You Can’t Take It With You

If you care about your own survival and your family’s welfare then the only rational solution is to be prepared and capable of providing for your own defense. It doesn’t matter if the ultimate threat comes down to a localized disaster, like Katrina, or worldwide SHTF scenario… the only threat that matters to YOU is the one at your front door, right now. Everything else is just poopoo.

I served for almost 20 years in law enforcement and even served two terms as the elected Sheriff of my county. I later worked as the Director of Public Safety at a university and also as a senior executive in corporate security. I’ve seen virtually every type of crime and criminal there is.

What I’ve come to realize is that in a majority of cases victims were caught unprepared and not just overpowered; they didn’t expect to be victimized nor were they prepared to react. That’s why many cops suspect everyone and trust no one. Right or wrong, it’s a self-preservation instinct that has kicked in on its own based on experiences they’ve had. The same holds true for military men and women.

I love the Nicolas Cage line in Con Air… “There are two people in this world I trust, one of them is me, and the other one isn’t you”. It’s more about faith in myself and God and less about distrusting everyone I meet.

Today I’m urging everyone who takes emergency preparedness and self-sufficiency serious to take a look at their situation and ask themselves if they could truly defend and protect their family and property, both short term and long term.

What’s that? Short term and long term? Yes, because let’s face it, by now most preppers are armed and armed well. I know well over 100 preppers personally and interact with many more. What I’ve found is that many (if not most) people think that buying, and “having” firearms and ammunition is the end game. It’s precisely that thought process that leads people into situations that could’ve been avoided.

Let’s look at a scenario. This guy bunkers in his house, sets up elaborate defenses and has months of food and water supplies.

Down the road, however, cabin fever sets in and it’s getting cold so he wanders out back to get some fire wood and take a look around. He’s attacked by thugs who then force him and his family to leave the house and supplies behind (lucky to have not been killed), taking only enough food and water for 2 days and no weapon.

If this guy is a typical “prepper” he was banking on his large cache of weapons, ammunition and food, but now, having none, he’s dangerously vulnerable.

First, he has no backup weapons cache offsite, and secondly he’s not mentally prepared nor had he trained to build homemade weapons and use them, or to live off the land and be self-sufficient. This is exactly the scenario I see being played out everyday if the S ever does HTF.

What can you do? Realize that the weapons in your physical possession must be just plan A, and therefore there IS a plan B. Next, train, read, learn…. You would be surprised at how many weapons and traps you can create with virtually no resources. Get primitive. In a post SHTF scenario you won’t have a choice.

You’re not going to take down an Elk with a homemade long bow, but you can take an eye out! Ok, seriously, the point is that you can do some damage and with homemade bows, traps and snares you can survive and defend your family better than without them.

Beyond fighting most people consider their firearms as a means for hunting food. So if you lose them, then what? Exactly. You must also learn about hunting, fishing, trapping, setting snares, etc.

These are skills that you need to at the very least have read about, but ideally you should practice setting up traps and snares, shooting a bow (even a cheap Walmart bow is fine for home practice). With just a very small amount of practice you’ll retain that knowledge for a time when you may actually need it.

I consider the bow to be the most over-looked and underrated survival weapon. It’s cheap (relatively), it’s simple to learn, it’s easy to maintain and repair, it’s legal for almost everyone, it’s silent, and it’s very effective; for centuries man lived by the food a bow provided.

Especially now when everyone is buying up firearms and ammunition at hyper-inflated prices, bows and accessories can be had for some pretty good bargains. Grab one and place it in a cache offsite (along with another firearm if at all possible) with some cheap arrows (as many as you can afford), and a good number of bow strings.

The bottom line is this…. when the supplies dwindle, get damaged or are taken from you, and plan A is out the window, if you truly want to survive then you must be serious with a plan B. And regardless of any doomsday event I think every person should make an effort to re-acquaint themselves with the self sustaining life skills that have been all but forgotten.

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Start with a great book like “The Encyclopedia of Country Living” by Carla Emery… maybe Rourke can post a link here as I believe this to be an essential book for all preppers.

Lastly, let me say that without a doubt if a doomsday event ever occurs, people you know, neighbors even, may become your enemy. Emotions like love, fear, anger, panic, hunger… these can make a person do things they otherwise wouldn’t.

If people know or suspect you have supplies, and they are freezing, starving or injured, you will absolutely be targeted. Expecting anything less is being foolish in my opinion. Be smart, plan well, train aggressively and learn everything you possibly can… your knowledge will be the most valuable resource you’ll possess.

Robert Creech

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