I think that everyone needs to pause a moment and think - it's just a scenario he's running through in his head.

You think about not only yourself first, but your family first - more than yourself even.

Here. I'll lighten it up a bit with a true story about how an easygoing and gentle Dad can be turned into a predator in an instant.

My son was about 3 years old, and we were at some carnival. There was a moon bounce and he was in there with "the big boys" (7 and 8 year olds).

Well, he was bouncing along and got bopped on the head hard by some kid who collided with him as he fell. The big boys didn't notice the crying 3 year old, but I did. I started to go into the bounce to get my son and the 18 year old guy at the door blocked me and said, "You can't go in there!" and all I said was, "Why don't you try to stop me?"

At that moment, if that kid had so much as thought about preventing me from getting to my son, I know, just by the feeling I still remember from that day 5 years ago, that I was ready, willing and more than able to physically destroy that punk, and I would have done it without so much as a thought.

Fortunately, I was able to - momentarily - give fair warning, and the kid instantly stood down.

I remember that feeling vividly and I think about it from time to time if I worry about my family and their safety. I think that the other Dads out there - guys like me who don't get violent, who don't have a history of fights or anything like that - can turn into fierce creatures in an instant.

So, to the point of the MIRT idea, which I think we can all agree is a Bad Idea, if you take it as a view towards the "do what it takes to protect my family" perspective, it's a plausible line of reasoning.

It's the ability to go a little further, to go beyond the initial reaction to the situation and to get to the next step that defines rationality and reason.

In my case, hitting the punk the instant he stepped between me and my kid might have been expedient, but it took just as long to warn him and have me pass than it would have to bloody his face. The net effect was that I got to my son in the same amount of time.

So it is with your "bug out plans" - the expedient method may lead to subsequent challenges - where do you go in a car that can't go anywhere ? What if the Metro North train drivers refuse to drive? It's good to think up the possible first actions here in writing, to let them form, take flight and see where they go. Here we have a good discussion of an idea that didn't work out. That's good. Just because an idea is not a good solution does not mean it's a bad thing to talk about. Failure is an opportunity to learn - in fact, it's better to always make new mistakes, ideally before they harm anyone.