What are you doing RIGHT NOW, to prepare yourself for increased civil disturbance or a major upheaval? No, not what you ARE GOING TO DO, I mean what are you DOING RIGHT NOW?
It’s time for a little tough love. So many people talk about their plans, and what they are going to do, but when you challenge them to show you what they’ve done or to describe their current readiness, they’ve actually done very little.
You are never more than 72 hours from a complete collapse of society. Let me say that again….Our entire system can go from status quo to absolute anarchy in less than 72 hours.
By all accounts, in February of 2014, the Ukraine was a modern Western nation. The morning of February 18, 2014, a large group of protestors began advancing on the Parliament. By the morning of February 21, 2014, the government had been overthrown, Russian troops had invaded and seized an entire region, and two separate groups had set up independent nations in Donetsk and Luhansk. At the end of the three days, there were at least 113 dead and 1,300 wounded. The nation is a failed state with open warfare and people scavenging for food to this day.
Many people point to the capitol, Kyiv, and tell me I’m wrong, but everywhere outside of the capitol is a dystopian nightmare, with people scavenging in the woods for food, negotiating minefields and passing through checkpoints at the constantly changing front lines.
Only the areas under direct Russian control, Crimea, are stable.
In late July 2008, while relations were strained, the South Ossetia region and the Republic of Georgia were stable. The first shelling began on 1 August, and full scale war broke out on 7 August. By 12 August, just 5 days later, 350 troops were dead, alongside at least 500 civilians and unspeakable atrocities had been committed. Just 5 days. (For a great telling of this story, watch 5 Days of War).
At this point, I usually get the tired, old response, of “Yeah, but that’s in Europe, not here”. I’d challenge that the average Ukranian Interior Ministry police officer felt the same way on the morning of February 18, 2014. Widespread civil unrest is increasing in the US.
The truth is, you don’t know what’s going to happen, and neither do I.
I can point out that there are larger forces at play and the same person who is alleged to have financed a group called the “Right Sektor” in the Ukraine, is alleged to be financing ANTIFA, and the flags of ANTIFA and Right Sektor are nearly identical.
One of the most common phrases in the Bible is “Be Alert” or “Be Aware”. There is a reason for that….There is evil in the world.
Here’s my favorite:
Be alert, stand firm,
Be courageous; be strong.
1 Corinthians 16:13
Being alert means being ready for whatever happens.
What things should ALREADY be in place for a prepared person?
There is no reason that you shouldn’t already have at least 96 hours of food and water ready. That means food that doesn’t require refrigeration and is simple to prepare. I keep MRE’s or camping food rations always ready.
You should have an EDC (Every Day Carry) bag with you, an emergency/get home bag in your vehicle, and a 30-minute bag ready to go at home.
As you all know, I’m a huge believer in having first aid kits stocked and ready. I have several, fully stocked, and put where I can get my hands on them quickly. Note…a first aid kit should always be something you can pick up and manipulate with one hand. I’ve seen some people with full-sized EMT bags, but what if my left arm is severely injured? I need to be able to treat it with my right, including manipulating the first aid kit.
If firearms are part of your personal safety plan, at the current risk level in our country, there is no reason that your personal defense firearms are not fully charged and ready for use, and within arms reach at all times.
A guy I follow, Viking Preparedness (Pastor Joe Fox), mentioned his idea of the “MinuteMan Bag”…it’s a small bag that contains spare ammo, a light, a first aid kit, and some optics that you can throw over a shoulder in less than 10 seconds and walk out the door ready to fight. I’ve added a couple of items to mine like a fixed blade knife, a multi-tool, and some emergency rations. Not a bad concept for immediate defense.
You should be keeping your vehicle fully fueled and maintained.
Most importantly, you should be GATHERING INFORMATION. Every morning, before I even jump in the shower, I do these three things:
- Check the 48 hour weather forecast (forecasts beyond 48 hours are wishes).
- Search for protests in my local area via the internet.
- Check the social media of known agitators in the local area.
- If you haven’t identified these people, why not?
- They’re very vocal and easy to find.
Armed with this information, I’m much better prepared to plan my day and know what extra risks the day may carry.
There may come a time when you don’t have the vast information powerhouse that is the internet, but that’s not today…use what’s available while it is.
If you haven’t already conducted an area study, why haven’t you?
If you haven’t already done a paper map recon of alternate routes to and from work, for emergency use, why haven’t you?
We are living in period of normalcy bias, where even those who KNOW something bad is coming, for some reason believe that they will have plenty of notice before the next bad thing happens. WHY?
Start acting as the risk level dictates. Doing otherwise puts you in jeopardy.
Be alert and of sober mind;
Your enemy the devil prowls around
Like a roaring lion,
Looking for someone to devour.
1 Peter 5:8
Tactical Wisdom 