For What Are You Preparing?

[shockwave]

2. I will most likely never use a knife for self defense. I'm not even sure how that's possible.

Knives were around long before guns. If fact, knives go back to the days when people would use a sharp rock or a broken off piece of flint.

Can't go into an entire knife-fighting tutorial here as it's OT, but generally speaking, the rule is "if someone pulls a knife on you, run away." This guy agrees, and watch how effective the knife is.

 

[Webbj0219]

I knife is very deadly, as long as the blade is over 3 inch's to reach vital organs. It may not have the blunt force factor like a gun, or the range. A gun might make a pinky sized hole in flesh, whereas a knife could relatively easily make a wound chanel that you could fit your hand into. So if your good with a knife and can get in close I believe you can cuas much greater internal damage.

 

[DogStar]

Do you prepare for the most likely threat, like this man faced, or are you preparing for Red Dawn?

Preparing for the worst possible scenario isn't really an end unto itself. If you prepare for the worst case, mentally and physically, then dealing with the more likely case becomes a simple matter. If you're prepared for Red Dawn, then you'll be able to respond to a home invasion with a calm mind and a clear plan of action.

It's just like any other skill. When I was becoming an EMT we trained for mass casualties, for extracting people with shattered spines from equally shattered vehicles, for treating gunshots, for delivering babies in a tent at the top of a mountain, etc.
In reality, these situations didn't come up very often. In my time I never dealt with a gunshot wound, I never delivered a baby, I never arrived on the scene of a five car pile-up...
Day in and day out it was bandaging fingers for the doctor to stitch, splinting broken ankles and trying to calm people down whose injuries weren't nearly as bad as they thought. For me, it was routine simple stuff because my preparedness was well above the level demanded by the situation. I had a 'Batman belt' of medical supplies, I had an entire ambulance with every medical gadget and drug you could imagine, and all of it was there for that one in a million chance that the really bad thing might actually happen.

If all you ever prepare for is a single intruder home invasion or a three day power outage, if those events occur then you're operating at the absolute limit of your training and readiness. You're very likely to be on a verge of panic and without the confidence that you know you can handle the situation. If you're prepared for something much, much worse than what's likely to ever happen, then the lesser events are less likely to overwhelm you.

I do agree that the modern tendency is to replace skill and ability with gadgets and gewgaws. People replace $1500 worth of ammo and range time with a $1500 scope and tell themselves they can shoot great now. They replace proper medical training with a "MilSpec EMT Backpack" and just assume that if they get hurt there will be something inside to fix them.

At the extreme, they buy a gewgaw for every possible contingency and carry them all with them at all times. Those people are not prepared for anything, they're hobbyists with a lot of money to throw away and are no different from the Honda Civic crowd with the spoilers and running lights and custom exhaust who have no idea how to drive in anything other than normal highway conditions.

 

[John Matrix]

+1 on DogStar's comment

 

[Ed Ames]

To what extent are you just railing against the prepper movement, and the social pressures behind it?

Http://www.prepper.org/Whats_A_Prepper.asp

 

[HOV]

Knives were around long before guns. If fact, knives go back to the days when people would use a sharp rock or a broken off piece of flint.

Can't go into an entire knife-fighting tutorial here as it's OT, but generally speaking, the rule is "if someone pulls a knife on you, run away." This guy agrees, and watch how effective the knife is.

IMO, the problem with the knife as a self-defense tool is that it’s not The Great Equalizer like a gun is. The chance of a one-shot stop with a gun is slim but possible; the chance with a one-(Hack? Stab? Slash?) stop with a knife is virtually nil. So when do you stop knifing your attacker? When is the threat neutralized? When do you cross the line between defender and offender?

Knife in defense vs. unarmed attacker: if someone is trying to punch or grab you, it will probably not end well morally and legally if you knife him in return. “Sorry officer, he was trying to hit me, so I had to defend myself!” (meanwhile the attacker is lying there on the sidewalk gurgling blood out of his 10,324 stab wounds.)
Knife in defense vs. knife in attack: if someone is knifing you with aplomb, I can’t imagine sticking around to try to return the favor. This isn’t Westside Story, it’s self-defense. To me, defense against a knife means get out of range and stay out. Or if there’s nowhere to flee immediately, just about any other object other than a knife would probably offer a better defense. I might prefer a plastic five gallon bucket to defend against a knife attack over another knife.
Knife in defense vs. any other weapon like a baseball bat in attack: bats are nasty. Odds do not favor the knife wielder.
Knife in defense vs. gun in attack: the classic “brought a knife to a gun fight”
Knife in defense vs. many attackers: toast.

Knife attack or defense training is a fine pastime, but its ultimate limitation is right there in the title: knife. You don’t need a knife to defend against a knife, and in fact it may be the worst possible defense tool for the situation. A knife-trained person may feel that all the time he spent in training is finally justified and he can sit there and spar all day long. Probably not the best approach.

But really my post was about the idea of not using a “defensive” knife for utility. Adherents to that philosophy are in a situation in which 99.999999999999999999999999% of the time they need to use a knife and are actually carrying one, they won’t be able to use it. The trade there is near-everyday use of the best tool ever invented by mankind right there in one’s pocket sacrificed for some ideal that it’s better to stick around and fight with knives than to defend one’s self and get away.

If for some outlandish reason a knife-carrying person needs to stab another human being, then it will matter little if the knife is razor sharp or not. Use pocketknives as pocketknives!

 

[308win]

Re: Preppers - If you have the facilities, if you have the ability, and if you have the capability you might be able to scratch out a subsistence existence for a limited period of time. Regardless of what they think their abilities and capabilities are most people aren't going to thrive in that type of a situation. In 1920 a significant part of the population (approximately 120million in 1920 IIRC) might have been able to pull it off for an extended period of time. I am very skeptical that other than a very individuals could in today's environment. And then it would be some form of communal effort.

 

[huntsman]

Re: Preppers - If you have the facilities, if you have the ability, and if you have the capability you might be able to scratch out a subsistence existence for a limited period of time.

I'll take whatever extra time I can get, it beats the alternative which is starvation.

 

[308win]

Yes, but you still have to have the ability and capability. For example: the population of Ohio is approximately 11.5 million. The ODNR estimates Ohio's pre-hunt deer population at approximately 700,000. If every person in Ohio were capable and every deer was harvested and shared that would be approximately one deer for every 16 people; if each deer averaged 100 lbs of edible meat that would be 6 pounds per person for the year ( 1/4oz of meat per day) and all of the deer would be gone.

Granted this is an extreme example but 'living off the land' whether you are a hunter, gather, or hunter/gatherer isn't going to get you much. If you have the ability & capability to farm and can keep what you are able to raise you might live a little better but it is going to be a hard Scrabble existence for the time you can survive and you had better be able to sleep with one eye open and ready to rumble because you are going to have plenty of people looking to take what you produce.

 

[Fred Fuller]

What this thread is about:


What sort of violent crime scenario do you envision when you’re just engaging in your daily life- or- how do you build your personal safety plan, and using what third-person experiences?

So my question is; for what are you preparing, and how have you equipped yourself for the threat?

It's not about TEOTWAWKI- get back on topic or we're done here...

lpl

 

[Ed Ames]

It seems like being prepared for things that happen is sensible, even if they are unlikely to occur to any one individual.

Example: I live in an urban environment where (all types of) property crimes are fairly common. It has been a long time since I personally have experienced a property crime, but I know that they happen around me, so I prepare for them. I also, to a lesser degree, prepare for other types of threats even though they are a lot less likely to happen in my environment.

I'm a huge believer in situational awareness and understanding your risk factors. The risks are different if you are in a relationship (even a business relationship) where emotions run high and your attacker may know you well, if you drive a fancy car, if you travel, if you spend a lot of time in rural areas at night. I myself try to fly under the radar whenever I can. I drive an average car, live in a fairly average home, and so on. Which kinda sucks when you think about it but it's safe.

I'm an even bigger believer (especially having come from CA, the land of the 10-24-hr-period wait to buy a gun) that you should have the tools you might need, even in advance of the knowledge of how to use those tools, because you can always learn, you can't always go down to the corner store and buy what you need. It's not that you shouldn't have the knowledge, of course, but there are fewer impediments (laws, financial barriers) to gaining knowledge than gaining hardware. And, once you have the hardware, you should familiarize yourself with it (use it) to the extent you can.

I carry an assisted opening knife (right now a ZT/Kershaw) every day because they are useful every day. I have a variety of concealable handguns (from a P3AT to a 1911), along with the holsters, belts, et cetera, as much as anything because when I need them I won't be able to buy them right then and there. I may or may not carry them on an average day because TX doesn't have an employee parking lot safety law and I kinda like my job. I used to carry a multi-tool (SOG, Gerber, Leatherman) and flashlight but now they stay in the car or with the recreational gear...I realized that 99% of what I did with them was cut.

 

[308win]

Living in an isolated, upper scale neighborhood means I prepare for different circumstances than if I lived in a high crime neighborhood. I try to be proactive about not being an obvious target and I always carry in and around the house and when I am out and about; and I pay attention to what is going on in our neighborhood. We are isolated, don't get through traffic and if you are in our subdivision you are there for a reason not passing through. Our neighborhood is such that you would have to be afflicted with a severe case of the bliss ninnies to become a violent crime victim - it could happen although highly unlikely; it will most likely be property crime.

If I had to live on the East side of Columbus or the Linden area, or the Franklinton/Hilltop area I doubt if I would go out unless I was going someplace else and would develop a bunker mentality in that I would barricade myself in and everyone else out.

 

[Jerico]

Recently, a young man in the tent city ( yes we have one near the state capitol) was robbed and nearly beaten to death over a pair of boots. I carry because there are people in the world who have far less than we do and are willing to take it.
My wife is in social services. She is occasionally alone at work. There is a high percentage of people coming through her office that are mentally ill, recently released felons ( as her about the HIV positive serial pedo some time), and homeless. One of the last women in her job WAS assaulted. That's why she carries a XD40, and practices often.
No Batman style utility belts were harmed in the making of these lifestyle choices. As to the contents of my backpack.... that's a horse of a different color.

 

[huntsman]

I carry because there are people in the world who have far less than we do and are willing to take it.

+1 And as this country slides into further decay those who take will become more violent and desperate.

Just because someone didn't need to carry a gun a few years ago doesn't mean they won't need one in the future.

The same thing can be said about stocking up on ammo, food and a vast amount of other things, and that's why I prep.

The world doesn't have to end for life to become miserable, and people tend to view life as a small snapshot of their experiences and ignore history.

 

[outdoorman63]

i carry a flashlight all the time due to 1- i work nights and need to see things, 2- i have been in a building on the 15th floor that lost power and had no backup lighting...that was no fun...i just consider everything i carry just like my car insurance, hope i dont need it but have it in case

 

[BHP FAN]

what am I preparing for? I don't know, what d'ya got? I live in California,on the coast,so...mudslides, earthquakes, and Tsunamis come to mind, followed by civil unrest in any of the above scenarios.

 

[Brian@ITC]

Bearing in mind that almost all the “armed citizen” stories in the NRA magazines or elsewhere are resolved with one or two shots fired by people who have little or no training…- Mainsail

Sure, we hear about those stories and I think that a lot of them are exceptions to the norm. So, what about those we hear about that didn’t make it out alive? Those are the stats we are trying to avoid becoming. The Uniform Crime Reports get the death statistics from those who weren’t so lucky. Maybe it was pure luck for those people without training who fired one or two shots and lived. Maybe the circumstances were different from what most others are. How many stats are provided in the UCR’s that the victim had training, how much, etc.?

Bottom line is this. Do you want to base your survival on luck, stats, or skill? You can’t prepare for everything, but what you do need to prepare for is that most confrontations out on the street take place within 10 feet. I’d say that you need to spend 90% of your training time within 10 feet and 10% of your training time outside of 10 feet.

My equipment is not my salvation. My mindset and tactics are what is most likely to keep me alive. Without realistic and practical tactics my tools are really useless. I carry a Glock 19, one spare mag with 17 rounds, CRKT folder, pen, and a flashlight with me everywhere I go.

I have prepared myself by training realistically every day for the past 24 years in armed combatives which covers bladecraft and firearms.

__________________________
Brian K. LaMaster
Innovative Tactical Concepts
Modern Warrior Talk
ITC’s Tactical Youtube Channel
Your mind is the weapon. Your body is simply the delivery system for the tool you choose to implement into the fight.
Marksmanship is a hopeful skill, FIGHTING skills are a must!
Gunfighting is not a martial art. Your martial art should include “gunfighting”!

 

[dkk73]

One of my biggest preparations is moving out of my old crime-ridden neighborhood into a place that's enlightened but doesn't have too much of a wealth disparity to attract high-profile crimes.

As far as situational awareness and defense go, I prepare for isolated robbery or assault encounters. E.g. gas station or rest stop, ATM, etc. And of course, foiled home robbery that turns bad.

True home invasion or gang attacks are pretty much unheard of where I live now.

I do agree with the sentiment expressed above (the morphed into unintentional thread-jack) that we do not always plan effectively. E.g. good habits, practice, locks, and simple guns are probably better than the "perfect home defense rig" and "perfect caliber" and NVGs, etc. But, as gun enthusiasts we all like to think about gadgets.

 

[BHP FAN]

Heck, I just LOVE gadgets! I always carry my Leatherman,or my SOG Paratool...but I agree with the above poster it's about mindset. And playing the odds. I also moved out of my crime ridden old neighborhood,I work nights,the others in my home work days,so there's always someone here...I avoid going to the ATM when I get off work [6:00 AM] and wait until my days off, and go IN to the bank, instead, I don't skydive, I've been with the same red head for thirty years...OK,THAT in itself is dangerous,but ya gotta take a chance sometime!

 

[mordechaianiliewicz]

My most immediate prep is for a home invasion/ b&e.

I also have preparation for an attack in my car, or in public.

For these, I keep guns in the 9mm, and .30 Tokarev calibers. As well as a 12 gauge.

My next prep level is for some form of civil breakdown. I have rifles for that to back up the pistol/shotgun combo, along with a pantry that has about 3 months worth of supplies, and food.

Some people might consider that "survivalism" but it wasn't a very expensive investment, and I'd rather be prepared, than not. (And my collection ain't nuthin' compared to many people, including a couple of folks I know).

I have handtools, and knives, a bow and arrows, and even a couple of swords....

My handtools are practical, though they would have use in an emergency situation. My knives are weapons of last resort. Here's the thing, I've trained how to use knives, but both justifying their use legally, and using them in a fight is difficult. Even being good at their use is no guarantee of survivability.

The swords and bow are entirely for my own enjoyment.... now, if I had to run someone through, or chop off a head, I could, but how to justify it before a court, and why I didn't just shoot them is why I don't really prepare to use my swords or my bow for self-defense.

 

[Ryder]

I am prepared to defend myself and others against great bodily harm. Only thing I know about the scenario in advance is that it will be a shocking surprise.

 

[BMF500]

For what am I preparing?

Nothing, I carry pistol because I can. The only "Tacticool" thing I have is an Ipod loaded with heavy metal music......

 

[navyretired 1]

Sometimes carrying a bunch of stuff is a pain, but on the other hand I was under Arms in the LA riots, Had an Idiot Try to take my paycheck after cashed in Las Vegas in the casino parking lot.He had his hand in his pants, I had a CCW and a Colt Agent on my hip. I was involved in recovering a older ladies purse who had just cashed her check in a small market by where I worked. A gang banger grabbed her purse and ran, bad knees and all I took off and caught him when his buddies took off without him.
In every single case I'm just an average Joe who refuses to be a victim or stand bye and watch a helpless person become a victim. I haven't sought out trouble nor have I had to use my weapon even though in every single case I was under arms.
On a daily basis I carry my keys on a Kubiton, a lock-folder knife, and my CCW weapon. I also always have my cell phone a small pad and pen. I've often considered carrying a small light but for the few times I need them (I have several) I decided they're too much.
At my house and car I have Bug-out kits. I'm not paranoid just prepared. For what I don't know, but I was a Boy Scout and it hurts nor cost extra to be prepared.
Any situation can go from nothing to flank speed in seconds. All the office/business shootings, robberies, car jacks, school shootings, hostage situations.
I really don't understand what you don't understand. As Sun Tsui wrote" If you know your capabilities but not your enemies you'll win 50% of the time. If you don't know your own capabilites and don't know your enemies you'll fail to win 100% of the time. But if you know your capabilities and your enemies capabilities you'll alway's win".

 

[UpandAtIt]

Personally, we have prepared for a Total failing of our systems. I estimate a 2 year turn around for basic systems to come back. we have stocked and stored enough food, water, guns, ammo, reloading supplies, tools, raw material stock of metal and wood in various sizes, barter items of batteries - coffee - booze - sugar - salt - basic Ammo - silver & gold. We have set up two multi-fuel generators to run via Wood Alcohol fume method (burning wood to create the wood alcohol fumes), we have two golf carts that are electric and/or multi-fuel set up for off road use that can be charged via solar panel and/or use almost anyhing for fuel. We have created an alcohol distilling system to make fuel from field corn and have stocked enough field corn to last the two years.

We have done this to support myself, my family and two others for a period of 2 years. In that time, methods and self reliance would have to be honed, modified and created as needed. The familiy currently practices with the items we have already. We already have an established garden that can be placed under cover in a matter of one hour with a pre-fab pvc building.

If it goes for more than two years then I basically say we are doomed and should learn how to speak Chinese and Swahili.

When will this happen: I say within 1 1/2 years from now or sooner if various bills pass. The system just will not be able to handle the load. It is this current adminstrations goal to over load the system.

 

[John Matrix]

If it goes for more than two years then I basically say we are doomed and should learn how to speak Chinese and Swahili.

Swahili?