SifuPhil
R.I.P. With Us In Spirit Only
- Location
- Pennsylvania, USA
I haven't been active in the field lately, but for several years I was big into survivalist / preparationist thinking. I visited forums, wrote articles and changed a few things in my life as a result of the ideas generated.
One of the favorite scenarios of these folks was the partial or total break-down of society - it might start, according to them, as a small riot stemming from an unpopular law being passed; it might be from a terrorist attack; it might even be a result of too many people losing their jobs at one time and deciding to do something about it.
Whatever the cause, these scenarios paint a fairly grim picture of what would happen. Law enforcement is soon overwhelmed by the volume of calls, the local government isn't equipped to handle the mobs and the State is forced to call in the National Guard. Ultimately these scenarios end with the Guard itself calling in the military for assistance.
Whether or not this is at all possible or even probable, it DOES serve as a wake-up call for us to re-evaluate how dependent we are on the government. Do you receive Social Security benefits? Medical benefits? Welfare? Any form of government-funded assistance? If so, and those very programs should be discontinued for whatever reason, would you be able to survive?
This isn't an exercise you can play with for 5 minutes and come up with a valid answer, either - you'll see all the almost-invisible connections, the web that society has created for itself (or allowed to be created around it) that nurtures so many of us throughout our lives, and you'll see how important that web has become.
Could you survive without any help, in any form, from your government?
One of the favorite scenarios of these folks was the partial or total break-down of society - it might start, according to them, as a small riot stemming from an unpopular law being passed; it might be from a terrorist attack; it might even be a result of too many people losing their jobs at one time and deciding to do something about it.
Whatever the cause, these scenarios paint a fairly grim picture of what would happen. Law enforcement is soon overwhelmed by the volume of calls, the local government isn't equipped to handle the mobs and the State is forced to call in the National Guard. Ultimately these scenarios end with the Guard itself calling in the military for assistance.
Whether or not this is at all possible or even probable, it DOES serve as a wake-up call for us to re-evaluate how dependent we are on the government. Do you receive Social Security benefits? Medical benefits? Welfare? Any form of government-funded assistance? If so, and those very programs should be discontinued for whatever reason, would you be able to survive?
This isn't an exercise you can play with for 5 minutes and come up with a valid answer, either - you'll see all the almost-invisible connections, the web that society has created for itself (or allowed to be created around it) that nurtures so many of us throughout our lives, and you'll see how important that web has become.
Could you survive without any help, in any form, from your government?