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I’m working on a series of posts about how homeowners can make their domiciles more resistant to crime.  It will be called “Hardening Your Home” and is intended to give readers actionable security advice they can begin to implement immediately.  This will be accomplished by taking a multi-layered approach that adds redundancy to your home’s security.  I’ll recount my experiences with this process over the past few years as I have sought to increase my home’s security.  Hopefully my stories and advice will enable you to do the same and experience greater peace of mind as you take action to make your home safer.

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I’m sure more than a few people said “oh snap” at Wal-Mart the other day.

When the EBT card system went 404 the other day, chaos ensued.

Now imagine if there was an EBT outage for a day or a week or even a month.  Bob Owens notes that agitators will use outages like this one to stir up trouble through disinformation and paranoia.  This made the problem worse and caused unnecessary waste as products were damaged or spoiled during the outage.  As Monty writes over at Ace of Spades, the nightmare scenario is when the cards stop working permanently because there is no more money to give out.  Think about what that would entail…

There is a larger issue though, that being the definition of “compassion” and the role of government in people’s lives.  As we saw with the EBT outage, there is a multifaceted dysfunction in government-run programs that is corrosive to independence.  Jon Gabriel over at FreedomWorks stated it best when he wrote:

It is immoral that so many poor Americans feel like they must rely on an incompetent government to provide their daily bread. There is nothing compassionate about turning able-bodied adults into helpless wards of the state or grocery store looters…A truly compassionate system would allow businesses to grow and hire, providing our fellow citizens with paychecks instead of handouts. A compassionate system would allow Americans to devote more of their money to effective charities instead of having so much seized by an incompetent government.

So what should a prepared person do to mitigate situations like this?  Here are a few actions you can take that will make you more resilient during an interruption:

  • Stockpile food, water, and other necessities now.  Have a supply (3-days worth, minimum) of essential items on-hand so that you don’t have to go to the store.
  • Have extra cash at home, preferably in a safe.  Electronic payments are great…when everything works correctly.  When they don’t, have some money in various denominations so you can get through the interruption.
  • If you find yourself in a food riot or other civil disturbance, be ready to leave the area as soon as possible.  Crowds can get violent when they are hungry and scared, you want to get away from them immediately.
  • Be ready to protect your home and family if there is a civil disturbance.  Take steps now to protect your domicile by purchasing high-quality locks, installing stronger doors, motion-activated lights, and reinforcing your door jambs.

There is more you can do, which I will cover in other posts.  The key takeaway is to know that civil unrest can take place anywhere when there is an interruption and to make plans now to deal with it.  You can ride the storm out by becoming better prepared and taking the initiative to plan for unplanned outages of all sorts.

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Most of us have cards in our wallets and purses.  How many of us have a few of these laying around?

Metro Transit Authority MetroCard

If you live in a city, you might want to purchase a few transit passes to have on-hand in case you need them.  Most transit authorities issue daily passes that don’t have expiration dates, meaning they hold their value over time.  Some passes can be “recharged” with additional funds in order to keep a balance on the card.

But why would you need transit passes when you already have a car?

Let’s say your car breaks down or you are unable to get to/from work.  What do you do?  Sure, if a family member or a friend is nearby and has the time they might be able to take you.  What if nobody was immediately available and you had a schedule to meet?  Sure, you could call a cab or rent a car but for much less ($3-5 per day) you could take the bus/trolley/train to get around.

Having transit cards (plural) gives you options when your primary mode of transportation is unavailable.  It may not be the most convenient or the fastest way to get around, but it will get you where you need to be.  Consider it if you live in a major metropolitan area where there is a mass transit system.

For me, I have ten one-day passes for my local transit authority.  I have a few in my car, one in my wallet, a couple at home, a couple at the office, and one in my go-bag.  If nothing else, I will be able to get home if my automobile stops working.  Your situation may be different but give it some thought and act accordingly.

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Yeah, you know me!

It may not be exactly like OCP from RoboCop but private policing is becoming more prevalent.  As cities struggle to provide basic services, some communities are looking to corporations to supplement their law enforcement departments.  In the case of Oakland, California private security firms are being crowdsourced to fund extra security in high-crime neighborhoods.  Expect this to continue as the economy continues to experience little to no growth, resulting in lower revenues for municipalities.

I’ve written about this before but it bears repeating, when governments can’t provide essential services private citizens and companies will step in.  While the circumstances that compel this response may be discouraging, the rise of private policing and greater community involvement shows an encouraging trend.  This trend is that corporations and citizens are taking on greater responsibilities while increasing community involvement.  Down the road this points to greater civic involvement and engagement, which are good outcomes.

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If you aren’t already, I suggest you get hitched.

Draw-Tite Receiver Hitch

No, I don’t mean getting married…

Your vehicle is a valuable tool both in everyday and emergency situations.  Adding a receiver hitch to your car/truck/SUV/van/RV makes it both more valuable and versatile.  Consider the following attachments:

I like the options a receiver hitch gives me, which is why it was the first item I had installed on my SUV.  Most of the time, I use it to hold my bike rack but having the ability to carry extra cargo externally or tow a trailer is a great option to have.  Consider a receiver hitch a valuable tool that you can add to your inventory, it may come in handy more often than you think.

I wrote about this subject last week over at Misfires and Light Strikes but thought it might be worth reposting here.

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When things go wrong, you don’t want your vehicle’s fuel gauge to look like this.  Its a good idea to keep your fuel tank half full for a number of good reasons.

During an emergency, you may not be able to refuel when you need to.  This could be due to a power outage, fuel shortage, civil unrest, or other factors.  Also, if an evacuation is called for (ex. hurricane), you want to have enough fuel to get out of town and on your way to safety.  That’s why many knowledgeable experts recommend you keep your fuel tank half full.  Sure, it means more frequent trips to the gas station but its a small price to pay for being more resilient.

Listen, I am guilty of letting my tank get down to the last gallon or two so this is one piece of advice that I am implementing myself.  My suggestion is that you start doing this now in order to save yourself from running out during an emergency.

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Kevin over at Misfires and Light Strikes shared a really good link with me that discussed the top five newbie prepper mistakes make.  You can read the full article by going here but here are the top five:

  1. Going it Alone
  2. Overestimating Physical Readiness
  3. Ignoring Water
  4. Focusing On Gear Over Knowledge and Skills
  5. Panic

Think about how you can avoid these newbie prepper mistakes and take time to increase your understanding.

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Yes indeed, preparation is going corporate.

Credit: Christopher Wink

Today, there was an emergency preparedness event where I work that featured a handful of exhibitors.  This was a part of National Preparedness Month which is a part of FEMA‘s effort to get more Americans better prepared.  Overall it was a modest event with a handful of participants, but the more important aspect of the event was the fact it was taking place.

The company I work at is a large (>18,000 employee) investment brokerage company headquartered in…San Francisco.  Normally one would associate financial firms to be more concerned with golf, fine arts, and feel-good commercials about investing in the future.  However, issues like business continuity are a major concern for large Fortune 500 companies, so having prepared employees makes sense.  After all, businesses can’t run for very long without people.

This shows that being prepared for disasters is not just for loners who live in rural counties.  Everybody can benefit from being better prepared, especially those of us who live and work in major cities.

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When I was back in Minnesota, I finally had a chance to watch this Doomsday Preppers in my hotel room.

Ok, where to start?

My overall impression of the show is that the people in it are being exploited and ridiculed by National Geographic.  Like most TV shows, it relies on generous helpings of sensationalism to attract an audience.  I found many of the people in the episodes I watched to be a bit out of balance, some even struck me as extreme.  The common theme was preparation for various doomsday scenarios where the preppers would retreat to a remote site and fend off crazed survivors.  In a sense, Doomsday Preppers reminded me of Taboo (another NatGeo series) with a similar cast of oddballs and misfits.

My advice is to consider the source of the information and regard it as for entertainment purposes only.  National Geographic is owned by a Mainstream Media channel (Fox) which is primarily interested in ratings and profits.  The show reflects that and is chiefly designed to move product for its primary advertisers who hope to cash in on the increasing popularity of prepping.  Any useful information presented in that show or on its associated website should be considered a byproduct of television production.

Instead of passively watching kooks and loners don camouflage while they vacuum seal supplies, pick up some books on the subject.  I’ve reviewed two such books here and here, currently I am reading through another one that will be reviewed soon.  Also, there are many good websites that I have linked on my Resources page that offer a wealth of practical advice on handling scenarios you are more likely to face than societal collapse.  Part of taking responsibility for yourself is to learn for yourself and critically assess what is being presented to you.  Not everything you see on TV, hear on the radio, or read on the internet is going to be helpful.  The best thing you can do is gather information from a wide range of sources and determine what information is most applicable to your situation.  Your mind is a critical tool so keep it sharp by reading and thinking so you can acquire the knowledge you need to be better prepared.

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Over the last month or so, I’ve spend time reading various books, blogs, and other information sources regarding preparation.  One common theme in several of them is the importance of staying employed.

You would think this would be a relatively straightforward proposition, but times are tough and keeping a job can be a challenge.

However, not having a job can severely hamper your preparation efforts.  Not only does employment provide money to purchase the things you need, it also offers social contacts and learning opportunities.  All are important when turbulence hits.

I’ll have more to write on this subject later but one thought to keep in mind is that “job” doesn’t necessarily mean working for somebody else…