3. Your personal and/or corporate supplies andfacilities may be commandeered without warning, receipt or compensation.I’ve had numerous reports from in and near the disaster zone of individuals(e.g. boat-owners, farmers with barns, tractors, etc.) and corporate groups(e.g. companies with heavy equipment, churches with halls, etc.) finding anofficial on their doorstep demanding the use of their facilities or equipment.If they demurred, they were told that this was an “emergencysituation” and that their assistance was being required, not requested.Some of them have lost track of the heavy equipment “borrowed” in thisway, and don’t know where it is, whether or not it’s still in good condition,and when (if ever) it will be returned – and in the meantime, they can’tcontinue their normal operations without this equipment. Others have had theirland and facilities effectively confiscated for use by rescue and reliefworkers, storage of supplies, etc. In some cases, in the absence of theirowners, the property of the individuals and groups concerned (e.g. farm gasolineand diesel supplies, the inventory of motor vehicle dealers, suppliers offoodstuffs, tarpaulins, etc.) have been commandeered and used by law enforcementand relief workers, without permission, receipts, reimbursement, etc. Protestshave been met with denials, threats of arrest, insinuations of being”uncaring” and “un-co-operative”, etc. Lesson learned ifyou’ve got what officials need in a time of crisis, forget about Constitutionalprotections of your property! Sure, you can sue after the fact, but if you needyour goods and facilities for your own survival, you’re basically SOL. Those ofus who stockpile necessities for potential crises like this might want toconsider concealing our stockpiles to prevent confiscation and if you needcertain equipment for your own day-to-day use (e.g. tractors for farmers,generators, etc.), you might have a hard time retaining possession of thesethings. This problem applies to relief workers also I’ve had several reports ofprivate relief workers (e.g. those sent in by churches, etc.) having theirvehicles and supplies commandeered by “official” relief workers,without compensation or receipt, and being kicked out of the disaster area withwarnings not to return. The fact that the “private” workers wereaccomplishing rather more than the “official” workers was apparentlyof no importance.

4. If you look like you know what you’redoing, you may be a target of those less prepared. There have been many,many reports of individuals who were more or less prepared for a disaster beingpreyed upon by those who were not prepared. Incidents range from theft ofsupplies, through attempts to bug out with these persons (uninvited), to actualviolence. It’s genuinely frightening to hear about these incidents, particularlythe attitude of those trying to prey on the prepared they seemed to feel thatbecause you’d taken steps to protect yourself and your loved ones, you hadsomehow done so at their expense, and they were therefore “entitled”to take from you what they needed. There’s no logical explanation for thisattitude, unless it’s bred by the utter dependence of many such people on theState for welfare, Social Security, Medicare/Medicaid, etc. Since they’ve alwaysbeen dependent on others, and regarded this as an “entitlement”, in adisaster situation, they seem to automatically assume that they’re”entitled” to what you’ve got! In one case, the family’s pet dog washeld hostage, with a knife at its throat, until the family handed over money andsupplies. In two cases, families were threatened with the rape of their womenunless they co-operated with the aggressors. In four cases that I know of,children were held hostage to ensure co-operation. There have also been reportsof crimes during the bug-out process. Families sleeping in their cars at highwayrest areas were a favorite target, including siphoning of gas from their tanks,assaults, etc. The lessons to be learned from this are obvious. One family can’tsecure itself against these threats without great difficulty. It’s best to be”teamed up” with neighbors to secure your neighborhood as a whole,rather than be the one house with facilities in an area filled with those lessprepared. If you’re in the latter situation, staying put may not be a safeoption, and a bug-out plan may be vital. When bugging out, you’re still not safefrom harm, and must maintain constant vigilance.