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What Does Civil Unrest Look Like and How Can You Stay Safe Near It?

October 17, 2012 by

There have been a lot of rumors of possible or expected civil unrest, which I mentioned in What We May See at the End of 2012 that is not related to the Mayans and such as this recent article from Infowars.com, entitled Will The Election Results Cause Massive Riots To Erupt All Over America?.  This could range from small peaceful protests to large violent riots.  In light of this, I thought I would look back at civil unrest in our history and from around the world to see if there is anything to be learned that could help if we’re ever caught near civil unrest.

 

Mob Mentality

Mob mentality means a group that acts together without a previous plan.  Mob mentality can turn dangerous if there are negative or hostile emotions being expressed.   People often feed off one another’s anger.  If one person acts out in violence, others may quickly follow.  People soon think as a group and continue to feed off each other’s hostility.

There are a certain percentage of people who will act with honor in any situation.  There is another percentage that will act with dishonor and take advantage of people in any situation.  There is yet another group of people who will usually act with honor except when presented with the opportunity to “get away with it”.  In a group of people, all it takes is for a small percentage of dishonorable people to influence the opportunists and chaos ensues.

Examples where this has happened would be riots after sporting events, flash mobs with malicious intent and, to some extent, the riots seen with “Occupy Wall Street”.

If you are facing a group where mob mentality is present, the best advice I can give is to leave the area immediately and call the police from a safe distance.  Flash mobs are a bit different; they are usually made up of teenagers who text their friends and the group quickly builds because so many have been texting.  They often then target a specific location, streaming in and either burglarizing the location or, in some instances, assaulting patrons or employees.

If you are faced with a flash mob, I would advise you to forget what you were there to purchase and leave immediately.  You do not know what the intent is or how long it will remain peaceful.  Retreat to a safe distance that the mob cannot quickly get to and call police.

 

Extended Lawlessness

I can only think of one case of extended lawlessness in recent American history.  That would be the LA riot in 1992, which lasted six days.  There were 53 people killed and over 2,000 injured.  Rioting was sparked in a few other places across the country but the majority of it was seen in LA.

Looting and violence was rampant.  I had a friend in the Navy who lived in South Central LA during the time of the riots.  He said his mother made him and his brother stay lying on the floor almost the entire time because of random gunfire.  I have read reports that police were so overwhelmed in parts of the city that some business owner took up arms and defended their businesses.

Looking abroad, we see similar traits.  When Saddam fell and his police went into hiding, Iraq was full of looting and rioting that carried on for many days.  I remember reading reports from Tunisia and Egypt soon after the civil unrest started there.  There were reports of small convenience stores running out of supplies, cash machines running dry and neighbors banding together to defend their neighborhood from the rioting thugs.

There have been many anti-austerity protests and riots in Spain, Greece, the United Kingdom and some other European countries as well, many of which have turned violent.  I remember reading one report of sporting goods stores in the UK running out of baseball bats because people were buying them for protection (see what happens when you don’t have the right to bear arms?).

If you live near a city that is in the midst of extended lawlessness you will have to make a decision.  Will you be safer if you bug out or batten down?  If you chose to batten down, here are some things to keep in mind; 1.) Make sure you have food and water available so that you do not have to risk leaving the house.  2.) Keep some emergency cash at home just in case you must leave for emergency supplies.

If you have to go out on foot, always be looking for cover and concealment, even if you don’t have to use it in the moment, you should always know where the nearest is at any given moment.  Avoid large groups of people; you have no way of knowing what they may be up to or when mob mentality may take hold.  If you see violence taking place, whether it is a fistfight or any other type of violence, it can shock your system to see it “in real life”.  Do not fixate on it, push it from your mind and focus on putting distance between you and it, you can process what you saw when your safely back home.  Keep your head on a swivel as they say in the Navy and keep looking around you to make sure you know who is nearby.

If you go out near civil unrest in a vehicle, keep as much distance as you can or you may be faced with the decision to use your vehicle to “make some room” to push through a crowd or to simply flee.  That is why I suggest you keep moving.  Do not stop and watch.  Keep as much distance as you can. Almost every time I see footage from riots, there are cars that are vandalized, flipped over or burned.

You cannot depend on 911 or expect the police to show up quickly.  It might be wise to take a page from the neighbors in Egypt who banded together to protect their neighborhood or from the business owners in LA that defended their businesses because the police were so overwhelmed.

 

Restoring Order

Police and possibly the National Guard have the difficult task of stopping the lawlessness and restoring order.  This job could be made increasingly difficult because in many cases the dishonorable people will try to blend in with citizens who’re nearby.  This is used to great effect in Iraq and Afghanistan where someone will shot at our forces and then drop their gun and hide amongst the civilians standing nearby, or will run into a hospital mosque.

As I wrote in What We May See at the End of 2012 that is not related to the Mayans, local law enforcement agencies have trained with the military in urban operations.  Also Local Cops Ready for War With Homeland Security-Funded Military Weapons and the Air National Guard ordering several LRAD (Long Range Acoustical Devices).  The article also states:

“With this order, LRAD systems will be in use by every major force of the Department of Defense,”

There are two dangers.  One is the rioters and the other is the response to them.  You would be well advised to keep your distance from both.

 

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

Survival Psychology: Cognitive Dissonance

October 8, 2012 by

“Cognitive dissonance” is a term coined by psychologist Leon Festinger in 1954, which is a psychological phenomenon which refers to the discomfort felt at a discrepancy between what you already know or believe, and new information or interpretation, often these are two opposing views

People who are “asleep” when it comes to current events and to things like how fragile our electrical and water systems are or how quickly groceries would run out of food if the trucks stopped running only hold one view.  Christians who say “I don’t need to prepare, God will provide” or something similar, fall into the same group.

 

An example:

The Flood

A man was trapped in his house during a flood. He began praying to God to rescue him. He had a vision in his head of God’s hand reaching down from heaven and lifting him to safety.

The water started to rise in his house. His neighbor urged him to leave and offered him a ride to safety. The man yelled back, “I am waiting for God to save me”. The neighbor drove off in his pick-up truck.

The man continued to pray and hold on to his vision. As the water began rising in his house, he had to climb up to the roof.

A boat came by with some people heading for safe ground. They yelled at the man to grab a rope they were ready to throw and take him to safety. He told them that he was waiting for God to save him. They shook their heads and moved on.

The man continued to pray, believing with all his heart that he would be saved by God. The flood waters continued to rise. A helicopter flew by and a voice came over a loudspeaker offering to lower a ladder and take him off the roof. The man waved the helicopter away, shouting back that he was waiting for God to save him. The helicopter left.

The flooding water came over the roof and caught him up and swept him away. He drowned.

When he reached heaven and asked, “God, Why did you not save me? I believed in you with all my heart. Why did you let me drown?”

God replied, “I sent you a pick-up truck, a boat and a helicopter and you refused it all. What else could I possibly do for you?!”

In this example, the man clung to one thought and dismissed the possibility that God was rescuing him.

 

If you can use logic and facts, not emotion, to introduce a competing thought, they will be forced to make a decision.  For example, if you know someone who doesn’t see the need to prepare, you might ask them what they would do if the power went out and the power company couldn’t get it back on for a few days.  How would they keep their food cold in the warmer months, or keep themselves warm in the colder months?  Is most of their food in the refrigerator, or do they have a week or more worth of food in a pantry?  If the electricity is out where they live, it might be out at the grocery as well.  What would they do for food then?  Once faced with the conflicting thoughts that they do not need to prepare at all and that they only have a few days’ worth of food that doesn’t need to be in the refrigerator, they now must make a choice.

Likewise if you know a Christian who doesn’t see the need to prepare because God will provide, you might ask them “does God provides for them now?”  If the answer is no, I would ask why they think He will provide in an emergency.  If they say yes, then ask how the food they eat made its way to the house.  Explain that God gave us the ability to prepare now for future needs, but that He is still the one who provided.  This brings me to one of my favorite quotes:

“If God gives you a watch, are you honoring Him more by asking Him what time it is or by simply consulting the watch?” A.W. Tozer

 

Sticking with Logic and Facts

The reason it’s important to use logic and facts is that emotion from one person is not equivalent to emotion in the next.   A fact is a fact no matter how you or I feel about it.  I’ll use our Our Endangered Electrical Infrastructure as an example.   It is a fact that hackers in multiple other countries have hacked our electric grid and in some cases, left malicious software thought to be a back door, that was found later.  It is a fact that there have been blackouts caused by falling trees that left an estimated 55 million without power. Also a blackout caused by changing a failing part that left an estimated 7 million without power.  It is also a fact that I cover this in more details in EMP’s, Solar Flares and CME’s that the United States doesn’t produce many of the large transformers used and in a medium to large solar storm, we would have to look to other countries to help replace them.  It could take ten years to fully recover.

It is emotion that says that in an EMP or solar flare situation, we’re in the stone ages and we’ll be killing each other within days.  While this could be partly or even mostly true, people who have not been paying attention and are hearing this information for the first time don’t know what to do with an EMP and the idea of us killing each other within days isn’t understandable.  If you show provable facts that they can understand, such as the occasional black out and hackers breaking into our grid, they can understand and might enter into cognitive dissonance.

 

What Happens Next?

Some people might be open for further discussion or even have some questions on the subject.   Most likely you have just planted seeds and will not see the fruit right away.  There will be those who decide that their previously held belief is the correct one and will disregard your logic and facts.  These people are unreachable, much like the man in the example.  Shake the dust from your sandals and continue your walk.

 

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What We May See at the End of 2012 that is not related to the Mayans

October 3, 2012 by

I’m not a prophet but I have gotten pretty good at watching pieces in different areas move and seeing potential threats.  Here are some possible things we might see late this year and early next year.

 

Politics

I see the potential for chaos no matter who gets elected.  If Romney gets elected there is a very good chance that a certain percent of Obama supporters will riot in protest.  What makes me think this?  The new Black Panthers intimidating voters at prior elections, the almost worship from a large chunk of his supporters, such as the “Obama phone” woman, and the racial tension in America which is covered below.

If Obama gets elected, he has nothing to lose and he could be even more progressive, pushing his agenda faster and farther than we have seen thus far.  In his first four years he was able to:  get homosexuals openly enrolled in the military, push through universal healthcare and appoint many radicals as czars that only answer to him, not to congress or the voters.  I could go on but you get the idea.  He did many things that could be argued as unconstitutional and he still had an election to win.  If he wins another term, all bets are off.   I can see him going after DOMA (defense of marriage act) and the second amendment to name just two.

 

Economy

No matter who gets elected we will have an economy that is in very bad shape.  We cannot sustain this debt and keep living like we have been.  I believe taxes will be raised on the middle class and up.  I also think we will see social programs cut, which could lead to the kind of protesting and riots seen in Spain, Greece and in London.

As I mentioned in When the Trucks Stops, due to a lack of truckers and rising diesel prices, among other reasons, the cost to have freight delivered is going up.  This cost will be passed on to the consumer.  Manufacturers have done some sneaky things the last couple of years, like making the package of certain items smaller but keeping the price the same.  They are trying to avoid raising prices, but soon won’t have a choice.

Here is an article from Comcast’s Xfinity finance news called Forbes: The Drought’s Impact on Food Prices.  The article explains why the drought will impact food prices and how it will impact certain foods such as dairy, chicken, beef and others.

There are also several municipalities declaring bankruptcy, from small cities, counties and soon, I believe, states.  California is the biggest and probably the closest to it.  Here is a Municipal Bankruptcies Map.  Watch it grow over the next few months.  People will lose their entire pensions and cuts will be made to services.  As in Oakland, for example, Police will no longer respond to certain crimes..  Others are doing things like turning off the street lights.  This is just the beginning.

 

Crime Rates

When social cutbacks are made, the poorest among us will be effected the most.  There is a certain percentage of that populace who will turn to crime to “supplement” their income.  One of the things I learned in my local police citizens academy is that criminals will often travel some distance to do their thieving, not wanting to “make a mess where they live” so to speak.  So suburbs with a relatively low crime rate could see more crime as social programs are cut.

I read a forum post by Ferfal, a gentleman who lived in Argentina until very recently.  He has two blogs, Surviving in Argentina and his newer blog, The Modern Survivalist.  In this forum post he made the point that the crime rate was so high that he always had multiple weapons on him, a knife, pepper spray, an ASP and a firearm.

The most important thing to always use is The Cooper Color Code and Situational Awareness.  These two can help keep you safe.  If you haven’t read The Gift of Fear yet, please do.  It will show you how to trust your instincts and keep you safe.

 

Race Relations

I have never seen racism.  I believe it exists and until a few years ago, (maybe I was naïve) I would have said it only existed in small pockets but that race relations in America were by and large doing fine.  Then two different things happened.  One, anyone who opposed the President was openly called a racist by many in the media, Hollywood and even some of our elected leaders.  The Tea Party was also called racist as well.

Then Trayvon Martin was shot in Florida.  When George Zimmerman was not arrested, he and his family had death threats made against them.  There were protests against the police, and some small rioting broke out.  There were also stories of white people attacked and told that it was for Trayvon.  Some of these beatings occurred outside of Florida.

Today, if asked, I would say that race relations in America are concerning.  I do believe that if Romney is elected, we will see rioting that makes the LA riots pale in comparison.  If people truly believe that anyone who doesn’t vote for Obama is a racist, losing to Romney will be seen as a far greater injustice than George Zimmerman not being arrested right away.  Any white person may be seen as a surrogate for the white person who did not vote for Obama, just like the white people in other states being beaten for Trayvon.

 

Civil Unrest

I have had several people email me about things they have seen or that they have been told by insiders.  I have also seen several news stories that point to state and federal government getting ready for civil unrest, from various police agencies being allowed to use drones, to police forces training with the military in urban operations.  Multiple federal agencies have purchased large quantities of ammo, totaling over 450 million rounds without any good explanations.  Then, Local Cops Ready for War With Homeland Security-Funded Military Weapons.

There is also the Air National Guard ordering several LRAD (Long Range Acoustical Devices).  The article also states:

“With this order, LRAD systems will be in use by every major force of the Department of Defense,”

These LRAD systems have already been put to use on American citizens, first at the G20 protests, which can be seen in the video.  Watch to see exactly how the LRAD works and how effective it is.

 

 

It was used again; San Diego Sheriff Gore deploys military sonic LRAD area denial weapons at political meetings.

The whispers people are hearing from insiders are vague but point to either something happening or being ready for something big to happen.  I usually take these kinds of whispers with a grain of salt, but like I said, I have had quite a few emails that, while not saying the same thing, have a similar thread.  Combine that with the drones being used to spy on Americans, the hundreds of millions of rounds and the police training in joint urban operations with the military and, well, you don’t have to be a conspiracy theorist to see that something is either going to happen or at least expected to.

 

Filed Under: Signs of the Times Tagged With:

What is an Overton Window and Why is it Important?

September 26, 2012 by

Some of you Glenn Beck fans might be familiar with what an “Overton Window” is. I’m not talking about his book by the same title (which I own, but haven’t read yet). I’m speaking of the term on which he based his book.

The Overton Window is a theory created by Joseph Overton from the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Here is a brief explanation from their site:

“Joseph Overton observed that in a given public policy area, such as education, only a relatively narrow range of potential policies will be considered politically acceptable. This “window” of politically acceptable options is primarily defined not by what politicians prefer, but rather by what they believe they can support and still win re-election. In general, then, the window shifts to include different policy options not when ideas change among politicians, but when ideas change in the society that elects them.”

Here is a video from the Glenn Beck’s show when he was still on Fox, with Joseph Lehman, the President of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. It might help explain it for those who need more visual explanation than written.

As the video explains, you may not know what the term “Overton Window” means, but it has been used on you countless times.

You might be asking “what has this got to do with preparedness?” It has to do with your mindset and awareness; the awareness of when you’re being manipulated. In The Future of America I list some of my concerns with the current administration. I also cover America and prophecy and explain some possibilities that could lie ahead for us. These are things like: an economic collapse resembling that of the one seen in Argentina, which could lead to large social programs being cut, which could then lead to rioting on a scale never seen before in America, which could lead to Martial Law and the suspension of Habeas Corpus. I also believe that after the next large event, there will be a power grab that makes all others thus far pale in comparison. To accomplish some of those things, the “Overton Window” will have to be moved, so that the idea of Marshal Law or many other ugly things are something that the citizenry see as acceptable, if not needed.

The reason knowing this is important is that when you see the “Overton Window” being pushed, it can be a sign that things could be about to hit the fan. Also make sure you you’re not one of those that gets distracted (or manipulated) by what the right hand is doing and does not notice what the left is. Don’t be willing to accept just a little loss of your freedoms, because it’s better than what was initially imposed or proposed.

Here is one example to help paint a picture of how a politician can use this to move the “Overton Window”. Pretend I am the Governor of your state; I decide that we need to turn three of your fairly large freeways into toll roads to bring in more tax revenue. Now, I know that this idea is outside of the “Overton Window”, so instead of putting forth legislation to turn these freeways into toll roads, I do so and say that private companies will operate them, most of which are companies from another country. The citizens are in an uproar; “how dare I let a foreign company put a toll on an American! If anyone is going to charge me a toll it dang sure better be someone from America or someone from my own state!” And the window has now moved. What would have been unacceptable before now seems the more reasonable option. Think this sounds farfetched? Governor Perry tried to do it in Texas in 2010.

Here is another example, one that the President would like to enact very much. In fact, he mentioned it several times in the 2008 campaign. He said we couldn’t just rely on our military to achieve the national security objectives that he has set, so he would like to create a Civilian National Security Force that is just as powerful, just as strong and just as well funded. Here is a video where a reporter interviews Rham Emanuel, when he was the President’s Chief of Staff, who speaks about what this force might look like. The President speaks at the 3minute 42 second mark.

Obviously it hasn’t been enacted, but don’t think that this has been discarded. I think that the “Overton Window” just isn’t in the right place yet. As Rahm Emanuel said, “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste.” What kind of crisis could provoke the “Overton Window” to be moved to where the President could achieve this goal?

In “Terrorism: Lone Wolf and Swarm Attacks”, I explain two types of terrorist attacks that I think we’ll see more and more of as time goes on. They are: a lone gunman or a small team of gunmen attacking soft targets, such as shopping malls, churches and schools, among others. If there was a huge spike in these kinds of attacks, where the police were just overwhelmed, maybe, just maybe, the “Overton Window” could move far enough for the President to get his Civilian National Security Force.

This is completely speculative but I would imagine that this Civilian National Security Force would swear an oath to the President, and not to the Constitution like the military does. Of course the attacks would be horrendous and need to be stopped, and I don’t know about you, but to have a group of people with the Presidents ideals who are just as powerful, just as strong and just as well funded as the military sounds like hitting the fan to me, creating a fundamental change to America that may never be undone.

 

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

Preparedness Lessons from David and Goliath

July 18, 2012 by

 Today’s article isn’t the typical preparedness article.  Trust me, it is related.

One of my Biblical hero’s has always been David. He was fierce in everything; his protection of his flock, killing a lion and bear, etc. He was fierce in his determination to be king once God chose the time for him to be king. We’re told of at least two times that David spared Saul’s life and many more times that he fled Saul to avoid the confrontation. He was also fierce in his seeking the Lord, writing many of the Psalms, giving God praise and seeking His protection.

One of my favorite stories is of David and Goliath.  When David heard that the giant had been taunting Israel and the Living God, he was outraged.  He convinced Saul that the Lord had helped him kill the lions and bear and would help him kill the giant. Saul gave David his own armor and weapons, which David was unfamiliar and uncomfortable with. He took his sling and picked five smooth stones.  He then went to face the giant, who mocked him, to which David replied:

“You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies—the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.

Today the LORD will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head. And then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel!

And everyone assembled here will know that the LORD rescues his people, but not with sword and spear. This is the LORD’s battle, and he will give you to us!”

Like I said, David was fierce, not because of belief in himself but because of his belief in God.  God anointed David as the next king of Israel and, being that he was not king yet, David trusted in the Lord to save him and all of Israel from the giant. David’s faith was fierce.

I said this was preparedness related.  Here are the preparedness lessons I have gleaned from this story.

David was a shepherd.  He knew that sheep had natural predators that were dangerous and he knew he might have to defend his flock against them, so he always practiced Situational Awareness. There is always a possibility that someone around you means you harm.  In fact, according to the FBI crime clock 2010 there was a violent crime every 25.3 seconds that year.  Are you aware of your surroundings and looking for wolves?

As my friend Rob Robideau points out in his book “Tactical Bible Stories”, David had at his disposal the very finest weaponry and armor in all of Israel.  King Saul had offered his very own.  David instead chose to use what he was familiar with; a rod, a sling and stones.  There is a saying, “run what ya brung”.  It means that you should know how to use what you have. 

David was well practiced with his sling.  How many stones do you think he threw to become so accurate? He probably slung some for practice, some out of boredom and some out of the need to protect his flock, eventually slinging the stones that slain Goliath. Owning a firearm does not mean you are proficient with it, especially under stress. Under stress your body’s natural reaction could work against you. Only with training and practice can you become proficient and develop the muscle memory to fight against your body’s natural response. A small confession; I need more range time and more training classes.  This is something I want to be more proficient at.

All of the mightiest men of Israel watched for forty days as Goliath and the other philistines taunted them, blaspheming our God.  Only a young boy was willing to stand up to them. There is a saying “chance favors the prepared mind”.  But I think God looks for the willing soul. God has called many of us to prepare, with reasons only He knows.  If you’re a regular reader of this blog, my guess is that you are a willing soul. As I mentioned, David’s faith was fierce.  He may have thrown the stone, but God used him to kill Goliath. Stay willing and be on the lookout for giants and always be fierce, for we serve a mighty God.

Side note:  I read a commentary on this story once that said the reason David grabbed five stones was because Goliath had four brothers. He mentioned verses to back it up, which I can’t remember now.  True or not, I thought it was pretty funny.

 

Filed Under: Mind Set Tagged With: , ,

Is the Second Amendment in Danger From The UN?

July 9, 2012 by

In the article The Future of America, a commenter posted a link to the UN Conference on Arms Treaty and commented about how the UN wanted to use this treaty to strip American’s of our guns, to which I remarked (tongue in cheek) that the UN states the following and should of course be trusted.:

“The ATT will not:
• Interfere with the domestic arms trade and the way a country regulates civilian possession
• Ban, or prohibit the export of, any type of weapons
• Impair States’ legitimate right to self-defence
• Lower arms regulation standards in countries where these are already at a high level.
An Arms Trade Treaty will aim to create a level playing field for international arms transfers by requiring all States to abide by a set of standards for transfer controls, which will ultimately benefit the safety and security of people everywhere in the world.”
For years I have seen many people on forums claim that the UN is trying to take our guns. Someone always replies that the UN can pass all the treaties they want but that won’t mean anything on US soil. While true, that is unless the Senate ratifies it. It then becomes law.

There was an article published in 2011 from Forbes called U.N. Agreement Should Have All Gun Owners Up In Arms that somehow got put on the Drudge Report. It painted a very concerning picture of how easily this could be done.

The article lists five key things the senate ratifying this treaty would do, they are:

“1. Enact tougher licensing requirements, creating additional bureaucratic red tape for legal firearms ownership.
2. Confiscate and destroy all “unauthorized” civilian firearms (exempting those owned by our government of course).
3. Ban the trade, sale and private ownership of all semi-automatic weapons (any that have magazines even though they still operate in the same one trigger pull – one single “bang” manner as revolvers, a simple fact the ant-gun media never seem to grasp).
4. Create an international gun registry, clearly setting the stage for full-scale gun confiscation.
5. In short, overriding our national sovereignty, and in the process, providing license for the federal government to assert preemptive powers over state regulatory powers guaranteed by the Tenth Amendment in addition to our Second Amendment rights.”

Before the Obama Administration I would have said passing this type of UN treaty stood no chance. But since the Senate used some slimy tactics to shove obamacare through, now I am not so sure. The left hates private gun ownership, and if this President is reelected, I do believe he will make a power grab much bigger than that of his first term as he will have nothing left to lose. I believe that our second amendment would be a part of that power grab.

If this were to pass, I shudder to think what enforcement of this would look like. It could be the catalyst that pushes the country into marshal law and pits Americans against themselves.

 

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

How to do a Threat Assessment

May 31, 2012 by

One of the most important parts of preparedness is doing a threat assessment for potential threats to the loss of the five basic needs.  We have to know where the weakness or vulnerability is so that we can know how to mitigate it.  I have talked before about preparing for threats to the five basic human needs, but I haven’t ever gone into detail on how to do a threat assessment. 

 

 Threat assessing your home and the area around it is very important.  It can greatly impact how you prepare.  For example, if you have overhead power lines, you have two possible threats. Just this last weekend there was a downed line in Minneapolis that came down during a storm.  The line burned through the asphalt and into a gas line.  Both power and gas had to be turned off until both could be repaired.  So the threats are:  the electricity in the line itself, a higher chance of being without power in a storm and the possibility of fire.  Someone who has power lines over head may place a generator higher on the need list than someone who has underground power lines.

 

Here I’ll cover how I do a threat assortment from area to area.  Below I’ll cover some of the things you should be assessing.  The best place to start a threat assessment is inside your home, going from room to room, moving from inside your house to the outside, going around the outside and also the perimeter.  Once done with your house, assesses the neighborhood you live in and expand from there.  In some cases you’ll want to expand out a good distance; is there a nuclear power plant within 30 miles? You’ll want to take that into consideration.  If you have a BOL (Bug Out Location) you’ll want to do a threat assessment there as well, assessing the route you take to get there.

 

 In ” Bugging Out or Battening Down?“ I suggest that people without a BOL still create multiple temporary BOL’s in different directions.  In the vast majority of circumstances, battening down or bugging in is a better choice than bugging out. However, there could be something that forces you to leave.  If you do not have a plan in place, you will lose precious time trying to make one.  I suggest picking a small town that is big enough to have a hotel, making it your rally point.  You do not need to stay at the hotel, but it can serve as a place to meet if nothing else.  I suggest having four such routes planned, going north, south, east and west.  Then you always have multiple options.  I bring this up because you should do an assessment of these four as well.  One of my possible options could bring me closer to a nuclear power plant. In some situations that is not a big deal.  In others it could be critical.  I need to know it’s there to know it’s a threat.

 

Here are some of the things to be looking for, listed by the basic need. 

 

Threats to Water

There are cities that pipe their water in from hundreds of miles away.  What if something caused the means of pumping water to fail?  I recently read that there are 60 year old water mains that are corroding and breaking.  Do you live in an area that has access to potable water or water that could be filtered?

 

Threats to Food

These threats are pretty standard with a few possible exceptions.  Modern grocery stores use the “just in time” delivery model and have roughly three days of perishable supplies on hand.  Any time there is a hurricane or blizzard on the East Coast, people scramble to buy up supplies to get through the storm.   

 

Threats to Shelter

I believe that in 95% of situations, battening down and staying put is a better option than bugging out.  That being said, there are threats that we need to consider while we prepare.  Here are just a few that I came up with.

Starting inside, are there working fire alarms? Do you have fire extinguishers?  Are there solvents or other flammable things inside that could be stored outside?   Moving out side, what about the structure? Are there any broken windows or other repairs that need to be made or vulnerabilities such as hedges that are too high near the door?

Do you live in tornado alley?  What about a flood plain or does your bug out route go through one?  Do you live near a nuclear power plant?  Are there risks of wildfires?  Do you live near an industrial area that may have lots of chemicals nearby?  

 

Threats to Energy

Going without electricity is one threat, but so are loss of heat and ability to cook.  As mentioned above, overhead power lines are one possible threat.  Another threat that could happen anywhere is someone running into a transformer.  Routine maintenance can be a threat, like what happened in California that led to a blackout for hundreds of thousands of people in three states.  There are also the less likely events such as EMP and solar flares.  While they are very unlikely, they are still possibilities.

 

Threats to Security

You can take care of many safety concerns in the shelter section.  Here are some others to consider.

You can look for Crime Reports to get an idea of the crime near where you live.  You can also search the this sex offender registry to find out which former, or potential predators live near you.  By doing those two you might discover that the area you live in isn’t quite as safe as you would have thought. 

If you live in an apartment, is the place you park your car safe?  What about walking to and from your car in the dark? 

In rural areas, what is the response time for police and ambulance?  If the response time is long, are you able to provide protection or first aid to hold out until they arrive?

 

Knowing Is Half The Battle – GI Joe

Knowing the possible threats is the beginning.  Keeping aware of what they are is important as well.  I get a monthly e-mail from the police department detailing the crimes, but the websites I listed above can be used as well. Use the knowledge gained from these assessments to find holes in your preparation and possible tweaks that you might need to make.

 

Filed Under: General Preparedness Tagged With:

Review: Tactical Bible Stories: Personal Security Tips from the Bible

May 30, 2012 by

Personal Security Tips from the Bible
By Rob Robideau


Today I am going to review a book authored by a reader.  Make sure to read the end to see how, for one day, you can get a free copy of this book.

 

Description from Amazon:

 “Tactical Bible Stories” takes the most important aspects of personal security and uses Bible illustrations to make them fun and easy for anyone to understand, remember, and apply.

Did you know that the Bible has examples of tactics, concepts, and ideas that are still used and taught by modern security professionals?

Tactical Bible Stories” will help you learn how to prepare for, avoid, and deal with violent confrontations.

 

My Take:

Navigating self-defense and Christianity can be tricky but Rob does a very good job.  He introduces topics using scripture and paints a picture of how this self-defense principle was being used at the time the scriptures were written.  This book is aimed at someone who may have some understanding of self-defense concepts but, as Rob puts it, “was written for the readers that may not be a part of the typical “self-defense circles”.”  I consider myself fairly tuned in when it comes to self-defense and Rob still made a few points that I either hadn’t considered previously or had seen from a different perspective.

He explains that there is far more to self-defense than shooting, fighting or using any tactical gear. He covers training and gear, but also covers awareness, mindset and touches on avoidance and de-escalation as well.  However, he makes it clear that your goal is to keep you, your family and friends safe; avoiding a fight if possible, but finishing it if it is brought to you, to meet your goal of keeping your loved ones safe.

If you or someone in your life is new to self-defense concepts or has some doubts about it being biblical, this would be a good book to read.

“Tactical Bible Stories” will be launched on June 5th and Rob will be giving away the Kindle version free all day.  He will be selling the paperback version at his cost.  You don’t need to own a Kindle to read a Kindle e-book, there are free versions available for PC, Mac, Smart Phones and Tablets

Filed Under: Christian World View, Reviews, Security Tagged With: ,

Making a Survival Plan

April 23, 2012 by

Making a Survival Plan

There is no one survival or preparedness plan that fits every situation or for every person.  There are however a few guidelines that can be used by anyone in any situation, to improve your chances.  From seeing an economy in danger to being stuck in the ditch during a snowstorm in a remote area, or even to being stranded on a desert island, I’ll list the tools below that survivors have practiced versions of since walking out of the Garden of Eden.  The tools I am going to go over are more geared toward surviving an event of some type.  While some very well could be used by someone beating cancer, some just won’t apply.

 

Normalcy Bias

My Friend Dene Brock wrote a great article on normalcy bias:, I’ll quote her definition:

“Normalcy bias refers to a mental state people enter when facing a disaster.   It causes people to underestimate both the possibility of a disaster occurring and its possible effects. This often results in situations where people fail to adequately prepare for a disaster.”

I think there are two types of normalcy bias, one is when people don’t believe bad things will happen; this thinking is foolish.  The second group disbelieves it is happening even while it is happening; this thinking is dangerous.

I started with this one for a reason, it is extremely important!  We can ensure we’re not in group one by being informed about possible dangers and since you’re reading an article on a preparedness site, I’m guessing you’re not one of the people from group one who thinks bad things won’t happen. 

I think if you practice situational awareness it is much easier to notice the proverbial paddle-less boat is heading down the crick for what it is.  If you are aware that the boat is slowly leaving the shore and that there is no paddle, it’s a lot harder to go on believing there is nothing wrong.  No there are not always signs that there is something wrong, but I think more often than not there are, we just have to be “awake” and paying attention.

 

 

Get Your Mind Right

The most important survival tool you have is your mindset, (which normalcy bias is a part of).  I’m not talking about what you know in terms of skills, I’m talking about what you allow your perception to be.  I’m not talking about “think good thoughts and it will happen”, that’s part of it, but I’m talking about reaching down to that place inside of you that some of you might think unpleasant, that place that anger and rage dwell the place where determination is the deciding factor.  That place that that gives you the determination to say “NO! This is not happening if I have ANYTHING to do about it.”  I don’t mean get angry for the sake of getting angry.  You see anger and even rage can give you the strength, the determination to grab five stones and walk to face the giant.

 There have been many documented cases where someone survived and the reason they gave was because they refused to give up, they would not quit.  To some extent this might be in our DNA, some people are just made more resilient; they can take more punishment and keep going.  But I think there is a lot of choice in there as well.    Have you ever watched any documentary of SEAL training?  It is brutal, absolutely brutal especially ”Hell week”

 From USMIlitary.About.com

“Trainees are constantly in motion; constantly cold, hungry and wet. Mud is everywhere–it covers uniforms, hands and faces. Sand burns eyes and chafes raw skin. Medical personnel stand by for emergencies and then monitor the exhausted trainees. Sleep is fleeting–a mere three to four hours granted near the conclusion of the week. The trainees consume up to 7,000 calories a day and still lose weight.”

The thing about SEAL training is that you can quit at any time, you just have to take the walk of shame and ring the bell.  I have no proof, but I would venture that the only people that make it through “Hell Week” are the people who reach down to that place where anger and determination dwell. 

That emotion is a gift from God, it’s what we do with it that might be a sin and using it to fight for the life He gave you isn’t a sin.

 

The Rule of Three’s

 The rule of three’s is a proven survival rule that I covered a couple weeks ago.  For review:

The average human can last:

3 seconds without oxygen to the brain
3 minutes without oxygen
3 hours without shelter in poor weather without proper shelter
3 days without water
3 weeks without food

In a survival situation if you are dealing with the first two rules, fix those, then do a first aid check of yourself and those around you.  Once you’re to a point that not having shelter is your biggest danger. then you can work on the five basic human needs.

 

Five Basic Human Needs

I covered five basic human needs last week, for review they are; water, food, shelter, energy and security.  I use the The rule of three’s to determine the importance of the need.  If your oxygen and shelter needs are met, then you can concentrate of water.  Energy and security are always on a kind of sliding scale.  If you need shelter and warmth, then energy in the form of a fire takes a higher priority.  As does security if Mr. Dirtbag is around, but it doesn’t have to be a bad guy, you’re security could be in danger due to a tree that looks like it might fall on your house after a storm.

Using these two rules can guide you in deciding what your priority should be after an event.

 

Survivors Club

I want to get back to mindset for a minute, I’ll be reviewing this book later this week, so I’ll cover it in more detail then.  The text below was something I sent out in the Christmas update in 2011.

In the book The Survivors Club Author Ben Sherwood explores a theory developed by a man named John Leach called “The 10/80/10 rule”. In summary the rule states that the top 10% of people in a crisis excel; they think clearly and take immediate action. The middle group comprises 80% of people; they are “quite simply stunned and bewildered”; “reasoning is significantly impaired and thinking is difficult”. The last 10% of people are the “ones you definitely want to avoid in an emergency”.

A few pages later he explains something called ‘behavioral inaction’; “The current theory of behavioral inaction goes like this: As your frontal lobes process the site of an airplane wing on fire, they seek to match the information with memories of similar situations in the past. If you have no stored experience of a plane crash, your brain can’t find a match and gets stuck in a loop trying and failing to come up with the right response. Hence: immobility.”

I said that “I want my readers to be in the top 10%; to excel in any crisis because they have either been in a situation, or have thought of what they might do and not be stunned, bewildered or immobile.”

This hasn’t changed.  I love it when people post what they would do, but I hope that everyone thinks through the scenarios I post, even if they don’t really apply to them.  I was blessed tremendously by a reader letting me know that she was followed in her car by someone she accidentally cut off.  She said that because of some of the things she had read on this site she knew to be aware and kept trying to lose Mr. Dirtbag, which she eventually did.  Thank you God!

Going through different “what ifs” is a great way to stave off any normalcy bias that an easy blessed life might let start to creep in.  It could also help you act when you’re put in a survival situation, if you have something for your brain to latch on to, you won’t get stuck in ‘behavioral inaction’ and immobility. 

Friends I think we’re headed for times that are scattered with turbulence. By avoiding normalcy bias and being aware, we can face the trials with grit and determination.  We can use the rule of three’s and five basic needs to make sure our physical needs are met and pray to the Lord to see us through to the other side. 
 
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Filed Under: General Preparedness, Mind Set Tagged With:

What Would You Do if You Witness an Assault?

April 18, 2012 by

 

You’re out in public and two people are having an increasingly loud argument.  Things are getting uncomfortable when one of the people strikes the other.

This is something that stuns people when it happens, probably because we don’t expect people to behave like that.  Having a decision made now, might not stop you from being stunned, but it will save you from having to make a plan on the spot.

So, what would you do?

(Check the comments section to see the answers from everyone as well as to add your own.)

 

Filed Under: What Would You Do? Tagged With:
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