|
|
Freedom Action of the Week
Email List Archive
Free-Market.Net's F r e e d o m A c t i o n o f t h e W e e k
------------------------------------------------------------------
Edited by Thomas L. Knapp. To subscribe or unsubscribe to this and
other lists, click to: http://www.free-market.net/features/lists/
----- Featured Action of the Week -----
Third Week of October, 2001:
On Your Own Two Feet
In the weeks since September 11th, legislators and bureaucrats have been
offered an unprecedented platform from which to speak to Americans (and
others).
Their message: "Don't do anything."
Don't buy ciprofloxacin to protect yourself from anthrax. Don't buy a gas
mask -- you wouldn't know how to use it anyway. Guns? Perish the thought.
"We'll take care of everything. Just go back to Monday Night Football and
your Friday bowling league. Call us if you see anything suspicious, but
leave the rest to us. We're professionals."
What they fail to understand is that they're out of chances. They've
_been_ trusted before.
But you don't have to remain entirely at the mercy of incompetence. It's
_always_ a good idea to keep your own rear end covered as much as possible,
and now is no exception. There's a reason why the Boy Scout motto is "Be
Prepared."
This week, I'd like you to take inventory of some specific needs you have
and make sure that you are prepared, in the short term, to meet them
yourself. If you did this in preparation for Y2K, you may already be ahead
of the curve.
Government can't guarantee the security or functionality of the electric
power grid. Do you have kerosene lamps (and fuel for them)? A non-electric
source of heat (wood stove, fireplace, kerosene heater, etc.) for the
coming winter? Those are bare minimums. If you desire a modicum of comfort,
you might even want to pick up a generator and store a fuel reserve for it.
Government can't guarantee the security of the water supply. If you have a
well or cistern, you should be in good shape -- if not, enough bottled
water for several weeks of minimal consumption is a really good idea.
Government can't guarantee the security of the road network, and in most
areas of the United States hunger is mere days or weeks away if food can't
be delivered from agricultural areas. A few cases of canned food and dry
goods could come in real handy.
Most of all, government can't guarantee the personal security of yourself
or your family. Not against terrorists, not against garden variety
criminals, not even against its own agencies. If you don't own a gun, buy
one. Now. Buy it, stock up on ammunition for it, and learn how to use it.
The inexpensive route -- and one perfectly viable for basic home defense
-- is a 12 gauge shotgun, available for under $100 in most parts of the
U.S. The ammunition cost isn't onerous, the learning curve consists of
familiarization fire and nursing a bruised shoulder, and at close quarters,
nothing is more devastating to an enemy than double-ought buckshot. If
you're a skilled shooter, you probably already have a weapon. Been to the
range lately? When's the last time you cleaned that weapon and did a
function check?
Everyone's situation varies in specifics, but everyone's situation is
identical in general: you can't depend on the government to protect you or
to sustain you. Self-reliance is always a good idea, even more so during
times of crisis.
Read previous Action of the Week columns at:
http://www.free-market.net/features/list-archives/activism/maillist.html
----- Alternate Actions -----
The Freedom Action of the Week Club: Commit yourself to doing one
action per week. If the action above doesn't appeal to you, consider
one of the alternate actions at:
http://www.free-market.net/features/action/
If you know about another action or organize one of your own, e-mail
Tom at tlknapp@free-market.net so we can tell the rest of the group
next week.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward and copy freely, and include the following:
The Freedom Action of the Week is a feature of Free-Market.Net
http://www.free-market.net/features/action/
Opinions expressed are purely those of our writers and editors.
To subscribe or unsubscribe to this and other lists, click to:
http://www.free-market.net/features/lists/
To support the Action of the Week and other activities of FMN
and The Henry Hazlitt Foundation, please make a tax-deductible
donation now:
-----------------------------------------------------------------
In December 2004 this page was modified significantly from its original form for archiving purposes.
, founded in 1995, is now a part of ISIL.
 |