Urban Survival Techniques - Protect Youself - Suburban Gangs (#5)

(continued from Urban Survival Techniques - Riots Can Be a Riot!)

Editor's Note: This survival techniques essay moves its area of discussion from the cities to the suburbs. GT discusses the similarities and differences as to how it may go down in these areas.
DB

Here's what GT has to say about protecting yourself in the suburbs:

Most people think that when I talk about the potential violence and rioting and worse, they think I am only talking about the cities. No, I am talking about everywhere, including especially suburbia. I'm not talking only about urban survival techniques. You may run away to escape the violence of the city. But, guess what? It will follow you to the suburbs.

Most of you are likely over 50 and have no interest in what the youth are doing. Therefore, you may not have heard the term, "Wiggers". Essentially what they are is white teenagers imitating the underground gangster culture. This is nothing new. The earliest example I can think of in the U.S. is the Jesse James Gang. They were civil war veterans who decided to try and make a living robbing trains. Even today, the James gang is admired and is imitated in countless movies.

The next teen-age generation to follow the criminal culture comes from the age of prohibition. The girls were flappers and the boys all had hip flasks. Some of you may be old enough to have been teenagers at the time. That was your form of rebellion. Again, movies of the time and even now, glorify the criminals. Can you imagine Jimmy Cagney not saying: "You'll never take me alive, Coppers!"

In the early World War Two war years we had Zoot-Suiters. It didn't catch on like the others because of the war and the government was able to get everyone to toe the line and wear the same thing. Zoot Suits were banned because they used too much material. However, an idea whose time has come, will express itself. The baggy clothes of the zoot-suiters became the baggy clothes of the counter-culture of today. Now we have Wiggers. They dress in baggy clothing; the style is known as Hip Hop. They listen to rap music, the loudest and most foul mouthed they can find, and have their own slang. They want to imitate the criminal culture because they feel mistreated and misunderstood as has every criminal misfit either in the past or today.

These Wiggers have spread all over the country and they can be dangerous. How dangerous? Go the the seemingly safest suburb you can find and visit the police station. Ask if there is any drugs or gang activity because you are worried for your children. If the police are honest with you, you will get an education. The gangs are present in the deepest reaches of suburbia because drugs are in the suburbs and need gangs to distribute the poisons. Drugs and gangs are everywhere!

I don't understand why the young like the criminal culture. I just know they do. Some of their attempts to imitate are really funny. The music of the criminal culture and many of the young today is rap. Especially Gangsta Rap which tends to using lot of cussing and glorifies lots of rough sex. One of the funniest things I've seen was when I was out in the local farm country. It was harvest time. Out in the middle of a field was this crew-cut blond haired kid that looked like your typical farm boy. What made it funny was blasting in the tractor's CD player was some of the nastiest rap music I ever heard. The kid was dancing and getting seriously down. The tractor was rocking like a low rider car. (I didn't know John Deere made a low rider version.) I later found out it is quite common for the kids to listen to hard rap in farming communities. The family hates the music but puts up with it because the chores are getting done.

Most of the teenagers' attempts to imitate the criminal or gangsta culture aren't funny but dangerous. Things may have changed, but for years one of the most dangerous gangs where I live wasn't in the inner city but suburbia. These kids saw the gangsta culture and decided to be what real gangsta call "wanna-be's"! Of course this upset the wanna-be's. To prove how tough they were, they gave each other, the other gangs, and the police serious trouble. There is violence to match what I saw growing up.

These wanna-be's get their idea of what the gangsta culture is from Hollywood movies. Just like gangster movies were very popular and profitable back in the 30's, Gangsta films make big bucks today. If you think my writings show some of the seamier aspects of life and are shocked, that's nothing! I'm shocked at what I see in these movies. They teach depravity I didn't even think possible. Believe me, I've seen depravity! Writing about the hood or making movies has a purpose. It is real life, it's educational. So I am not for censorship; I just wish people, especially the wiggers, would not try to imitate what they see.

Imitating these movies is a bad idea. First, these children are too young to know you can get hurt imitating what you see on television of movies. A good example is that many children see Superman on TV and try to imitate him by flying. That alone has filled the emergency rooms. The latest imitative example I can think of, was from a movie a few years back where these teenagers -- to prove something or other -- would go to a busy highway and lie in the middle, right on the median strip. Good scene in a movie, bad scene in real life. A lot of kids died.

The main feature of the gangsta movies is the incredible amount of violence in them. For a wanna-be however, that violence isn't enough. You want to surpass what you see on the screen to prove you're a bad-ass and not some jive wanna-be nobody is scared of. When they try to be violent, they get caught by the local police. The violence they were attempting, scares the pants off the officers. So far, the police have been able to stop them. They won't in a riot situation.

When the currency collapses, what will the wanna-be, the junkies and just plain trouble-makers be doing? A lot. This is either the chance to prove themselves or rip off a big score. You will have destruction for destruction's sake. Only it won't be what you expect and it will be different from what is happening in the cities.

In the cities you have hundreds of stores crowded together. This makes it easy for the looter to go shopping. In the suburbs the stores are spread out. Malls, being private property, are pretty good keeping out drugs and the crime that accompanies it. (Well, yes and no. Prostitutes find malls an easy place to pick up dates.)

What do you do? You want to commit mayhem. You want an easy target and you want to destroy for the fun of it. Why not attack trucks? It is easy set to up a blockade to crash a truck. Then you can clean out the trailer at your leisure. No cops will stop you. Like I said, they will be busy elsewhere. These blockades will be dangerous for the ordinary motorist as well. It will be as dangerous as walking down a city street, turning the corner, and finding yourself walking into a riot. Only there is a riot taking place at 55 mph. The wanna-be will be using car jacking, drive-by shooting and road rage, the same techniques they learned in the movies, to hurt you. A lot of homeowners have guns and hope that will protect them but so do the wanna-be's. It will be a shoot-out situation. You'll be scared. Not the wanna-be's, or else they will be more afraid of showing they're scared to use their weapon. The wanna-be's want to prove nothing scares them.

As the highways get clogged up by accidents, even if the cops want to, they may not be able to. The rioters are going to get tired of watching car crashes, and sooner or later are going to get the idea of attacking homes. Remember, this destruction is for destruction sake. The rioters aren't going to be stupid enough to ring your doorbell and say, "Hello, I'm your neighborhood looter." They won't introduce themselves because they know you liable to reply with a shotgun blast to their faces. However, if their main goal is not robbery but to destroy things, they can start a fire. You see the fire coming, and head for the hills. The looters can then run into your house if they want, grab what they can, and with their stolen cars outrun the fire.

So what do you do in this situation to protect yourself? Well, knowing your neighbors will be a big help. It is obvious we are getting into bad times. It will soon be obvious to everyone we are getting into dangerous times. It is at that time, it would be a good idea to introduce yourself to your neighbors and offer to provide mutual protection for each other. You make even get to know the trouble-makers of the neighborhood so when the conditions are ripe for a riot, you can keep those trouble-makers isolated and under watch to keep them from starting riots.

What else can you do? I assume you have a gun or two to protect your family. Also get a couple of ABC fire extinguishers to include in your stash of survival essentials. I believe, as I said in the last essay, fire could be a very big danger.

You can set up blockades of your own to keep the bad guys from getting to you. Your neighbors may get you funny look but explain the possible dangers and then up set up a blockade for them.

Videotape the violence. It won't stop the riot in progress, but after it is over, the police will be very interested in knowing who the local trouble makers are. A tape could help the police lock them up.

Unfortunately, I can think of only a few survival ideas to protect yourself that I haven't already covered. Maybe this will help you think of some more survival techniques to add to your preparedness checklist. One thing you have going in your favor: The troublemakers in the suburbs are wimpier than those in the city so the rioting and looting shouldn't last as long. Maybe it will be only a few days before things get back to some semblance of order.

Thank you.
The "Golden Trumpet"

(continue to Urban Survival Techniques - Government Terrorism)

Urban Survival Techniques - Protect Yourself - Riots Can Be a Riot! (#4)

(continued from Urban Survival Techniques - Black Market Shopping)

Editors Note: This urban survival technique from GT is about protecting yourself during urban riots, civil unrest, whatever you want to call it. Advance preparation can include renting fireproof storage space for survival necessities such as dried food, and water in addition to what you have stockpiled in your residence. Be aware that police and firemen may be unable or unwilling to protect you and, in fact, may attack you or thwart your efforts to protect yourself.
DB

Here's what GT has to say about riots in the city:

Watching a riot can be a lots of fun. To make a really bad pun, it can be a riot. With a few caveats.

1. It is not your property that is being destroyed.

2. You manage to avoid the police who will try to crack open everyone's heads -- be they innocent or guilty.

3. The riot does not put you in personal danger.

Riots may start as fun, but later on they will become more dangerous. You may not be able to flee the city, but you may still want to stake out your own little separate hideout for cash, food and bartering. That is apart from what you have at home which you can keep an eye on. The separate stash is for if your home gets destroyed in the riot. Fire and being burned out of your home is a real danger.

Most riots have been in the cities but in the hard economic times to come, there will probably be riots in the cities, suburbs, everywhere. There are rowdies everywhere and they will take advantage of the situation.

When the riots start that will be the signal for you to do several things to protect yourself. First you may not be certain it is the right time. There's a very good chance you will not hear of rioting in your city on the news. There will be a news blackout. The only way you'll know if there is trouble is if you see it, hear about it on the internet, or maybe even get a gut feeling. If your guts says there's trouble, it couldn't hurt to take these steps.

1. One of the best urban survival techniques is to go to one of those big old fireproof storage warehouses and rent some space. I would prefer one of the older warehouses instead of the new ones with electronic gates. If there is a power outage, you may not be able to get to your stuff. It could be the smallest space they have, you will not need much room. Store some of your gold and silver, food for at least a couple of months, and some water. You need about a gallon of water a day, so try for 30 gallons per family member. If you have the space (actually, make the space, this will be one of the most useful items you can have) get a bicycle with a rear rack and side baskets. You can carry up to 200 pounds and go anywhere. Lastly, get some extra firearms and ammo -- at least one gun -- and some other things you've read about survivalists stocking up on in their hidey holes.

Why use a warehouse? You live in the city or suburb. If you start digging holes to hide your stash, most likely someone will think you're digging to bury a body. Next thing you know you've got the cops nosing around asking questions you rather not answer. They will enter without a warrant and will probably end up taking your stash, calling you a hoarder. Also, these places tend to be fairly secure. You won't have the safety of a safe deposit box in one of those bomb-proof vaults but OTH the warehouse owner is not likely to be a government stooge as are the banksters.

2. If you have the money, rent a second storage unit in a different location. You can store mainly food and things you may want to use for trading in the black market there. That way if someone decides to follow you home to rob you of your stash, this will prevent that somewhat. They won't know which locker your stash is in.

3. For your home buy an ABC fire extinguisher. The ABC type is useful for all types of fires. In the riots I foresee to come, fire will be a big danger. This may not prevent you from being burned out of your home but you never know.

4. Get a video camera. Try to get one that looks like a camera used by a TV station. They are really cheap now, since people are buying flat screen camcorders. They are also small and lightweight. You can tape people destroying things. That can be a perfect disguise. You can pretend you're part of the press. From what I've seen, rioters and the police will attack anybody or anything but they won't attack the press. Too conspicuous, I guess.

5. Talk to the warehouse manager and ask if they have studio space available. Starving artists and musicians like myself can no longer afford loft space. Too trendy. So we discovered other cheap places. Industrial storage warehouses. You wouldn't believe how cheap they are or how much space you can get. (You won't get much of a view, but at a time like this, do you really want to watch the city burn down?) A lot of musicians and artists rent studio space and the studio has electrify, running water and toilet facilities. They are not supposed to, but I have known people who lived in their warehouse studio. In fact, instead of bugging out to parts unknown like many survivalists, if things get too rough, I plan to lock myself in a fireproof warehouse. If the rioters burn down the city, I will be in a secure fireproof building. Hopefully it will offer me a chance for personal survival in the midst of chaos. I got my food, money (gold and silver) and other things to protect me. The manager will be having too many other problems to worry about me breaking the lease. Until I brought it up, has it occurred to you, instead of heading for the hills when TSHTF, to go looking for someone in a warehouse? It won't occur to anybody else, either, unless you're Batman from the 60's TV show. In that show, the villains always hid out in abandoned warehouses.

The riots I've seen in the past tended to be political. Some kind of protest that got out of control. The riots to come will be hunger riots and "Can't Get Money From The Bank" riots like what has happened in South America, particularly Argentina.

The last riot, I experienced was on January 1, 2001. I live in downtown Portland, Oregon. It looked liked it was going to be a dull New Year so I went to bed early. I was awakened by this loud KA-BOOM. Sounded like lightning but your building doesn't shake when lightning hits it. I didn't know what what happening, so I quickly got dressed and ran outside. What was happening was that there was a mob picking up 1/4 ton concrete garbage containers and using them to break plate glass store windows.

Now these windows are supposed to be shatter-proof to prevent smash and grab robberies. But toss a 1/4 ton concrete container through a window and you'll will find out they aren't shatter-proof. The reason my building was shaking was that the mob was working its way down the street smashing windows and had reached my block. Having someone toss a concrete container through a plate glass window will wake the dead.

There were several things that surprised me about this riot. First there were thousands of people everywhere but very few were actively looting. Most were watching, probably enjoying the thrill of their very first riot. Most even had camcorders taping every act of destruction, probably hoping the looters would do something funny so they could send the tape to America's Funniest videos. It seem every other person had a video camera. I would have gotten mine but I didn't want to miss any of the action.

The second thing was just how easy to satisfy the looters. They weren't going for big ticket items like televisions but the cheapest trinkets you could find. For example, across the street from me, is a store that sell shoes so shoddy and cheap, Al Bundy would be ashamed to work there. Well, the looters has a good time cleaning out the place. Also, the looters also didn't seem to be very smart. For the life of me, I don't know why, but a group of them spent at least a half an hour trying to remove a honking big pizza oven. What they intend to do with that thing I have no clue. They stopped only when the police came into view.

The third surprise was just long it took the cops to arrive. About 45 minutes later. Now, this is the middle of downtown, where if the cops wanted to, they could be here in less than a minute. By the time the cops got there, the looters were long gone. I don't think the police were particular eager to take on the looters. You could see and hear them coming with their sirens and lights a mile away. They finally got to my block and even through they were were in riot gear and protect by an armored car, the cops looked scared. I got the feeling there was an unwritten agreement between the looters and cops, "You don't give us any trouble and we won't give you any trouble."

The last surprise. Since there were video cameras everywhere, you would have thought this would have at least made the local news. Nope. It made national news because my sister on the East Coast saw it and called me. She wanted to prevent me going going out in the riot, "Are you wandering around in that riot so you'll have something to write about?" (Yes, I wrote this!) "You're going to get yourself killed." (Nope, I'm a SURVIVOR!) I guess it didn't make local news because it would have made the local politicians look bad, especially the new Chief of Police. I guess it made national news because of the News Motto: "If it bleeds, it leads!"

I know I went into a lot of detail about what turned out to be a small riot but it tells me a lot what is happening in Argentina and what to expect here.

First, the news blackout. We should be hearing a lot more what is happening in South America but we aren't. It isn't as if there is not enough people with camcorders. In the few videos I've seen of what is happening, there seems to be a lots of other people filming as well. I think the only way you will hear of the riots going on in your city is if you are actually seeing it or if someone puts the news on the internet.

Second, the danger from rioting is that is can be too much like a party atmosphere. That can make you, the rioters, or the police careless. I keep wondering how bad things could have gotten if someone decided that instead of looting, to set fires to these stores? Why not? They didn't want the junk, they just wanted to destroy things. Fire is an looter's or rioter's best friend. At least historically. My building has a sprinkler system but if fire was set to the building I doubt it could have handled it and I would have been burned out of my home.

Third, nothing is safe in a riot. Seeing the cheap junk the rioters were stealing made me realize this was destruction for destruction's sake. How do you protect yourself from something like that? If I was a store owner, I can see myself standing in front of my store with a shotgun to prevent looters from breaking into my store and running off with whatever they can grab. I see no way, however, to protect myself if the looters get frustrated and decided to burn down the block. I predict if rioting does happen here, the result will be a lot of burnt out stores.

One thing that helped, although it didn't seem like much. Everybody in my building knows each other. We were all awakened. We informally agreed it would be our duty to try to protect the stores on the ground floor of our building since they too are tenants of the building. We were unarmed but formed a small crowd in front of the three stores and verbally turned away anyone who tried to rob the stores. It worked. By protecting the stores we protected ourselves in case someone got the idea of setting fire to the block.

We knew each other. By dealing with people your neighbor and such on the black market, you get to know them. You have learned to trust your neighbor on the black market, where before I doubt you even knew them. They will help and protect you. Like I said in my last Protect Yourself essay, you will become a very good judge of human nature because your life may depend on who you can trust.

Since you started your black market dealing with your neighbors, those are who you will be trusting and vice versa. It works in a big city as well as a small town. But not if you're isolated in parts unknown. You have nobody to deal with, nobody you can trust. That's why I don't think heading for the hills is necessarily a good idea. In survivalist novels, you have a group with a crisis plan of running off with their survival backpacks to their hidey hole. Sooner or later, because of the need to trade, they will have to come out of hiding. What they will find is that they are outsiders trying to trade with people who will not necessarily trust them. The insiders have bonded together through chains forged by fire.

How bad will the riots be? The riots will probably start with either hunger protests or "Do Something About The Collapsing Currency!" These riots and protest will be in the cities, suburbia, the small towns, everywhere. In the beginning it will be no worse than the celebrations when a local team win a big game. You will have a bunch of drunken rowdies tipping over cars and yelling their heads off. You will have the looting but it will be for worthless stuff; they aren't even thinking of survival essentials. And the police will be able to control it fairly well. But, some of the rowdies will come to realize they can get away with being destructive.

The next day you again have a hunger protest, with more people. The father who no longer can stand the whine of his children complaining, "I'm Hungry!" will feel the need to do something, anything, just so he doesn't go nuts. So he'll go nuts at the local supermarket. The rowdies will push the limit. Maybe a store get looted or burned.

This goes on for a week. Meanwhile, the police have put in a lot of overtime and they are being paid in hyperinflated dollars. Some will decide its not worth the risk getting paid in worthless money. They will call in sick so they can protect their own homes. The rowdies notice there are less police than before and get even rowdier.

Here is where it starts to get nasty. The police will start cracking heads, or if the situation is bad enough, will start shooting into the crowd. It could be as bad as the civil war draft riots in New York City in 1863.

After the irrevocable step of shooting into the crowd had been taken, things will get really interesting. History tells me it will go in one of two directions depending on how much support the government has. If most citizens still say: "My country right or wrong!" the government will win although it might be bloody.

The other direction is if people are tired of the government. There have been a large number of people who have been alienated by the government and have decided: It's Time To Shoot The Bastards. They are waiting for an opportunity. They might want to restore the constitution or get rid of government altogether or they might want to put their own group into power.

For instance, one thing that seems to be causing the citizens to come one step closer to overthrowing the government is the state's inept handling and mistreatment of people going through airport security. The simple solution is obvious but it is also obvious the government isn't about to do it. That is to arm the pilots. The government method of airport security isn't working and won't prevent more acts of terrorism. It is just pissing off a lot of people.

Let's say the mood turns to shooting the bastards. There are lots of groups ready to do that. I know the street gangs The Blood and The Crips of Los Angeles are just waiting for a final showdown with Gangsta Blue (The Police). The gangs in other cities are preparing as well. The gangs have been buying up AK-47s and buying in huge numbers. Big enough numbers that if there is a showdown between either the police or the army, the government forces are going to suffer major causalities.

What will happen if the mood is to shoot the bastards, this country will end up going through a stage very much like the Russian Revolution of 1918. You'll have one group trying to set up their own oppressive government. The equivalent of the Reds. Another group trying to bring back the constitutional republic form of government. And another group trying to just get things to calm down. Who will win? I can't say. I hope it is the constitutional republicans. Naturally, at that point there will be riots. Calling what happens then "riots" will be an understatement! The only way for a chance at personal survival at that point will to try to keep a low profile and hope you're very lucky. I told you know where I will be laying low but I haven't given away all my secrets. We butterflies of the jungle have learned to be real careful so I haven't told you everything. Just enough to protect yourself. We also have really good imaginations. Maybe what will happen won't be as bad as I envision; maybe it will be worse. In any event, I hope I have provided you enough of a vision to protect yourself with this and other urban survival techniques.

Thank you.
The "Golden Trumpet"

(continue to Urban Survival Techniques - Suburban Gangs)

Urban Survival Techniques - Protect Yourself - Black Market Shopping (#3)

(continued from Urban Survival Techniques - Avoiding Trouble)

Editor's Note: This urban survival technique from GT is about how it will be necessary for you to deal in the black market. The black market is actually the free market. Governments everywhere try to control free markets. That interference leads to the creation of black markets. In good times, black market activity is confined mainly to illegal products and activities such as drugs and sex. When chaos strikes, government will enact controls dealing with everything, which will create shortages of, and restrictions on, even legitimate products and services. This will lead to a massive increase in the black market. You will not be able to get many vital products and services in the legal or so-called white market; you will have to buy and sell in the black market.
DB

Here's what GT has to say about the black market -- the free market:

The most important and the the most civilizing activity in a society is trade. Free and open trade has brought untold benefits to everybody at large. Unfortunately, governments like to interfere with free trade and so you get black markets. When the dollar finally collapses because it is worthless fiat, you are going to see an explosive boom in black markets. It is the only way you will be able to accomplish urban survival.

You may not want to participate in the Black Market. You will have no choice. Right now (~2000) Argentinian citizens are only able to survive and get the food and other stuff they need by shopping in the black market. The banks are closed. A lot of people cannot get the money they deposited to pay their bills. They barter because things are so uncertain. There is a risk markup, the sort of markup associated with black markets.

You may have already shopped in the black market. If you have ever bought illegal drugs or sex, you've shopped in the black market. Those markets are extremely violent but there is an unwritten rule. You can kill your competitor or other dealers, but the customer must be protected from the violence. I judge this from my own observations. In the business district, every day at lunch, I see yuppie businessmen buying drugs. These people want drugs and are willing to pay big bucks. They do not want the violence that comes with the drug trade. They are so wimpy they could not mentally deal with the violence. The violence is handled far away from the customer view. So no violence. What happens is you have a very quick sale -- so fast if you're not looking for it, you'll miss it. Someone drive up to somebody standing on a street corner and in less than 30 seconds, a trade has been made. Drugs for cash. This is one of the urban survival techniques that will expand in all products and services when the monetary and credit collapse creates chaos.

The black market will probably be more civil and polite than you probably imagine. Yes, the potential for violence, for being ripped off and worse is there, but I don't think it will necessarily be a major factor.

What will the black market consist of? Mostly people will be buying food, medicines, and other necessities. They will spring up automatically. Let's say the local supermarket has been cleaned out. The parking lot of that store will still be a place where people will meet and barter. The people of the neighborhood are used to going there to shop, so naturally it will turn into an open air market.

As it gets harder to buy things you need legally and openly, the black market will increase. In Italy, the black market has gotten so big, it probably would turn out to be 1/3 of the economy if you could count it accurately. Things you would expect to be handled in the white market, such as light manufacturing, gets done by hundreds of thousands of individuals working out of their garages. If you have a real good workshop, you can match the quality of any mass produced product and achieve quite an output. An example: The black market research division of the drug trade can match the best research labs in the world. The latest product is "roofies" ("rufies", Rohypnol), also known as the "date rape" drug. No legitimate drug company would want to make such a product. They have enough problems with product liability. But, you can buy it on the street easily enough.

Roofies was probably a byproduct from trying to create cheaper and more effective drugs so you could get high. The research goes on in other areas, mainly to develop a version of cocaine that can be grown in the United States. It would bring in a whole new generation of drug abusers just as crack did. The advantage of crack for the user is that it is cheap, as forms of cocaine go. There is probably research going on by the drug trade as how they can use gold and silver. This happened a while back: I was watching a cop shake down a drug dealer. The cop took his cash, jewelry, almost everything. He didn't take a gold coin, a Krugerrand, that the dealer had. The cop didn't recognize it as gold and the dealer did some fast talking. He said it was nothing more than a cheap copper good luck charm. Since most people have not had the chance to see gold in coinage form since 1933, there is a high possibility they will think of it as copper instead of gold. Anyway, the cop, to show he wasn't all bad, let the dealer keep his "Good luck" charm. Don't think that dealer didn't tell his friends about it. That means the drug trade has considered gold as a way to safeguard their money since no one recognizes it. Of course things may have changed and if you tried that today, the cops would probably take that coin along with everything else.

So what makes me think that sooner or later you will be involved in the black market? After all, most gold bugs have the wisdom to prepare far in the future buy not only buying precious metals but food and the things they need. There is also going to be the reluctance to break the law.

As I said in the beginning, trade is extremely important to your well-being. No matter how much you have prepared, you cannot have thought of everything you need and so you will have to trade for it. I can see you entering the black market in one of two ways. Either a medical need or to help your neighbors. A medical need does not have to be an emergency. You might think you should add to your survival disaster kit or to your survival first aid kit. You could need something as simple as just a bottle of aspirin. It is the simple things like that you tend to forget, that you forgot to put on your preparedness checklist, but if you need it, you really need it. If the stores are closed due to looting, how do you find it? It will be out there somewhere on the black market.

The next example that could get you into the black market is you want to help your neighbor. You have prepared but they haven't. What is the best way to help them? From long experience, I learned it is best not to just give away things if you want to help somebody. You may have intended the help to be one time only. If you just give away stuff, the neighbor may expect to to helped whenever he needs it and things could get ugly. In the situation I envision, by trying to help your neighbor by giving away your stuff, you end up in front of the local commissar to explain why you not really a hoarder.

Trading with each other instead of giving charity will be better for the both of you. By trading, both of you will have to trust each other instead of it being a one-sided relationship where betrayal lurks. Neither you or your neighbor may have much to trade. The one thing you can trade however is mutual protection. You protect me from the looters, including the government, and I will protect you. It is a start. A start that build trust. The trust will be important because both of your lives, and the lives of your families, may depend on that trust. What better way to start trusting than by agreeing to protect each other?

When the economy collapses, it will take time for the black market to start up. That will be a very dangerous period. Since you have not had time to build up trust, how do you keep yourself safe? First, if you can -- wait. Wait and watch to see how the black market develops. Like all markets, it will have ways of knowing who can trust and who you can't. You will see in the beginning some people ripping other off. These people don't realize that dealing in the black market is going to be a long-term relationship. For the rip-off artist they get a very short term advantage. Sooner or later, their greed will get them killed. Or no one will deal with them and they go hungry. You don't want to be hungry in that situation. As in Africa, if you're hungry, and if there is a famine, that means death!

Since both your life and the lives of the ones you will be dealing with are on the line, your word must become an absolute bond. Most people, and I am guilty of this too, make promises but fail to keep them. These are simple things like promising to call a friend or business relationship the next day. Or being on time for an appointment. I am becoming aware of doing this and so try not to do it. If you are in a situation where your life depends on your word, not keeping small promises is a very self defeating. It is very easy to promise these small thing. If you break the promise it is a very noticeable lapse of trust. Your life depends on who trusts you, so unknowingly, you could have thrown your life away. It gives others a very good excuse not to deal with you.

Another question: How do you know who to deal with? Before entering any deal, ask yourself: "Will I regret this?" If I have any doubt I try not to enter the deal. Another deal, another bargain, will always come along later. However, the regret you feel for making the wrong deal can last a lifetime. This is good advice not only when things are crashing around you but worth following today.

Last question: What if I get ripped off? In the black market, you do not have the options of getting refunds or having the seller make good in some way. For example, if you buy a bag of dope and it turns out to be talcum power, you been ripped off. The best thing you can do is take it as a learning experience and not deal with the seller again. Otherwise, if you seek recourse or revenge you open a can of worms. You will very likely encounter the violence of the drug trade. It is not worth your life to correct things.

I can't foresee the future so my version of what it will be like to deal in the coming black markets may be accurate or may be wildly off. I just hope I gave you something to thing about.

Thank you.
The "Golden Trumpet"

(continue to Urban Survival Techniques - Riots Can Be a Riot!)

Urban Survival Techniques - Protect Yourself - Avoiding Trouble (#2)

(continued from Urban Survival Techniques - Learn to Observe)

Editor's Note: This urban survival technique from GT is about how to protect yourself by avoiding trouble in the first place. Sometimes you will have to decide whether you want to be macho, fight and perhaps die, or whether you want to run away to "live to run away another day". He provides several survival tips such as making yourself inconspicuous when necessary, redirecting attention from yourself to others, etc.
DB

Here's what GT has to say about avoiding trouble:

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I last wrote about how to not make it obvious that you have protected yourself from the coming dollar devaluation with gold in hand. I would like to point out another of the urban survival techniques I have learned that you can use to protect yourself in the coming chaos. That is to not fight but let the tough guys kill each other.

Everybody has probably heard of the "Law of The Jungle". Only the toughest of the tough survive. Personally, I don't think it is necessarily true. Consider another fact about the jungle. In the worst jungles, you have very rare and very beautiful butterflies. How could such delicate and fragile beings survive in the jungle? They survive because of several reasons. First they live in the jungle but are not a part of the day to day violence. They fly above it. The lions and tigers are fighting each other. Guess what? It is not a good idea to be constantly fighting. You get so tired that eventually someone can eventually beat you. There is always someone younger, tougher or especially luckier than you who will win.

Being in a street gang, especially being leader, is a job for the young. I am not familiar with all the street gangs out there, but I doubt there's too many with too many members over the age of 25. Once you pass that age and are still getting into street fights you get a sense of your mortality. You have seen too many of your friends die and you get to doubt that sense of immortality that comes with youth. That is, if you haven't been tossed into jail yet. Or crippled in a gang fight. Or betrayed by your so-called friends. Or lots of other job related stress as a gangsta, none of them good. So who survives? Those who never got into the fights in the first place. The butterflies. They are the one who grew up in such a horror show but decided to somehow get out. They are the dreamers.

You may think these butterflies that grew up in the jungle are very rare. Being that I'm one of them, actually they are not. They are just extremely hard to catch. They learn not to get caught because there are so many out there at the bottom who want to destroy their dreams and them.

"You think you're going to be rich and famous! Get real! You were born in the ghetto and you should have the sense to know the powers that be won't allow you to get out. And if you don't have the sense, we will beat it into you."

It doesn't take much of that to learn to hide your dreams. Or yourself. Now, however, I am past 40. All the males I grew up with who used violence to survive are dead. I have met many others who grew up in situations just as bad or worse -- like a war zone. They not only survived but prospered. Many survived the way I did. Let the bad boys kill each other. Meanwhile, I can play my trumpet and write my stories and work toward the day my talents make me rich and famous.

If the dollar becomes worthless as history has done to all other paper money, there will be a lot of people who will turn to violence. My instincts tell me, they may make profits in the short term, but in the end they will kill each other off. Many gold-bugs will be tempted to turn to this violence as well as a means of protecting themselves and their gold. As part of their survival plans they bought guns to protect themselves. I have nothing against protecting yourself but I think when the rioting starts, that would be a good time to become very hard to find. Not only from the looters but from the government as well.

One of the players you will have to protect yourself from is the state (the government). The moment you try to protect yourself against the government, you've gotten yourself bigger problems -- far more than more people can handle. The state will use all its power to get you to toe the line and to give up whatever you managed to save -- whether it's gold or food. Better to avoid the state. If you do, the government will have it hands busy with the troublemakers. I doubt it will noticed you have disappeared.

How to make yourself scarce? In survivalist novels, you have small groups heading into parts unknown, stocked up to the rafters with survival essentials. These books make good reading but I think for the most part are impractical. For one thing, moving to the sticks becomes impossible if you have young children or old parents to take care of. The children won't want to go and the parents may be unable to go. The option of moving to a small town where you don't have to face the chaos may not be an option. No, you're going to have to learn what I've learned. How to survive the most dangerous part of the city without ever being seen, or even thought about.

First besides gold and guns, your crisis plan should include stocking up on food. You may be hesitant to do so but a year's supply of food actually doesn't take up that much space. Nor do you have to spend a lot. I personally prefer canned goods. Some who are in a more survivalist mode may like Meals Ready to Eat (MREs). Some, if they have a supply of water, may like dried foodstuff like beans, and jerky.

If the riots happen, the rioters will attack the supermarkets and food places first. You don't want to be in line fighting for your share. Better to buy ahead. There is only about a week's supply or less of food on the shelves. That will disappear FAST! So stock up in advance.

Speaking from experience, having known true hunger, after two weeks of not eating, you are too weak to do anything. Those who looted will find their food supply running out and in two weeks they will be looking for other places to rob. They have already cleaned out their own neighborhoods. I believe that what will happen is that instead of more local looting and burning down the poorer neighborhoods, they will march into the rich neighborhoods. In previous riots, the poor burned their own neighborhoods. They learned afterward it was a mistake because a lot of what got burned didn't get rebuilt. They learned their lessons. Next time they will march into the nearest upper-class suburb.

The next thing to survive in the jungles the cities will become is the advice I gave earlier in my last essay on how to blend in. Hide yourself in plain sight. I cannot give you specific advice since I don't know your situation. All I can say is sit down while you are calm and relaxed and think of what may work for you. Now is a good time. I have mentioned that my essays might be a little early for you to think about, but if you think about protecting yourself now, your thinking will be a lot clearer than trying to think while in the middle of chaos.

The last thing to stay invisible is to give the rioters, the government, and the opportunists another target. You are laying low. I promise there will be plenty of fools who will be showing off. You will be aware of them as will everybody else. Just try to get those who might try to hurt you to look in their direction, not yours. It may sound down and dirty but I will give you a real life example. I grew up in Boston during the 70's. The worse part was during the school busing crises. I not only had the neighborhood thugs looking to kick my butt, but also the police, the klan, the school committee (I was playing a lot of hooky from school), white, black, young, old, everybody was looking to do me a serious hurt. I got to see riots and fights every day. Yet I never got caught by any of them. If I was about to get caught, I would yell: "Look what those guys are doing!" Those chasing me would look and once they turned their attention away from me, I would be long gone! All I know is giving the attackers another target worked for me. Add this urban survival technique to your preparedness checklist and hopefully it will work for you when the time comes that you need to protect yourself from the coming urban chaos.

Thank you.
The "Golden Trumpet"

Continue to Urban Survival Techniques #3 - Black Market Shopping
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