I appreciate your feedback, Martin, as well as the others. And I certainly didn't mean to stir up a hornets nest. This is one of those situations where I should have held off posting until I wasn't so tired and could put in the time more fully explain.

I understand where you're coming from in regards to stopping for legal authorities, which is primarily why my goal would be to avoid them entirely. I have no animosity towards authority, just personal experience that their efforts to do what's best for the masses does not necessarily translate to what's best for a specific individual. Lacking the resources and authority to make exceptions, we would be huddled off to an evacuation shelter along with thousands of others where the medical needs of my son could not possibly be met, where the very environment would likely exacerbate his illness, and where we would be relieved of any weapons making the success of subsequent efforts to reach our pre-positioned refuges untenable. I'm not advising or advocating this policy for the masses, it is just that shelters are not designed or staffed to deal with people who have exotic medication and high-maintenance therapy needs.

Without getting into specifics, after just 24 hours without medication or therapy my son's ability to be physically active would be reduced by 25-50%. After 72 hours he would be unable to perform any strenuous activity and would require a lengthy hospitalization to recover. In 5 days permanent damage would be likely, and without critical medical care, death would ensue. At a shelter, the best we could hope for is that a local hospital might have and provide a small supply of medication within 48 hours, in the hope that it will suffice until arrangements could be made for a full supply, but at retail cost of almost $300 per day for his meds, (thank God for prescription plans), refrigeration required, this is not something that hospitals stock in quantity (in spite of his condition not being rare), and forget about the logistical problems of actually arranging the transfer. Then there's the matter of the equipment needed for his therapy, which isn't available even at the hospital that specializes in his treatment.

So if I am going to fulfill my obligation as a father, the best way to do that is to avoid the authorities until I can access a cache of medicine and equipment necessary to maintain his health. And this is not without precedent. In 1996 I was stuck overnight due to stopped highway traffic during a blizzard because the police would not allow me to pass on on local roads due to snow conditions, though I was driving a well-modified 4WD vehicle that had gone up 4x4 trails in mountains under worse conditions, had tire chains, a shovel and a winch on-board, water and food supplies and, since nobody else was on those roads, would have posed no danger to anyone but myself. Fortunately, my wife was alive at the time and was home to take care of the children. There have been several other similar but less severe incidents. In '99 I was "detained" for attempting to enter a restricted disaster zone because everyone was too busy to verify I'd been called to help with recovery and supply operations during flooding from hurricane floyd. I harbor no ill will about these events, but they do affect my personal evacuation strategy.

Insofar as going looking for a fight, indeed quite the opposite. My preference would be to avoid any confrontation whatsoever, and my routes are planned to skirt areas that present the greatest risk. However, there are some unpleasant urban areas with easy access, and my home would be along a logical escape route to safety. As much as I'd like to expect the disaster would bring out the best in mankind, again experience is my only indicator. For example, in 1977 there was significant arson, looting and rioting in New York due to a city-wide blackout. It is still regarded as one of the worst riots in US history. Getting closer to home, during the 2003 regional blackout there was looting and some cases of arson in Newark and Patterson, and the situation could have grown much worse if there wasn't a huge police turn-out in anticipation of trouble. The next town over from ours has significant gang activity, even my oldest son was attacked by three gang members while walking home from the train station in broad daylight (fortunately, his quick reactions allowed him to escape with only minor injuries, he now knows better). There was looting in suburban Bound Brook and Manville after hurricane Floyd in 1999 and the April 2007 nor'easter. As much as I would pray for the best it would be naive of me to not plan accordingly.

And it's not as if I'd be walking down the street with shotgun at arms and bandoleers of ammunition across my chest. Nor would I be threatening to shoot people for asking for a sip of water or kicking hungry babies out of my way. I want to be invisible. If I'm lucky and we had enough time to grab our BoBs before we set out, we'll have just enough supplies for our own needs. However, if we have to punt we'll be little better than anyone else -- some band aids, a water bottle and purification drops, energy bars, pocket knife, flashlight and fire steel -- except with the hope that we can reach one of our stocked refuge points and continue to survive.

To me, survival starts with me and my family first, my "tribe" (consisting of neighbors and church community) second, and everyone else third. I'll admit that is a selfish view, but that is the nature of survival. Once my family is safe I will do all I can to help others. I'm not a first responder or a CERT member -- I just can't commit the time as a single dad -- but I've always volunteered my help whenever and wherever possible. I think that in the long run, what I can provide in assistance once my family is safe far exceeds the sprinklings of supplies I can spare during my evacuation. If others are willing to put strangers before their own family, please let me be the first to recommend you for sainthood.

My apologies to Doug and the rest of the board if I've ruffled some feathers. I promise no more posting when I'm overtired.