Defense (30)
“People who live in delightful, well-mannered suburbs, who never have to contest
for their lives and property, often fail to grasp the subtle logic of violence.
It is a mistake seldom made by hardened criminals.” James Dale Davidson
and Lord William Rees-Mogg in THE GREAT RECKONING
In a massive social collapse, most people will be able to keep only that which they can defend.
This includes their lives, their homes, their food, their money, and if they’re male,
even their wives and perhaps their children. This is a thought that may disturb many
people who are doing serious emergency planning; many members of our church
do not have a “survivalist” background or mindset and they’ve never had any
reason to think about physically defending that which is precious to them.
A major disaster may change all that, just as it may change nearly everything
else in the world for those living through it. In an orderly, productive society
with a stable division of labor, the harsh realities of life are not so obvious.
You have laws that most people obey and you have professional police who
enforce those laws. It’s their job to defend the lives and property of the average
citizen; if there’s any violence to be done in that defense, the police handle that.
The average person never has to consider defending what is his unless he is
personally threatened by a criminal. The threat of force by the police keeps
order in the society and tends to discourage aggressive criminal behavior
(not always very well in today’s world I’ll admit). It also tends to hide a basic truth
about the nature of human relations. In a massive social collapse, law and public
order break down and the truth about human rights is revealed: An individual has
rights only as long as he can defend them. This is the subtle logic of violence.
It has always been true but it’s something to which most of us have never given a moment’s thought.
It’s also a concept that makes some Saints uncomfortable because it contradicts
much of the illusions by which we have lived all of our lives.
However, unless you understand and accept this basic fact of life, you may not
survive the coming challenges. If a disaster crashes down hard upon us, it will
destroy all the illusions and most of the rules we have lived by for the past
hundred years or more. It will create harsh new rules.
When the fundamental order of a society changes and new rules arise, those who fail to understand the new rules suffer the most.
There’s a reason for the information in the above paragraphs: It may save your life.
Why? Because it’s not just having a weapon that’s important, or even knowing how
to use one; its knowing full well why you need to use it and therefore not hesitating to use it when needed.
A gun in your hand is totally worthless against an assailant unless you’re fully willing to use it to defend yourself.
You must understand that the new rules brought on by a major disaster may require you to defend your life personally.
Practice, Practice, Practice.
Be sure to keep your guns away from your children! Put them where you can get to
them quickly if needed but in a place to which they don’t have access.
There are lockable gun boxes on the market that are quick to get into
if you know how, but impossible for a child to open; again, ask at the gun shop.
Finally, there is a cardinal rule about guns that should always be kept in mind:
Never point a gun at someone unless you are completely willing to shoot.
You must be tougher than your opponent.