Build Your Team

“A man alone is a target.” – Clint Eastwood

I re-upped my CPR certification over the summer, and one thing our instructor stressed was building a team as a response to a cardiac incident. CPR is exhausting, and unless you have the endurance of a triathlete, you’re going to tire out after 2-3 minutes of chest compressions. Because of this, you need a team. You need someone to take over for you when you get tired. You need someone to set a watch for the second* responders so they know where to go. You need someone to call 911. You need a team. 

This was brought home to me during Hurricane Irma. It was my neighbors who pitched in and put up each other’s hurricane shutters. It was the neighbors who kept an eye on the houses of people who left town instead of riding it out, and it was neighbors who kept watch on the neighborhood afterwards when the power was out and the rows of empty houses made attractive targets for the criminal element. I had a team.

And now we hear about the takeover of an apartment complex in Aurora, Colorado by a rather vicious Venezuelan gang. This didn’t happen in a bubble. We’re not going to talk about the immigration policies that may have facilitated this sort of thing: That’s water under the bridge, and yes, we can look at changing them, but when you’re bleeding out, your high cholesterol gets pushed down on your list of priorities. 

So what can we do? Well, the first thing is obviously follow Farnam’s Rules, and don’t go to stupid places to do stupid things at stupid times with stupid people. I am CERTAIN there are some amazing Caribbean restaurants near that apartment complex, but should you go there? Probably not. 

The second thing is to understand that this sort of thing is the beginning of Gun Culture 3.0. Defending an apartment building is right in line with the “neighborhood protection” idea behind Gun Culture 3.0. Is that a best-case scenario, or something that I might be looking forward to? Oh heck no. I’d like to avoid this at all costs. There are other options besides defending a neighborhood. You can move, or you can acquiesce to the people moving in. Either of those are valid options, depending on your circumstances. Understand, however, that we are in a world where the powers that be might not be there when we need them, or worse still, deny that there’s a problem and leave you on your own. At that point, you better have a team pre-built to help protect what is most dear to you, because those sorts of teams don’t spontaneously create themselves.