Defending your home.

[CharlesHarris]

I moved "outside the Moderate Damage Radius" to the country, because I believe that it's key to live in an area that is the least populated as possible. I'm may be in the minority on this, but a viable exit and relocation plan is just as important as a defense plan.

It is a fairytale notion to think that when “it” happens, you can just lay low and hide out until the danger passes and civilization returns to normal. Having to defend your soft sided, flammable asphalt shingled roofed home while “bugging in” is a real possibility. It is not viable to think that because a house looks “empty,” looters or gangs would pass it by. An “empty” house is an invitation to look for stuff to loot.

How do you defend your soft walled castle from those who may come to take what you have while you hide out, waiting for the situation to stabilize? If your plan is to hide out and go "grey" while waiting to see what happens, that goes against every rule of modern and old school warfare, I wish you good luck. Living in a “hide” or a cave in the boondocks is one thing, but in a non-fire proof , non-bullet resistant structure, not elevated higher than surrounding structures.

Just throwing up barbed wire and a sign outside of your castle warning of “Death to Looters” is not a viable defence strategy unless you are prepared to forcefully back it up. But you REALLY don’t want to have to defend your castle. If you must do so, then it better be both fire and bulletproof. Unless order is completely gone forever, you will be in big legal trouble if you take any drastic defense measures. When it becomes dangerous it’s probably better to leave discreetly rather than defend, the sad reality.

Start with a minimum threat, the neighbor kids are trying to help their families by searching abandoned homes for food and "stuff". You aren’t going to meet them with violence when they start breaking in your back door. You yell at them and shoo them off. Soon their parents come back to “make nice”and ask if you will join their neighborhood defense force. So what's your next move?

1) Presume that "bad guys" will eventually discover your presence, and quickly evaluate whether you are a “soft” or “hard” target and adjust their wants and strategy accordingly.... You better have a plan.

2) Anything you do to alter the intentions of others may be scrutinized by law enforcement in an unhelpful way.... be clever.... but, don't help them to misunderstand you.

3) A fixed plan is a mistake..... be flexible, and clever.

4) “Bugging in” may get you trapped or killed.... so have a good plan to leave and several places to go.

5) Bugging out may put you out into an unknown environment, take you away from resources and also get you killed.... so have a good plan to stay, as long as it is safe to do so. Know your “triggers” to leave.

6) When your trigger trips, leave now. Incorporate Primary, Alternate, Contingency and Emergency (PACE) in your evac plans. Or else when the world turns to shit you have no idea what to do next.

Unless you are at flashpoint ground zero, it takes time for the situation to develop and for authorities to generate a response capable of meeting the expanding threat. On big events, this takes days. You are legally limited to what your options could be for each zone.

Do what you can legally early in the game. Fuel up your vehicles. Buy groceries, batteries, medical supplies and bottled water. Stock up on ammo. Withdraw lots of cash from the bank. As events escalate, you do want to go out driving about to the grocery store, the hospital or the bank. Listen to the news, plot areas being ravaged, look for where new outbreaks of violence are occurring. Plot several alternative escape routes away from the area. Have several fall back positions. Gather important documents and copy them. Connect hoses your outside spigots if fires are burning nearby.

Understand the difference between discouraging looters vs "repelling pirates.” A spot light and a shotgun will discourage lightly armed groups of looters, even from a stick-framed house defense. After all of the soft targets have been cleaned out and heavily armed groups have been established the game changes. A soft-walled home cannot be defended. Living in a typical wooden frame house with one layer of brick veneer and aluminum siding your ability to survive a drive-by at 0200 in the morning with a couple of AK toters is marginal. Then, what if its three vehicles with 4 guns per vehicle, and the bad guys have dismounted and surrounded your house? Defence of a built up structure has not changed in thousands of years. When do you leave? Before “Zone 3” transitions to “Zone 4” is a really good idea!

Zone 1 area- civilized, low crime, normal daily living experience, law and order.

Zone 2 area- civilized, high crime, normal daily living, law and order, bad neighborhood in an urban area.

Zone 3 area- still civilized, next to no police presence, if you go there you will be robbed or kidnapped.

Zone 4 area- heavy police and some military presence, most violence directed at those forces, still dangerous to move on the
streets if you aren’t protected by ruling gangs or protection detail.

Zone 5- heavy military presence. bombing and killings occur daily.

Zone 6- total lawlessness, no military or police presence, neighborhoods ruled by gangs.

Society won’t go from Zone 1 (civilized) to Zone 6 (lawlessness) in a week. The power grid can be down for a month or more before the doomsayer scenarios start to play out as long as people feel there is still an intact authority of governance.

Looting and increased criminal activity don’t make a war zone, but you can be violated or killed in either.