibly dangerous situations.

 

It’s Not Just a Man’s Job

As I mentioned above security is many times treated as a man’s job.  I have received email’s stating it and I have seen similar comments on various forums.  I don’t have a problem with security being primarily the man’s job, but it is also the woman’s.  When something goes bump in the night, I am the one to check on it, but Trudee is at the ready, to assist me or call 911 if needed.  If I was injured and was physically unable to check on it, or if while checking on it was rendered incapacitated, she would have a means to protect herself and call for help.

For a woman to be able to defend herself, she must have a weapon she is comfortable using.  One option that I like is a youth model 20 gauge shotgun.  Youth models are shorter and weigh less, and are easier to maneuver inside.  If a handgun with defensive loads are what is used, I suggest going to a range that rents guns and try a few out.  I know one of our local ranges has “Ladies Night” that are a basic introduction to handguns class made up of only woman.  First Shots is an organization that Trudee and I actually went through to take an introductory hand gun course through.

If you can only afford to have one firearm at home, please make it one that the smallest framed adult can use.  And each person should know how to operate it and be comfortable using it.

If you aren’t able to carry a firearm but want to have something for protection, I recommend pepper spray.  I wrote an article called Self-Defense: Pepper Spray where I explain some of the downsides of certain types of pepper spray.  I personally carry Cold Steel Inferno .38 oz. Keyring Hardcase Unit Pepper Spray as does Trudee,  it is OC type, which is an inflammatory agent and causes one’s eyes to slam shut and severe burning.  CS and CN types are irritants and some people are not affected.

 

Final Thoughts

When it comes to security, it might primarily be “the man’s job” but some of that responsibility also falls on the women’s shoulders.  Ladies you are responsible for your own safety and for the safety of your family, even if that means in an assisting role.

 

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Filed Under: Mind Set, Security Tagged With: ,

One In The Chamber

January 23, 2013 by

If you have your CCW permit, do you carry with one in the chamber?  When I first got mine I didn’t.  I told myself that, if needed, I would be able to get one in the chamber fast enough to be effective.  Thank you Lord that I never had to find out, but I feel pretty confident that I was wrong.

I had a few reasons but they boiled down to a lack of confidence.  I had been to the range a few times and was proficient in putting holes in cardboard, but the idea of carrying with a round loaded made me uneasy.  It’s not that I thought it might just go off.  I knew better than that.  If the gun is only going to fire when I pull the trigger, then the problem is me.  Once I understood that, I examined why I wasn’t confident and rethought my opinion that I would be able to get a round in the chamber fast enough.

 

Anatomy of a Gun Fight

I don’t know if this is true or not but it sounds accurate to me. I have heard this figure a few times in the self-defense circles; “in the average gun fight there are three shots fired in three second in the space of three yards.”  I have heard both yards and feet, but nine feet seems like a more believable distance to me than three feet.

I wish I could say I was a very quick draw.  In truth, I haven’t spent a lot of time practicing drawing to make it sink into muscle memory.  I also carry concealed, so I always have a jacket or shirt over my firearm.  Add these two things to the mix and a good bit of that three seconds has been chewed up just getting the weapon out of the holster.

It is possible to fire a shot immediately after you draw the gun and before you are in a typical stance.  This could only be done if there is one in the chamber.  If you have to chamber a round, you’re now under immense stress, bringing your weak hand over to chamber a round.  Do you think you can do that fast?  Get some dummy rounds and try it out.

 

Situational Awareness is a Must But it’s Not Enough

While it might be true that the average gun fight last three seconds, my guess is that the clock starts once the first shot is fired.  There is almost always a sign before violence erupts.  If you are using Cooper Color Code, you are actively scanning everyone to determine if they are a threat.  You can then either escalate the code or deescalate, based on your judgment.  While this may be true, that only means you are aware of the danger before it erupts into violence.  Situational awareness is a must, but it is not enough.  It will let you know there is going to be a fight, but won’t put rounds in play faster once you’ve drawn.

 

Good Habits

I have always practiced good habits with any firearm; finger never on the trigger until I am ready to fire, never pointing the gun at something I am not willing to destroy, etc.  I have carried with one in the chamber for some time now and it hasn’t just gone off on its own.  I haven’t shot myself in the leg when I unholster the gun at home.  I do, however, remove the magazine and take the round out of the chamber once at home.

Do any of you who are more experienced with firearms have anything to add?

 

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Filed Under: Security Tagged With: ,

When Spouses Don’t Agree on Preparedness

January 21, 2013 by

In 2 Corinthians 6:14, the word of God tells us not to be unequally yoked with an unbeliever.  We’re asked, “For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?”   I think part of the concern is that the believer might have their light dimmed and be drawn closer to the world.

I think this verse is good advice and can be applied to other areas of life.  Since my name isn’t Dr. Phil, I’ll stick to preparedness.  In my thinking, this has two applications for us Prepper’s.  The first is, “what to do if your spouse doesn’t see the need for prepping?” and the other is, “what if they are a prepper, but think there should be a different level of preparedness?”

 

Your Spouse Doesn’t See a Need to Prepare

This is the more difficult of the two areas but it isn’t impossible to either win them over or at least move them to a point where they’re not an immovable obstacle.

In sales, when you have a customer who has objections to making a purchase, you’re taught to define their objectives and address them to alleviate their fear.  Just remember, you’re not trying to sell them something.  You’re asking the person you chose to marry why they are concerned about an issue you think is important.

The objection to prepping is often an emotional one, so tread carefully. Don’t dismiss fears or concerns, as you will just make them dig their heels in further.  No one likes to have their fear belittled, but when someone uses logic and concern to shine a light on the fear, one can sometimes realize that their fear is unfounded.

As I mentioned, the objection to prepping is often an emotional one.  The first objections given might not actually be the biggest fear or concern.  They might not have actually thought it out to know why they are against the idea.  Like pealing an onion, you might have to carefully remove layer after layer to get to the heart of the objection.

I wrote an article some time ago called “Some of the reasons people don’t prepare”.  It covers many of the objections I have seen since I started prepping.  It also lists some logical rebuttal’s you can use to help alleviate their concerns and fears.

If you and your spouse are both followers of Christ, I think it is a bit easier to make your argument.  If you truly believe that God is calling you to prepare, explain that to them.  You’ll still need to address their fears and concerns.  I covered some of the concerns Trudee and I had in Is Preparedness A Sin?.  I also explored all of the scripture related to preparedness in Scripture Related To Preparedness..  I think the eBook I wrote, which is given as a gift for subscribing for updates, can also be a great way to approach this subject.

I approach circumstances where Trudee and I might be on opposite sides of an issue a couple of different ways.  We pray together and ask for God’s wisdom, for clarity and guidance to know what to do.  I then privately ask God to make her do things my way.  I’m just kidding!  I ask that if she is aligned with His will to help me see things her way, and if I am aligned with His will for her to see things my way.  I think a lot of times, if we submit a decision to Him, putting “our way” aside, He will make His will known.  We might not always like the answer though.

When you do this, you have to be willing to let go of what you think is right.  Don’t pray it while in the back of your mind thinking that God knows you’re right and He’ll side with you.  That might be the case, but the Almighty God of the universe is not your tough guy, there to bend people to your will.  The idea is to submit to God and to honor your spouse while praying for Godly wisdom.

I think you also need to define what it is you want to do.  Telling someone that you want to prepare for some undefined event may be hard for someone new to the concept of preparedness to wrap their mind around.  If you say that you would like to have a way to provide for your family’s five basic human needs, and explain what they are, that is something they can more easily understand.

 

Your Spouse is a Prepper, But Not on the Same Page

Whether your spouse thinks you should be prepping more or less, you should first thank God that they see the need at all.  From there you can approach this issue the same way outlined above; discover why they think the way they do, and explain why you think the way you do.  Pray about it as mentioned above and ask for guidance.

There are a couple of different ways you can evaluate your current level of preparedness, to see where your holes are.  Start off with Proverbs 27:12:

“The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.”

Start by defining what you both believe the dangers are.  You might be surprised to hear of one that you didn’t realize was a concern.  For instance, if the stuff hits the fan and you work close to home but your spouse works further away, you might have their trip home as a concern but a low priority.  That’s not to say you don’t care, but you might think they’ll be able to get home without much difficulty.  They make that drive every day and can see what the obstacles are or might be.  This might be a much higher concern for them.  I know that when I worked at the office, one of my biggest concerns was getting home if something big happened.

It might be a good idea to agree to have this conversation in a week, which would give you both enough time to build your case.  I would suggest you find rational examples of why something is a concern for you.  If I were to go to Trudee and say I want to buy a generator because there could be a solar flare and we will need to supply our own power, I haven’t built my best case.  Instead, if I tell her that we know of people who have lost power every winter, that we also have the potential for some other less likely but still possible things, and give examples of hackers from other countries hacking the electric grid, the blackouts on the east coast and even the less likely EMP or solar flare, I’ve made a much stronger case.

Now you can create a list of the things you both think are the biggest dangers and figure out how to “take refuge” so to speak.

What do you do if one see’s something as danger that the other does not?  For example, if Trudee has a concern that a fire breaking out is a large concern and I don’t.  I can logically see that it is a risk, but I might think our actual risk is very low.  For the sake of honoring my wife, I think I should make a concession and do what is reasonable to take refuge for her perceived danger.  I say “reasonable” because spending some cash on nice fire alarms and some fire extinguishers, as well as spending some time on making evacuation routes and plans is reasonable.  Building a concrete house and only cooking outside are not.

Once you have listed the dangers, look at them and decide how to meet your families five basic needs.  Much of this will be overlap, with some exceptions.  Food storage will meet the need for food for any of the dangers, but we might have to get a fire extinguisher to meet the one specific need.

Another sticking point might be the capacity to which you prepare.  Let’s say I think we should have six months of food stored and Trudee thinks three months is sufficient.  Maybe we could compromise and meet at 4.5 months’ worth.

The amount of supplies needed to meet your food and water needs can be measured by how long you want them to last.  The rule of thumb is to have one gallon of water per person for each day.  You might have easy access to water and decide to purchase a means to prepare it, storing less.  For food, you eat at least three meals a day.  For security, shelter and energy, the level of preparedness is harder to judge and can be open to interpretation.

If one of you is a planner and wants to have more plans on what to do if certain things happen, it might be reasonable for the person who isn’t as much of a planner to give in.  Now, if one wants to spend a large sum of money, then that is something you should agree on.

Another way to see where actual holes are in your preparations and plans is to run drills.  Turn the power off over a weekend or really test it and go longer.  You may find that you really don’t need as much of something as you thought, or you could see you need more.

I have gotten a few emails from people who have thanked me for giving them a rational Godly based way to explain preparedness, getting their spouse “on board” with it.  I don’t take credit for it.  I believe I am just doing what God asked me to do.

I also know that there are certain things that no matter how many different ways you explain it, no matter how well thought out, how logical or rational you are, there are just certain things your spouse won’t “hear” you on.  Sometimes it just takes someone on the outside.  Never make them feel like you’re pushing it down their throat.

 

What to do if They Won’t Budge?

If you can’t agree and they either fail to see the reason to prepare, or to be as prepared as you, I won’t tell you what you should do, other than pray for guidance.  If Trudee wouldn’t have been on board, I would have told her that I loved her and that her opinion did matter to me, but that I believed the Lord wanted me to begin to prepare and that I was going to.  I would’ve assured her that I wasn’t going to go overboard, but I would be spending a little money here and there.  I wouldn’t have rubbed it in, but I would have done as I felt led by the Lord.

 

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Filed Under: Christian World View, General Preparedness

The Flu

January 18, 2013 by

Before I get to today’s article I wanted to let you know about a great sale Camping Survival is having on their paracord. with the code “overstock” at checkout. I wrote an article about all the goodness that is paracord called Paracord the King of Cordage.   If paracord is on your list of items to buy, this sale would be a great time to get it.

 

The Flu

Here we are again in the midst of Flu season and it has not yet peaked, according to Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.  In fact, current rates of flu and flu-like activity have not been this high in nearly 10 years.  Because of this, I thought I would share some things with you.  Some of you might be old pro’s at all of this, but it is a good reminder for others of us.

 

What should you do during flu season?

  • If you’re ill, please stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone.
  • Wash your hands frequently.
  • Don’t touch your eyes, nose or mouth
  • Disinfect frequently touched places when someone is sick.

 

What are the symptoms of the flu?

  • Fever
  • Cough
  • Sore throat
  • Runny or stuffy nose
  • Body aches
  • Headache
  • Chills
  • Fatigue
  • Sometimes diarrhea and vomiting

 

When should you seek medical treatment?

Luckily, most people who contract the flu won’t need medical attention.  If you have a chronic illness, you should call your doctor and ask for guidance.  Some will suggest immediate treatment.  If your symptoms are bad or getting worse, call your doctor and ask for guidance as well.  The below symptoms are considered emergency warning signs.  If you or someone in your care has these, you should consider seeking medical attention immediately.

In Children

  • Fast breathing or trouble breathing
  • Bluish skin color
  • Not drinking enough fluids
  • Not waking or interacting
  • Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held
  • Flu-like symptoms that improve but then return with fever and worse cough
  • Fever with a rash
  • No tears when crying
  • Significantly fewer wet diapers than normal

In Adults

  • Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
  • Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
  • Sudden dizziness
  • Confusion
  • Severe or persistent vomiting
  • Flu-like symptoms that improve but return with fever and worse cough

 

Are there medications available?

There are antiviral medications available that can lessen the symptoms and duration of the flu.  They are most effective when taken in the first 48 hours.  There are several over-the-counter medications to help lessen the symptoms.

There are also herbal treatments that may assist as well, here are just a few.

  • Echinacea is believed to reduce the symptoms of Cold and Flu and helps in the recovery.
  • Licorice contains antiviral compounds that release interferons, the bodys own antivirals.
  • Boneset; according to Clinical herbalist, David Hoffmann, boneset is one of the best herbs for influenza because it relieves aches, fever and mucus congestion.

 

Prepper’s and the flu

I have seen a few good articles on the flu that I would like to share.

I also have a link that you can use to track the flu in your area, the the flu near you site.

 

Closing thoughts

The whole “staying home until you’re not contagious” thing gets blown off by many people, but please do.  You’re not only infecting others, but you are putting yourself at greater risk.  The flu can really take its toll, and it can leave your weakened immune system susceptible to contracting something on top of the flu.

 

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The War on Guns; Part Two

January 16, 2013 by

The President is to announce his plan to tackle gun violence later today, there are rumors it will entail some new legislation and some executive orders.   I’ll probably add my thoughts on it in the comments section later today.

 

The War on Guns; Part Two

 

Gun Grabbers

As I mentioned in part one, there have been people who don’t think civilians should own firearms since they were affordable enough for the average civilian to own one.  Some of these people have evil intent, but the vast majority is simply naive and afraid.  They seem to believe that more regulation will stop gun violence. Making drunk driving illegal hasn’t stopped it.  There are still many thousands of people arrested for DWI and even more who got away with it.  They also fail to realize that those committing gun violence often have procured the firearms illegally.  That same element who commits gun violence now, will still find a way to get guns.

Those in favor of much stricter gun control come from many avenues, some of which you might not be familiar with.

 

Law Makers

Recently Senator Feinstein had a press release of a bill she will propose to the Senate, aimed at Stopping the spread of deadly assault weapons.  The proposed bill would ban the sale of any militaristic style firearm that had a large capacity magazine.  This bill would stop the personal sale of any firearm, the “gun show loophole”, which allows a private citizen to purchase a table at a gun show and sell their own private collection to other civilians where a personal sale is legal.  These sales, to the best of my knowledge, do not require the seller to perform a background check.  This bill would grandfather in any guns owned at the date of signing, but would require they all be registered under the National Firearms Act and registration would require a picture and a finger print.

This bill is obviously troublesome to any legal gun owner, but something about it doesn’t sit right.  I think this is possibly one of two things.  The first is an attempt at Overton Window., which is a political maneuver where a law maker knows certain legislation would not be accepted in the current political climate; they propose something outrageous, knowing it will not be accepted and then they propose something a little more palatable.  The second proposition may still be bad, but people are more willing to accept it as it’s not nearly as bad as the first proposal.

The second possibility is that this bill is just the start.  If it is passed and we still see gun violence there could be harsher and harsher crackdowns.  As I mentioned above, the element of society who commits gun crime now, in large part, illegally possesses firearms now.  If more regulation is added those, the same people will still commit crimes with guns, which will lead to more regulation and restriction.  Layer upon layer of restriction will only cause legal, upstanding citizens to be unable to own firearms.

The most despicable incident was when Vice President Biden said Obama Considering ‘Executive Orders’ to Deal With Guns.  More on this below.

 

The Media

From news agencies to newspapers and untold blogs, the left has gotten behind stricter gun laws than at any time I can remember.  There have also been many celebrities who have filmed commercials asking:

“How many more?  Enough. Demand a plan. Right now. As a mom. As a dad. As a friend. As a husband. As a wife. As an American. As a human being. For the children of Sandy Hook…We can do better than this. It’s time for our leaders to act.”

How many of those hypocrites have done TV or movies where they used a gun and glorified violence? The trouble here is that this is effective and they know it.  We live in a society that pays more attention to what their favorite celeb is tweeting, dating and wearing than any relevant thing going on in the world around them.

 

School and Doctors

I have read multiple reports in the last couple of years about doctors asking children and adults about what firearms were kept in the home, where they were kept etc.  I, myself, was asked a few years ago during a routine doctor appointment.

I have also read of children being probed at school about what firearms their parents had.  I have a relative whose eleven year old child was talking about a zombie apocalypse.  A teacher overheard this and brought her inside, where she was questioned by multiple adults.  They asked her how she would deal with zombies, if her parents owned guns and other related questions.

I don’t know why schools and doctors are asking these questions or what they’re doing with the information, but you should be aware that some are asking it.  We told our kids what to say if ever asked these types of questions.

 

The Truth About Gun Violence

The truth about any “war” on any inanimate object is that they do not work.  In prohibition it was illegal to make, serve or drink booze, yet there was an entire sub culture that sprang to make, sell and drink booze.  The war on drugs has seen millions of people in and out of jail, but has done little to slow or stop trafficking, sale or use of drugs.  In fact some states are now legalizing marijuana.

Instead of waging war on guns, we should be taking a look at why and who commits gun violence.  We could also make soft targets harder.

 

Mental Illness and Depravity (the true problem)

If we take a look at those who commit mass shooting, I believe we would see most, if not all, were afflicted with some serious form of mental illness.  There are a couple of problems that don’t catch this before acts of violence occur.  First is that many people in the mentally ill persons life don’t want to bring the issue to light.  Some may even be in denial themselves.  Parents say “not my child” or “boys will be boys”.  No one wants to believe that their child is capable of harming them or anyone else, so they don’t get the police involved.  They don’t bring their child to get therapy and overlook certain behaviors.

Often times there can’t be intervention until the mentally ill person commits a crime.  As I mentioned above, loved ones often overlook small crimes, such as underage domestic violence.

I posted this on facebook the day of the Sandy Hook shooting:

“I do not understand the depth of human depravity, there will be some that come out after the tragedy in Connecticut railing against guns, when in truth they should be railing at depravity. We should all be praying for those who lost loved ones, God is the only one capable of healing pain so deep.”

I think that in many cases, when it comes to youth committing gun violence, we can look to the home.  I’m not necessarily saying it is the parents fault, at least not directly.  I have read about some of the kids who have taken part in school shootings and in many cases, the parents were not aware there was a problem.  Maybe they just weren’t involved enough in their kid’s life.  Maybe, because of the digital age we live in, it’s just easier for kids to hide things.

Some say its video games or violent movies.  I disagree, in part.  Yes there are some games and movies that are too violent, but waging war on the games or movies is not going to be any more effective than the war on alcohol, drugs or guns.  Endless hours of video games, violent or not, isn’t healthy.  Parents need to tell their kids they can’t play that game or can only play games for so long.  Parents need to be parents.  They need to stop trying to be their child’s friend.  They can be friends once they’re adults.

The truth is that if we paid more attention to mental illness and acts of depravity, the lives of those people would probably be enriched, and we may slow down the rate of violence, involving guns or not.

 

Guns Involved In Crime

My beautiful wife, Trudee, recently had a conversation with someone on Facebook who was fully behind banning all evil assault rifles but had no problem with people owning handguns, or so she said.  Trudee tried to use logic, which didn’t make a dent in this woman’s thinking.  This makes sense as this woman and many who think like her generate their opinion from irrational fear.  Here is some truth that you can use to inform yourself and others.

I posted this on Facebook recently: “FBI: More People Killed with Hammers, Clubs Each Year Than Rifles”.  This report shows that from 2005 to 2011, each year there were more people killed with hammers and clubs than with rifles.

“For example, in 2011, there was 323 murders committed with a rifle but 496 murders committed with hammers and clubs.”

While this does not take handguns into consideration, that isn’t the point.  Anti-gun advocates largely refer to “assault rifles”, which, according to the FBI, are less used in crimes than hammers.  This also leads me to believe that it is not just “assault rifles” that they want to take away.  I think they can just make an easier case to restrict “assault rifles” because there has already been a ban once.

Fox News has a story where reformed crooks say::

“the New York newspaper that published a map of names and addresses of gun owners did a great service – to their old cronies in the burglary trade.”

One of the reformed burglars went on to say:

“That was the most asinine article I’ve ever seen,” said Walter T. Shaw, 65, a former burglar and jewel thief who the FBI blames for more than 3,000 break-ins that netted some $70 million in the 1960s and 1970s. “Having a list of who has a gun is like gold – why rob that house when you can hit the one next door, where there are no guns?”

 

Guns Used to Stop Crime

Very rarely will you see the main stream media show a story about someone who used a gun to stop a crime. During research for this article I found two sites that publish every news story like this. One is the NRA and the other is The Armed Citizen.  There is most likely some overlap, but both are good resources to get examples of where a gun actually saved an innocent life.

 

What Can We Expect

I wish I could say I knew what to expect.  I may not know what will happen, but I do believe something will.  People have believed President Obama would go after guns since he made the comment, “they cling to their God and their guns”.  Now we have the Vice President talking about executive orders to deal with guns.  We also have the President saying he is putting his full weight behind dealing with guns.  I suppose they could just re-implement the old “assault weapon” ban, but I don’t think they will.  I think they believe the Overton Window has moved far enough that they can make a bigger grab.

An executive order used to bypass congress and make ownership or purchase of certain guns illegal, or requiring every firearm be registered would be unconstitutional and, thus, illegal.  This President has sidestepped congress and the constitution already.

If there is an executive order, there are at least three possibilities.  First, congress could override it with a vote of 2/3.  I honestly don’t see that happening. This is the same congress that passed ObamaCare after all.  The second option is something that Ted Nugent recently commented on as well.  Local law enforcement could refuse to enforce this as an illegal law.  This is also the goal of The Oath Keepers, who reach out to those active duty military and prior service military as well as law enforcement and ask them not to enforce ten (unlawful) orders if they are given.  The number one being disarming the American people.

If you are unaware, when you join the military you take the following oath:

“I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”

Many veterans, myself included, believe that since we have been discharged from active duty, we are no longer beholden to the Uniform Code of Military Justice, or obligated to obey orders given from Officers or the President.  We do, however, feel we are still obligated to support and defend the constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic.

If Executive Orders are used, depending on the enforcement of them by local law enforcement, we could see another executive order used to install martial law and suspend Habeas Corpus.

 

How Can We Respond?

I say “can” because I won’t presume to tell you what you should do.  Here are my thoughts on how I believe a follower of Christ can act and not walk in sin.

First, let me recommend two articles written by Pastor Chuck Baldwin.  These are well worth reading.  The first, entitled My Line In The Sand Is Drawn Here!, covers his thoughts on the proposed bill from Senator Feinstein.  He also gives you some ways to fight this and to help you draw your own line in the sand.

The second article is called Revolution?.  In it, he explains how the Revolutionary war was actually sparked by gun control and how Christian leaders of the time took a very active role, defying a ruler imposing immoral laws on them.

Now is the time to pray for our enemies, to pray they act out of wisdom and logic and not out of irrational fear.  This is also the time to take action.  This is the time to let our Congressmen and Senators know that we want them to stand firm and protect the Second Amendment of the Constitution they swore an oath to protect.  You can find the phone number and other contact information for your Congressmen and Senators at USA.gov.

In case you’re wondering here is the oath they take.

“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me God.”

If and Executive Order to go after guns is used, or if Congress and Senate overreach in regulating firearms, they will go against the Constitution and against what our Founding Fathers saw as God-given rights to all people.

In God’s Law vs. Man’s Law I explain that when Man’s law contradicts God’s Law, we can be morally correct and violate man’s laws.  I also give examples of this from scripture.

There have been several people saying there will be blood in the street if they come after guns.  I pray not, but  I have to say, I do see it as a possibility and I would not have said that even three months ago.  Each one of us will have to pray for guidance and draw our own line in the sand.  I caution you from posting anything inflammatory on this or any other site on the Internet.

May God bless us each with His guidance.  Lord please give us wisdom so we may see how You would have us act.  Let us stand firm in Your Word.  Bless those elected to lead us with wisdom and courage to uphold the oath they took to defend the Constitution.  Father, I ask that this fight end peacefully and that the outcome not infringe on the rights You have given to all people.

 

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The War on Guns; Part One
The War on Guns; Part Two

Filed Under: Security, Signs of the Times Tagged With: , ,

The War on Guns; Part One

January 14, 2013 by

Unless you have been under a rock the last month or so, you have heard multiple things about the federal government “going after guns”.  This issue is very important and multifaceted.  I want to talk about why this issue is so important, the Second Amendment, the attacks on it and the people who are attacking it, what we might see and how we as Christian gun owners can respond.

This will be a lot of reading, so I am going to break this up into two articles.  The first will explain why this issue is so important.  I’ll also touch on the Founding fathers and the Second Amendment. I am going to link to other articles that I think you should read as well.  I know this is a lot of reading, but it’s important to know why this fight is so important and to understand the argument for our right to keep and bear arms.

 

The War on Guns; Part One

The war on guns is not new but in the last few weeks it has reached a fevered pitch.  The Obama administration is taking the advice of its former chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, who suggested “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste.”  Please do not misunderstand.  Let me make this clear now; the shootings that have happened in recent history are horrific acts committed by depraved and often mentally ill people.   Despite this, the Obama administration is using this as an Overton Window to take advantage of the situation and do something they could not have done sooner.

 

Why Is This So Important?

There are two reasons this issue is so important.  The first is because of what we may face and what the past has shown when firearms have been restricted.  The second reason knowing this information is important is to have a rebuttal to those who would argue to take our guns.

 

Having a Ready Response

Security is one of the five basic human needs.  I believe it is the most important one, because without it you cannot protect the other four.  I believe the Founding Fathers also thought it was vitally important.  I do not think it is by mistake that right to “keep and bear arms” is the Second Amendment, following only the right to speak out in protest.

The Apostle Paul told us we should have an answer ready to explain and defend our faith.  I think that is good advice for anything you have convictions about.  You should be able to logically answer and explain your stance to anyone who challenges you.  I say logically because I think people that base their opinion in emotion often don’t sound serious.  That is not to say that one cannot be emotional about their beliefs, I just think one should have them rooted in logic and facts and speak passionately.

I was recently asked what a Christian should do if the government comes after guns.  I answered that we should follow God’s law any time it and man’s law contradict.  If you understand what the Founders intent was when they wrote the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, you’ll have an easier time answering that question on many subjects dealing with our laws, including gun rights.

 

Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

Let me first say that I am not comparing President Obama to Hitler or any other despot.  There have been those who believe no civilian should own a firearm since firearms were affordable enough for the average citizen to own one.  I will discuss gun grabbers in further detail later in this article series.  For now, I want to discuss some of the world leaders who have forced strict gun control on their nation and the outcome it led to.

There is some controversy about Hitler and gun control.  From my study of history, I am led to believe that the Weimar Republic had strict gun control in place long before Hitler came to power.  Hitler did take advantage of it and Jews were not allowed to own firearms.  He is also quoted as saying at a dinner talk on April 11, 1942:

““The most foolish mistake we could possibly make would be to allow the subject races to possess arms.  History shows that all conquerors who have allowed their subject races to carry arms have prepared their own downfall by so doing.  Indeed, I would go so far as to say that the supply of arms to the underdogs is a sine qua non for the overthrow of any sovereignty.   So let’s not have any native militia or native police. German troops alone will bear the sole responsibility for the maintenance of law and order throughout the occupied Russian territories, and a system of military strong-points must be evolved to cover the entire occupied country.”

Joseph Stalin is quoted as saying:

“If the opposition disarms, well and good. If it refuses to disarm, we shall disarm it ourselves.”

Mao Tze Tung, Nov 6 1938

“All political power comes from the barrel of a gun.  The communist party must command all the guns, that way, no guns can ever be used to command the party.”

Most recently Robert Mugabe, the dictator of Zimbabwe, has instituted a ban on guns.  Here is a link I found interesting; a liberal who had their mind changed on the possession of firearms.

Something these and so many other evil men understood is that there are two sure ways to control people, take their guns and take their food.  There is a quote that say’s “God created man, Samuel Colt made them equal”.  It is a firearm that levels the playing field and gives a people the ability to stand up and resist tyranny.

Some people will say “This could never happen here”.  I wonder if the Jews in Germany thought the same thing, or the people of Zimbabwe, Rwanda and so many others.

I saw a post recently on facebook that said “I saw a movie once where only the police and military were allowed to own guns.  The name of that movie was “Schindler’s list”.  Never Again!

 

The Founding Fathers

I wrote a series of three articles last year that dealt with the Founding Fathers the Constitution, and the future of America.  I also wrote God’s law vs. Man’s law.  In them, I explain that it took great courage to write the Declaration of Independence. Aside from the Bible, it is one of the most important documents in existence, largely due to the following sentence:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

The reason that one sentence is so important is because it states that the rights mentioned above in the Bill of Rights and the right of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness and yes, the right to keep and bear arms are granted by God, and what God grants, man cannot take away.

The Founders knew that a large government could not be trusted.  That is why there are so many checks and balances.

 

The Second Amendment

“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

Something important to keep in mind when studying the Bible, the Constitution or any historical document is that context its king.  Something taken out of context can completely change what the document means; this is the case with the Second Amendment.  I have done a lot of reading the last couple of weeks, shoring up what I didn’t fully understand, keeping track of what the anti-gunners were doing and how pro-gunners were responding.  I came across a fantastic document from the Lectric Law Library called The Second Amendment: The Framers’ Intentions.  The author does a fantastic job of explaining the wording of the Second Amendment and how the particular words meant something different at the writing of the Second Amendment than they do today.  I highly suggest you read it, as I will only touch on some key points of the Amendment.  Any of the italicized text in the Second Amendment section comes from The Second Amendment: The Framers’ Intentions.

The first question to answer is; “why would this need to be specified and added as an Amendment?”  As Noah Webster, whose name you might recognize from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is quoted:

“Before a standing army can rule, the people must be disarmed; as they are in almost every kingdom in Europe.”

You see, the founders knew that tyrants preferred an unarmed populace.  They knew that an over reaching government with a standing army behind it was a threat to the liberty of the citizenry.

Once we understand that these words were very carefully chosen and that the Founders thought they were important enough to make them the Second Amendment, let’s take a look at the words themselves.  I’m going to break this into smaller pieces and dissect each one.

 

A Well Regulated Militia

Context is king.  When many people hear the word militia today, they might think of extremists who stock guns and are just waiting for a chance to use them.  But, when the Second Amendment was written, the word meant something else.

“When the Constitution was ratified, the Framers unanimously believed that the “militia” included all of the people capable of bearing arms.”

“ALL of the people capable of bearing arms”; this means that according to the founders we are all in the militia.  Alright, so anyone who is capable of bearing arms is in the militia, but what exactly does “well regulated militia” mean?

In modern times the word “regulate” often makes one think of the government regulation and restrictions.   A much better (and much longer) explanation can be found at The Second Amendment: The Framers’ Intentions.  A condensed version is that the founders knew the militia might one day have to fight a standing army raised and supported by the federal government.  They would not have made the militia subject to be regulated by the government.  Who then would be the regulatory body of the militia?  Again, context is king:

“This interpretation is in keeping with English usage of the time, which included within the meaning of the verb “regulate” the concept of self- regulation or self-control (as it does still to this day). The concept that the people retained the right to self-regulate their local militia groups (or regulate themselves as individual militia members) is entirely consistent with the Framers’ use of the indefinite article “a” in the phrase “A well regulated Militia.”

That’s right, “We the people” are to self-regulate our own militia groups made up of anyone capable of bearing arms.

 

“Being necessary to the security of a free State”

Some of us may say we live under tyranny now, but it pales in comparison to the tyranny the Founders lived under.  The Founders knew there were three potential enemies; the first, an invading country, the second, a single terrorist or small groups of terrorists, the last, the standing Army sponsored by the federal government.

It is the job of the standing army to fight against invading forces.  It is the job of police agencies to deal with terrorists.  It is the job of the militia to be a check against the standing army.

“Thus, “well regulation” referred to something else. Since the fundamental purpose of the militia was to serve as a check upon a standing army, it would seem the words “well regulated” referred to the necessity that the armed citizens making up the militia(s) have the level of equipment and training necessary to be an effective and formidable check upon the national government’s standing army.”

“This view is confirmed by Alexander Hamilton’s observation, in The Federalist, No. 29, regarding the people’s militias ability to be a match for a standing army: ” . . . but if circumstances should at any time oblige the government to form an army of any magnitude, that army can never be formidable to the liberties of the people, while there is a large body of citizens, little if at all inferior to them in discipline and use of arms, who stand ready to defend their rights . . . .”

Of course we don’t have a structured citizen militia as well trained or as well-equipped as the standing army, but this does provide the basis for citizens to own weapons on the same level as the average soldier.  This would not apply to planes, tanks, mine or grenades, but it would permit semi-auto rifles and semi-auto handguns with high capacity magazines.

 

The right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

The first two parts of the Second Amendment set the stage for why the people have the (God given) right to keep and bear arms.  This last part flatly states the right shall not be infringed.

“Furthermore, returning to the text of the Second Amendment itself, the right to keep and bear arms is expressly retained by “the people,” not the states. Recently the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed this view, finding that the right to keep and bear arms was an individual right held by the “people,” — a “term of art employed in select parts of the Constitution,” specifically the Preamble and the First, Second, Fourth, Ninth and Tenth Amendments. Thus, the term “well regulated” ought to be considered in the context of the noun it modifies, the people themselves, the militia(s).”

Here is another fantastic piece from Roanoke.com called In Webster’s English.  It explains that the English language has changed since the writing of the Second Amendment and uses the first Webster’s dictionary to explain it.

 

The Second Amendment in Modern Times

There have been some recent developments with the Second Amendment.  First, on August 24, 2004, the Justice Department released a brief on Whether the Second Amendment Secures an Individual Right.. They state:

“we conclude that the Second Amendment secures a personal right of individuals, not a collective right that may only be invoked by a State or a quasi-collective right restricted to those persons who serve in organized militia units.”

In the wake of illegal confiscation of firearms after Hurricane Katrina, there was H.R. 5013 (109th): Disaster Recovery Personal Protection Act of 2006, which, among other things, states:

“The Second Amendment to the Constitution states that a `well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed’, and Congress has repeatedly recognized this language as protecting an individual right.”

Most recently, on 6-28-2010, the Supreme Court upheld, 5-4, that The Second Amendment’s guarantee of an individual right to bear arms applies to state and local gun control laws.

 

In Summary

The Founding Fathers clearly laid out that the right to keep and bear arms was an individual right.  There have been many evil men who have tried to control their people by outlawing the ownership of firearms.  I believe the Founders knew this was a possibility in the future of our nation, which is why they spelled it out.  Even though they spelled it out, some have tried to muddy its meaning.  With the paper from the Justice Department and the decision from the Supreme Court it is clear:

 

The right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

 

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The War on Guns; Part One
The War on Guns; Part Two

Filed Under: Mind Set, Security, Signs of the Times Tagged With: ,
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