Pray for peace but prepare for war

[HUMONGO]

My question is, what specifically are we preparing for? I read another thread on THR asking what to keep in a vehicle. The general consensus was firearm, ammo, jumper cables, ammo, road flare, ammo, water, ammo……. I have no issue with this, in some cases, it may be prudent.

What are we preparing for? I have a deep rooted interest in self preservation as well as the preservation of my rights. But I also realize that there are different factions in our society that feel differently about why they need protection.

I’m not questioning the “right”, I believe that this is God given and above reproach. I personally travel quite frequently with my pistol in my vehicle, sans CCW because I live in state with a fascist belief that I don’t need to protect myself. I also have “other tools” at my disposal, while in my home, to protect against other threats.

I question whether that threat comes from those around me, my government, natural disaster, foreign enemies or a generalized widespread breakdown of society. I prepare for the unforeseen with all the resources I have at my disposal. But why are you preparing?

Is it for personal protection while out in the world and at home, or is it for the possibility of door knockers in jackboots or other perceived threats?

 

[nezumi]

Are you asking in the general sense why WE are preparing, or why YOU should prepare? Obviously, if you don't worry about the federal government seizing excessive control and cracking down on otherwise law-abiding citizens, don't bother stocking up for that. Speaking for myself, I've begun preparing for the general 'what if'. Maryland regularly sees hurricanes and sometimes tornadoes. I think there's enough stuff in the area to make riots a possibility in some areas should the right conditions be in place. We're at high risk of a terrorist attack, including a nuclear attack. If a bomb went off on the mall, how long would it really take the feds to get to your house? Probably not in the first week, if Katrina is any indication. What happens when your neighbors run out of food, need medical help or are just plain scared?

Ultimately, more than anything else, I feel like owning a gun is a political statement. Even if I never use it beyond plinking at the range, I want to be able to say I'm one of the people who is ready, who refuses to take an emergency sitting down. I want my congressman to go downtown seeing one more family listed as 'proud gun owners in his district'.

 

[HUMONGO]

I know why I am preparing. I was wondering about why others prepare. Is everyone preparing for any possible occurance, or are they prepping for armed confrontations like robbery, home invasion, etc. I fully agree that ownership is a political statement.

I must agree that we are ground zero for any possible terror attacks, not just being close to DC, but being in a populated area in general. Crossing that line during an emergency between others being a neighbor or a threat would be a difficult issue.

Plus, with the crime in Baltimore, I can see the Maryland General Assembly try to be "proactive" and beginning a confiscation program. What is the precipitating factor between civil disobedience and armed insurrection? You know, cold dead fingers....

 

[MarshallDodge]

I don't see anybody kicking my door down anytime soon to take away my right to keep and bear arms. Is there a possibility of this happening in the distant future? Absolutely.

I try to be prepared and keep a couple weeks supply of food and water, and I own a generator just in case anything happened, not just a terrorist attack. Some people feel the need to "bug out" in the event of an emergency but where I live and can trust the people around me that won't be an issue. As a matter of fact I hope that I can help out some people in need.

There is a shortage on ammo and reloading components right now. Three of my local suppliers are running very low on primers and powder. This has not been a big issue for me because I try to keep a years worth of components on the shelf and quite a bit of loaded ammo. I had started to feel a pinch on large pistol primers (down to my last 1500) but I have found a good source that will be good for a while.

 

[Goblin]

I'm not religious so I don't pray,but I do prepare.Not for war though. Since I live about 20 miles north of Dallas,I mainly prepare for weather related emergencies. A month of food and water etc. In survival circles,I guess they call me a "boy scout" since I don't usually subscribe to the usual Doomsday scenarios they like to dwell on. I can adapt if one of those come to past,but I don't let it define me.

 

[MechAg94]

Hurricanes mostly. Other than that, I am preparing for higher ammo prices.

 

[strat81]

Natural disasters are my concern here in Tornado Alley. Two-legged goblins are my next concern. After those two, more guns + more ammo = more Saturday afternoons outside getting fresh air while poking holes in paper. Sure beats watching TV all day, or mowing the lawn.

 

[03Shadowbob]

What am I preparing for?
The expected and the unexpected, whatever that may be.

 

[jester5167]

I rather have it and not need it, then need it and not have it.

 

[glockman19]

Is everyone preparing for any possible occurance, or are they prepping for armed confrontations like robbery, home invasion, etc.

I'm preparing for everything tha tmight happen. So I'd say all of the above. Including Natural disaster & terrorist threat. In los Angeles with 9,000 police and over 50,000 gang members I'm not counting on help from the "authorities".

 

[HUMONGO]

In los Angeles with 9,000 police and over 50,000 gang members I'm not counting on help from the "authorities".

Ouch!


I really get concerned when I'm at work. I'm in Baltimore, between a bus/light rail stop and a methadone clinic. If TSHTF, I have 40 miles to drive to make it home for any real security/protection. I do keep a 72 hr kit in my vehicle, for which I have caught alot of flak from my less informed friends who think I'm paranoid.

 

[MyRoad]

I've thought about every kind of "disaster" I can imagine, man-made and natural. In the end, I'm prepared to be self-sufficient and able to defend myself (as best I can) for up to two weeks -- assuming that I can stay in my home. If the situation extends beyond that, I suppose I'm up the creek. When I move into my new house, maybe I'll push it to a three week window, but I doubt I'll be able to afford to go beyond that.

I have no "bug out" strategy planned in terms of setting off on foot. I've thought about it, and for me its just too unrealistic to contemplate. I have nowhere to go and no deep woods survival skills to speak of, so it quickly becomes ridiculous. I'm not Grizzly Adams.

If I have to leave my house (brush fire, the lake crests its banks, massive (predictable) earth quake, etc.), I have a short list of essentials I'd throw in my truck, and I'd try and make to friends and family outside the uninhabitable zone. But those are not war situations.

I can't imagine fleeing my house in any sort of a situation where I'm under direct attack.

I think the most important thing to have is a group of stable, clear thinking and able bodied friends or family who are also prepared for the things none of us like to think about (I'm not implying that we should leave the 'non able-bodied' behind, I'm only saying that if your only human resources are your aging parents, you might want to get out more). It is infinitely more difficult to make it through any type of life altering or life threatening situation if you are on your own.

 

[TCUGLOCKER]

In my home I prepare for burglary, looters, natural disasters (only tornadoes and floods around here), and medical emergency. I keep weapons because they are tools like anything else. I keep vehicles that could make a rugged trip and I could probably take down a few paratroopers if asked (ala red dawn).

In my car I prepare for dangerous drivers, crackheads, riots, and carjackings. But my glock is plenty for that, I don't keep a carbine in my trunk if you were wondering. I personally think the only thing we'd ever need serious firepower for is a riot or extreme natural disaster/government breakdown.

I do think keeping medical emergency kits and survival kits in your home/car can't hurt, in the end anything that can make you more self-sufficient in an emergency is a good thing, because some situations can't be prepared for by the people paid to keep things in line.

 

[mnrivrat]

Since this is foremost a firearms related forum I suspect that whenever one chats here regarding being prepared for anything, a firearm is part of that.

I grew up with nothing, and being prepared for that meant knowing how to be self reliant.

That covers just about every topic you might think of from medical care to auto mechanics. I can bake you a loaf of bread, wire your house, fix your faucet ,bandage and treat a wound, and overhaul your car . Being prepared covers it all, but for the reportorial of this forum, it often becomes more specific to firearms.

 

[Chuhhuniban]

I don't know if I am preparing for a particular circumstance. Mostly, I'm just trying to be ready to "Deal With It!" Whatever "It" turns out to be. That means my car kit grows a little each year (with rising gas prices and shrinking car sizes, I hope I don't hit crossover before I'm too old to drive — my "kit" takes up all the space in the vehicle?). The bug out list grows too. Are guns a part of that list/kit? You betcha, but there's a lot more besides.

 

[Caimlas]

Why prepare?

1) Because I can.
2) Because it's fun trying to prepare for all possible potentials.
3) Because I may just need what I've prepared with - and I have in the past, even though I'm not that well prepared. It's one thing to make do with what you've got - and it's a good feeling to use a piece of gum and some string to disarm a bomb (joking) - but it's an even better feeling to have a hammer when you need a hammer.
4) "Always be prepared." - old habits die hard.
5) If history tells us anything, it's that we can't know what will, or will not happen. You can not base your worst-case scenario assessment on daily activities.

 

[george29]

I read blogs in a few different languages and there is plenty intel that every country hides from it's own citizens via their state controlled news organizations (and all the major U.S news agencies are either government controlled or have personal agendas for reporting what they feel is what you need to know, and not necessarily what is really the news).

1) The agreed upon concept of all US and foreign intelligence agencies is that Al-Quieda has already preplaced hundreds of sleeper cells in CONUS.

2) The agreed upon concept of all US and foreign intelligence agencies is that Al-Quieda has already preplaced at least two nuclear weapons in CONUS, the disagreement between them is; are they conventional nuclear suitcase bombs or are they non-conventional nuclear suitcase bombs (dirty bombs).

3) Al Quieda has infiltrated our southern border and prepositioned training camps in South American countries non-sympathetic to the USA.

4) Crossing the border in any South American country is as simple as crossing from one state to the next. Crossing from Mexico to CONUS is almost as simple.

5) Katrina, and this last Tornado that wiped out Greensburg Kansas are two examples of how unprepared CONUS is presently in dealing with natural disasters, in the latest Kansas case, the Sheriff cited lack of heavy equipment that is presently in Iraq as being one reason that search and rescue operations are taking so long, the other reason was the advance of a new storm. Katrina was one huge Chinese Fire Drill.

6) Forecasters are predicting another heavy Hurricane season (2007).

7) The Commander-in-Chief is sending more soldiers and equipment to that unfillable hole called Iraq, means less Guard Units and their equipment.

8) I wonder what were to happen if CONUS were to get one of those "It Could Happen Tomorrow" scenerios and on top of that Comrade Usama decides to turn Chicago into a quarantined zone using one of his dirty bombs? NOLA/Katrina would be like something to yearn for compared to the pandemonium in Chicago (or L.A / Boston / Manhattan).

9) The Muslim fighter has if nothing else, plenty of analyzing power (they invented Chess) and plenty of grit.

That's one scenerio I prepare for as it will affect all of CONUS far more than 9/11 ever did.

 

[elrod]

I suppose all of us have, at one time or another, have had a situtation arise that we were totally unprepared for This sense of helplessness has caused me to try to be ready for any occurance, wheather it is the impossible bolt on a chevy water pump, or a crazed crackhead at my door at 1am. Both tools called for are not needed very often, but at that particular time, they are the only ones that get the job done. I get a lot of satisfaction from my tool chest!

 

[ArfinGreebly]

Why Prepare?

I dunno.

Things seem pretty normal.

Unless you look around.

• There's the Iranian thing. And the other Iranian thing.
• Then there's the "extraordinary powers" thing.
• And there's border stuff. And other border stuff.
• Some European stuff.
• A sprinkling of religious fanaticism. Okay, maybe more than a sprinkling.
• And then there's the (remote) possibility of stuff happening here.

So, I dunno.

What would you prepare for?

 

[HUMONGO]

So, I dunno.

What would you prepare for?

I prepare for the worst, hope for the best. Though, I did kinda enjoy the last hurricane we had and the 4 days without power. I was a Boy Scout and have read every survival manual I can get my hands on.

I think that we each have a personal responsibility for our own safety and that of our family. To me, that means both globally and locally, with both action and diplomacy.

Unfortunately, I think a SHTF scenario is an inevitability. As previously stated, the myriad precipitating factors and their reach are the only variables.

 

[SamTuckerMTNMAN]

for which I have caught alot of flak from my less informed friends who think I'm paranoid.

The worst part is that, if there ever is an "I told you so" day, it won't matter, and we'd wish they were right, and there won't be much time to gloat. . .
ST


ps - I believe that the change is inevitable and that sustainability of the current scenario is a delusion. Environmental, energy, financial, racial, religious, and much more....all exacerbated by the first three. By environmental I do not only mean human induced, but also many other resource oriented factors, cycles of change, and the inability of modern infrastructure to adapt with competence in a way that would soften the other elements.

Brother, find your brothers.

ST

 

[ctdonath]

Preparing for?
In no particular order...

- Bumps in the night, to wit: home invasion. Got myself and three others to care for, so if someone is within these walls without leave when they shouldn't, hostile intent is reasonably presumed and reasonably dealt with.
- Social breakdown, to wit: natural disaster. Tornadoes come thru here occasionally, and enough damage could mean cops are too busy to stop looters.
- Social breakdown, to wit: civil war. Last year the Hispanic community demonstrated its influence 3 times in my area, with the apparent message "we can kick your a$$", and the influence while mild was indeed felt. With the illegal immigration issue growing, and nearly 10% of the US population is "illegals" with the main concentration in the South, this (or a host of other issues) could lead to violent social meltdown ... with my relatively affluent neighborhood having to ward off those who decide it's theirs.
- SHTF. Whatever the problem, there's a chance of some massive breakdown akin to those above but to more Biblical proportions. Between you needing weapons, and trading extras for other stuff, you'll need all you can hoard.
- Outright bans. I imagine the presidential inauguration of '10 will be promptly followed by massive gun bans. (Do the math.)
- Prices. Guns and ammo do a fantastic job of holding, if not increasing, their value. Ammo is a durable consumable whose price will only go up; buying bulk now is far cheaper than buying any quantity later. Wise gun purchases can return at least their purchase value later, unlike nearly any other normal purchase.
- Friends. Should any of the above (and more) become an issue, you may very well find friends/family at your door (you, the gun nut) begging for weaponry. Have a gun, box of ammo, and sack of rice ready for them.

And as you mentioned cars:
- If you need a gun NOW, whatever is in your safe at home is, practically speaking, nonexistent. For many, one's car can be accessed in less than a minute.

 

[LightningJoe]

Now is not the time to pray for peace. Now is the time to pray for victory. And that's what the preparation is for.

 

[lee n. field]

My question is, what specifically are we preparing for?

My gut feeling is that the good times are illusory, and could quickly and suddenly end in any number of ways.

"Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!"

I prepare for the unforeseen with all the resources I have at my disposal. But why are you preparing?

Because the consequences of being unprepared when the S finally does HTF are guaranteed bad.

Practically, the best I can prepare for is temporary civil disorder.

 

[Aaryq]

I'm preparing for nothing. Until 2009 if there is war, political unrest or anything "evil" I'm part of it. I'm PROUDLY defending and upholding the constitution of the United States. If I decide to get out then, I'll prepare for general chaos and disorder. I'll be living in ND, so if ICBM's are flying, I'll die, right out (we have at least 1/3 of the US Nuclear arsenal and during the peak of the cold war, if ND was it's own country, it'd be the 3rd largest nuclear power in the world). If it's anything else, I'd prepare to defend my property at any cost nescessary. Maybe I need some more tin foil for my head, but when I buy my property, I'll have a small bunker in my back yard...however that will mostly be for my private rifle range I'm making. Regardless, my ND bug out plans are already put together with strategic high ground, concealability, and all of the stuff that someone with a tin foil hat would consider...sorry for being such a weener.