Survival Fantasy vs. Reality

Too often I read posts from people who really believe they have a solid plan for when things go seriously south. They have a remote piece of land with a small cabin. They have a stockpile of food, seeds, and ammunition. They even include some creature comforts from when life was normal. But, is this reality? Does this set up truly benefit a family? The reality is that such a situation is much different than spending a weekend or even a week at your remote family cabin. Too many people treat it the same except they extend the timeline of staying at the cabin and falsely believe everything will be alright. Let’s assume you are a typical family of four to include husband, wife, and two kids. 

Following are important considerations:

Security

So, you are in a remote cabin far away from society. This means that you are also far away from help assuming that there is help in the form of police. Chances are you will either not be able to contact the police, the police are tied up with the crisis, or the response time will be so long that they will be of little help to prevent violence that is directed at you. The reality is that you are responsible for your own safety and security. And here is where the problems begin. There are only four of you. Chances are your wife and children will not be at the same level you are for handling and successfully resolving violence. It takes a lot more than just weapons handling skills. It is important to understand tactics and techniques that will keep you safe. Additionally, your children, and probably your wife, will be extremely scared when the time comes to defend their lives. Chances are they will need to do it at night and your kids will not want to be separated from you or your wife. The kids may be so scared that their response will be either fight, flight, or freeze. But fighting is the only viable option in this situation. In order to get anyone ready to handle such a confrontation requires spending a lot of time training and practicing. Chances are you and your family have not invested in this aspect. That leaves you to defend your property and your family. One person against a dedicated group of individuals who attack you is not a winning situation.

Hunting

Depending on where you live hunting may be good or bad. Even if there are animals to hunt it does not guarantee that you will be successful in your hunt. Look how many hunters go out each year and come back empty handed.  Hunting, trapping, and fishing is by no means a sure bet for food.

Growing food

Ah, the thought of living of the land and growing your own food. Not so easy. You need enough water and sunlight to insure proper growth. It also takes time to grow. A lot of things need to come together in order to grow your own food. This also means that someone is going to need to be spending time tending to your garden.

Weather

Depending on where you live you may be dealing with excessive heat, cold, rain, snow, ice, or wind. All can dramatically impact your ability to function effectively. High temperatures mean that your water requirements will be significantly higher. You may not be able to work during the heat of the day in order to prevent dehydration, heat exhaustion, or heat stroke. Excessive cold means that you will need fire to keep warm. Hypothermia is a deadly possibility in cold temperatures. Smoke from a chimney may give away your location possibly leading to a security situation. Never underestimate how weather can impact your plans.

Running Out of Supplies

If the situation that sends you to the hills lasts long enough chances are you are going to run out of some supplies. Then what? Batteries will die, you will run out of gas, you will run out of medications, or other needed supplies. Do you have a contingency plan for such situations?  Will you be able to remain completely self-sufficient for an extended period of time? Have you ever been in this situation before?

Noise Discipline

Many people may laugh or not understand the concept of noise discipline. Remember, if you are in the middle of nowhere do you want to give your position away by making excessive noise such as when hunting. Sound can travel for miles under the right conditions which could lead to your location. Do you have a plan for this?

Mr. Murphy

Murphy’s Law is an ever present concern. Like a relative that just won’t leave you alone Murphy is with you to insure that anything that can go wrong will go wrong and often at the worst possible time. Your rifle does not fire, a chain breaks, your axe handle splits in two, your roof leaks, etc. Embrace the suck!

Conclusion

When things are bad and there are a lot of unknowns it can be difficult to actually survive on your own for an extended period of time. There are so many factors that come into play and the reality is that most people have not properly planned or trained for such worst case scenarios.

If you have a majority of knowledge, skills, and abilities to handle such situations then you have to ask yourself: “How will your wife and kids do if something happens to you?” Will they have what it takes to keep going if you are down and out? Living remotely off the land is a much more difficult task than most people understand. It takes a lot of work and effort. Now add a major crisis and the task of survival is even more difficult. Far too many people believe that their skills are better than they actually are which provides a false sense of security. 

Are you ready when SHTF?

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//TC

© 2013

Is a Terrorist Attack Imminent?

In a post 9/11 world we must all do our part to be as aware, safe, and secure. The oceans no longer offer protection from far away people who wish to do us harm. Danger has been bestowed upon us and it is happening again. Yet, we have once again slipped back into a pattern of complacency that is providing a false sense of security. This needs to stop today.

On September 2, 2013, Flight 1880 departed from Reagan National Airport in Washington D.C and headed to Orlando International Airport in Florida. On this plane were four Middle Eastern men. According to a security memo, shortly after takeoff one of the men ran from his seat in coach toward the flight deck door. He then made a hard left and entered the bathroom for a considerable length of time. The other three men then moved about the cabin, changing seats, opening overhead bins, and making a scene in what appeared to be actions to distract the flight attendants.  The inept TSA states that, “the matter requires no further investigation at this time.” Yes, it does require further investigation and a response. Political correctness at its finest once again from our government.  Oh, lets us not offend anyone. The reality is that this IS a test. It is the proverbial shark that bumps its prey. An attack is soon to follow. Read the memo from the US Airline Pilots Association at: http://www.wtsp.com/assetpool/documents/131008021206_security%20memo.pdf

To make matters worse this is not the only case. There have been several recent cases throughout the airline industry and we are not hearing about these incidents! These terrorists, yes, I called them terrorists, are testing the airlines procedures and reactions to an in-flight risk. And guess what? No one is doing anything. This is completely unacceptable.  These terrorists want to see how flight attendants, Federal Air Marshall, law enforcement on the plane, and citizens will react. They want to be able to identify the Federal Air Marshall and kill him first. In today’s environment I consider everyone on a plane as a security force. Those who fail to have this mentality are sheep who are willingly lead to slaughter. Not me.

There Must Be a Response

The worst action we can do is no action at all. This type of behavior is not acceptable and we must strongly let the terrorists know that taking over a plane is not an option. The problem is political correctness. If you say or do anything toward a Muslim you are immediately label an Islamophobe, racist, ethnocentric, xenophobic, etc. You are made to feel as you are the problem. This detracts from the real problem of terrorists trying to kill us. Oh, the liberal media will have a field day with you. The terrorists will hire an attorney claiming that you violated their civil rights. Unfortunately that is the reality of the world we now live in. Let political correctness apply to someone else. If you were on Flight 1880 what would you have done? Watching and not intervening is not a response.

Following are some actions to consider:

• Immediately inform the flight attendant what is occurring and tell her to immediately notify the pilot of the suspicious behavior.

• Immediately go to the front bathroom that the Middle Eastern man went to and loudly knock on the door asking him what he is doing.

• Provide loud, clear, concise verbal commands for the remaining three Middle Eastern men to immediately get back to their seats.  When I say “immediately” I literally mean right now! Take control over the situation and be the authority. This may place you in danger but you may already be in danger.

• Get other passengers to get involved by getting out of their seats and providing loud, clear, and concise verbal commands for the three Middle Eastern men to get back to their seats.

• Tell other passengers to surround the three Middle Eastern men if necessary.

• If the three Middle Eastern men are non-compliant to the verbal commands then use reasonable and necessary physical force to put them back in their seats. Have them fasten their seatbelt and leave a minimum of two men to ensure continued compliance.

•  If they remain non-compliant restrain them by securing their hands and feet with belts, rope, tape, or other available items.  Do not to allow the terrorists to communicate especially if they are speaking in another language.

• If they fight back while you are attempting to gain control use force that is reasonable and necessary to immediately gain control.  Tell the flight attendant to have the plane diverted to the nearest airport. Police will be waiting.

The worst this we can do is nothing. These terrorists are testing our security and then talking with each other. When we fail to take action it empowers them to continue to follow through with their plans instead of dropping the plan and going to an easier target. The TSA should never state, “The matter requires no further investigation at this time.” The passengers should not just sit there and do nothing. Passengers need to get involved. The terrorists need to know that WE are not afraid of them. We will not cower to them. We will respond swiftly, appropriately, and immediately when necessary. They should fear us if they plan to hurt or kill us.

After 9/11 our country was united. We were simply Americans; not democrats, independents, or republicans. We were a unified group of Americans who were proud. We flew the flag.  We said, “Never Again.” But the passage of time has made us soft again and the terrorists know this and they use it to their benefit. We have become complacent. We cannot wait for a plane to be taken over before someone finally stands up courageously and says, “Lets Roll.” It will be too late at that point. We must be proactive and not reactive. But we will be judged by our actions.

I find it unsettling that the media fails to report terrorist probes or dry runs that have potentially deadly consequences yet they would be all over a situation where someone is accused of being an Islamophobe.  Your actions will be judges with 20/20 hindsight. Do what you believe is right, ethical, and legal. Whether your decisions are right or wrong you will be under a media microscope. To some you will be a hero while others will villanize you as racist. If you fail to act what is the result. Are you willing to die for fear of the media or an unjust lawsuit.

We are a weary nation. After 9/11, Iraq, and Afghanistan we are tired. We have problems with Iran, North Korea, and Syria not to mention all the domestic problems. Our enemy is not weary. Our enemy is patient and uses time to its benefit.  We cannot justify or rationalize a world that is peaceful. We have enemies who have repeatedly stated they want to kills use. They burn our flag and shout death to America. They behead people across the globe. They are evil. This is a reality that is difficult for some to accept. Complacency is lethal. If you were on Flight 1880 what would you have done?

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//TC

© 2013

Computer Privacy

In recent months it has been brought to light how the US government is spying on US citizens. In June of 2013, the Washington Post and The Guardian have revealed a US government mass Internet surveillance program code-named "PRISM". They report that the NSA and the FBI have been tapping directly into the servers of nine US service providers including: Facebook, Microsoft, Google, Apple, Yahoo, YouTube, AOL and Skype. This surveillance program started at least seven years ago and continues today. That is a lot of data that has been and continues to be collected. 

Now many people will respond with statements such as, “I’m not doing anything wrong and I have nothing to hide.” True, most of us are law abiding citizens with no intention of breaking the law. Yet, information is still being collected on you which reveals a lot about your: habits, likes and dislikes, political affiliation, sexuality, medical conditions, education, friends, where you travel, hobbies, preferences, etc. The information collected on you includes your: email to include Gmail, Hotmail, and Yahoo, chat, videos, photos, stored data, VoIP, file transfers, video conferencing, logins, and online social networking. Now think back to all the companies that are supplying the government with YOUR information: Facebook, Microsoft, Google, Apple, Yahoo, YouTube, AOL and Skype. The government is able to aggregate all this information from these different providers and develop a significantly huge amount of data to not only profile you but actually PREDICT your behavior. If this does not scare you then you are foolish. I want the government to catch terrorists before they commit acts of terrorism but not by throwing a net over the whole country and collecting our information. Benjamin Franklin said:

“Those who give up their liberty for more security neither deserve liberty nor security.”

Even in the times of Benjamin Franklin he clearly understood the dangers of government. Again you claim you are not doing anything wrong. Are you okay with the government having access to?

• Every Google search you enter, i.e. medical conditions, political information
• Reading your email from Gmail, Hotmail, or Yahoo
• Reading your personal chats
• Having copies of every picture or video you post on Facebook
• Knowing every “Like,” comment, or share that you have posted on Facebook
• Having a copy of every video that you posted on YouTube. Or if you don’t post videos on YouTube knowing every video that you have searched, watched, liked, or commented.
• Having a record of every Skype call that you have made

I could go on and on but you see the trend of invasiveness. Unfortunately, by using any form of electronic communication such as the Internet we are providing a wealth of information about our lives. When we carry a cell phone, which most of us do, the government is able to know our location 24 hours a day. They know who we talk to, how long we talk, the content of our conversation, the regularity of our communications, etc. They have access to our phone contact list, notes, location, pictures, video, etc. Their ability to gather intelligence on us is almost beyond comprehensible. Now think of the access they may have to your medical records, insurance records, utility bills, banking records, financial records, etc. Overwhelming isn’t it! Clearly, the United States has the most robust intelligence capabilities of any country in the world. And, they know more about you than your closest friend.

A function of the country is to protect us yet they are using their capabilities to spy on us under the guise of making us safer. Yet, they failed to stop the Boston Marathon bombing from occurring. With so much information being stored it becomes extremely difficult to sort through the massive amounts of information to determine a threat in a timely manner. It is easy to connect the dots after the fact but by then people are already injured and killed. So we see that the system is far from perfect. Yes, they can collect significant amounts of information on all of us and many sources claim they can even predict behavior with a high degree of accuracy. But, can they perform this in a timely manner to actually prevent acts of terrorism? And, is it necessary to cast a wide blanket on all Americans of which most are law abiding citizens? I don’t know if companies such as Facebook, Microsoft, Google, Apple, Yahoo, YouTube, AOL and Skype are forced into a cooperative with the government but we do know they are cooperating. Sadly, Americans are not outraged. They go about their days with blissful ignorance and hide behind the mantra of “I have nothing to hide.” Benjamin Franklin would be so disgusted and disappointed with this situation. Big brother is no longer just a concept in a book. Big brother is a reality. Big brother is alive and well. Big brother is your government. The slippery slope between freedom and security is lined with grease and US citizens are on the losing end.

What is the Solution?

This is the billion dollar question and I really don’t have the answer. Even if I did most people more than likely would not follow the advice because it would be inconvenient. There is a reason that the National Security Agency is building the Utah Data Center which will intercept, decipher, analyze, and store vast amounts of data. We will keep supplying the data and the NSA will collect it. I doubt most people are willing to give up their cell phone, email, Internet, or Facebook page. And, all of these items do provide a useful value. If you want to protect your privacy, and you should, I will provide you with a list of useful links. It will be up to you to conduct your own research on how these products work and if they fit your needs. It will take time and energy on your part. The ball is in your court.

Computer Security

TOR: https://www.torproject.org/

GnuPG aka, GPG: http://www.gnupg.org/

TureCRYPT: http://www.truecrypt.org/

BleachBit: http://bleachbit.sourceforge.net/

Tails: https://tails.boum.org/

Silent Circle: https://silentcircle.com/

OTR (Off the record messaging): https://otr.cypherpunks.ca/

Password Safe: http://pwsafe.org/

Start Page: https://startpage.com/

Start Mail: https://beta.startmail.com/

Mailvelope: http://www.mailvelope.com/

Recommendations:

1. Use Tor to be anonymous. It will be slower than you like and will not work with all websites especially for videos but you are anonymous. Yes, the NSA targets Tor users but it is work for them.

2. Encrypt your communications.

3. Use open-source software which is typically FREE. Be suspicious of commercial encryption software especially from large vendors as they probably have NSA friendly back doors.

We cannot control all of the information that has already been collected on us but we do have the ability to somewhat control the future. It is work and requires diligence.

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Yes, I realize liking us on Facebook contributes to the problem. Are you willing to delete your Facebook account?

//TC

© 2013