Becoming A Texan Prepper - Part One - Mindset and Threat Analysis

The first thing you are going to need, as a Texan Prepper, is the right mindset, and you probably already have it. Think about it. Do you walk down unlit alleyways? How about letting your little child ride without a car seat? Leave your home unlocked? Leave a burning candle, unattended? Hopefully, the answers to all of those questions are NO.

Mindset

No, to walking in alleyways because you know danger can lurk in dimly lit alleys. No, to letting your small children ride without car seats because you know, in a crash, small kids get thrown around a car wearing regular seatbelts. No, to leaving your home unlocked because you know most criminals go for easy pickings.

And that’s the thing about mindset; you don’t put yourself and your family in danger because prepping is about avoiding disaster.

Now, most people follow this, but being a Texan Prepper requires a slightly different mindset. The first difference is a healthy dose of paranoia.

A healthy dose of paranoia means that you understand that folks (that includes neighbors) may steal your preps before, during, and after a disaster.

Think about it.

If you get really prepared, you will have thousands of dollars invested in food, equipment, and other stuff that your family will need during a disaster. This is stuff that criminals look to steal, everyday. So, be cautious about what you say or tell your neighbors your preps.

Now, if you start thinking that these United States’ federal government agencies are flying black helicopters over your house spying on you because of your legal preps, you have a problem. So get some help, before you give Texas Preppers a bad rap.

The second difference that you’re going to need to know is your limitations. Yes, just like Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood) said in Magnum Force “A man's got to know his limitations.” This includes you too womenfolk.

As much as you would like, you don’t have unlimited time, money, and other resources to get prepared. This includes famous Texans like Michael Dell, Alice Walton, T. Pickens, and Gerald Ford. Just like you, they have to prioritize what they are going to accomplish.

The last thing about mindset you’re going to need, as a Texan Prepper, is to understand that most disasters have common solutions.

During a hurricane, you’re going to need shelter, water, food, personal protection, and medical attention. Lost in the woods, you’re going to need shelter, water, and maybe medical attention. Same with sectarian violence and many other disasters, the list is the same just the priorities are different.

Threat Analysis

The first thing you need to do as a Texas Preppers is to make a list of all of the bad stuff that could happen to you and your family. One-way to do this is to take a piece of paper and draw a line down the middle of the paper long-ways. On the left hand side of the line, you list all of the bad things that could happen to you and your family. Things such as drought, laid-off, fire, divorce, car accident, drowning, hurricane, chemical spill... keep listing. When you run out of disasters, ask your partner to help.

Remember, this list is in no particular order. Just keep listing.

Once, you’re finished; add the disasters you think you and your family need to prepare for. These are the disasters that might wake you in the middle of the night like a zombie’s apocalypse, nuclear war, or losing all of your money in a stock market collapse.

Once you have listed all of the disasters that could happen to you and your family on the right hand side of the paper, prioritize the disasters from most likely to happen to least likely to happen. Once you have your threat analysis done, you’re ready to start getting prepared.

Someone You Know

(http://www.gsiep.blogspot.com)

Note from RW: Post was edited for clarity.

Mexican helicopter over Texas sparks drug war concerns

Mexican helicopter over Texas sparks drug war concerns

By LYNN BREZOSKY and GARY MARTIN
SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS
March 11, 2010, 9:10PM

BROWNSVILLE — The Zapata County sheriff Thursday was questioning why a Mexican military helicopter was hovering over homes on the Texas side of the Rio Grande.

It was one of the more jarring incidents of the fourth week of border tensions sparked by drug killings — and rumors of drug killings — in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas.

Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez said he'd reviewed photos of the chopper flown by armed personnel Tuesday over a residential area known as Falcon Heights-Falcon Village near the binational Falcon Lake, just south of the Starr-Zapata county line. He said the helicopter appeared to have the insignia of the Mexican navy.

“It's always been said that the Mexican military does in fact ... that there have been incursions,” Gonzalez said. “But this is not New Mexico or Arizona. Here we've got a river, there's a boundary line. And then of course having Falcon Lake, Falcon Dam, it's a lot wider. It's not just a trickle of a river, it's an actual dam. You know where the boundary's at.”

The sighting came amid ongoing fighting between the Gulf Cartel and its former enforcers, Los Zetas. The mounting death toll and crisis of fear in cities opposite the Texas border have drawn global attention, as has a news blackout in affected cities with the kidnappings of eight Mexican journalists, at least one of whom was killed.

As violence continued Thursday with a highway shootout in the state of Tamaulipas, a Senate subcommittee in Washington heard testimony that drug cartels are trying to infiltrate U.S. agencies along the border, with corruption cases among Homeland Security personnel on the rise.

In the past two years, there have been 400 public corruption cases involving federal, state and local law enforcement agents originating from the Southwest border region, Kevin Perkins, FBI assistant director for criminal investigations, told the Senate Homeland Security subcommittee on preparedness.

In addition to the highway battle, news from Tamaulipas on Thursday included a 25-year-old man found dead on a roadside in Miguel Alemán. On Wednesday, three people died in two gunbattles in Reynosa.

Four other deaths have been reported since Saturday in the cities of Mier, Camargo and Miguel Alemán.

The Mexican government's role in combating the violence remained unclear. The army presence in some cities appeared sporadic, and the navy has led operations including the December takeout of kingpin Arturo Beltran Leyva in Mexico City.

Gonzalez, the Zapata sheriff, said he couldn't confirm reports that the helicopter was scoping the home of a drug criminal. He said the incursion about a mile over the border occurred over a neighborhood populated by many U.S. Customs officers who work at area border crossings — and they knew what they were seeing.

“My understanding is the U.S. military were informed,” he said. “I don't know what action was taken, if any.”

lbrezosky@express-news.net

Update on property

A couple of pictures for update. The Conex is a fairly cheap way to create storage space. You can move it if you need to but is tough also. The other picture is of the solar well set-up. I have to admit there have been issues with it. The float valve switch has been replaced once as it was defective and the controller has been messing with me and may need to be replaced.

Contacted by BBC regarding prepping

The lady is looking for more urban preppers for a story. If you are interested please contact her at the e-mail address below.
________________________

Hi there Pickdog,

I'm a journalist from BBC news in Washington DC. I'm putting together a radio and TV feature on the growing prepping movement. Tom Martin from APN has been really helpful so far.

I may have the opportunity to come to Texas next week to do some recordings and I'm wondering if you might be able to give some assistance. I'm trying to find some preppers who live in a big city, preferably people who live in urban areas rather than suburban, to show the diversity of preppers. I already have some good case studies in Virginia of preppers who live in a more rural environment.

I see that you describe yourself as living in the Austin aread. Would you have any suggestions for people living in Austin who might be willing to speak to me and show me some of their preparations?

Any help you could give would be much appreciated.

Many thanks

Madeleine Morris

madeleine.morris@bbc.co.uk

World Service Reporter

Direct line: +1 202 355-1753
Cell: +1 202 510 7269
BBC Washington
2000 M Street NW, Suite 800
Washington DC 20036



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When to Bug Out: Knowing the Signs

Disasters such as hurricanes, floods, chemical leaks and for some, societal breakdowns and terrorist attacks can cause some of the largest evacuation complications. One of the largest concerns during a disaster situation is when to leave.

While it is important to listen and keep up to date on the current status of a disaster, as well as actively acquiring information regarding the disaster, the action of packing up and evacuating rests in the evacuees hands; not the government or the businesses telling the person they have to work until the last minute. Relying solely on the government’s ability to manage a crisis, takes the power out of a person’s hands and places it into a stranger’s hands (who may not have your best interests in mind). Many have forgotten this and rely only on a governmental body to tell them when they can leave. It is important to emphasize that the needs and agendas of a local government are different than the citizens.

Don’t Be Another Statistic: Be Ready

In a situation where people are facing an evacuation order, time is precious. Typically, people are not ready or prepared to bug out. When the individuals are unprepared and is combined with the city’s unpreparedness, it does not make a good scenario. There is no better example of the government's incompetence to handle these massive evacuation orders than with what happened during the evacuations of Hurricane Katrina and Rita. Many state and local governments wait until the very last moment to issue an evacuation order. Planning to evacuate thousands, if not millions of individuals in a 2-3 day time span, will cause nothing but mass chaos and unnecessary conflict. If one lives in an area where they are prone to disasters, it is always the best bet to have the following ready:

· A A well defined preparedness plan with maps and alternative routes in place. Don’t leave unless there is a plan in place. A person who is prepared to leave and has a set destination in mind is more prepared than the person who is scrambling around their home trying to find items and not even thinking about what their emergency plan will be.

· A A 72 hour bag that is ready to go for the family as well as a bag for any pets. Leave as soon as possible. Do not wait until they have opened up the contraflow lanes to evacuate. Make sure you have some money set aside for an emergency. Prepare for some ATM machines and banks to be closed. Example: You finally get on the road and realize you are low on gas. All the banks and ATMs are closed. In this scenario, once the gas runs out, you will be stuck with no money for food, shelter or transportation. Make sure the Bug Out Vehicle (BOV) is well maintained. Having the proper items to keep it going can be of great value in a disaster situation. Items such as an oil, extra tire, fix-a-flat, collapsible shovel, etc.

Knowledge is Critical

Knowledge is essential in any type of emergency evacuation scenario. Imagine how important it would be if someone had the advantage of having the information to leave 3 hours before everyone else did. If they were already prepared and ready to go, it would be a huge advantage.

Awareness of the different advisory forms to get the most information. A person does not have to listen to the TV to get information. There are many types of emergency advisories: radio, police scanners, Internet, twitter, and even a cell phone disaster alert system to alert a person at the earliest time possible. This will give someone a heads up of what it to come.

Know which station on the radio has Emergency Broadcast Stations.

Every minute is critical when bugging out. If a person is not prepared, then they are losing valuable time. Using all known communication resources to get information and staying clued in will put a person at a greater advantage than those only listening to one type of communication form. Gathering information ahead of time of what the possible threat is (flood preparation, hurricane preparation, tornado, societal uprising, etc), and finding ways to avoid them will put a person in a better mind frame when they actually have to come head to head with the threat.

Know the Signs

Waiting until an evacuation order is issued is considered too late for many people who consider themselves prepared. Knowing the signs and acting on them is the key to bugging out at the best time. If a person knows what to look for, they can prepare to leave ahead of the hoard of evacuees.

Some signs include:

When people begin buying emergency food and water supplies.

Hearing the news sources talking about a possible threat is the time to begin preparing to leave.

Seeing long lines at the bank where people are withdrawing money is a sign that something is up.

Long gas lines are also an indicator of people beginning to prepare for a possible evacuation.

Increased military and police presence in the streets and the community.

Long lines at home improvement stores from people trying to buy supplies to prepare homes for disasters, buying generator needs, etc.

If a person is already prepared for such a disaster, they will not have to wait in lines full of stressed out people, not have to fight their way through a grocery store or get into a possible altercation trying to fill their cars with gas. In times of crises, many are not prepared, and the stress levels are increased exorbitantly. Everyone has one thing on their mind – getting supplies and getting out. If a person already has their supplies in order, getting out ahead of everyone will put them at a greater advantage.

Consider the Dangers and Know the Threats

Knowing when to bug out solely depends upon the person and what they are trying to avoid. It is better to be safe than sorry. Obviously, evacuating in a high stress situation is absolutely the worst case scenario. Yet, this tends to be the norm for many. Many believe that bad things cannot happen to them, so why bothering in planning for it? This mind frame is what leads to dangerous situations.

Many who wait until the government suggests it is necessary to evacuate will have more of a chance of getting caught in mass chaos, be amongst unprepared and stressed out drivers, and possibly face bouts of crime. Leaving at the wrong time can put a person and their family into jeopardy. Seeing the signs and knowing when to bug out will play a pivotal role in evacuating safely. Not to mention giving a person the advantage of having the right mind set, leaving quickly, and more importantly – safely.

The information provided is intended to give suggestions of what one may do in an evacuation situation as well as to suggest that people use the information provided by media sources and use their own sound judgment to make a decision to evacuate a city. This post in no way advises people not to listen to their local governments or relative news sources. It only suggests that people use the information provided by media sources and to leave when they believe it is pertinent.

About the Author: Tess Pennington is the author of Ready Nutrition, an informational source for those wanting to learn more about disaster preparedness, prepping and finding ways to be more self reliant.

Be aware. Be informed. Be prepared.

Riverwalker

Happy Birthday Texas - 174 and counting!!!