Grunts Guide to Defending Your Home During SHTF...

Disclaimer: This article deals with military tactics and combat related subjects. I, nor Google, assume responsibility fpr the use or misuse of this material. It is provided for educational and entertainment purposesly only.

This is a quick and dirty "Paint Drawing" of how to fortify a structure for Urban Warfare/Combat called officially MOUT (or Military Operations in Urbanized Terrain)... This is not a set or fixed SOP and it doesn't  have to be done this way...

The above image is merely a collection of conceptual principles based on the urban warfare docturine and training of the U.S. Army. So I am going to address the above image because this is where you want to start.

Now I don't know what the event or scenario will be. I don't know what you are preparing for. I am simply describing basic principles and letting you decide wherr they fit in at for you...

1. Look out/radio man... This is a very important job which allows for communications with those outside the home stead. Small holes can be cut into the roof to allow one to observe the grounds, sky lights on the sides of pitched roofs can do the same and video cameras can be used as well or in addition to.
2. The attic marksmen can fire from the small gap under the roof. And it can be a secondary position for the radio man to fulfill.
3. Second floor look out, this is basically a bench rest style shooting platform that uses a small desk or table and sand bags stacked against the wall, on the table and undwr it to provide cover. Since the shooter is in the back of the room behind a thin curtain and with other sheets, blanks or curtains hung behind them the window will appear "dark" from the outside. This offers concealment and maintains the non-threatening appearance of the "gray man's home" with the fire power of a small dug in fire team or squad.
4. 4a & 4b are both "right and wrong" so let me explain.
What's right is making a sand bag barrier under to the sides of the windows to stop bullets...
What's wrong os leaning out the windows with guns aimed. This highlights the fact you have people armed, dug in and capable of defending your home stead.
5. The door way needs a Sandbag barricade to stop and limit the view inside the home. This allows the door to only part way and allows anyone behind the barricade to fire at any threats trying to force their way in.
6. The basement firing position. Furniture and sand bags can be used to build a firing platform and here is the logic, the ground provides a small position for the attacking force to ain at and it allows the basement shooter to use what is called grazing fire. Grazing fire is fire fired with the express point of traveling anywhere from a few inches to a foot off the ground, grazing the grass as it were. This means enemy forces attacking and trying to low crawl (belly crawl) under the fire from the windows or first story will get hit, even if not fatally.
7. Blast Shelter: If you have kids or elderly who cannot fight, this is were they need to go if something does happen. The blast shelter is made by using a desk or table and reinforcing the legs with sandbags, as well as, stacking sand bags on top of the desk or table. Even of some nut-job throws a "pipe bomb" in the house they are safer in the basement under the sand bags.
8. Fences: If you don't have a fence on your property before something goes wrong, you need one after. Even it is a simple barbwire fence on one inch by one inch pickets. This is a clear boundary that provides a "Do Not Cross" Line. And, you can tie fishing line and bells to fence, so that anyone moving the fence to gain entry trips a kind of primitive alarm system.
9. "Toe Poper" a cheap landmine made by the Viet Cong. Simply a nail in the bottom of a small hole with a rifle shell, over the nail. Step on the shell, the primer pushes against the nail and sets of the shell which blows off part of your foot.

Note: This is illegal but, effective and, you should not make this or anyother booby traps.

10. Puji Stake Trap: Another Vietnamese booby trap, known as a Dead Fall or Bear Trap in the West. Basic odea is to dig a hole, 1 to 5 feet deep and place sharpened stakes in the ground, with a camouflaged lid. If an attacker steps on the lid, they fall onto the stakes.

Note: This is illegal but, effective and, you should not make this or anyother booby traps.

11. Inverted Spike trap: Another VIetnamese Booby Trap, this one is made by digging a hole roughly 1 foot by 1 foot and 1 to 3 feet deep. Boards with nails driven down at a 45 degree angle could then be used to support the sides of the hole. When someone steps on the camouflaged lib or simply into the hole they suffer only minor scratches. It is upon removing the leg that the nails dig in and lacerates the leg. Forcing an attacker to remove caught in the trap meaning that any allies would have to come into one's field of fire to be a casualty or suffer the morale loss of having watch a fellow member of their little band suffer in place.

Note: This is illegal but, effective and, you should not make this or any other booby traps.

All the described hazards to an attacking force would be secired behind one's fence. Also protecting the general public from where one has built a defensive barrier to protect one's family.

12. Scouts: Now Scouts are the most important element here. They are the "gray men" of the group. They look and act like the "zombies" (unprepared masses). They also report back to the people in the house and alert to possible threats...

Hell these Scouts can be or even remote controlled drones to collect information without directly putting anyone in danger. If the Scouts need to fight, they should have a rally point with combat style gear being stored there and work in teams no smaller then 2 people. Scouts can harass an entrenching force that is dug in outside said home stead.

Though it is important to keep in mind, no matter how well prepared you are. A large enough force can over power any position. So scouts means you can be aware of the threat, before ot becomes a danger and abandon the shelter rather then be over powered.

13. Guard Dog(s): A trained guard dog is an asset. Its senses are more highly attuned then your own. It will sense danger before you do and it will get between you and a threat. An untrained dog will many times react much the same way. The different is with a trained animal they sit when told to sit, stay when told to stay and come here when told to cone here. And attack when told to attack.

You want to keep them in to protect them from your hazards set up to keep others out. Now if you are concerned with why you might need to do all this... Allow me to address that.

Scenarios for a Secured Home:
1. Civil Unrest and Violence in the Home: That's right a riot or out of control protest could not just involve looting stores but, breaking into homes to rob the occupants... Racism, politics, the assumption of racism, religion or culture can all be a situation where others think attacking a group of people for whatever excuse is a good idea...

Know whats a better idea? Having sandbags in the basement ready to go, having pickets and barbwire strings in the basement and having food and water stocked up to keep your family fed and safe.

2. Natural Disasters: In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, there were roving gangs of looters and young people assaulting other people in broad daylight. It wasn't the hurricane or the flooding that was the worst part, it was the human response aftwrward.

3. Economic Collapse: This is a case where there is no major disaster or end of world scenario. There is a lost of assets and people have to pool resources to get by. In these cases many people will become desperate and turn to crime, criminals will become bolder and emergency services like police, EMTs and Fire Department might be able to help you and if you are dependent on a central location to grow and raise food, shared use of a vehicle and protecting your loved ones from a criminal threat...

Well you do what you gotta do. Americans living on the frontier used to build homes that were defendable against small forces of raiders and bandits. This is just a more scientific and planned means of doing so.

Final Note: Don't Forget BOB.
Even with a harden and dug in position, you can get over ran. If some criminal threat figures out a potato gun can launch a pipe bomb or fire bomb, if 300 mutant biker zombies or cannibal marauders come your way or God forbid your very own government comes knocking. You might need to give ground and bug out. Just cause you have food, safety and security today, doesn't mean you will tomorrow.

More to come in our new up coming amd soon to be released book Which will be an expansion of the American Homeguard Anti-Terrorist Handbook... Official name not yet finally decided.

Civilian Counter Terrorism

In light of both the Baltimore Riots & the media creating a narrative of race and class warfare. In light of the Garland, Texas attack & the media (certain parts of the mainstream media anyway) who are using it to attack the 2nd Amendment, I've decided to make this blog.

Four years ago, looking at both history and future I developed a Civilian Counter-Terrorism doctrine. This doctrine is based on Level 1 Counter Terrorism training I received from the US Army & my own initiative. Before you get all "yay US Army Counter Terrorism" let me put this into prospective, it was done via an internet course taken over a computer in the office. I was 11B US Army Infantry in an Air Assault unit (1/503 Air Assault out of Camp Casey Korea) which is now an Air Borne Unit out of Italy. I got out the US Army in 2005. Here is a brief history of 1/503: http://corregidor.org/heritage_battalion/iraa.html. All this is background information to the fact I already had Infantry training which included room clearing and urban warfare similar to what SWAT teams get. What the Level 1 Counter Terrorism Course gave me was a factual reference to spotting terrorist threats in a civilian environment.

So for civilians I don't consider the tactical combat stuff valid, after all you have cops and military personnel with the right training and experiences. It is their job (bluntly put) to kill and to die, so you don't have to. A civilians best bet for fighting terrorism is simple; Be Aware to Threats, Avoid the Threat before it Becomes a Danger & Report the Threat providing as much detail as possible. So four years ago I made these videos...

Everyone loves the Tactical Moniker & guns are cool, sexy and tough guys carry them... In truth, the people who carry guns have to able to use them. I fully support Concealed Carry, Constitutional Carry & Open Carry they are manifestations of our God given right to self-defense. But, like in Garland, Texas, the "bad guys" sometimes show up with bigger guns and wearing body armor, and you might be out gunned. So use common sense, use the system.

Criminal Mindset: What Without Rule of Law (WROL) can mean for You...

I often like to offer advice of how the "enemy" thinks or think what I would do in the bad guy's place. Why? Because I'm a trained bad ass! Well in the fantasy world of people who think something other then yourself can make you a bad ass, being former US Army Air Assault Infantry & a hand-to-hand combat instructor makes me a bad ass. Personally, I don't want to be known as a bad ass because if your a bad ass you either attract other bad asses because "normal people" don't want to associate with you or wannabe bad asses who want the reputation to act tough. No... no... I like to explain what the "bad guys" will do because I like to burst some of those fantasy bubbles people create.

I'm a survivalist, a prepper if you want to be more politically correct but I prefer survivalist. I hear or see a lot of survival fantasy BS among the preppers online, like I hear and see a lot of self-defense fantasy BS among martial artists online as well. So what is my point? That criminals "train" to be criminals, that criminals associate with other criminals and that playing "bad ass" or trying to be a "hero" can get you killed. This is especially true in a Without Rule of Law environment.

Online Prepper Myth 1: Criminals are Stupid...
Criminals live a lifestyle of crime, sure their are stupid punk kids who wannabe tough guys and bad asses and lack brains. However, any experienced criminal, any criminal raised by other criminals and anyone criminal who really wants to succeed will think first. Smart criminals outnumber dumb criminals as part of a process called natural selection; dumb criminals are either dead or locked up. Don't expect a criminal threat to be stupid, police informant programs protect the dumb asses and in a WROL scenario snitches without police protection will be scared and hiding in the deepest hole.

What you can expect;

• Snipers: 100 yards might not seem worthy of Chris Kyle but I'm not talking military or police snipers & I'm not talking trained marksmen. I'm talking concealed shooters. You'll see this more then military style fire and maneuver actions because lets be honest most people are cowards. The sniper fantasy of many civilians is based on the idea of being able to shoot you from a concealed position and to far away for you to respond (i.e. a safe distance).
• Ambushers: The ambushers might use anything from an improvised knife (shank or shiv) to a firearm. They will attack from concealment & in you will begin the engagement on the receiving end, i.e. defending end of the attack. It is possible that you may not even survive the initial assault. 
• Con-Men/Women: More likely then any armed group or individuals which in itself is sign of desperation as force is likely to be resisted with force, is cons and scams. People will try to appeal to your sense of sympathy, faith or charity to get you to give them something. People will use women and children as an excuse. The con game is more likely to be the most used and most common form of exploitation. Beware those we want to combine resources post SHTF, they often have less then you do and want a portion of your own supplies.
• Threats from Children: Child soldiers are common among warlords and child criminals are especially common among gangs and criminal families. It might seem inhumane or unmanly to harm a kid however, that won't stop them from harming you. This is a harsh reality that many people don't want to face but you'll have to face it in a WROL scenario.
• Organization: Don't expect criminals to be disorganized come SHTF. Organization might be a matter of the bully herding his followers into following him and doing as he says, it could be gang structure or mafia. During the fall of the Soviet Union, many police and military from former Soviet States sided with gangs and syndicates against Soviet forces & civilians so a paramilitary police structure could be adopted. In prison and jail an informal structure of organization among criminals occurs, in a WROL environment expect it occur as well. It is in fact likely criminals will organize faster then the authorities.

Don't expect mindless and confused "zombies" just because some online "expert" says so. Some criminals might also be prepping and they will likely be gun preppers, with self taught concepts from media and books (old military FMs & TMs included). Sure they aren't professional soldiers but let me ask you (the reader), are you? Sure some people have military training and are preppers but a lot of preppers aren't and don't any training including self-training. Just something to think about...

Online Prepper Myth 2: SHTF & WROL = Do whatever you want...
Just because it is SHTF and there is a without rule of law scenario now doesn't mean you get a free ride to do anything. I had a fellow soldier when I was in the Reserves who was a Virginia State Trooper & was sworn in as a New Orleans police office to help out after Katrina hit. He wasn't par of the gun confiscations and said he'd warn people to hide guns from the police because they were taking guns. I made a comment that if I were in New Orleans and police tried to disarm me, I'd have resisted and would either kill them or get killed by them.

Like was pointed out to me, if I followed that line of thought I'd have faced charges and police after the event was all over. In hind sight, it would have made better sense to stay in contact with people around me by CB or similar mechanism and hide my weapons. Thus the story behind why I suggest this level of thinking over top the grab an gun and defend yourself, You against the WROL world. Eventually some form of stability and government will exist, whether its a local warlord, county sheriff, the city council or FEMA and martial law.

For that matter, that thief you decide to hang in your front yard might have family who take offense to the act. You might have to deal with the friends and family of someone you shoot in self-defense during or after SHTF. You need to consider what your goals are before you tae an action and how to reach those goals with your actions. Sometimes taking the course of action you want to take doesn't produce the results you want.

With or without government to enforce the law, there will still be a reaction for every action and, an action to every reaction. Ideas like staking out looters with signs that read "You Loot we Shoot" might not be a good idea in the long run.

Online Prepping Myth 3: I Need to Be the Gray Man because People will Kill you for Your Gear...
I don't who came up with this but lets be honest here, who do you think is most likely to get robbed for their stuff?

A: This Homeless Guy

No weapons visible, maybe a knife, certainly a dog but he has a Bug-Out Bag.

B: Paramilitary Guy

He has an AK47,side arm and knife; all that tactical gear, even with a backpack/ruck sack (B.O.B.) he still looks like he can defend himself.

C: Hunter/Backpacker

Well he lacks the paramilitary look but he's still armed and able to defend himself.

If your choice was A: You risk being bitten or maybe stabbed, B: You risk being shot or stabbed & C: You risk being shot or stabbed. Criminals chose weak targets for victimization while options B & C might draw attention from authorities but they certainly won't attract criminals. In fact most people period will avoid them, especially B.

But what about the authorities? This is an important question because whether gun grabs like Katina or like what is happening in the Ukraine right you will want to be able to switch from one appearance to another when it suits you. This means concealing you gear. Lets look at deferent WROL cases in the past...

LA Riots 1992:

 

 

 

Watts Riot 1965

This one has some music but footage shows the military used in response to civil unrest, and limited martial law in an area.

Detriot 1967 Riots again more examples of the military used against civilians to quell civil unrest.

Ferguson Riots 2014

Ukraine War 2014-current

Syrian War 2015

Natural Disasters:
After Hurricane Katrina

 

 

People Aming themselves for Self-Defense After Katrina

Hurricane Katrina: Secret Race War

Gun Confiscation & no Police Protection After Hurricane Katrina

Footage Analysis:
In every case different situations projected different responses and different tactics. The police disarmed law abiding citizens who admitted to being armed for self-defense. In the Ukraine both rebels an the military would shoot the Paramilitary Guy and probably the hunter. In the Katrina aftermath a man defended his neighborhood with an old shot gun. In the case of the Secret Race War footage, people who harbored a secret racial fear projected that fear onto people who not a threat. Of course it only made news because it was white on black crime, there were also cases of black neighborhoods where violence was directed against whites. In the LA Riots footage the Koreans defended themselves & their businesses by being armed and presenting a Force Projection.

At night there were reports of gun fire in New Orleans, do you think the people shooting admitted to being armed to the police? You see people left dead in the street in New Orleans who had less then the homeless man pictured above. In each case, the Homeless, Paramilitary & Hunter have certain advantages as a tactic of camouflage and projecting a certain image. Certainly, your choices need to be able to adapt project force or blend in when needed. All of this is to hammer home a point, there is no one size fits all survival strategy. One thing must be accepted, criminals pre on the weak.

Following that logic in a WROL environment, even one with a police presence that only harassed law abiding citizens, you need to be willing to deal with a thinking threat. One which will seek easy prey and one for which you are easy prey. Being gray is effective in some cases and so is force projection.

Tactics are one stage solutions to problems such as ambush, flank or concealment. Strategies are a series of overlapping goals and a tentative plan to reach each goal. If you Prep I want you to consider  how in your area, with your gear, you'd operate going from a post-Katrina environment, to a civil warzone environment (like the Ukraine or Yemen) and finally to Riot scenario and back again. Adapt & Overcome.

21 Foot Rule, Tactical/Speed Reloads & other Internet Expert dumb shit...

The internet is a great source of information but with it comes a great amount of disinformation or misunderstanding information, there by making it a source of disinformation as well. In this we find experts all giving the same tired and often misunderstood advice. Things like the 21 foot which in context are sound are taken out of context as a one stop solution for all Self-Defense scenarios involving a knife. I'll use the 21 foot rule as a example.

The 21 foot run was average range at which an "average person" could run from a dead stop before a police officer could draw his weapon and fire, approximately 1.5 seconds. It is often used as a reference involving concealed carry which is out of context and misleading to those who lack training and experience. Police officers open carry their weapons on their belts and so they actually spend less time drawing their weapons then someone carrying concealed. To shorten that time police officers reach for their weapons reducing their draw time to 1.0 to 0.8 seconds (estimated). So the 21 foot rule is not wrong only often cited in the wrong way... a concealed carry may take longer to draw and as one has to clear clothing, a shirt or coat away from the weapon. So does this mean that if someone is within 22 feet the officer or open carry civilian is some how safe?

No. Which is another misleading element to this being cited by "online experts" the 21 foot rule is a guide to remind officers to keep alert when close to suspects, 21 feet is just an arbitrary number based on the Tueller Drill which spawned the 21 foot rule. Which is simple common sense & highlights the human nature to complicated simple logic, at least in my opinion. Other elements to be considered is that a police officer is trained to use his weapon & the stress of dealing with an attack, which many civilians lack. Making the 21 foot rule irrelevant to many civilians in a self-defense context, as many knife attacks resemble a prison style attack which is a close range ambush style of attack meaning that even if the target where an officer the attack would come within 10 feet and without warning, that is an element of the Tueller Drill and 21 foot rule.

Other Articles that counter the 21 Foot Rule as invalid:
Cop in the Hood: 21 Foot Myth

A Police Officer Analysis of the 21 Foot Rule"
Police Magazine: The "21 Foot Rule Revisited"
PoliceOne.com: Edge Weapon Defense: Is or was the 21 foot Rule Valid? (Part 1)
PoliceOne.com: Edge Weapon Defense Is or was the 21 Foot Rule Valid? (Part 2)

I'll let you decide for yourself on the relevance of the Tueller Drill to your self-defense needs. My opinion is that its overly complicated "research" to tell an officer anyone within 21ft is a potential threat. Considering that most assaults escalate from social conflicts and criminal assaults are surprise attacks within 10 feet of the victim and aggressor, the 21ft rule is pointless and misleading. If I consider you a threat, I won't let you within 50 feet of me and if I do its because I want you there.

Tactical Reloads is another fun claim behind internet expertise. Many times (especially on youtube) I see someone referring to a speed reload as a Tactical Reload. I'm not a fan of speed reloads, except with the AK47, because using the fresh to hit the release tab only makes sense. I don't see this too much but there is a difference between Tactical & Tacti-Cool Mall Ninja Bull Shit. Tactical is a prepared, preplanned response to a threat condition. Tacti-Cool is something that looks cool and is referred to as a tactical but doesn't serve a purpose, tactical always serves a purpose.

What is a tactical reload? A tactical reload is simply replacing a used but not empty magazine or for weapons with internal magazines replacing spent rounds by loading the fresh rounds, during a lull in combat. For example, a fire team engages and defeats an enemy in an ambush turned react to contact. While pulling security for an EPW (enemy prisoner of war) search for survivors and intelligence the security element inserts fresh magazines into their weapons. What is the purpose, remember tactical always has a purpose? The purpose is to have a fresh magazine and in case you have to reengage a threat unexpectedly. If armed with a shotgun, and one shoots an intruder their home, one would load a new shell after pulling the pump to eject the spent shell and pushing to load the next shell before searching the rest of one's home.

If you didn't understand a lot of what I mentioned in my example here is a quick explanation. A fire team is a four to five man military force made up of a team leader, riflemen, grenadier & automatic rifleman with a optional addition of a designated marksmen. With 2 fire teams making up a squad and 4 squads making up a platoon. React to contact is a simple flanking drill where the fire team suppresses the enemy and the rifleman and squad leader flank behind enemy cover to assault the enemy before the automatic  rifleman and grenadier assault through. Though in most cases one fire team will suppress while the other fire team flanks.

The world is full of ideas and the internet is those same ideas, some good and some bad. When it comes to tactical & speed reloads something I learned in the Army comes into play. There is no such thing as a speed reload, just a fast reload. What is a fast reload? Reloading your weapon fast, as in very quickly. This is a matter of a) preparation (all magazines facing the same direction, remember I trained with an M4), b) preparation (being familiar with my weapon, knowing how it cycled and the feel for the controls without looking) & c) Preparation! (training with the weapon, to include stress shooting & correcting a malfunction without looking at the weapon, even tearing it down reassembling it without looking). Course that is a Soldiers level of training & given the choice, I'll take an AR15 style rifle over an AK47 only because I'm more familiar and better trained with that weapon's format. I also grip the magazine well so my support hand is with a finger movement of the magazine release and bolt lock.

Of course, most "tactical experts" sit around trying to find a new way to do the most basic actions, correcting problems that are solved by military men & women with a simple word Preparation. If you think I mean practice, consider that practice is an exercise in preparation. How many times do you practice marksmanship? A lot more then you practice simple reloading and correcting malfunctions, I'll bet. This doesn't even need to involve an AR15 or AK47 style rifle, all this comes down to is that you get out what you put in. Most preppers don't even consider the basic idea that they have to prepare their "tactical gear" beyond just having it. So much so, that many refer the being the "Gray Man" as a cop out for lack of preparation in training. Which brings us to another dumb shit, idea... "Being Gray/Grey."

In an essence the Gray Man is a very basic tactic called camouflage. Lets say we're all evacuating an area due to a hurricane. Its been bumper to bumper traffic for 8 hours and we've only cleared 20 miles. Now Image a family in a truck, stuff cover with a tarp on the back and two guys who were riding on the back of truck refilling their tanks with gas out of a gas can.

Now imagine, the same scenario, same family mom, dad, 2 kids and granddad in the cab but the two guys in the truck bed are armed with tactical vests and AK47s, wearing camouflage. One gets out and refills the tank while the other stands guard with an AK47 and a mean look.

Who do you think a mob of out of gas, panicked and angry people are going to demand gives up their gas? The two tactical-ninja-commando types can just as easily take off the Vests, and hide their weapons under some gear, dawning "Get-Er-Done" & "I hunt White Tail" T-shirts with John Deer Caps to look like any other Good O'l Boy in America to explain the BDU pants. Why because that's camouflage, camouflage isn't a color scheme it any action that lets you go unnoticed. Sometimes, you want to be noticed, sometimes you want to taken as a threat.

Look it is a very simple concept, people love to swim with dolphins but not so much with sharks. Why because sharks are a threat. Criminals prey on the weak, why because they can't/don't defend themselves. Camouflage is a matter of concealing you're presence so that you are seen but go unnoticed. In the woods tis might mean wearing BDUs or similar clothing, earth tones or using mud to break up the solid color of your clothing and hiding your skin tone. In a more urban environment or dealing with authorities it might mean concealing weapons & other gear or blending into a crowd. Terrain dictates tactics and that includes the tactic of camouflage. Camouflage is a tactic but not the only tactic, which makes the "gray man" questionable advice.

If you have no clue as to how misunderstood and misguided information on the internet is, you might be on web forums and scanning blogs for advice and insight. The thing is this, a lot of people just spout the "common themes" and don't consider impact, context or content. In the end its all Internet Expert bullshit, including this blog... why? Because I don't know you and I don't know your situation. I can spout some basic principle or one line themed advice. In fact, I will... learn METT-TC & OKOCA build a custom plan according to your own needs and get outside the box of the common theme, that's what everyone else will be doing.

Being tactical isn't carrying an "Assault Rifle" & wearing a "Tactical Vest." Being tactical is understanding your odds & options; Odds of Success and Failure and, the Options Available. Being tactical is planning, practicing and preparing. Being tactical is having a plan to overcome foreseen obstacles and reach strategic goals. Tactical is not about gear, guns or gimmicks, it is in how you think and how you deal with events. Tactical is a mindset... so be careful of the Internet Expert dumb shit.