It's a normal Saturday morning. You're trying to feed kids a quick breakfast before trailing off to little league games and bit of shopping. You hear multiple vehicles driving fast down your street and suddenly they come to a stop. You look out your front window to see men with AK47s flooding out the the vehicles. A young mother is pushing her child in stroller directly across the street from your house. The men don't hesitate and gun in down. What do you do?
Having the right gear and equipment for protection is important. Having it ready when you need it is essential. There are too many possible scenarios and "what-ifs" for me to answer here. Additionally, there is no magic checklist or "tactical to-do" list telling us what to do. I hope to give us all something to think about and find ways to individually be better prepared for unexpected threats.
1. Do you have an AR15 type rifle for each potential defender in your home? Now is not the time to hand your spouse or child, who has never trained or wanted anything to do with firearms, an AR and tell them to shoot anyone who comes through the back door. You need to figure that out ahead of time. Each person in your household who is willing, capable and trained to use a firearm for defense should have an AR type rifle readily available along with 3-4 loaded magazines in some type of go-bag or carrier. I would consider this minimal readiness.
2. How fast can you access your rifles and have them ready for use? Having a room full of rifles, but no loaded magazines or method of carrying them will be of little use to you.
3. What else? I don't want to get too carried away here, but here are a few other pieces of kit that would be highly desirable:
- Plate carrier with armor plates. This is also where you'd store your spare mags.
- GMRS/FRS radio for each defender
- Ballistic helmet
- Eye protection
- Combat trauma first aid kit
A Bit Closer to Home
While terrorists attacking your neighborhood is unlikely, a few years ago a friend of mine went through an experience that made him realize he wasn't as ready as he thought. One day, like any other, helicopters came swarming over his house and SWAT teams were descending on his property. Some armed fugitives were believed to be in the area. Suddenly, there was a threat of a few armed and desperate men near his home... possibly on his property. He quickly gathered his family into the house and started handing out guns. He quickly realized he only had a couple loaded magazines. Handguns didn't have holsters stored with them and some of the handguns had no loaded mags. Also, his chest rig and mag pouches were not readily available. He suddenly felt very unprepared... and he had always considered himself to be ready to protect his family. He just hadn't considered something like this happening.
Being Prepared Means Being Ready for the Unexpected
Obviously the goal is to protect your family and those around you. You need to be almost instantly ready. It's the Minuteman concept... ready to fight in less than a minute.
This type of attack is like an active shooter on steroids. The attackers' goal is to simply inflict as much death and terror in the shortest amount of time possible.
The defender has the advantage. You want to take up a defensible position and make them come to you. One or two people fighting back - instantly - can bog down their plans and cause them to re-think what they are doing. A few determined defenders can repel an attack by slowing it down. The attackers are depending on speed and surprise. Once that's lost, they must consider whether to continue the assault - and run the risk of facing off against police response - or fading away to fight another day.
While I admit the Hamas style terror attack is unlikely, I've learned to never say never and try to be ready for everything. It's probably safe to say that up until a few days ago, Israelis did not consider this type of attack to be likely. Prior to 9/11, it seems unthinkable that people would hijack and airplane and fly it into buildings.
Evil people are always scheming of the 'next thing'. They are always trying to plan for what we wouldn't expect. To say, "that would never happen here" is a bit naive. There are no limits to what evil people will go to. Which is why we need good people, who are dangerous, to be that final limit to stop them. People who will say, "Not here. Not today" and start sending effective fire downrange.
Not Here... Not Today!
adult and responsible (I use this term loosely) teenager in your home?