Can we list useful skills for preppers to learn NOW

[NorthernRaider]

(29 October 2012, 14:24)Hrusai Wrote: i'm starting to think we should all chip in lots of info and ideas and write a book "The Art Of The Grey"

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Grrrrrrrr


© 2011Northern Raider
Prepping and Survivalism is a growing sub culture in western society that involves growing numbers of individuals, families and groups to invest time, money and commitment into preparing themselves to be self-reliant and self-sufficient both during and after a crisis or natural disaster.
Preppers as today’s survivalists prefer to be called wish to reduce their reliance on government agencies for assistance during a crisis, and to have independent water, heating, food and energy supplies installed in their homes and retreats which insulates them from the insecurity of various national grid utility and supply systems.

Basically if the power goes off for whatever reason (such strikes, shortages, terror attacks, system failure and crop failures) they will still have independent sources of heat, light, fuel, food and power to call upon.

Naturally these “preps” cost the prepper quite a bit of money often invested over many years to build up supplies and systems to a level they are content with and equally our preppers don’t wish to lose their investments to outsiders stealing their investments or see their resources seized by governmental agencies “ for redistribution among the needy”.

Preppers generally have a tiered system of preparedness starting with the clothing equipment they wear each day, this is often called their EDC kit, EDC standing for Every Day Carry, and this often involves clothing chosen for its specific function rather than a fashion statement. EDC usually also including tools and items of selected kit the prepper feels will enhance his security and self-reliance during the day. Articles such as Lighters, Flashlights, Multi-tools, Pocket Knives, Compasses, Cell-phones, High quality multi-function time pieces, write anywhere pens, Polarised eye glasses, Miniature am/fm radios etc.

Preppers very often wear clothing for its functionality, durability and utility plus of course its weather proofing and this is where the sub-genre of “Grey Man Prepping” originated more of which later in this article.

Following on from EDC preppers spend masses of time and money developing individually tailored survival kits called BOB’s which is short for BUG OUT BAG. These consist in the main of portable supplies of food, clothing, tools, medical supplies and other assorted equipment chosen on an individual basis for which the prepper believes will best sustain and support them during a crisis. The BOB is normally kept in a Rucksack or other item of travel luggage and is often kept very close to the main door of the prepper’s home or workplace.
Preppers and Survivalists often give different abbreviated name for these portable survival kits such as GOOD bags (Getting Out Of Dodge) INCH bags (I’m Not Coming Home) and GHB’s (Get Home Bags) the last being very popular with city workers facing long commutes who don’t trust the reliability of public transport systems. Those these bag systems often have different designations they all have one shared common purpose and that is to sustain the prepper on a journey very likely through some dangerous or unsafe areas, such as fleeing a city centre after a terror attack when public services have collapsed.

Whilst the contents of the kits are similar it is the clothing worn and the luggage that features highly in the Grey Man Preppers concerns. The advocates of this philosophy believe that one tool preppers can use greatly to their advantage is to appear ( or not appear at all) to simply blend into the background of the environment, to be as uninteresting and unappealing as possible to anyone who could hinder, threaten or disrupt or survival plans. This could be criminals preying on commuters fleeing a city without power, or a law officer seeking criminals or terrorists and may foresee the prepper by mistake as a possible criminal, or it could simply be a pack of other displaced refugees desperate for food and water who see the prepper as a likely source to have a go at. For example when I have to attend a formal business meeting wearing a suit my EDC gear gets transferred from my rucksack and into a cordura attaché case so I look just like the rest of the suits in town. Wearing bland nondescript clothing (modified for extra carrying capacity if needed) that matches the rest of the peoples general dress style around you is a good way of lowering your presence.IE no combats in the city and no bling of bright colours in the countryside.

Grey Man Prepping is making the prepper either at best camouflaged or as uninteresting as possible to prying eyes either in the city or in the countryside. This same low profile approach in recent years has now started to be extended to include prepper’s vehicles and Prepper’s homes.

The day of the kit draped 4x4 with jerry cans, roof racks, jacks, sand ladders, storage boxes, winches etc and its insides full of kit exposed through the windows is gradually being replaced by vehicles with similar off road capability, but with all the essential extras being kept concealed within the vehicle and the vehicle having as few windows as possible. Drab paint schemes, plain painted wheels, deliberate attempts to make the vehicle look grubby and unappealing as possible etc are slowly gaining the upper hand as intelligent preppers realise that having all that bling on show only attracts even more unwanted attention.

The neatly organised rural home often chosen by preppers and survivalists was often fairly easy to identify if it came into eye view, (many rural properties were chosen for the camouflage benefit of being in remote locations), but we all know that most preppers simply cannot afford these expensive isolated properties and have to choose to settle in rural villages or even in the city suburbs. Many of these well maintained and well equipped homes often advertised the presence of survivalists because of the openly visible upgrades the residents had made. IE Wind Turbines and PV panels visible from the road outside, equally oversized heating oil or propane tanks or even exceptionally large piles of firewood logs scream that someone into self-reliance lives here. Also easily viewed organised vegetable plots and small animal pens frequently give the game away. In a post collapse or post disaster situation even the sight of a clean and functioning 4x4 sat visible from the road could attract plentiful amounts of unwanted attention from people or refugees passing by.

So the concept of Grey Man Prepping is the art of blending in as best as possible making yourself and your hard worked for supplies, vehicles and homes as low profile and uninteresting as possible to anyone else outside your own family or group.
Below are a few articles dealing with the issues raised with the Grey Man Concept that you may find useful.
NR 2011


Adopting the GREY MAN Philosophy
© 2011 Northern Raider / UKSG 1999
The Problem

In many occasions over recent years many government agencies have attempted to combat terrorism by implementing laws that too often erode the personal freedoms and civil rights of the general public.
The laws in theory are to help the government gather information and intelligence on people THEY consider COULD be threats to the state or law and order but often backfire in a spectacular fashion and end up damaging the rights of the innocent.

They have done such things as limit or even ban the ownership of fire arms to law abiding members of the public, Introduced laws that circumvent the concept of INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY. In the UK they wanted to hold “SUSPECTS” up to 3 months without trial or charge, they tried to get permission to wiretap or monitor peoples private communications WITHOUT a court order.


In the US many American people believe the hastily introduced “Patriot Act” is being used and abused be government officers to erode rights and liberties, and the fact that the nation held in esteem globally as being the good guys when it comes to justice are actually torturing suspects and holding them illegally in foreign prisons is unjust.

Many other such examples exist but the point I am trying to make is What if the government or one of its agencies suddenly decides your Group, Church, Coop group, City, State, business or community are “Possible criminal or terrorist organisations?” (Remember Randy Weaver and Ruby Ridge?)

Environmental activists, Fuel price protestors, Anti-war activists, Certain religious groups, Militia groups, Home Education Groups, etc have ALL been treated as possible terror groups in the very recent past.

Currently it is just far too easy for law abiding citizens to be suddenly designated as an Enemy of the State, Anti-social / Anti British or American / Criminal activists or possible terrorists. Since 2001 the USA has encouraged its citizens to keep and maintain emergency / disaster kits to last from between 72 hours up to 6 weeks. But the UK only finally followed suit after decades of calling any citizen who built retreats or stored food as hoarders and black marketers.

However if suddenly there was food or fuel shortages affecting the UK /US just how long before the government decided privately held fuel and food supplies was once again hoarding and make ILLEGAL?, It’s a distinct possibility in a world of declining resources and accordingly it is just common sense to keep your preps to yourself and do as much as possible to not let anyone else know what preps you have taken.

Perhaps you are part of the community either side of the Atlantic that feels both the US and Europe have reached maximum sustainable population levels and object to any more migration on numerical grounds or the affect foreign cultures are having upon your own indigenous culture?. The trouble is both that on both sides of the Atlantic there are very many power liberal thinking politicians who feel that anyone and everyone should be welcomed into your countries and fed, clothed and housed at your tax payers’ expense. Equally there are many right wing big businessmen who want plenty of cheap migrant none union workers to migrate here to help keep wages down.

Your desire to keep the status quo and to protect your homeland, culture, environment or faith group could make you their enemy, and given the chance they will twist the law to have you classed as a criminal or enemy of the state.
It’s just too easy for survivalists and preppers to be classed as “Criminals” by those in power who disagree with our free spirited and independent lifestyle.






Adopting the GRAY MAN Philosophy
A Partial Answer

I am not going to even attempt to suggest I have a one size fits all answer because I don’t have one, but I can offer some advice on how to remain as low on official radar as possible.

Wise preppers don’t plan on bugging out by foot from inner city areas dressed as Rambo in full cammo’s and carrying a Mini 14, or plan on wandering round the hills in hunters orange jackets. Rather the prepper chooses to dress as boring, drab, unappealing and uninteresting as possible to the authorities and predatory gangs as they leave town, and to blend into the countryside as much as possible when out of the city. They become “grey men” doing their utmost to go unnoticed as possible.

Equally the enlightened survivalists bug out vehicle does not look like something out of a Mad Max movie or like some Paris Dakar Rally competitor.
Their vehicles are modified and customised to give the extra capacity and capability to carry extra fuel and water, they have better ground clearance ,food storage etc but where possible it is fitted WITHIN the vehicle so as to make it look as normal and bland as the rest of the wheels in town.
The vehicles become grey men’s wheels, as low key as possible to both the authorities and trouble makers.

There is nothing that governments like more than collecting facts, figures, statistics and information on its people for tax gathering, pension planning, city utility planning, etc. But as this world gets ever more crowded, violent and hostile those same governments also like to gather ever more information that can be used to control and manipulated people, this can be very bad for preppers and survivalists wishing to live on the edge of an organised and micro managed society.

Some authorities like to record what LIBRARY books people of interest read they like nothing more than seeing which books and manuals you have bought from ONLINE BOOKSELLERS. Have you bulk purchased a load of reloading gear? You should have paid cash for it because the itemised sales receipt is in the system, Buy little and often and pay cash when you can.

The same common sense approach should be applied to buying food and fuel for your stockpile and cache, buy little and often and pay cash when possible and buy from different stores. For heaven’s sake never use customer loyalty points cards as you simply provide TPTB a readymade list of all you have purchased for the last few years.

Generally if you buy online or with a credit card you are telling anyone who wants to know what you bought , when you bought it and how much of it you bought, That’s never a good thing for preppers.

Do you REALLY need to keep a firearm? As soon as you submit the application for an FAC you become a person on interest to the authorities, they will check your medical history to see if you have any lunatic tendencies. They will flag your address on the database to be visited if TSHTF to seize your guns, and whilst they are in your home you can be sure they will rummage about and possibly find your supplies, You need to weigh up your need for a firearm for hunting after TSHTF and the risk you face if the authorities clear you out of supplies when you need it most. I chose not to bother with a gun as the risks were just too great for me.

Some areas even keep a list of 4x4 vehicles being kept so they can be requisitioned by the authorities in an emergency. You need to remain legally listed as your vehicles owner, but you need to think about moving the vehicle to some other location if there is likelihood in say a massive flood or blizzard because the authorities may come for your 4x4.
Again don’t let the vehicle look like it’s an all singing all dancing expedition vehicle as you can be sure jealous eyes are watching , Keep the winch, sand mats, roof tent, sand mats and hi lift jacks hidden when possible until you absolutely need to deploy them.

As mentioned briefly above, try and choose the type and colour of your clothing and luggage to be as drab and unappealing as possible, don’t dress like Rambo in the city and don’t broadcast your position with bright colours in the countryside. Don’t wave expensive kit around; conceal your radios, IPODs, Micro laptops, and other goodies from anyone not part of your group.

To summarise, you need to become the most uninteresting, unthreatening and unappealing person possible, not only to the predatory scum but also the authorities. And NEVER become a refugee in the care of the government because they WILL redistribute YOUR stuff among more “needy” people, usually themselves who have the role of caring for you.
NR


Live on the edge of the System
A Grey man approach
© 2011Northern Raider

Without wishing to come across as overly paranoid I think on a certain level it would be beneficial for preppers to minimise (sensibly) their exposure to main stream society, and some of the risks involved with that society. No of course it’s not possible nor desirable to live a completely separate lifestyle from the rest of society unless you fancy living like a hermit or trapist monk, but keeping a lower profile is definitely a prudent step for serious preppers.

I think this may become more relevant as a crisis develops and the way the global economy and political unrest is growing at the moment across the world.

But you can with some consideration and planning lower your radar signature visible to officialdom, the authorities and those who may realise that you are a prepper and likely to have supplies and equipment that they can steal or confiscate.

I don’t have any loyalty cards for shops so they can’t keep track of my buying, I frequently pay for much of my shopping with cash and I also vary which supermarkets I visit. When buying prepper specific kit such as bulk food, survival kit, etc I make sure that no one I know personally is around when I’m paying. I don’t want my neighbour to know any more about my survival supplies than I want him to know I have some new “” borrowable”” power tools.

On the internet I often rotate and change my avatar, contact E mail and online name, indeed I even often build up a completely fabricated identity for web sites personal details files.

When travelling 99% of the time I use my own vehicle and rarely use the same route 2 days in a row, I keep my vehicle clean and without bling or anything that may interest a traffic cop. When using public transport I always try to board trains at minor stations not larger stations that are more heavily policed or covered by CCTV systems, I try when possible not to alight at journeys end at main stream stations either. I try NEVER to fly if at all possible. (I try my utmost to never use public transport where ever possible anyway.

Rather than rock the boat at my son’s school when the subject matter being taught is an unacceptable version to me, I simply explain to him my version on that subject in comparison with the schools rather that make a complaint. Or if the subject matter is beyond my limited educational capability we involve him in private tutorage and home schooling groups to get a broader education. Its better if more expensive to see your child educated the way YOU choose than for you to attract the attention of local authorities and social workers who do hold completely different beliefs to your own.

You for example may feel very strongly about gun control and are an advocate of the right to be armed for self-defence. So accordingly you join your nation’s gun ownership advocacy lobby group. But as soon as you do the guys in charge will make a note of this fact and then you are in the system. Then perhaps after the next election a party that is totalitarian and rabidly anti-gun ownership comes to power, by joining the lobby group you have just told your worst enemies who you are and where you are. What a disaster for your personal security you would have better served your cause by simply sending them a donation and remained anonymous.
It’s one thing being patriotic but it’s another thing painting a target saying “Here I am“.

I don’t even have a library card and when buying books on the major prepping subjects I tend to buy them in book shops and pay cash for them, I have an extensive library of survivalist and prepper books dating back to the 1970s, many of which in 2011 are probably no longer socially acceptable or politically correct.

Cash is your friend it leaves almost no trail for anyone to trace, this certainly will be of much greater importance if a major incident occurs and say food or fuel availability becomes an issue.
You don’t want the authorities to find a trail of credit card slips showing you have bought over 300 gallons of fuel in the weeks leading up to the crisis happening.

I reduce the risk of being a victim of terrorism by ceaselessly making as much effort as possible in NOT going into large cities and towns, I try where possible to attend meetings away from large conurbations, So be it a meeting with a friend, an RZ with another prepper or perhaps wanting to attend a concert I try to go to the least attractive venue possible usually in some smaller regional town, but never the Capital.

I may have very strong political, religious and cultural beliefs but I don’t not advertise my position by joining a political party, attending protests or rallies etc, you can be 100% sure the authorities have access to every membership list going and we are all more than aware just how many cameras are deployed at every public gathering these days.

In today’s electronic everything era Big Brother is indeed watching us and recording all our buy habits and political affiliations. Big brother can access your shopping habits just easily as your political activities and your travel habits. At the moment you may be of no interest to the authorities but it does not take much for you suddenly to become a person of interest, which is why you need to keep your identity signature as low as possible.

Grey Man Concept and Vehicles

© 2011Northern Raider

We have to accept that most of us don’t have purpose built tricked out bug out vehicle’s, many of us if not the majority of us drive ordinary saloons and estates, but you can still make some simple adaptations to those cars to help fit the low profile aspect of the Grey Man philosophy.

For example the much respected David E Crossley the author of the British post-apocalyptic fiction book THERE FALLS NO SHADOW showed me a fascinating accessory available to many types of estate car owners (station wagons in American) Basically it’s a compartmentalised low profile false floor storage unit for estate cars. At first glance when you lift the boot lid (trunk lid) or tail gate you see only the black carpeted boot floor. But it’s not the original floor it’s a prefabricated container cut to the same shape as your vehicles OE floor shape. It’s about 6 to 8 inches high and can be accessed by lifting the carpeted hinged lid.

You will be surprised just how much EDC or BOB or GOOD kit you can conceal and the floor still looks empty. You can enhance its disguised appearance by leaving a few low value items like an empty water bottle, cheapo pen knife, old map, litter etc on the boot floor that could also divert attention away from the goodies underneath.

You can actually make some pretty natty DIY versions yourself using some plastic low profile under bed storage containers from B & Q, a piece 10 mm ply wood cut the same shape as your boot space / luggage area, topped off with a piece of black or grey nylon carpeting which itself can often be found in a salvage yard or vehicle breakers.

A lady friend of mine who is a rabid archery fan has twice in the past had some of her equipment stolen from her car, (she has a dog and drives an estate) She improved things by not bothering with false compartments she simply lays her assorted archery kit down on the floor of the estate car, places a few pieces of hardboard over them, then throws and old rug over the hardboard. If she is going away over night she simply deliberately scatters some empty fast food containers, wrappers and drinks containers over the rug. (They have actually been washed out and cleaned so they don’t smell), but to prying eyes the back of her car looks simply appalling and unappealing. The disguise works though.

Similar concealment approaches can be done to things like CB radios for example, fitting your rig on a QR mount so it can be moved out of sight when the vehicle is left unattended, or even mounted in the glove box out of sight will remove it from temptation.

If you take a look around you can often find all sorts of places to hide useful items of kit in a normal car. Very often the spare wheel compartment offers enough space to add a few pounds of kit for example; sometimes you will find nearly 10 to 12 inches high of space about 20 x 20 inches wide / deep under the front seats.

Take a look it may just give you that extra bit of hidden storage space you need.

You can improve the capability of your vehicle by fitting mud and snow tyres that give you more traction when off road compared to standard tyres whilst still being good on ordinary roads.

You can frequently improve the power output from your vehicle by getting a tuned exhaust system fitted that allows your engine to breath better thus produce more power.

You can also sometimes get your car ignition module “chipped” or “mapped” by tuning depots, these places can reprogram your engines operating computer to provide more power, often over 15% more BUT at the cost of worse fuel economy.

Some vehicles will benefit from having uprated road springs and shock absorbers fitted to your vehicle which offer better handling when heavily loaded or when towing a trailer.

You can greatly improve your vehicles headlights NOT by fitting huge great spotlights but by fitting new high quality after-market bulbs. Not many people realise that headlight bulbs age and fade over time, often you won’t notice but the deteriation can be by as much as 30% of the bulbs original brightness.

Ensuring your vehicle is well maintained and fitted with high quality service items improves your vehicles reliability and thus YOUR survivability; ALL without making your vehicle look any different.
Think positive but think low profile and the Grey Man concept can help you survive.


Grey Man- Under Your Coat
© 2011 NR

With regards to the low profile “Grey Man” philosophy of low visual impact dress and behaviour for preppers I did a bit of experimentation this afternoon with the able support of my son.

I wanted to know how much EDC or Bob gear a prepper could wear about him that still allowed him to move and walk normally without drawing attention to him or herself.

Rather than go through all the ins and outs I think it’s easier if I just move straight onto the findings.

Remember these findings are averages and approximation that will vary from prepper to prepper depending on build, gender, shape, weight and age. Your mileage may vary so experiment for yourself but for 5ft 11 me weighing 14 stones my finding were thus

Wearing Cargo Pants then changing to Wrangler jeans I could most comfortably keep a 4 inch lock knife, butane lighter, multi tool on the belt, flashlight on the belt, cash in my pocket and small nylon wallet still move effortlessly without bumps or bulges from kit being noticeable.

The belt worn tools vanished completely when I put a Sweat shirt over the top, same effect with a micro fleece to, same effect happened with a Poly-cotton hoody.

I found that regardless of whatever else I wore I could easily wear a small Silva compass, plus puri- tab capsule and mini sharpie as a necklace around my neck completely out of sight under a V neck Polo shirt.

Moving on I then found I could wear a multi pocket travellers / photographers vest containing light sticks, map, folded bandana, dust mask (disposable) more puritabs, 3 granola type nutrition bars, spare batteries, micro AM /FM radio, mini pry-bar etc UNDER a plain, boring, black uninteresting and unadorned fleece jacket that will attract little attention..

Gloves, watch cap etc sat comfortably in the pockets of the fleece.

Now the interesting bit,

I measure up myself wearing my DPM NATO wind proof smock I’ve no doubt most of us have similar large bad weather coats like Gore-tex jackets with numerous pockets. I could easily add more food and supplies to the smock without the pockets looking bulky or loaded.

THEN, I found that after doing some measuring up and with the aid of a sling and providing that I did not draw in the waist or hem draw elastic cords on the smock far in theory I could fairly well conceal an short Air Carbine (even easily if it had a folding stock) but bending over would be an issue.
I estimate using figures off the web that I could also probably conceal a Boomslang folding and telescopic crossbow under the coat with better mobility than with an air rifle.


Summary
So if a prepper found him or herself stranded in a built up area when the SHTF and needed to get out on foot without attracting attention to themselves a bit of judicious dressing and packing could see them walk to safety fairly well equipped and without advertising their status.
Naturally in 2011 UK this won’t work if you try to use many forms of public transport as the authorities regularly have operational security checks at transport hubs to hunt Islamic extremists and other nasty people