Who's the Boss?

"There are men in all ages who mean to govern well, but they mean to govern. They promise to be good masters, but they mean to be masters." –Daniel Webster

Anyone who has been around the preparedness and survivalism movement for any length of time will know that many people speak of surviving the crisis (whatever they conceive it to be) and then concentrating on rebuilding society. Have you ever stopped to think what kind of society that might be?

There are of course the usual run of wet-dreamers that think that after the collapse of society that they will rebuild it in their image. That usually means that in the new order, they are in some sort of position of power. They see themselves as neo-feudal overlords, ready to dispense the high and low justice, and establishing some sort of dynasty. If you think this isn’t the case, read some of the current survivalist fiction out there.

This sort is more likely to become bandit than boss. No doubt the majority will be as inadequate a personality after a collapse as they were before, but losers with weapons can still be dangerous, and might occasionally succeed where there is no other force to stop them.

Then of course, there is the ‘militia’ movement, more prevalent in the USA than here in Canada, but still a faction of survivalism to be wary of. At their peak in the mid-nineties, there were nearly 900 militia groups in the US alone, but were thought to be in a serious decline since then. However, given the political and economic strife of recent years, a resurgence is not at all unlikely.

In the past, these groups have sometimes been heavily armed, had compounds out of which they based themselves, and in some cases have had stand-offs with law enforcement. The likelihood of a group such as this being able to control an area and impose their version of society is not inconsiderable.

Some groups set up along religious or racial lines, and woe to those that do not meet their criteria. The best case scenario is that they ignore you; the worst is that you are incorporated or otherwise forcibly governed by such a group and their rules. We have seen plenty of instances in the past few decades where people have been persecuted and killed for their race, ethnicity or beliefs, and while we like to think we in North America are above that, the reality is otherwise.

Take for instance the ‘American Redoubt” movement urged by a well known survivalist author. What is being proposed by this gentleman is essentially a breakaway country that would by a theocracy. Would those that were not believers be welcome to stay in that new land? Or would they be persecuted and finally forced to leave?

While I’m no fan of many of the current trappings of society, I am wary of what people might try to put in its place. While the current system has its faults, it affords the vast majority of us a degree of safety, both from our fellows and government, that most societies would love to have. Should it fall apart, we would do well to be wary of those that seek to seize power and rebuild in their own image.