This is a response to some questions on community prepping posed on YouTube in response to my video: WROL: Lone wolf prepper? Prepper group? Is there another option?
Here are the questions:
Here is the response I posted on YouTube:
A community prepping organization can be set up as a non-profit. It does not have the authority do “take” or “order” anything. The organization has the pre-SHFT mission to educate the town (people and government) on preparedness and conduct activities to help the town to be prepared for a worst case disaster. Should a disaster happen, the organization provides preparedness resources and expertise to the town government. For example, the organization may provide trained and equipped people to the police department – The Police Chief would be in charge of these people. The organization may provide personnel and resources to start a medical facility for the town. The organization may provide food, water, expertise, equipment and plans to the town.
The bottom line is that the town government is in charge (and the aim is to keep it in charge – and not the looters/criminals). The more prepared a town is, the better options they have. For a fictional example of what I’m talking about, look at William Forstchen’s “One Second After.” In that town, the government debated “taking” food from the prepared people, but decided against it. If a community is prepared, they have better options and can make better choices. If they are prepared ahead of time to assist the unprepared, there is less likelihood of something like this occurring.
Remember too that the community prepping organization that was working with the town is likely comprised of preparedness minded people (e.g., “preppers”) and so isn’t it better to plan ahead of time to assist the people who fail or refuse to prepare? Wouldn’t it be less likely that a government will make stupid decisions if they had better options?
Can anybody “make” people prepare? No. This is America. People have the right not to prepare. So after SHTF what happens to those who did not prepare? Well, if a town has thought this through ahead of time (which few if any have right now), they would plan for this. You will never have everybody in a community prepared. So perhaps the town and the community prepping organization decide that they will need to put food back for those who don’t.
You mention “martial force” and I assume you are referring to martial law. Remember, martial law means the military takes over because the civilian government has become ineffective and cannot maintain order. The whole purpose of the community prepping organization is to work so this does not happen – so that the town government remains effective and a WROL does not happen. If martial law is declared nationally and some towns have effective governments and law and order, the overtasked military is not likely to bother with them and is more likely to devote their limited resources to other problem areas. They just will not have the manpower to bother with a town that has things under control.
It is not possible to be prepared for every “what if.” It is certainly possible that people will do the wrong things. But, the more prepared a community is, the less likely this is to happen. I’m sure you could agree that people in a prepared community would have a better chance of avoiding WROL than people in an unprepared community.
In closing, I would say that if you are worried about “the government” taking your stuff, the best defense would be not to let it get desperate enough to make stupid decisions like that. As I said, in a national catastrophe, survival will be a local issue. We would be unlikely to hear from the federal or state government for a long, long time. It is our towns we should worry about.
Thanks for taking the time to watch my video and comment! – Mike
[For those who haven’t seen HeatlthyPrepper’s video and my reposnse, the links are below]