The "When This Happens, Do This" Trap

You open social media and get the suggested hits. The person talking has a wall of gear behind them, standing in the woods, or some other strategic background. They start with, “When (insert event) happens, you must do this.” Some dreadful music playing in the background. Your sense of danger is peaked, and you pay attention. Or maybe you don’t. This is a tactic to draw you in and get you to buy into their word.

The truth is, when an event happens you can do something or you can do nothing. This decision is yours. Whatever decision you make, make it with some good information. Do some research. Don’t rely on that person’s word—don’t rely on my word for that fact. Do your own research and inform yourself. Then make the best decision based on your thoughts and what you anticipate being your biggest threat.

Do Something — But Think First

If you planned for every possible threat/event you’d need a storage building for all the gear you’d “have to have.” Plan for what is most likely in your geographical region, or what you feel is the biggest threat facing your world. Take a deep breath, calm a minute and think.

STORY TRANSITION

I watched a video posted while scrolling through social media last night. The guy told me that if I planned to bug in that I had to do these five things:

• Plan for one person to always be awake for security

• Plan for zero light to exit my house

• Don’t throw my trash outside my home in a big pile

• Don’t expose too much movement

• Make my house look looted by throwing broken furniture into the yard

Reality vs. Internet Fantasy

Security

I’ve talked about security in a previous post. Security will be important. You should think about security. Do you need to keep a fire watch running day and night? In most cases probably not. Are there reasons that could make this a need? Yes. The point here is being ready, not overly paranoid.

You can set up security in a way to alert you when things may be getting ready to happen. Simple systems like a perimeter alarm. You can purchase alarm systems that use a blank shotgun shell to alert you when something trips the wire. You can have motion lights. There are lots of ways to alert yourself while you are asleep.

Light Discipline

Zero light leaving your house is the next task. Put up curtains or somehow black out your windows. This is good and all but how do you see your surroundings during the day? Do you open the curtains during the day? Someone scouting you will note curtains being open during the day and closed at night.

Light discipline can be important in certain cases. Most people are not going to concern themselves with the light coming from your home. If we get to a point you have to be worried about this, if you are still bugged in and alone, you’re in trouble anyways.

Trash, Movement, and Common Sense

Piling your trash up outside your home is just a big don’t anyways. Why would you trash your property, especially if you plan to stay there for an extended period? Are you going to trash up a piece of ground you could grow food on possibly? I’m not.

If you’re bugging out a trail of trash can lead people to you so don’t do that. Ask the Army guys who were captured in Bosnia because they left a trail of trash for enemy forces to follow.

Exposed movement is going to happen unless you plan on living inside a blacked-out, closed building and never coming out. You can’t avoid this long term. This is not practical.

Making It Look Looted?

Making your house look looted is one that I’d leave up to you. During most events there is looting. This is usually done by people looking to get some quick items without confrontation. If your area is being looted by people looking for conflict that is an invasion and not just looting.

I would only make my property look looted if I was leaving with all I could carry but had more to come back for.

Think for Yourself

My point in this blog is to get you to think like always. People that talk like this guy are expecting everyone to be military trained and think like that. Reality is only something like six to seven percent of the population is military or veteran.

Most of the population will be unprepared and scared of everything. Can people test and will they test you? Yes. Are they going to do it every day? No.

Think for yourself and don’t buy into all the hype. Get educated, get skills, get prepared and stay that way. You’re going to be fine if you have plans. Your ability to adapt to changing situations will make you a more versatile survivalist.

I was taught to adapt and overcome at 17 years old and it is one of the lessons that has stuck with me. It applies to everything I encounter almost daily.

Think. Don’t panic. Don’t outsource your brain to a guy with a beard and a ring light.