Occupation Forces

First of all, my apologies for not updating this blog in a timelier manner. I got involved in a political campaign along with my other commitments, and there just wasn’t time to do everything. I hope to return to a schedule of a post per week, plus two reposts from the other two blogs for which I write. So on to this week’s post:

Anyone that has the least exposure to any news outlet cannot have failed to notice the ongoing Occupy Wall Street demonstrations. Whether you applaud or revile the people doing the protesting, it is worth looking at these protests as a strong indicator. But indicators of what exactly?

The first thing it indicates is that many, many people believe that the world’s financial system is not only badly slanted against the ordinary person and in favour of corporations and those people on the inside of the financial system, but also that they believe the system is broken and needs a huge overhaul. Again, it is not an issue of whether you believe them right or wrong, but what it means to you.

The most likely result is continued instability in the financial system over the short to medium term. Again, I can only urge what I’ve been urging all along: Get your butt out of debt, minimize the vulnerability of your investments and make sure you have a reserve of cash or other medium of exchange for tough times. And keep preparing.

Keep preparing for what though? Well, I really dislike the look of the financial system in the long term. There is good reason, at least in my opinion, to think that we are going to have a lot of difficulty in avoiding a deep recession or depression that is very wide ranging, perhaps even worldwide in its effects. That is going to lead to a degree of instability that may have serious effects on some countries.

Am I talking about some sort of Rawlesian apocalypse? Very unlikely, but I believe that there is a lot of hardship to come, and those that are prepared for it will come out the other end in far better shape than those that failed to prepare financially and materially.

However, it is also worth noting that the protests are also an indicator of a deep rooted, simmering anger felt by people in our society. As the financial markets have lurched from one bubble (scam?) to another over the last 30 or so years (Remember the S & L scandals in the USA? The dot- com crash?) People have watched their savings, pensions and even their livelihoods be savaged over and over again while those on the ‘inside’ just seem to get richer.

While the protests have so far been largely peaceful, events in England earlier this year have shown how easy it would be for there to be fairly widespread civil unrest. As the economic situation deteriorates, people will be less and less inhibited about committing unlawful behavior. It will not take much more to see the beginnings of the sort of unrest rarely seen in North America to become increasingly common, and you need to make sure your property and person are as well protected as you can make them.

Overall, keep a wary eye on the news and make sure you are not blindsided by the rapid pace of events. Forewarned is forearmed, as they say.

It’s just common sense

Thin Veneer

No doubt that last weeks riots in Britain will have many knee jerk survivalist types pointing to those events as proof that the veneer of civilization is a thin coating over our more savage natures. It will be used as the justification for urging preppers to bigger and better weapons for protection. And on at least one blog, the hit and run killing of three men has already been touted as more ‘nanny state’ wrongheadedness, as if being armed would really have made a difference to the three men run over.

All of which is really just so much bullshit. As far as the thin veneer of civilization crap goes, there were as many acts of selflessness and honourable behavior as not. The vast majority of London’s population was NOT rioting, nor was the majority of people in other British cities affected. A small specific demographic comprised the bulk of the rioters, and the unrest was relatively quickly contained, and would not have lasted as long as it did were police not trying to be ‘sensitive’ and avoid escalating events.

As far as bigger and better weapons? How many guns can you fire at once? If you have one decent weapon per family member then short of automatic weapons, you are close to being as armed as you can be effectively. Sure, you can get the bigger clip, or the heavier caliber, but if 20 rounds hasn’t solved the problem, will 30 be enough? Better to spend less on weapons and more on getting you and your family out of densely populated areas where riots are possible.

Finally, as far as an armed populace is concerned, think about several hundred or thousands of armed looters and rioters running about the streets. What would the police casualties have been in London had the rioters been armed? How many more innocent bystanders would have died?

Of course, the gun types will tell you that an armed populace could have helped out. Sure. The truth is that armed or not, few people willingly put themselves in harms way out of altruism, regardless of Hollywood mythology to the contrary. Police and military personnel are trained to do what they do contrary to their instincts. If it was natural for all, they wouldn’t need the training.

However, if a riot does come to a neighbourhood near you, there are things you can do. One of which is be armed, whether with a baseball bat or a firearm. There are numerous reports of shopkeepers deterring looters during the los Angeles riots due to their presence. On the other hand, remember that nothing material is worth your life.

Buddy up as quickly as possibly. There are reports out of London that whole streets got together to deter rioters. If one person with a bat is a deterrent, twenty or thirty are much more so. Be aware that if you use excessive force, and the temptation to do so may be very great, you might be the one in trouble rather than the looters.

Another viable strategy is to get the hell out. Again, all things material are replaceable, the lives of you and your family are not. While it might be tempting to do the ‘manly’ thing and face up to unrest, in some situations you will serve your self and family better by getting to a place of safety.

As a long term strategy, make sure you aren’t where riots will be. Past history has shown that rioting usually begins in areas with harsh economic and social conditions. Almost anyone can find themselves in that kind of situation, and almost anyone can get out of them with the right mix of motivation and effort.

Remember that every situation is different, and thus your response needs to be geared to the particular situation in which you find yourself. Make a plan for dealing with civil disorder, with options that put the safety of you and yours as the prime objective, no matter what situation you are dealing with.

It’s just common sense.