Jack Lawson of the Civil Defense Manual recently pointed out a post by Matt Bracken on one of his social media accounts linked at WRSA here. I point all of this out because I want folks to know what I’m about to go on about. I value both Jack and Matt for the hard work they’ve done and continue to do to try and save as much of the population as possible through whatever means they have. I believe a lot of us (us being people who would like to see the future be a better place, not considerably and demonstrably worse) have done what we could with what we have or could scrape together as a group. I know this sounds like there’s a “but” coming, but there isn’t.
I read Bracken's comments and I understand his sentiment. I once had close acquaintances, (and I emphasis "once") who I cared about and tried to warn of the coming unpleasantries and I was ousted from the group for being "too negative". I sometimes wonder if they now see what I was trying to tell them and now actually hate me for it because they discarded the information I presented them and now... we are in it.
As for writing articles and maintaining blogs, allow me to toss out something to think about. My wife once made quilts. They were absolutely beautiful. She gave her handmade quilts to each of our children and people she cared about at no charge. I asked her why she doesn't make quilts to sell. She said that she could never sell them for the time and effort required to make them. Somehow I find a common thread between my wife's quilts and the effort writers like Bracken and T.L. put into the effort to educate all of us willing to be educated. All their ideas, opinions, constructive analysis lands where it needs to. It is not wasted effort. Don't stop.
We're not dystopian yet. Dysfunctional for sure, lots of room for things to get worse. November 8th will tell us how much worse it can get. There seems to be a good chance the capitol will get new management, which will hobble old Joe from doing much more damage. And if there are any rational adults left in the white house, they'll get motivated soon to start correcting some of their serial clown shows in hopes of salvaging something in November and trying to defend their chances in 2024. But a lot more damage can still be inflicted before we stabilize, especially food. Price escalation and shortages will push a lot of people over the edge. Hard to predict what could initiate open warfare but it's rational to prepare for it. I would add ammo to Matt's shopping list.
The CDM is fun in showing lots of practical tips interleaved with fictional scenarios. We can't really prepare for every situation, but the what-if scenarios each need different solution sets. I see prepping like martial arts and firearms tactical training. We don't train for every possibility, but train to adapt to any situation.
Great commentary, TL. Matt’s books are largely responsible for flipping the switch for me, and I have passed on to others. Your early commentaries and a southern Colorado PatCon were also foundational. Thank you.
I read Bracken's comments and I understand his sentiment. I once had close acquaintances, (and I emphasis "once") who I cared about and tried to warn of the coming unpleasantries and I was ousted from the group for being "too negative". I sometimes wonder if they now see what I was trying to tell them and now actually hate me for it because they discarded the information I presented them and now... we are in it.
As for writing articles and maintaining blogs, allow me to toss out something to think about. My wife once made quilts. They were absolutely beautiful. She gave her handmade quilts to each of our children and people she cared about at no charge. I asked her why she doesn't make quilts to sell. She said that she could never sell them for the time and effort required to make them. Somehow I find a common thread between my wife's quilts and the effort writers like Bracken and T.L. put into the effort to educate all of us willing to be educated. All their ideas, opinions, constructive analysis lands where it needs to. It is not wasted effort. Don't stop.
We're not dystopian yet. Dysfunctional for sure, lots of room for things to get worse. November 8th will tell us how much worse it can get. There seems to be a good chance the capitol will get new management, which will hobble old Joe from doing much more damage. And if there are any rational adults left in the white house, they'll get motivated soon to start correcting some of their serial clown shows in hopes of salvaging something in November and trying to defend their chances in 2024. But a lot more damage can still be inflicted before we stabilize, especially food. Price escalation and shortages will push a lot of people over the edge. Hard to predict what could initiate open warfare but it's rational to prepare for it. I would add ammo to Matt's shopping list.
The CDM is fun in showing lots of practical tips interleaved with fictional scenarios. We can't really prepare for every situation, but the what-if scenarios each need different solution sets. I see prepping like martial arts and firearms tactical training. We don't train for every possibility, but train to adapt to any situation.
Great commentary, TL. Matt’s books are largely responsible for flipping the switch for me, and I have passed on to others. Your early commentaries and a southern Colorado PatCon were also foundational. Thank you.