Posted on 12/19/2011 4:02:29 AM PST by Kartographer
I get this question often so I answer it here.
“I would like to be part of a community or family larger than 2 or 3, but my extended family is worthless. My husband’s family is 1000 miles away, and don’t get the advantages of family either. My hope is to stick to our suburban home with a few good neighbors on our block. Is that a fantasy?”
(Excerpt) Read more at shtfschool.com ...
Prepper’s Ping!
Black clouds cover the horizon, the lightening is flashing and there is the distant sound of thunder! The storm flags are going up, who you heed them?
I am very aware that if it’s the great end that there is nothing I can do to stop or change it, but history is full of instances and times when man or nature have caused such a calamity that people have cried out and begged God to end it all.
The bible has many verse such as this:
A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.
NIV Proverbs 22:3
This verse and others are there for a reason and I urge all to take heed of them, because we are clearly on the edge. Everyday there is a new story about the ‘Yutes’ who grow more restless everyday and when you add the fact that because of the economy people are already on edge it won’t take much to set things off.
Reminds me of one of my favorite quotes:
“Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: The Siege of AR-558 (#7.8)” (1998)
Quark: Let me tell you something about Hew-mons, Nephew. They’re a wonderful, friendly people, as long as their bellies are full and their holosuites are working. But take away their creature comforts, deprive them of food, sleep, sonic showers, put their lives in jeopardy over an extended period of time and those same friendly, intelligent, wonderful people... will become as nasty and as violent as the most bloodthirsty Klingon. You don’t believe me? Look at those faces. Look in their eyes.
Today we have ‘yutes’ who roam our streets who are with out morals, without respect for law or life itself. They will look are you with the same ‘doll eyes’ a shark does before he eats you and they will feel no more compassion than the shark does.
That will be the test of many. Most preppers I know are Christian people and they will hesitate to do what they might have to do to stop the ‘yutes’. On the other hand the ‘yutes’ won’t think twice nor lose a minute of sleep, in fact they will smile and laugh about it.
For those who are just starting or are old hands at prepping you may find my Preparedness Manual helpfull. You can download it at:
http://www.tomeaker.com/kart/preparedness1i.pdf
(NOTE THIS DOWNLOAD IS FREE AND I DO NOT MAKE A DIME OFF OF IT. ALSO NOTE THAT THE MANUAL IS CLEARLY MARKED AS NOT BEING FOR SALE. I PUT TOGETHER THIS MANUAL FOR ONLY ONE PURPOSE AND THAT IS TO HELP FELLOW PATRIOTS TO PREPARE THEMSELVES FOR WHAT I BELIEVE IS COMING.)
For those of you who haven’t started already it’s time to prepare almost past time maybe. You needed to be stocking up on food guns, ammo, basic household supplies like soap, papergoods, cleaning supplies, good sturdy clothes including extra socks, underwear and extra shoes and boots, a extra couple changes of oil and filters for your car, tools, things you buy everyday start buying two and put one up.
For a somber, yet realistic look at what SHFT is like read some of Selco’s post:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2798007/posts
If you like to read more about what SHTF in Bosnia was like take a look at this post on Bosnia War Survivor Selco’s Blog at:
“There is no greater disaster than to underestimate danger. Underestimation can be fatal.”
As the LDS say “When the emergency is upon us the time for preparedness has past.”
I like his point about people not being willing to give up privacy for security, until someone dies.
I also agree that small groups of people (15-20) are probably the best model. There are just so many variables to consider that it seems impossible.
Bookmark bump
For my suburban location you have two choices, the main road or through the swampy, snake infested trees. I’d wager >95% of the people would choose the road. The other 5% are probably too much for me to handle anyway.
The one thing I don’t see mentioned is that normal houses are useless for stopping bullets. Even concrete block and brick do little to stop penetration of 9mm and bigger.
The “burbs” are a death trap.
In my town the houses are made of sticks and plastic but the churches are all made of brick and stone
There’s a video on youtube of an marine test of the penetration different calibers have on a typical home.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lprGoEpDXJQ
Brick seems to offer the best protection but still fails with most calibers.
“The “burbs” are a death trap.”
Concur. Only slightly less a death trap than the city. Goblins from the city know where the suburbs are and will make haste there. Plus any thuggish neighbors who are already living nearby. Once they believe that you have something they want, it’s pretty much all over.
If your defense strategy is based upon fighting a continuous gun battle from within your ‘castle’ you’re going to be unpleasantly surprised. Two words - Molotov cocktail - spring to mind.
A place in the country with room to expand, or a place in a small town, someplace to go to when the shtf is the best. Anything amongst neighbors in the ‘burbs is only good for every-day security and the hiccups leading up to shtf. Then, it’s time to unass the AO.
I’m I prepared? No. But when shtf happens, I’m going to have a great list of things I wish I’d done.
Nice link. Sort of like Box O’ Truth on a more well-funded scale. Interesting.
That is in back of all our minds. I'm picking up little pieces of info. here and there. Times like these don't look good.
What does that mean?
>>The “burbs” are a death trap.<<
Agree, however, we are having a mild disagreement in my family - only those who are predisposed to prepping are included - whether to a)defend the castle or b)GTFOOD.
A little background - suburban area 7 miles from the city, upper middle class neighborhood, wooded subdivision, house at end of a “T”, my house on the downside of a hill, etc. The one thing I’m having difficulty in convincing the others is what circumstance(s) would have to occur when the best thing to do is GTFOOD. Right now, there are 8 people (only one child, aged 5)in the extended group.
Anywhere can be a death trap. The cities and suburbs have particular problems but so does the country.
Its very hard to defend a large tract of land by yourself.
Entry is limited to home owners and only guests who are on an approved list. Vehicles (assuming we are still driving them, as in Argentina, not Bosnia) will need a system of ID cards and gate passes that change frequently. In other words, your ‘hood needs to come up with a community defense plan, with a rotating gate guard duty etc.
In this case, the gate guard will stop most casual entry attempts by robbers. In the event of a larger attack, the gate guard force is at least a trip wire, a loud one, so that if the gate is attacked, the community quick reaction force (QRF) can be alerted. They should practice call outs regularly, with a system of audible alarms such as car horns, whistles, etc.
If a force is attacking your gated neighborhood that is so big it will overwhelm your QRF of, say, a dozen men with semi-auto rifles, you are in a Bosnia-type situation, and God help you. Or, the attackers might represent the govt in some form, such as the local police or National Guard coming to inspect food supplies and confiscate “excess” amounts under anti-hording laws.
Obviously, fighting off the National Guard isn't going to work, they will just bring in more firepower. But turning a suburban neighborhood into a single-access gated community with armed guards at the gate, backed up by a community QRF, will work for 90% of cases. Robbers and home invaders are going to pick an easier neighborhood, such as one on a grid of streets and avenues that can't be turned into a gated community.
One weakness I see in Suburban environments is you aren’t allowed to have livestock. After TSHTF those rules will go away but it will be difficult to buy some chickens at that point.
Don’t overlook the role of a church family. For those who have been away a long time, things have changed. You can find a bible-believing community that is spiritually sound, but which gathers and worships in all kinds of less formal ways than in years past.
The bottom line is that there is a church family out there that will be right for you. And that can end up being REAL family, better than ever.
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