Wargaming the Apocalypse: 4 Steps for Being Ready if the SHTF

We would hope that the crash of AT&T services on Thursday 2/22/24 served as a wakeup call or at least as a lesson for the American masses. We are far too reliant on technology that can break down at a moment’s notice. The first cover story for the incident was a solar flare, but that did not stand up to any close scrutiny. Next up was the accidental human error story. AT&T was supposedly conducting a normal, scheduled upgrade and the system collapsed. Oops! 

In Europe, where Washington, D.C. does not control their media, observers are stating that the AT&T outage has all the signs of a cyberattack. In other words they think the system was hacked. Whether you choose to believe that or not, it’s interesting that within the last two weeks we have been treated to multiple reports where US intelligence services have warned about continuous hacking attempts against our communication grid. 

During his now famous press briefing, Richard Jones, the Sheriff of Butler County, Ohio stated that their communication system is attacked multiple times, every day, by foreign computers trying to hack into it. The Sheriff even made the point of asking people to think about how they act when they lose their mobile phone. “Imagine if the whole system went down.” 

Wargaming the American Apocalypse

While I was talking with a couple of people who are smarter than I am about our nationwide communication grid and the threats to it, a friend forwarded an article entitled, “Wargaming the American Apocalypse.” I read it and, for the most part, it jibed with the intel and information that I have been getting for the last couple of years. 

The United States isn’t experiencing illegal Mexican migration, we are being invaded by foreigners from well over 140 different countries. This isn’t an accident or a matter of happenstance. Our nation is being overwhelmed deliberately. In just a few months, major cities have become destabilized to the point of collapse. These invaders aren’t here to pick oranges or mow lawns. The vast majority seem completely disinterested in gainful employment. Even if they wanted to get jobs, where are these jobs supposed to come from? 

We haven’t even addressed the fact that we have no idea what the identities and intentions of tens of thousands of single, military-age males are who have arrived from China, North Africa, and the Middle East. Our inept and corrupt government admits they have no idea who these men are or where they are in our country. 

From top to bottom law enforcement and intelligence agencies nationwide are telling anyone who will listen that it’s not a matter of if America will be hit by terrorism, but when. This also begs the question, where. Thanks to the corrupt Federal government, the where could be any city in America. Your tax dollars were used to transport illegal invaders from coast to coast. Every county in the USA is now a border county.    

Step 1: Acceptance

Just as an alcoholic can’t get help until they admit they have a problem, the first step you must take is acceptance. We have to acknowledge that we have a very serious, potentially deadly problem in the United States and that ignoring it won’t make it go away.

Yes, I know that’s difficult. No one wants to believe that their fellow countrymen have been instrumental in selling out their nation. No one wants to believe that very bad things are coming and that the country you grew up in may disappear forever. Nonetheless, we can’t dispute the facts.

Groceries keep getting more expensive. Utilities and the daily cost of living keep going up, but salaries don’t keep up. Millennials and Gen Z people have all but completely given up on the idea of home ownership.

We have a $34 trillion debt and the government in D.C. is funding two proxy wars; one in Israel and one in Ukraine. Where is that money coming from? Who is going to pay it back?

 

Step 2: Taking Control – Maslow’s Hierarchy

After you have accepted that there is a real problem, the next step is to take control of the things you can. You must decide that you won’t participate in panic buying. If and when the USA is hit by a terror attack or several coordinated attacks, the predictable behavior of the masses will be to run to the stores and engage in panic buying. You need to be prepared in such a way that precludes your participation in a panic buying frenzy. 

 

Consider Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. What do you genuinely need to keep yourself and your family from suffering from thirst and hunger? Far too many people in our society view comforts and desires as needs. You do not need the internet to stay alive and well fed, but you do need clean water, food, shelter, warmth, and security. 

Take a hard look at your cupboards. If you can’t comfortably go a full week without a trip to the grocery store, you’re way behind the eight ball. One month is good, six months is better.

We have numerous examples in modern history of grocery stores being looted in a matter of hours after a natural disaster. Are you willing to bet your family members’ lives on being able to go shopping in the middle of a crisis?       

Step 3: Taking Control – Security

Security naturally entails the possession of defensive tools that can stop one or more attackers. We are a long way from Sam Colt’s “Great Equalizer,” but the sentiment remains the same.

The lesson we can take from the last quarter century is that bad people will always take advantage of a crisis to rob, rape, and murder good people who are disarmed. On October 7, 2023, over 1,200 disarmed Israeli citizens were butchered in the most horrific ways possible because of their government’s gun control policies.  

From a standpoint of physics, handguns are convenient to carry, but they are notoriously poor fight-stoppers. The centerfire rifle and the shotgun are less convenient to tote around, but infinitely more effective as man-stoppers than any handgun will ever be, regardless of caliber. 

One of the major lessons from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the lawlessness in New Orleans was that career criminals are not intimidated by men carrying handguns. Thugs and gangbangers see cops carrying handguns every day and they all have had pistols pointed at them. Many of these criminals have been shot by handguns and survived. 

The same isn’t true with rifles. It was men with black rifles, arriving in the greater New Orleans area who put a stop to days of out-of-control lawlessness. For the thug or the hood, a man with a rifle represents far more of a threat than does a person with a handgun. 

Your home defense arsenal should include at least one serious self-loading, centerfire rifle. You should view this as a close-in fighting tool, not a distance tool.

I shouldn’t have to tell you that you need your defensive tools and ammunition before a crisis or attack occurs. We have all witnessed or seen news stories about fools attempting to run out and buy guns after the riots have begun. In states run by leftist anti-gun governors and blue cities run by “progressive” mayors, the first thing they will do at any sign of trouble is order gun stores to be shut down. 

Step 4: Strengthening Your Mindset

Your most valuable asset when it comes to dealing with the future and trouble on horizon is a strong mindset. It’s a strong, resolute mind that will get you through a prolonged crisis. That being said, there’s no store or online retailer that can sell you a strong mindset. 

Building a fighting mindset, one that can deal with problems quickly and efficiently, one that can withstand hardship and struggle, doesn’t happen overnight. It takes dedicated time and effort. It takes commitment.

For centuries, the armies of the world have prepared their men to face severe hardships and difficulty by putting them through rigorous training. In the Marine Corps we used to say “the more you sweat in peacetime, the less you bleed in war.” 

Training is just as much a benefit to the brain as it is the body. Numerous studies have found that engaging in strenuous activities and forcing yourself to engage in activities that you might not want to do increases the size of the hippocampus in the frontal lobe of the brain. Simply put, the more you train and the more rigorous the training is, the healthier and better capable of making good decisions your brain becomes. 

Training with your firearms allows you to make mistakes on the range and correct them so you don’t make them during a life-or-death situation. Firearms training also gives you a serious reality check regarding your skill level. You might be good or you might not be. Either way, it’s important to know. 

Also, training with arms gives you a very real and genuine sense of confidence in your ability to do what is necessary, at a moment’s notice, during a life-or-death situation. You can’t think that you will probably be able to perform, you need to know, without a doubt, that when called upon to stop a threat, you will have the skill and courage to do just that. 

None of the above can be purchased in a store like bulk food or extra ammo. You can’t stop the flow of invaders into our country or stop the corrupt behavior of corrupt politicians in D.C. You can, however, take control of your life, store essential supplies, and you can strengthen your mindset. 

 

Paul G. Markel is the founder of Student of the Gun University and has been teaching Small Arms & Tactics to military personnel, police officers, and citizens for over three decades. He is the author of numerous books and is a combat decorated United States Marine veteran.