• Who is the #1 threat to preppers before and after SHTF?

Dang…tough question. I think that basically the primary answer is “ourselves” in both cases. Yeah, I know…lame answer. It would be easy to say things like; politicians, LEOs, Democrats, etc. While they may be threats/risks to some degree I don’t think they are anywhere near the top of the list let alone #1. But, there may be a little more depth to the answer than a simple ourselves.

Pre-SHTF: This I think is fully and completely ourselves…for a number of reasons. I think we may suffer from complacency, Normalcy Bias, Competency Bias, poor Situational Awareness, etc. This will cloud our ability to properly see, understand, and act in a timely manner to what is happening. But, I still think that is not the #1. I think the #1 “who” threat are people who masquerade as experts in emergency preparedness. The ones who claim (or intimate) a level of expertise and then give out bad information to preppers who are simply trying to learn. I tend to call them “posers” overall. Some are well-intentioned to be sure. Others are after the attention, admiration, and cult-like worship that preppers heap upon them. By-in-large they are manipulators seeking to satisfy their own goals/needs. Example: Someone who talks about Situational Awareness and has little experience in high-stress emergency situations where good SA is essential to completing an actual task/mission. These folks are unproven, untried, and posing as experts…they are dangerous…some of their poor advice is bound to get folks killed…or mislead into following the wrong leaders.

Post-SHTF: Strange, I think there are two completely different categories to this one; 1) application to me personally, 2) application to most everyone else.

For me personally I think I am the #1 threat to myself as a prepper post-SHTF. I think my ego and pride will make me try to act like a “know-it-all” and either run over people who don’t agree with me, or I will alienate them ruining any chance of cooperation/coordination. So I believe I will antagonize a lot of people I shouldn’t. Heck, I do that now 🙂

As for most everyone else…I think the “who” will be “herding dogs.” There is a lot of discussion about people being “sheepdogs.” That’s all well and good…but do people really understand the difference between a sheepdog and a herding dog. A sheepdog is a protector but treats the sheep even better than themselves. A herding dog is just short of a predator…well trained, but a predator all the same. A herding dog is trained to control the herd/flock and force them to do its will. They nip at, growl at, and generally show aggression towards the flock/herd to make them obey. There is a HUGE difference between a sheepdog and a herding dog. I think many sheepdogs are actually herding dogs. And some sheepdogs may be wolves in sheepdog clothing. The key is to know the difference.

Also…just a thought…If a herding dog (or pack of them) comes along, a couple questions for you:

• How much “herding” are you willing to tolerate? And if you won’t tolerate it, what are willing to do about it?
• How will you know the difference between a sheepdog and a herding dog?
• How do you explain to someone else that you recognize a person as a herding dog?
• Can you identify herding dogs in today’s society?

There is a close #2 threat/risk…posers. These are the “pretty boys” of preppers. Those folks who talk pretty, look pretty, have pretty gear, have pretty ideas…but are there only to manipulate people, they like the attention that they get from their followers. Unfortunately, their followers are not their equals…at least according to the way posers view their followers.Politicians are a sub-group of “pretty boys” if you haven’t already guessed that.

• What is the #1 threat to preppers before and after SHTF?

Again, it would be easy to make real blanket statements and hold them up to be the ultimate answer. But, I think a true answer will depend on each person’s (or group’s) specific situation. A group dealing with the imposition of martial law by the local/county/state LEOs will have a far different view than a group that is out of food and/or water. But, let me take a stab at it and make an overall blanket statement…you take it into consideration for your situation.

Pre-SHTF: I think the “what” here is not a tangible. What I mean by that is it is not something like lack of food storage, not enough ammo, or no bug out location. I believe it to be an intangible. Why? Because I am a student of history. When you look at countries and states that have experienced large scale disasters or grid-down events there is an underlying message…after the fact. And that tends to be something along the lines of “I should have left sooner”, “I should have tried to buy gas before…”, “I should have…” You look at the last world-wide event in history…WWII. Listen to the stories of Jews that got trapped in areas conquered by and then occupied by the Germans. Those that were in fact trapped had wished they had left for safety sooner. Look at hurricanes in Florida, Texas, and other states. The folks there all talk about not having prepared, or left, sooner. Some say they should have bought more food, water, fuel, ice, generators, etc. way sooner before the storm actually hit. And the primary reasons they didn’t act sooner are complacency and Normalcy Bias.Those are the two biggest “what” threats.

Post-SHTF: This one is the easiest…Violence! Yes, unequivocally the #1 threat/risk to all folks after the SHTF will be violence. Why? Because it can be fatal and fast. All your preps in the world can’t protect you if you are not prepared to deal with violence first. Ten years of food storage, the biggest 100 gal a day water purification system, the perfect bug out location, the most awesome Jeep mean absolutely nothing if someone puts a bullet between your eyes…they just take your cool stuff. And no, all the guns and ammo in your gun safe mean nothing if you are not properly trained to use them. And all the best training in the world means nothing if you are not willing to defend yourself and your family. And all the willingness in the world means absolutely nothing if your Situational Awareness sucks. Yup, the risk/threat of violence will be #1 !

• You wrote a series of articles about “personalities” before and after SHTF, will you resurrect them?

Yes, I will be resurrecting them. I already have a long list of posts/articles that are on the calendar for resurrection. If I am remembering right I am thinking the calendar is already full into April. But, I will get on it and get those articles found and brought back to life. I am actually glad you brought them up. Lately I am seeing an uncomfortable trend developing. I am seeing some folks getting…well, kind of weird. And they are showing signs of being people that you would not want to associate with post-SHTF…or maybe not even during an emergency or disaster. I also mentioned sheepdogs vs. herding dogs in another question. I want to make sure I touch on that as well. I am noticing that a couple of men that I thought were sheepdogs are actually showing signs of being herding dogs. And that makes them very dangerous.

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