OPSEC

            The Prepper community is full of ex-military folk. However, the vast majority of us are normal, everyday kind of people just preparing for speed bumps, big or small. They do tend to adopt the military lingo, though. OPSEC stands for “Operational Security,” which is another term for “loose lips sink ships,” “playing close to the vest” or even “never show all your cards.” In other, don’t tell everyone about your preps.

            This is a difficult idea to get across to people. Here you are, trying desperately to help people understand the need to physically prepare themselves for disasters, great and small, yet you don’t want to go into the specifics of what you have personally done, what you plan to do or even what you know.

            You might be asking yourself, “Why do I have to keep this to myself?” The answer is simple. Right now, times are good, everyone is relatively safe, few bellies are empty and little violence is occurring on the streets. No one cares about your beans, Band-Aids or bullets. However, when the stuff hits the fan, your friends and neighbors, the ones who come to your house for BBQ and feed your dog when you are away, will know where they can get “re-supplied.” I know, "they wouldn’t do that," you’re thinking, but try and put yourself in a more desperate mindset. People get scared and do things they couldn’t imagine doing. So, we keep our preps to ourselves.

            Sadly, people knowing you are a Prepper makes you a target. If you talk about it, you must be doing it. However, they don’t know the extent of your preps. They know you have some food and some water. But they also you have some protection. You could have a weeks’ worth of food or a years' worth. Desperate people are not likely to band together and lay siege to your protected home for a couple of cans of beans, but are much more likely to do so if they know you have a year’s worth of dehydrated food and tons of other survival gear.

            So your best bet is to discuss your own preps very little. We can’t get away from it to a certain degree. People naturally want to see your “stash” when they come over. They want to talk about your weapons and water sources. So, if you are going to discuss it, think carefully first.

Have you ever noticed how the best of friends seem to become the bitterest of enemies at the drop of a hat? An offhand comment or a new boyfriend or some perceived slight can ruin a 20-year friendship over night. Imagine those same people after not eating for a week. Imagine those same people after their kids haven’t eaten for a week. You’d be happy to share, but you can’t do it indefinitely or your kids will be starving soon. What will they do then?

Woe to those they have not observed OPSEC. Can you imagine maps created with the locations of all those people featured on “Doomsday Preppers?” It is a simple thing to do especially if they are located close to your home already.

OPSEC is the word of the day. Unless you have an unlimited supply of resources.