Posted on 03/27/2010 9:58:15 AM PDT by Travis McGee
If you don’t presently own any firearms, you may have been considering taking that step in order to protect yourself and your family. Or perhaps you already have what you consider to be an adequate home armory, but is it really enough? In the event that our economy tanks, one certain outcome will be much higher levels of criminal violence. Read Fernando Aguirre’s excellent “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse,” based on his experiences in Argentina after 2001, to see what happens to civil society when a national currency collapses and the banks are closed. Today’s career criminals will be that much more desperate and willing to use violence against their victims. The feral youths who need little encouragement to bust heads for sport in times of relative plenty may be starving, and no moral consideration will keep them from sticking a gun in your face or a knife in your back.
At the same time, the federal government may define this surge of criminal violence as civil disorder and enact emergency decrees, especially if armed citizens begin to fight back on a wide scale. One need look no further than the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to see how officials react toward ordinary people with firearms during a period of civil disorder. A freeze on gun sales and/or ammunition is a predictable outcome during government-defined “emergencies.”
Most of the readers of this column probably don’t need to be convinced of the wisdom of owning and practicing with firearms. You may even believe that you already possess all of the guns you need, whether a .38 caliber revolver in your bedside table or a small battery of handguns, shotguns and rifles in your closet or gun safe. You may even own one or more of those liberally despised so-called assault rifles. In any of these cases you may think you don’t need to consider any more gun purchases.
There is, however, one reason to purchase at least a few more weapons: to arm thy neighbors. I can hear you saying, “What is Bracken talking about? If that foolish grasshopper of a neighbor didn’t bother about his security when guns were readily available, why should I worry about him now? Besides, he may even be an anti-gun liberal, so the hell with him!”
This reasoning is short-sighted on several levels. First, we have all heard the old saying that “a conservative is a liberal who has been mugged.” When violence explodes during an economic collapse, millions of new conservatives will be created from former left-wingers. And besides philosophically anti-gun liberals, many folks simply grow up in families where guns are not present and reach adulthood having never touched a firearm. But no matter why they don’t own firearms, when the ultra-violence breaks out your neighbors down the street will deserve a way to defend themselves from criminal predation. Simple charity, Christian or otherwise, suggests that we should not leave the elderly couple, the widow or the single mom with young children defenseless against evildoers bent on rape, robbery or murder.
When the incidence of home invasions, carjackings and “express kidnappings” skyrockets, some of your neighbors will discover a sudden interest in acquiring firearms, just when firearms may not be available through normal channels. These unarmed neighbors may then ask if you have any extra firearms to lend to them. Which one of your carefully considered collection of guns will you hand over to arm your defenseless neighbor? Your high-end “concealed carry” pistol, which fits your hand like a glove? Your wife’s? Your pump-action shotgun? Your AR-15 Sport Utility Rifle? The fact is, you will be loath to give away any of them, not even to a neighbor in need. You have acquired each of them for a carefully thought-out reason! But your neighbor is still defenseless.
That is why I encourage you to buy a few extra firearms in anticipation of this future need. I would suggest that a revolver is the simplest entry-level firearm to provide to a non-shooting neighbor. There are no magazines, safety catches or slides to learn to manipulate. You simply open the cylinder, insert the bullets, close the cylinder and the revolver is ready to go. A revolver has the shortest “learning curve” of any firearm. Anyone can learn basic gun safety and effective close-range self-defense with a revolver in one afternoon. In dire extremes you could hand a revolver to a non-shooter after a five-minute period of instruction and dry-firing. Revolvers are intuitive; you can even see if they are loaded or unloaded simply by looking at the cylinder.
Of course, a much greater level of firearms training is highly desirable if there is time for it. If possible, take your non-shooting neighbor to a gun range now, in advance of a period of “civil unrest.” Training a non-shooter in the safe operation of firearms also shows your own overall knowledge of security issues. This demonstrated firearms proficiency will stand you in good stead when your leadership skills and tactical knowledge may benefit your overall neighborhood security posture.
Beyond the simple morality of providing a means of self-defense against criminal violence, there is another reason to be prepared to arm thy neighbors: the force multiplying synergy of multiple fields of fire. Recall the old cowboy movies when the gang of black hats rode into a town where the citizens were forewarned and prepared. As an historical example, consider what happened to the vaunted James Gang on the Northfield Minnesota Raid when they lost the element of surprise. Only Frank and Jesse escaped unhurt. The rest of the armed gang were killed by the townsfolk or captured shortly after, badly wounded.
An armed and alert neighborhood is a very dangerous environment for criminals. In a time of rampant violence, with the ever-present threat of home invasions, more armed neighbors mean more angles of fire for the criminals to confront. Instead of focusing their evil intent on a single home, selecting one sheep in a helpless flock, they will be threatened by fire from many directions and their retreat may be cut off. This compounds their risk compared to attacking a neighborhood where most folks are unarmed and cringing in corners, praying to remain unmolested.
Of course, it is best if your neighbors have all received a high level of firearms training. Otherwise, the risk of a “friendly fire” accident while repelling an armed gang with shots from multiple directions is increased. And of course, you should not provide a firearm to a drunk, a druggie, or a mentally unstable neighbor for obvious reasons. But the danger of living in an unarmed neighborhood is even greater, because such an area is a magnet for repeated violent criminal attacks.
The best outcome would be to leverage your training of individuals in safe firearms usage into general neighborhood self-defense drills. Then if the “James Gang” rides in…they won’t necessarily ride out! Word will get around, and your neighborhood will achieve an aura of armed strength that deters future criminal incursions. Consider why tiny Switzerland has never been invaded by its much more powerful and often bellicose neighbors. It’s not because of the Alps. It’s because the Swiss have a strong tradition of armed self-defense at every level. Both invading armies and criminal gangs go around “hard targets” that are known to shoot back!
If nothing else, from a strictly selfish standpoint, the humble .38 revolver you lent to that widow might provide you with a critical early warning of imminent danger when she fires it in self-defense. Forewarned is forearmed, even if the warning is a rapid series of pistol shots heard from up the street at oh-dark-thirty. But in any case, I would rather hear the widow’s defiant shots than her helpless screams.
So, consider buying a few extra firearms and ammunition while you can easily and inexpensively do so. A used revolver in good working condition can be purchased for as little as $250, a used pump-action shotgun for not much more. And if you don’t know what an SKS rifle is or what they cost, find out. Then you will have the option of arming your neighbors in a time of extreme peril, without diminishing your own family armory.
Oh for the days of the $50 M/N M44, or the $100 SKS. Always wanted to buy a case of them for friends & family in a pinch. Any current C&R deals?
Excellent read, Matt. Very well done. As you say, a lot of people have been doing it for a while, but it is very topical at present. It is one of the reasons that I have pushed the CCW bandwagon so hard. A neighbor who has carried for a few years has thought a lot of thing through. Carrying a weapon for your defense brings on a whole new, benefical mind set.
“lot of thing” should be “lot of things”
Hey bro,
My main concern is that if my neighbors don’t have arms, how can I trust that they will know how to use them? If they haven’t had the forethought to arm themselves, this may present a problem.
I hate to say it but we need to all get a feel for how are neighbors are. When the economy collapses, will they be a help or a burden? I’d love to help all who come to me but I can’t feed and arm everyone. If they can’t do it for themselves, you and I cannot save them.
But, given the above, we must try. However, we must encourage our friends and neighbors now, rather when it’s too late. I know which of my neighbors I can stand shoulder to shoulder with. I know which cannot be trusted with information or arms.
God bless!
If there was ever a thread crying for the Freeper who usually posts the link to “What good is a Handgun against an Army” link...THIS is it.
Not saying I took a first step to this today, but I have changed my equation. After my personal arms stash was decimated in a divorce, I slowly started acquiring firearms necesseties. (Decent Handgun, rifle, and simple 22/410 combo)
Won’t get into details of earlier, but with my tax return, I will be buying a Ruger 22/45 pistol and a 10/22 this week.
Simple, reliable, accurate, easy to build on, and they provide inexpensive practice. Can cheaply build large ammo stocks quickly, and they are competent fill ins for the few larger weapons I have in a pinch.
Then I can slowly build my larger caliber ammuniiton stocks, and maybe even get a couple more larger caliber weapons. In the meantime I have a serviceable stable of weapons that are backed up by the .22s.
May not be a perfect plan, but none is. This may give me the ability to arm others in a pinch to if need be.
I am DROOLING over your “force multipliers!!!”
I’m really enjoying the challenge of writing first person.
What’s that company? J&T arms? They send out flyers. They have the CZ52 pins.
My tulipwood grips are by Hogue I think. THey cost 50 bucks and turn the gun from ugly duckling to handsome dark prince.
Fernando Aguirre’s book had a BIG impact on me. As did his earlier internet printout, “Thoughts On Urban Survival.” I wrote a lot of my last 2 books with his concepts in mind and taken to heart.
Yep. Called the mini-30. Got one for my oldest son's high school graduation gift. And a case of ammo.
I really love northern NM. One thing I learned while researching the area for my 2nd novel, (besides the fact NM is the 5th largest state), is that New Mexico has so much damned history packed into it that it oozes out all over the place. I think you put me onto the Spanish expat “Crypto Jews.” Who could have imagined?
Fernando is awesome. Someday he and I are going to throw back a few cold cervezas and eat carne asada.
I think the “deals” are gone. It’s hard to find a basic SKS for under 250!! Mosin Nagants are still cheap....if you want a basic bullet launcher that hits hard.
Those are all great and valid points. After the balloon goes up, it will be a question of least worst choices, not best.
Yeah, leveraging a handgun into a modern assault rifle is always a possible option!
Don’t overlook a CZ-52. It hits as hard or harder than a 9mm, is in the .40 caliber power/energy club, and it costs 200 bucks, and bullets cost a dime.
For 300 bucks you can have a CZ-52, extra mags, a holster and 500 rounds of ammo.
The FMJ hardball goes through anything, and the hollpoints (Wolf Gold) expand to the same size as a 9mm HP.
I’m good on most fronts. What I could use is more tactical shotgun ammo. But it’s so expensive buying those little five-packs.
Where can I get a good supply of 12-gauge buck shot?
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