Excluding some ancient ice-bear protection I don't own guns and don't plan to own any, but I have no problems with people that do. Personal choice that we should respect and all that. If someone wants to discuss the gun v.s. anti-gun issue there are tons of sites that are more appropriate.


I am all for preparing to avoid or cope with bad things happening (such as looting, theft and robbery). But there is a very fine line between being cautious and being paranoid. If you go around seriously believing that the worst will happen right now, right here and being in a perpetual "RED" state of alert is the only deterrent to keep them from happening then you're paranoid, not cautious. Don't underestimate the negative effects this will have on your ability to cope with the situation

- It will seriously impact your situation awareness. You may spot every potential misdemeanor in 5 mile radius, but you will miss lots of opportunities to improve your situation.

- It will cause you to behave like an aggressive bully on steroids, alienating everyone you meet.

- It will seriously impact your ability to de-escalate potential situations. Think about it: If all that is on your mind is looking for clues that you're entitled to draw and fire your weapon in 0.34 seconds then you won't have any capacity to de-escalate with words, humor and gestures.

- It will impact your personality in a very negative way. In short, if you think and act like a paranoid bully you will become that paranoid bully. Do you want to be a paranoid bully?


What I am trying to say is: If you ever find yourself in a bad SHTF situation (major hurricane or whatever), then you need all your strength and resources. Don't waste your mental and physical resources on being paranoid. You can prepare adequately against the worst of human nature without being paranoid, but I agree it is a delicate balance.


My personal goal is to strive towards an open mind and increasing situational awareness. You need to realize what is happening right here, right now - and then you choose the right set of tools from a wide range of options.



And a final note on the Katarina looting and violence: Sure, some of it happened, and it was gross and brutal. But then again, media reports blew those events way out of proportions. And a significant part of the most horrifying stories simply did not happen except in the minds of some government officials and journalists.


Don't forget the positive attitude that is also a part of what the human being displays in major catastrophes. Both in Katarina, Haiti and lots of other catastrophes, people went through great efforts to relieve their neighbors, strangers and friends alike, displaying the "we're in this together" attitude that is required for a community to regain its footing.