Watching out for Sleeper Cell nonsense

[AJMD429]

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Of course on this forum we all talk about lever guns and other kinds of guns because that's our hobby, but if you think about sleeper cells would be likely to do, I can think of 4 main things if you look at what happens in other countries and happened here so far:

1. Attacking large public places or events, particularly ones symbolically 'American', as the kind of a coup that an enemy would enjoy, (such as we all witnessed on September 11, 2001).

2. Also attacking mundane hometown small places or events because those strike at the heartland and would for more demoralization of ordinary citizens, and would be easy for a 'lone wolf' type person (as in Texas recently).

3. Attacking first responders including law enforcement fire, and hospital and medical facilities, because that multiplies the effect of anything else they do. This has been done some here in the US during riots, but is almost the norm outside the US, (as we saw on October 7, 2023 in Israel).

4. Taking down the power grid, which from everything I read seems like so easy to do I'm surprised they haven't done it yet. That alone could kill millions of people if it was a sustained outage over more than a few days. This has been attempted (I believe in Washington State among others) but not yet on a widespread scale.

So it seems like the prudent thing to do is stay away from big events, be prepared whenever you go to your local stores or small events, and of course if you work as a first responder being extra vigilant and ready to deal with problems.

I always have a tourniquet and eyewash and firearm(s) on my person or within reach, although I really haven worked out a good Expanded First aid Kit and could improve my Get Home Pack in case I had to walk a couple days it would take to get home from work if transportation was messed up.

However - I think anyone wanting to be prepared should have a propane generator and a big ol' farm-sized propane tank.

And the biggie is communication. Terrorism could shut down cell phones semi permanently. Ordinary radios without huge tower antennas cannot communicate very far reliably, plus communication of that sort is not at all private. Ham operators would probably restore repeaters as soon as they could, but using those is very complicated and even though I have a ham license it's beyond my current skill set. It's one thing to encourage family members to carry firearms and first aid kits, or maybe have a generator set, but encouraging them all to get ham licenses and learn to operate complicated programmable radios seems to be nearly impossible.

What other suggestions and considerations do you folks have...???

[mickbr]

I was never a ham operator Doc but my understanding was a home set up as long as you have power can communicate hundreds of miles on HF, and internationally if the conditions are correct, even without major infrastructure intact. Someone more knowledgebale can correct me. I do know the military falls back to HF as needed. Its the most resilient form of communication.

[4t5]

I think CITIZEN BAND radios ( CB’s ) would be good for local transmission .

[Griff]

I think CITIZEN BAND radios ( CB’s ) would be good for local transmission .

CB is good for 5 miles, radius tops with good antennas, except for certain atmospheric conditions, in which your signal can be bounced across country, but is wholly unpredictable, and very uncertain. Those same atmospheric conditions can severely limit that five mile radius.

[Lastmohecken]

A power outage would be one of my highest concerns, but a prolonged one would be very bad. I have a welder generator, that has helped me on several occasions, of a day or two. Although, we were out of power for 11 days a few years ago in the dead of winter before I had the generator. Having a wood stove saved us. But long term, a power outage would cause immense suffering and loss of life for many.

An active shooter I guess, would be one thing that continues to happen, and because of that, I never go hardly anywhere without a full sized service pistol that I can hit at distance with.

But it's all in the Lord's hands in the end.

Having ample supplies is always a good thing. This is one area, where I could be better prepared, although I am far better off than many would be.

[mickbr]

Just googled that CB maximum output for users is usually 4-12 watts. HF is 100watts to 1500 with the right licence.
I believe for any main grid attacks and banking hacks it may not just be external forces doing it but I just deleted my full tin foil rant . Wrong place. Sorry for whoever already read it.

[jeepnik]

Regarding communications. In order of preference, HAM, GMRS, CB, FRS.

A technician license for HAM is pretty easy to get and requires no knowledge of morse. But you do have to study to pass the test as it's got some technical/regulatory issues. Longest range, and there are repeaters that can extend it much further (I won't get into skips and such)

GMRS (General Mobil Radio Service), requires a license, but you literally just have to pay the fee after jumping through a couple of easy to maneuver hoops. These radios can also use repeaters and I personally regularly talk to folks in San Diego from my place in L.A. It's getting popular, but even here in L.A. it's not swamped yet.

CB, Not quite the mess it was a few decades ago, but honestly between range and the garbage being transmitted I would avoid it.

FRS (Family Radio Service), no license required, very short range. Think the cheap walkie talkies you get at walmart.

I have a technicians license for HAM, but mostly I stick to GMRS.

[AJMD429]

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This video looks like it was helpful for those of us who need basics…

https://youtu.be/LrNiZosyAjA

and

https://youtu.be/1Iw9yq5xYug

[piller]

A little preparation goes a long way.

[jeepnik]

youtube videos are okay. But these folks have a really good handle on all thing GMRS with bleed over to FRS, CB and HAM. Some of the posters are waay advanced, but even they generally post at a level normal, non radio nerds, can understand.

https://forums.mygmrs.com/

Oh, by the way, if it's anything other than TEOTWAWKI, you don't need to worry about encryption. In fact for emergencies you don't want encryption as it will inhibit effective communication.