What to do if guns are not allowed?‏

I live in a place where it is impossible to get a gun license.  I have extra strong doors and windows.  I also have 3 dogs, security cameras, lights, and 4 crossbows with laser sights and dear hunting tips on the bolts.  These are 150 lbs pull compound bows and when I tested them on goats they where very effective.  

I fear the dollar will collapse.  My blog is howfiatdies.blogspot.com.

When guns are not an option, what do you recommend?

Thanks much for all your info.  Loved your book and it helped me get into buying gold scrap (see http://gold.ai) which I think will be a good area if paper money fails.

  -- Vince

You’re from Anguilla?!

I had to look that one up, its amazing how the internet interconnects people from some of the most distant places.

Sounds like you are doing pretty well, hope the gold business is working out for you. If you started when I first published my book I can’t see how it could have gone otherwise, gold prices have been going up ever since.

Its no secret that I’ve been wanting to move to US for years now, but apparently unless you cross the border illegally and plan on becoming a leach, sucking tax payer’s money you’re not that welcomed. I understand though, why would you want a self employed tax payer when you can have yet another illegal with ten kids? I’m not quitting yet but without a sponsoring company it wont be possible, so I’m considering other options. At my age and with a young family I’m not yet planning to retire so I’m looking at the first world country options I have left and most of them have banned guns, the idea of self defense simply doesn’t compute with these people. Yet there’s that little problem called reality. You’re walking home and get jumped by a couple guys, explaining to them that assaulting law abiding citizens isn’t legal wont make them disappear in thin air as if by ban magic, you still have to defend yourself. What to do in a country where the right to preserve your own life has been banned?

First of all, get to know the law and both carry and keep at home the best tools such law allows. A weapon is anything that increases your potentiality for defense and attack, so that includes a gun, knife, pen or brick. You can’t carry anything at all? Even a thin metal Cross pen can be used to cause serious damage if needed to defend yourself.

Divide this into two categories: what you’ll have with you at all times, and what stays in your house for home defense. This may not sound like much of a big deal when you can’t own firearms, but it gives a new sense of purpose to it, you will practice with what tools you have available and your brain will react according to it.

For home defense it sounds like you have what you can within your means. I wouldn’t want to depend on crossbows but its better than nothing. Don’t underestimate the usefulness of a large cook knife. Effective with some training, legal all over the world and it wont run out of ammo. These you will keep at home and learn how to use. 

 

UK Penknife. Non-locking, under 3", legal to carry in UK

When it comes to tools for defense that will be carried, that will depend on your own laws. A locking blade is preferable but sometimes its not legal. If nothing else, a metal pen can be used as a stabbing object. In this case you will depend heavily on training so as to use the improvised weapon to its full potential. Its important here to understand what you can and what you can’t carry. If for example you only have a metal pen available, then your training will mostly revolve around quick stabs. If you can legally carry a locking knife, they you can combine that with slashing. If the knife you have does not lock, then in a desperate situation you will use it for slashing but knowing it can close over your fingers at any time.

Hope that helps a bit, take care!

FerFAL

Taurus Judge?

Angie said...

Has anyone heard of The Judge by Taurus? It is a revolver that shoots .410 shotgun shells. Seems like it would be an ultimate home defense weapon where penetration is a concern.

November 15, 2010 1:40 PM

Hi Angie,

I do not recommend The Judge, not by a long shot, and specially not loaded with .410 shells.

First, 410 shells simply don’t pack enough punch for serious self defense, no matter where you shoot your attacker. Lacks both the require energy and penetration. Unless you plan to shoot snakes or to use it as a fun gun, stay away from it.

With 45 Colt you have better ballistics, but you still have much better options out there than a 45 Colt out of a Taurus.

Ultimate Home Defense gun? No, not by a long shot.

Second, you’re talking about Taurus. I’ve owned three of them, they’ve all failed me after little use. You see them in gun magazines, Taurus spends a lot of money on marketing and publicity, yet how many law enforcement officers or professional shooters pack Taurus for serious social encounters? Not anyone that can help it. Taurus revolvers and pistols simply aren’t as good as other brands. Glock, Sig, Springfield, S&W, CZ, Ruger, stick to those brands.

If you are concerned about over penetration, there’s specialty ammo for that like Glaser Safety Slugs. These may be preferably in small condos with thin dry walls. Other than that, use quality JHP ammunition.

FerFAL

AK type IZHMASH SAIGA‏

Hello Fernando

I am one of the first readers of your book and a daily reader of your blog, and I think you are doing a really great job.

Myself (and I hope  many of your readers ), would be very  interested on your opinion about AK type  IZHMASH SAIGA 12 shotgun , since you have a lot of experience about firearms.

Do you think that in a post SHTF scenario it would be more reliable  for home defense  than usual shotguns  as the manufacturer claims ?. I have tried it and I am really impressed.

Thank you and wish you all the best.

Leo

Hi Leo, thanks for being there and reading both my book and my blog.

I shot one in 20ga. a few weeks ago, took a photo with my phone. (sorry, they stole the light bulb at the range and I had to use my flashlight for illumination):

 It handles nicely and I’d prefer it over a conventional shotgun, pump or semi auto. It doesn’t get more reliable than AK when it comes to semi auto long arms.

On the good side, its an AK type shotgun which is good. It fires 12 ga so the ammo is plentiful and lots to choose from. On the other hand you don’t have the effective range and accuracy of an AK rifle. You also have less capacity. Magazines aren’t as cheap and readily available as ordinary AK mags.

Basically, the way I see it, yes, it’s a fine defensive gun. Specially if you have concerns regarding over penetration in you location, I see the point.

As a SHTF guns, involving more serious confrontations, involving situations where the added penetration wouldn’t be a problem but a bonus, where I want more ammo, better accuracy at longer ranges, in that case I’d go for a traditional AK rifle in 7.62x39mm.

Unless you plan to use it in close quarters where you are concerned about over penetration, go with the AK rifle. If not, then get a Saiga in this configuration, folding stock and pistol grip for better close quarter maneuverability. 

Hope that answered the question, take care!

FerFAL

Surviving Inflation

The most common topic in the email I receive daily is inflation. I’d say 60% of the emails I get revolve around inflation, the other 30% is security and the remaining 10% about various survival related topics. Crime is probably the main concern in Argentina, with inflation in a very close second place, but you must understand that its been almost 10 years now since our economy collapsed and things have… lets just say, “evolved” into a new reality for us. For several years after the 2001 collapse, here as well, inflation was the main topic, the greatest concern people had. I find this to be interesting in many ways.
First, it clearly shows a growing concern about inflation in USA, and there’s good reasons for that. If you didn’t notice the inflation you just aren’t looking well enough.
This email is a good example, and I’ve received others mentioning the same trick being pulled:

You mentioned to watch for the downsizing of packaging at the grocery. Here in Nashville Tennessee I picked up a bag of sugar along with 70 some odd cans of fruit and vegetables. When I got it home I noticed that it was a 4 LB. bag. Normally these are sold as 5 LB bags.

Robert Nashville TN

That’s where you see what’s really going on, in spite of the official numbers. Statistics don’t mean much if the books are cooked. Why would I bother reading “The Washington Post” or “Wall Street Journal”, when the source used for their articles states source: INDEC. INDEC being in the hands of the Kirchners, who fired the people that did things right long ago, replacing them with pals that simply LIE about the economy. You can lie about lots of things, but you cannot LIE about data recollection, it’s a fatal mistake. You’re not only lying to the people, which should be bad enough, you’re also lying to yourself, destroying the opportunity of knowing what’s really going on with the economy as well as any chance of fixing it.

Information such as the one below, it gives you an idea of how bad things are, but at least in Argentina, we know for a fact that the official inflation is often half, one third or worse than the inflation indicated by private consultants. Keep this on for a few years, and there’s no records, no solid data left to work with to find a solution.

Hello Ferfal,

I just stumbled across this online inflation tracking tool, and I thought you might find it interesting.

Argentina is MUCH worse than the rest of the world! At least for now....

http://bpp.mit.edu/


Keep up the good work!

A-

When you check private sources like the one below, it gets scary and you understand why Argentina will devaluate soon, it must devaluate before the next elections. The graphic shows true inflationary prices per day, week and year. True Inflation in Argentina since 2008 according to MIT ? 100%
Check it out:
http://www.inflacionverdadera.com/

What it all comes down to is prices going up, and you can get by without changing the car that year or buying a new Laptop, but there’s still basic necessities prices and that’s where things get ugly fast:

CapnRick said...
As an Argentine resident with a dollar income accessed via ATMs, I can speak to my own personal experience with the dollar's problems in the international market.

The dollar has done very well against the Arg. peso... a 30% change in the dollar's favor since I moved here in 2008. However, the actual cost of things here in dollar terms have gone thru the roof over the last two years. I have no idea how families like FerFAL's with peso income manage.

Today, I walked out of the Toledo grocery chain store near my home without buying anything. The cold cuts I used to buy for 25 pesos have DOUBLED IN PRICE in the last 2 months. Whole chickens doubled in price about a year ago... but, their price went up 20% in the last few days (5 pesos a kilo 1n 2008... 10 pesos a kilo last week, and 12 pesos today). In dollar terms... 1.65/kilo in 2008, 2.50 a kilo last week and 3.00 a kilo today.

In terms my hungry tummy will understand, I can buy 45 pct less chicken as a year ago with my income staying the same. Damn.

Suerte -CapnRick
November 11, 2010 1:53 PM

Thanks Rick for the comment. (By the way, looking forward to seeing you guys this summer!)
This is a good example of daily life with rampant inflation. You just never know what the following day holds.
Yesterday for example, I went to Coto supermarket to buy groceries, cleaning products, etc. I didn’t buy anything fancy just, food and other house supplies. The toped off cart (small cart by US standards, not one of those big ones) ended up costing 1600 pesos. That’s 410 USD for pasta, cookies, vegetable oil, some frozen vegetables, milk and other dairy products. In January, a 120 gr. can of tuna, small one, cost 6 pesos. Yesterday I paid 10 pesos for it, about 2.5 USD for a tiny can of tuna.

The shopping cart inflation index is the most brutal one. They can say whatever they want on the news and in their financial reports, but when your money keeps buying less and less stuff, that’s what really matters. Its’ no mystery that today, with the same amount of money you used to top it off, you only fill the shopping cart half way through. That’s the explanation for the all too common Argentine joke whenever our president rambles about how great our economy is doing: “Its nice to know the Argentine economy is doing so well, too bad though that we don’t see any of that”.

FerFAL

Home Security Question‏

Hi Ferfal,

 

LOVE the blog, thanks for having it.

 

I have a question on home security. Right now in the US having bars

on the windows in suburbia land will instantly label you the local nut

job. So I'm trying to be creative. What do you think of using

bouganvillia and firethorn bushes instead? I just bought some to put

under the windows and to start growing along the privacy fences.

 

In your experience, are they as effective as bars or at least a good

enough substitute?

 

Also, are you neighbors close to you? My neighbors can easily see

over the fence and see the gardens I'm building. My thought is to go

the extra step of really bonding with them, offering to teach them

gardening, etc. I figure it's better to make friends than worry about

them as well. Again, thoughts?

 

Thanks again for providing real world experience to refer to vs. the

zombie biker gangs!

 
Tina

Hi Tina,

Yes, my neighbors are close. That’s the way it is in Buenos Aires where houses are directly one next to the other and the garden are usually upfront and in the back yard. This isn’t very nice but the truth is that it is much safer and makes sense from a strategic point of view, forming a ring around the block. Kids can play safely in the back yards of the different houses. Of course, you guys don’t have this kind of crime problem, at least not spread all over the country.

The thorny plants under the window works but not nearly as good as actual burglar bars. Burglar bars can be made so as to look a bit (just a bit) less nutty when they are well designed. For example white, horizontal ones  tend to look ok in modern houses. Black ones with a bit more detail (iron artist pieces can sometimes be soldered into them) look well in traditional homes. 

The plants are better than nothing, but burglar bars they are not. Now on the other hand, thorny plants placed all along the perimeter fence and allowed to grow to a nice thickness, THAT I know to work better. You need both a couple feet worth of thickness and 5 to 6 feet high. No need to let it grow wild. Properly kept and trimmed natural barriers tend to get stronger, ticker and do the intended role very well.

On the meantime while these grow along you privacy fence, plant those under the windows as you said. Every little bit helps.

Another trick you might use is using crushed stone for the patios and paths around the house’s perimeter. These make a good amount of noise when people walk on them and this work well when combined with dogs that have a keen sense of haring. Obviously it makes it more likely to be detected by people as well. Combine this with motion sensing lights and the intruder will feel pretty exposed; making noise with each step, a light going on as he approaches.

Just a few tips to keep in mind, thanks for your email!

FerFAL