Prepper Recon

Prepping for Riots

Diversion and Division

How do you prep for a riot? Well, thanks  to the diversion and division tactics employed by the main stream media, this is something many people are asking themselves right now. If you are on the right or the left or even consider yourself a centrist, your favorite mainstream news outlet has ignored a complete revolution in Egypt, continued riots in Turkey and the fact that the government is watching your every move. Instead, we have gotten minute by minute coverage of the Zimmerman trial. It is possible that the primary reason for the coverage is to divert your attention away from the real troubles of the world. It is also possible that the purpose of the continuous coverage is to incite racial division among us so that we are not paying attention to the true enemies. If we are squabbling among ourselves, we need the government to step in and mediate. This gives them the opportunity to step in as the knight in shining armor as they steal away our rights and convince us it is for our own good. After all, can we be trusted with freedom?

Practical Steps

That is the end of the rant, now for some practical steps. If the media is successful at triggering riots to give them something to cover, most of the preparations will be similar to preparing for a hurricane or severe snow storm. In the event of an outbreak of riots, the best place to be is in your house. You should always have enough food and water that you do not have to leave your home for several days. There is a slim possibility of power outages due to fires that may take out near by transformers or power reduction stations. Because of that, make sure you have some long term storage food that doesn’t require refrigeration.

Use Your Head

Your number one tool to survive a riot outbreak is common  sense. Yes, I realize it is not that common. Using your noodle will entail maintaining a high level of situational awareness. As with anytime there is a lot of electricity in the air over a subject, make note of when the verdict is set to come out on the Zimmerman trial. The day the verdict is expected, try to not schedule any extra circular activities. Plan to come straight home after work  and stay there until you know the coast is clear. Once the verdict is issued, keep a close eye on news aggregate sites like The Liberty Mill and Drudge Report. If something happens, those sites will show it in the headlines before anyone else. If there are incidents popping up in other cities, this increases the chances something will happen in your city.

Monitor Police Radio on Your Phone

A great tool for situation awareness is the police scanner for your home computer. Broadcastify.com will allow you to select your region to listen in. It will allow you to listen to the police radios in your area. If there is wide spread rioting, they will be discussing it there. You should also download a list of the 10 codes used in your area as well. 10 codes are cryptic, and you will need a list to decipher what incidents are taking place. Yes, there is an app for that! The Google play store has an app called Scanner Radio that uses Broadcastify.com for your smart phone. iFolks, you are on your own. I am sure you will find a similar app. This may allow you to know if there is trouble between you and home if you are at work when it hits the fan.

Have a Means of Defending Yourself and Your Property

Security is a big issue in a riot. If you are just now waking up to the need for a weapon and have no idea what to get,  a pump action shotgun is going to be the easiest thing to find and they are generally fairly affordable. Ammunition is also quite easy to find. The Mossberg 500 can be purchased for around $300. Shotguns tend to be available even in extremely liberal areas where handguns are more restricted. If you do elect to purchase a handgun, keep in mind that you may have a wait period, depending on where you live. It is possible that the verdict will be given before the wait period will allow you to access your hand gun.

Bugging Out

Bugging out only makes sense when you absolutely have to. If you are in the direct path of the riot or there is a fire threatening your neighborhood, you have to go. Otherwise, you risk getting stuck on the road in an even more volatile situation than the one you left. Of course there is always that possibility. To be ready to go, you should get together a bug out bag that has a few essential items. It should have cash, a change of clothes, snacks, water, and a first aid kit. You should also have all of your essential documents on a flash drive. Make sure you fill up your tank the day before the verdict is expected. For a more complete list of things to keep in a bug out bag read the Prepper Recon Bug Out Bag Guide.

Take Care of Each Other

Pray that cooler heads will prevail and all of your riot preps are just a good investment in preparedness. We have seen a lot of tension all around the world lately, and these things do have the potential to get out of control. Also communicate with your family to be hyper-aware of their surroundings over the coming days and keep communication lines open. If you are new to prepping or would like to learn more about how to prepare for tough times, please read our 7 Step Preparedness Plan.

Happy Prepping and Be Safe!

MDG