Civil War

Nothing symbolizes the tragic American Civil War better than the fallen Confederate Flag.  This war cost the lives of about 750,000 Americans or 2.39% of our entire population over 4 years.  This is the highest in history on a per capita basis by far and should serve as a lesson to those of us today.

With the diverse difference of opinions between the few highly populated states and the others, Secession from the Union is a far better alternative to a Civil War. The obvious alternative to either is to get along and respect the rights of others, and if the Federal Government was not so strong and domineering, this might work if the original intent of the US Constitution was respected. Each state could determine their own beliefs and laws. But this is unlikely to work when citizens in one state want to force their beliefs on another state, or even on an individual. Lets look at some divisive issues.

1. Should a person be forced to bake a cake for a Gay couple? Should a Gay couple have to go else where to get a cake baked?  Does the US Constitution say ..Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...?  Does the Gay couple have the right to force someone else to bake them a cake? 
2. If I don't like guns or small worthless yappy dogs or big dangerous dogs, should the government regulate or ban them for everyone?  Does the US Constitution say ..the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed?  Does it say we have the right to keep a dog?  Oh, but guns kill people .... right but Abortion doctors kill over 20 times more than guns and all of them are defenseless babies, not criminals shooting each other like most homicides are.
3. Does a woman have the right to abort/kill her baby?  Is it not her body and her choice?  Clearly she has the right to use birth control. What about the rights of the baby, who cannot fight for their rights? Why can't we exercise that choice up until the child is 18 years old, when they reach legal adulthood?  What is the difference in killing them a little before being born or after being born.  More babies are aborted each year than soldiers died in the Civil War, a war fought to protect the rights of those who could not fight for themselves, much like unborn babies.

Already some have quit reading this, or are stewing about the issues above. The point is that our opinions on right and wrong may be too diverse to remain as one country, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.  

Permitting some of these states with strong beliefs that differ from the majority of the states should be permitted to leave the Union. This is a far better alternative to a Civil War. IF Texas were to leave the US, they would be the sixth largest oil exporter and would not require an income tax and still have a balanced budget. In addition we could better control our future with out being ran over by another liberal, tax and over spend, big government (Washington DC) in the future.

Unfortunately, our Federal Government would not want to give up the power and control over any states and many people within them would agree it is better to stay a part of the US.  For those that receive more federal benefits than they pay in, it clearly is.  So we are stuck with a few highly infested states and cities with radically different beliefs from the rest of the country.

So what happens when people with radically different beliefs take to the streets to first protest which turns in to Rioting & Looting.What is next if this grows and gets out of control, going after those who voted for the opposing candidate, or politicians who support differing opinions?

At this point, we are on the edge of a major civil unrest, possibly a civil war. Republicans in California or possibly even Democrats in Texas may be in danger (although Republicans and Texans are far less prone to violent protests).  Muslims, Immigrants, Gays, NRA members,  may be persecuted. While the NRA members will be the ones best positioned to protect themselves, the others could be in serious jeopardy.

At this point, there is safety in numbers, so having a Neighborhood Security Plan might be a good idea.  Having made a few preparations against Terrorism could save your life.  A Home Invasion Plan is a good idea along with a number of strategically located guns and fire extinguishers. While violent protests are much less likely in the country, having a Country Home Security Plan could still be a good idea.

But matters could get far worse than just rioting and looting when Liberals and Conservatives start firing on each other, and even worse when the US Military starts firing on US Citizens.There is a group of Law Enforcement Officers and Military Personnel who take their Oath to Support the US Constitution seriously, and refuse to obey certain illegal orders; these heroic people are called Oath Keepers.  We can only hope that our Government will let States like California and Texas exit the Union before it comes to a civil war. After all, if they joined freely, they should be able to exit freely. 

For additional information see the following links: 
Blog Table of Contents;
Urban Survival Plan
Country Home Security Plan

Advanced Prepper Resource

Group Security Drills
Urban Survival Perspective

Passive Layered Security

Or click on a label below for similar topics.

US GOVERNMENT Recommended Preparations

Our federal government gives us a list of “Events” we should be prepared for and how to do so. It includes things like:

Natural Disasters

A.     Hurricanes

B.     Floods *

C.     Earthquakes

D.     Wild Fires  *

E.     Tornadoes

F.      Home Fires  *

G.    Black Outs (power outage) *

H.     Biological threats *

I.        Pandemics (1 – 2 week quarantine; see CDC Pandemic Flu Preparedness)*

J.      Drought

K.     Extreme Heat

L.      Severe Weather  *

M.    Space Weather (solar flares) *

N.     Thunderstorms and lightening *

O.    Tsunami

P.     Volcanoes

Q.    Winter Storms and extreme cold

Man-made hazards

R.     Hazardous Material incidents *

S.     Nuclear power plants (radiation leaks)

T.      Chemical Threats or weapons *

U.     Cyber Attack (computers, ATMs & store registers down) *

V.     Explosions (terrorist bombs) *

W.   Nuclear blast *

X.     Radiological Dispersion Device (dirty bomb) *

 
All of these are covered in the Prepper Handbook in detail.

These are not Chicken Little (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henny_Penny) saying the sky is falling, but rather our federal government (http://www.ready.gov/be-informed) telling us what we need to be prepared for.  The government even has “National Preparedness Month.”

These are Events that often happen. Obviously some are more of a risk than others are, depending on where we live and our situation. Those identified by * are “Events” that could happen to most anyone.

In addition to this list, I would add:

Riots, gangs, and looting that might occur for a number of reasons including something as simple as the LA Lakers winning the NBA Championship or as complex as an economic meltdown from hyperinflation (read Wikipedia on this subject).

These “Events” as we will call them can cause a wide range of event consequences. The degree of severity depends on the Event AND our level of preparation for it. The range of Event consequences broadly includes:

1. No problems
2. Minor inconvenience for a few days
3. Serious hardships for a few weeks.
4. In the worst cases, they pose a threat to well being, life, limb, and property for a long time.

How prepared you are will determine how you fare. For example, being prepared for an Event can easily move you from serious hardships (#3) to minor inconvenience (#2).

But there are real risks of far more serious Events. Is there any doubt that one of the many suicide bombers would not discharge a weapon of mass destruction in the USif he could get one? Only 5% of the millions of daily import containers are inspected. Getting something smuggled into the US would not be hard. When Terrorist attacked us using airplanes on September 9, 2011 or 9-11 they did so with 4 different airplanes and totally successful with 75% or 3 out of 4. If they tried to smuggle in 4 nukes from North Korea, Iran (formerly Persia) or lost ones from Russia through our normal import shipping channels to attack us with, our chances of catching all four is about 6 out of 1 million. Of course, they would test our different ports (if not already in progress) to see which ones were the easiest to smuggle illegal products into and would use those, reducing our chances even further.

The US has a Billion plus dollars per day trade deficit (over spending) with much of it going for foreign oil which has a little more cost than pumping water from the ground and transporting it. This provides a lot of disposable income for the oil rich countries to buy nukes from India,Pakistan,North Korea, or the former Soviet Union countries, most of which hate the US.

Sure, North Korea missiles only have 2,000-mile range, but the EMP caused by a nuke launched from a fishing boat or submarine in the Gulf of Mexico and exploded 250 miles over the central US would take out a majority of our electronic and electrical systems for many years. A solar flare from the sun could do the same thing. Expert testimony before Congress in 2014 warned us that an electromagnetic pulse attack on our power grid and electronic infrastructure could leave most Americans dead and the U.S.in the dark ages. Google “EMP Attack On Power Grid Could Kill 9-In-10”

Think of the consequences from having no electricity for years especially in a country where farmers representing 2-3% of the US population are feeding the other 97 – 98% (300 million Americans) and much of the world. Or what if honeybees continue to die off and even perish? The food supply will quickly be disrupted from not being pollinated. People will do what ever is necessary to eat and feed their children. First they will ask for food, even beg. Then they will try to sneak and steal it, then eventually organize into groups (gangs) and take it by force if necessary. They will have no problem killing “greedy people who won’t share” to feed their children.

Without electricity, city water supplies will quickly dry up. Hoards of desperate people will flee to the country in search of food, water, and shelter.

The US Government has a Continuity of Government plan (COG) called Continuity of Operations (COOP) that believes the highest value terrorist target would be to detonate a Washington DC nuclear bomb while the President was addressing joint sessions of congress. So clearly, they recognize there is a real risk, if they are developing plans on what to do in such an Event. An Event that most people are not prepared for I might add. Some of their plans for different Events are shocking, expecting mass casualties of unprepared citizens.

There are a large number of Events with a low probability of occurrence, but severe consequences. A major volcanic eruption or limited nuclear exchange could spread enough dust through our atmosphere blocking out the sun and inducing a multi-year winter and disrupt the food supply. Read about 1816, the “Year Without a summer…. was an agriculture disaster.”

Fortunately for us, the basic preparations are generally the same for most of the Events, with a few specialized additions for each Event.

This is another excerpt from the Prepper Handbook  by JR Ray on Amazon.  You can download their free e-reader and read it on your computer, iPhone or iPad.

For additional information see the following links:

Blog Table of Contents

Here is another good story on EMP:
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/05/04/military-eyeing-former-cold-war-mountain-bunker-as-shield-against-emp-attack/

Terrorist Watchlist

72 Ways to End up on the Terrorist Watchlist

By Dave Dolbee published on in General

Come and Take It!, Molon Labe!, From My Cold Dead Hands! We have all heard the phrases and likely repeated many of them at one time or another, in or out of context to the Second Amendment and our rights. After a friend received a call the other day from the FBI due to a Facebook post, my interest was piqued and the search began. Quickly, it became apparent just how easy it is (or was) to get yourself put on a watchlist.

Terrorist Watchlist questionnaire

The details are rather scary and closely tied to the Obama administration. However, the links below all go to official U.S. Government sites and documents. It seems the Obama administration cast a fairly wide net when it came to labeling someone as a terrorist or ‘potential terrorist.’ How wide is that net today? Unfortunately, I do not know, but I’d bet many of you do.

Back in the days before the 44^th President, the term ‘terrorist’ brought with it a rather narrow definition that was applied to the worst of the worst. Terrorist was reserved for people such as Osama bin Laden and Islamic jihadists bent of committing mass murder to support their political/religious agenda. However, our country (at least at the Executive level) went through a transformation. Many of us heard about it, but may or may not have fully understood the implications. Instead of simple political correctness by removing all references to Islam from government training materials, the term ‘terrorist’ or at least ‘potential terrorist’ started being applied to large groups of people—and by people I mean American citizens.

I do not want to run around screaming that the sky is falling or claim we all need to suddenly go dark or jump off the grid. However, could reading a firearm related blog such as this earn you a spot as a ‘potential terrorist’ under the government’s definition? How about posting your support for the Second Amendment and the right of self-defense to social media? What if you said nothing at all, but someone else included you in a photo or facial recognition software identified (or misidentified) you? The answers to these and many more questions are in the following links, but you’ll have to do some research and decide for yourself—however, even as the editor and senior writer for this blog, I have passed many, many backgrounds for permits, TSA precheck, Form 4473… So, my recommendation would be to read the following carefully, but not to read to much into the documents.

The documents predate August 2015, so take that into account. We have a new President and administration. I am not sure how up-to-date or applicable to today’s administration some of these linked documents or sites may be, but they will make you think and with the midterm elections around the corner. For example, today I received a form letter from one of my state senators, Tammy Duckworth, about how she supported common sense gun control and opposed national concealed carry reciprocity, blah, blah, blah. Our votes count; use them wisely.

Here is the list of 72 types of Americans that are considered to be ‘potential terrorists’ in official U.S. government documents as of August 2015.

Each listing below is an active link to the original source documentation indicating when and where the listed ‘subversives’ were originally considered a threat:

1. Those that talk about “individual liberties”

2. Those that advocate for states’ rights

3. Those that want “to make the world a better place”

4. “The colonists who sought to free themselves from British rule”

5. Those that are interested in “defeating the Communists”

6. Those that believe “that the interests of one’s own nation are separate from the interests of other nations or the common interest of all nations”

7. Anyone that holds a “political ideology that considers the state to be unnecessary, harmful, or undesirable”

8. Anyone that possesses an “intolerance toward other religions”

9. Those that “take action to fight against the exploitation of the environment and/or animals”

10. “Anti-Gay”

11. “Anti-Immigrant”

12. “Anti-Muslim”

13. “The Patriot Movement”

14. “Opposition to equal rights for gays and lesbians”

15. Members of the Family Research Council

16. Members of the American Family Association

17. Those that believe that Mexico, Canada and the United States “are secretly planning to merge into a European Union-like entity that will be known as the ‘North American Union’”

18. Members of the American Border Patrol/American Patrol

19. Members of the Federation for American Immigration Reform

20. Members of the Tennessee Freedom Coalition

21. Members of the Christian Action Network

22. Anyone that is “opposed to the New World Order”

23. Anyone that is engaged in “conspiracy theorizing”

24. Anyone that is opposed to Agenda 21

25. Anyone that is concerned about FEMA camps

26. Anyone that “fears impending gun control or weapons confiscations”

27. The militia movement

28. The sovereign citizen movement

29. Those that “don’t think they should have to pay taxes”

30. Anyone that “complains about bias”

31. Anyone that “believes in government conspiracies to the point of paranoia”

32. Anyone that “is frustrated with mainstream ideologies”

33. Anyone that “visits extremist websites/blogs” 

34. Anyone that “establishes website/blog to display extremist views”

35. Anyone that “attends rallies for extremist causes”

36. Anyone that “exhibits extreme religious intolerance”

37. Anyone that “is personally connected with a grievance”

38. Anyone that “suddenly acquires weapons”

39. Anyone that “organizes protests inspired by extremist ideology”

40. “Militia or unorganized militia”

41. “General right-wing extremist”

42. Citizens that have “bumper stickers” that are patriotic or anti-U.N.

43. Those that refer to an “Army of God”

44. Those that are “fiercely nationalistic (as opposed to universal and international in orientation)”

45. Those that are “anti-global”

46. Those that are “suspicious of centralized federal authority”

47. Those that are “reverent of individual liberty”

48. Those that “believe in conspiracy theories”

49. Those that have “a belief that one’s personal and/or national ‘way of life’ is under attack”

50. Those that possess “a belief in the need to be prepared for an attack either by participating in paramilitary preparations and training or survivalism”

51. Those that would “impose strict religious tenets or laws on society (fundamentalists)”

52. Those that would “insert religion into the political sphere”

53. Anyone that would “seek to politicize religion”

54. Those that have “supported political movements for autonomy”

55. Anyone that is “anti-abortion”

56. Anyone that is “anti-Catholic”

57. Anyone that is “anti-nuclear”

58. “Rightwing extremists”

59. “Returning veterans”

60. Those concerned about “illegal immigration”

61. Those that “believe in the right to bear arms”

62. Anyone that is engaged in “ammunition stockpiling”

63. Anyone that exhibits “fear of Communist regimes”

64. “Anti-abortion activists”

65. Those that are against illegal immigration

66. Those that talk about “the New World Order” in a “derogatory” manner

67. Those that have a negative view of the United Nations

68. Those that are opposed “to the collection of federal income taxes”

69. Those that supported former presidential candidates Ron Paul, Chuck Baldwin and Bob Barr

70. Those that display the Gadsden Flag (“Don’t Tread On Me”)

71. Those that believe in “end times” prophecies

72. Evangelical Christians

Just for fun score yourself. Without reading each document or visiting each link, but based on the title alone, how many of these could apply to you? One point each, for a maximum score of 72. Enter your score, thoughts, and results of your research in the comment section.

Check Out These Related Articles

Tags: Gun Control, Second Amendment, watchlist

Trackback from your site.

The mission of Cheaper Than Dirt!'s blog, "The Shooter's Log," is to provide information-not opinions-to our customers and the shooting community. We want you, our readers, to be able to make informed decisions. The information provided here does not represent the views of Cheaper Than Dirt!

For additional information see the following links:  

Blog Table of Contents

Top 10 List of Prepper info
Top Rated Prepper Handbook Posts of all time
Top Rated Prepper Website

Night Vision vs Thermal Vision
The Best Gun
Best Handgun Selection Criteria
The right amount of Ammo
Country Home Security Plan

Home Invasion Response Plan
Guns in plain sight
Intruder Detection
Riot Preparations
Double Barreled Defense

Modern Home Security
Sustainable City Survival
BB Gun
Top 5 Combat Rifles
Best Prepper Dog

Random Security
Modern Defensive Shotguns
Active Shooter
Top 10 AR-15s
Ballistic Tip AR Ammo

AR Optics
Best Survival Knife

Click on the labels below for similar topics