E-Mail 'Making The Hard Decisions Somewhat Easier- Part 2, by Old Bobbert' To A Friend

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1. Hey, today is Sadie Hawkins day, and my wife told me to be aware of other women if I leave the house today!

2. A word on warning time. In the scenarios so far, there has been ample time to analyze the situation and decide to evacuate. But that is not always the case. We watch the news today and see interviews with folks who escaped the California wildfires with just the clothes on their backs. Same for the 2016 Gatlinburg Wildfire. Hundred mile an hour winds spread that fire much faster than the simulations predicted, some two hours vice nineteen hours. The simulation used the maximum wind speed allowed of 60 mph.

   And communications break down due to power outages, downed landlines and overloaded cell towers. Families need multiple methods of communications, cell phone, text, VHF radio, HF radio, etc. Wealthy families might consider satellite phones.

3. I have developed a plan for the family and those who we want to go to our Bug Out Location in the country. My plan covers likely event scenarios and actions to take. It covers pre-event prep, rally point locations, communications, bug-out plans, and security as well as transportation considerations. The plan is in my emergency binder with other emergency items such as a list of items to pack when bugging out, maps, etc.

4. Why the code words? Who do you think is listening and who cares? Simply call and say gather up the bugout stuff and be ready I will pick up the kids and meet you at home. Do you think some of Trump’s Russian agents will listen in and try to stop you? As a counter point: If you are afraid of being found/tracked what are you doing with two way radios and SW transceivers? Just turning them on can lead someone to your location.

   Also I think that the likely scenario isn’t major population centers losing power. The likely scenario is massive fireballs and mushroom shaped explosions on the horizon. That threat has hung over our heads for over 60 years. Given human nature and the avowed goals of our powerful enemies a nuclear holocaust is inevitable and ground zero by it’s very nature has to be the U.S.

5. While there is certainly an element of OPSEC in the use of code words, which may be important if you don’t want to be seen as doing a “duck and run” escape, that is not the only factor supporting their use.

   They serve as a “trigger” to cause the mind to change from practice/planning mode into action mode.

   Without that mindset change, you and your family remain in practice mode, without the clear need to get in gear and Do the things you have planned. With those words spoken, time becomes precious and every action counts. This is why practice is needed, pre-event.

   Once we make the transition to real action mode, having written lists and plans makes it far easier to control/resist the urge to “run about, scream and shout”. Action mode mindset also guides the mind to ignore daily habits and concentrate on implementing your part of the plan.

6. A nuclear event/exchange between nations is a waste of natural resources and infrastructure and an elimination of the future option of nation expanding. More likely I see an EMP event over the USA, let 90% of the population die by various means , then a year later the aggressor nation re-populates the USA as a colony of their own country. Start up the factories, move into our homes and generally live a happy care free life like we used to, LOL. The survivors would be a non-issue.

   1. An EMP attack on the U.S. would in fact be a nuclear attack and would be met with a nuclear response and thus nuclear war.

7. When I read these examples I thought of going to my bank for some serious vacation money. You would have to act fast since most banks do not have much over $5,000 on hand.

   I was on jury duty a few years back and two women had worked in banks and they told me they only had $2,000 on hand unless they knew a customer had pre-arranged X-amount above the typical daily cash operations.

   And just like the currency collapse in Argentina in 2000, one has just a short time to capture your funds.
   To me this would be a priority in the action plan.

8. OneGuy, could you elaborate upon how a two-way radio can lead someone to your location even if you are not transmitting? I am referring to real radios, not blister pack specials.

   Thanks!

   1. Radios themselves emit electro magnetic waves. They are generally only able to be picked up by sensors when they are fairly close to the source.

      1. I have access to the full gamut of HP and Agilent RF testing gear. I’ll have to test a few of my radios to see what frequencies are given off and to what degree.

         1. If it is HP it is ancient. Agilent is old. HP became Agilent which became Keysight some years ago. Old school analog radios use local oscillators which are low level signal sources. Modern synthesized radios also radiate mixing products. With the right detection equipment, every RF source has a unique signature like DNA or fingerprints.

            1. I guess that makes me old as I worked there and helped design two of these units. LOL! Thank Doc. You made my day!

               P.S. RF technology is old too.

9. Average ATM sees 100+ transactions a day. If average withdrawal is $100.00 this is 10K daily. I can go into my local branch and withdraw thousands in cash, no questions asked. Lotsa hype here. My dad was a banker and took me into the vault as a youngster, almost sixty years ago. The vault guy put fifty thousand in my hands just to make me feel rich for one minute. They had bags of coins (all 90% silver!) that must have been over 10K. I work with clients who deposit 2-10 K daily. Banks have little more than 5K on hand? Puhleese!

10. I cashed a check for $7200 and asked for cash at the bank the check was drawn from. They didn’t know me and I wasn’t a customer of theirs. The teller did have to get a supervisor and they had me wait. They did seem less than happy to cash it but the both finally went to the vault while I waited some more. Then they came back and counted it four times on the machine while I waited some more. Then the teller counted it out in front of me by hand with the supervisor watching. I picked up my cash, smiled one last time for the half dozen cameras, said thank you and left.

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