Arm Thy Neighbor, by Matt Bracken

If you don’t presently own any firearms, you may have been considering taking that step in order to protect yourself and your family. Or perhaps you already have what you consider to be an adequate home armory, but is it really enough? In the event that our economy tanks, one certain outcome will be much higher levels of criminal violence. Read Fernando Aguirre’s excellent “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse,” based on his experiences in Argentina after 2001, to see what happens to civil society when a national currency collapses and the banks are closed. Today’s career criminals will be that much more desperate and willing to use violence against their victims. The feral youths who need little encouragement to bust heads for sport in times of relative plenty may be starving, and no moral consideration will keep them from sticking a gun in your face or a knife in your back.

At the same time, the federal government may define this surge of criminal violence as civil disorder and enact emergency decrees, especially if armed citizens begin to fight back on a wide scale. One need look no further than the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to see how officials react toward ordinary people with firearms during a period of civil disorder. A freeze on gun sales and/or ammunition is a predictable outcome during government-defined “emergencies.”

Most of the readers of this column probably don’t need to be convinced of the wisdom of owning and practicing with firearms. You may even believe that you already possess all of the guns you need, whether a .38 caliber revolver in your bedside table or a small battery of handguns, shotguns and rifles in your closet or gun safe. You may even own one or more of those liberally despised so-called assault rifles. In any of these cases you may think you don’t need to consider any more gun purchases.

There is, however, one reason to purchase at least a few more weapons: to arm thy neighbors. I can hear you saying, “What is Bracken talking about? If that foolish grasshopper of a neighbor didn’t bother about his security when guns were readily available, why should I worry about him now? Besides, he may even be an anti-gun liberal, so the hell with him!”

This reasoning is short-sighted on several levels. First, we have all heard the old saying that “a conservative is a liberal who has been mugged.” When violence explodes during an economic collapse, millions of new conservatives will be created from former left-wingers. And besides philosophically anti-gun liberals, many folks simply grow up in families where guns are not present and reach adulthood having never touched a firearm. But no matter why they don’t own firearms, when the ultra-violence breaks out your neighbors down the street will deserve a way to defend themselves from criminal predation. Simple charity, Christian or otherwise, suggests that we should not leave the elderly couple, the widow or the single mom with young children defenseless against evildoers bent on rape, robbery or murder.

When the incidence of home invasions, carjackings and “express kidnappings” skyrockets, some of your neighbors will discover a sudden interest in acquiring firearms, just when firearms may not be available through normal channels. These unarmed neighbors may then ask if you have any extra firearms to lend to them. Which one of your carefully considered collection of guns will you hand over to arm your defenseless neighbor? Your high-end “concealed carry” pistol, which fits your hand like a glove? Your wife’s? Your pump-action shotgun? Your AR-15 Sport Utility Rifle? The fact is, you will be loath to give away any of them, not even to a neighbor in need. You have acquired each of them for a carefully thought-out reason! But your neighbor is still defenseless.

That is why I encourage you to buy a few extra firearms in anticipation of this future need. I would suggest that a revolver is the simplest entry-level firearm to provide to a non-shooting neighbor. There are no magazines, safety catches or slides to learn to manipulate. You simply open the cylinder, insert the bullets, close the cylinder and the revolver is ready to go. A revolver has the shortest “learning curve” of any firearm. Anyone can learn basic gun safety and effective close-range self-defense with a revolver in one afternoon. In dire extremes you could hand a revolver to a non-shooter after a five-minute period of instruction and dry-firing. Revolvers are intuitive; you can even see if they are loaded or unloaded simply by looking at the cylinder.

Of course, a much greater level of firearms training is highly desirable if there is time for it. If possible, take your non-shooting neighbor to a gun range now, in advance of a period of “civil unrest.” Training a non-shooter in the safe operation of firearms also shows your own overall knowledge of security issues. This demonstrated firearms proficiency will stand you in good stead when your leadership skills and tactical knowledge may benefit your overall neighborhood security posture.

Beyond the simple morality of providing a means of self-defense against criminal violence, there is another reason to be prepared to arm thy neighbors: the force multiplying synergy of multiple fields of fire. Recall the old cowboy movies when the gang of black hats rode into a town where the citizens were forewarned and prepared. As an historical example, consider what happened to the vaunted James Gang on the Northfield Minnesota Raid when they lost the element of surprise. Only Frank and Jesse escaped unhurt. The rest of the armed gang were killed by the townsfolk or captured shortly after, badly wounded.

An armed and alert neighborhood is a very dangerous environment for criminals. In a time of rampant violence, with the ever-present threat of home invasions, more armed neighbors mean more angles of fire for the criminals to confront. Instead of focusing their evil intent on a single home, selecting one sheep in a helpless flock, they will be threatened by fire from many directions and their retreat may be cut off. This compounds their risk compared to attacking a neighborhood where most folks are unarmed and cringing in corners, praying to remain unmolested.

Of course, it is best if your neighbors have all received a high level of firearms training. Otherwise, the risk of a “friendly fire” accident while repelling an armed gang with shots from multiple directions is increased. And of course, you should not provide a firearm to a drunk, a druggie, or a mentally unstable neighbor for obvious reasons. But the danger of living in an unarmed neighborhood is even greater, because such an area is a magnet for repeated violent criminal attacks.

The best outcome would be to leverage your training of individuals in safe firearms usage into general neighborhood self-defense drills. Then if the “James Gang” rides in…they won’t necessarily ride out! Word will get around, and your neighborhood will achieve an aura of armed strength that deters future criminal incursions. Consider why tiny Switzerland has never been invaded by its much more powerful and often bellicose neighbors. It’s not because of the Alps. It’s because the Swiss have a strong tradition of armed self-defense at every level. Both invading armies and criminal gangs go around “hard targets” that are known to shoot back!

If nothing else, from a strictly selfish standpoint, the humble .38 revolver you lent to that widow might provide you with a critical early warning of imminent danger when she fires it in self-defense. Forewarned is forearmed, even if the warning is a rapid series of pistol shots heard from up the street at oh-dark-thirty. But in any case, I would rather hear the widow’s defiant shots than her helpless screams.

So, consider buying a few extra firearms and ammunition while you can easily and inexpensively do so. A used revolver in good working condition can be purchased for as little as $250, a used pump-action shotgun for not much more. And if you don’t know what an SKS rifle is or what they cost, find out.

Then you will have the option of arming your neighbors in a time of extreme peril, without diminishing your own family armory.


Matthew Bracken was born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1957, and attended the University of Virginia, where he received a BA in Russian Studies and was commissioned as a naval officer in 1979. Later in that year he graduated from Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training, and in 1983 he led a Naval Special Warfare detachment to Beirut, Lebanon. Since then he’s been a welder, boat builder, charter captain, ocean sailor, essayist and novelist. He lives in North Florida.

 Links to many of Matt’s short stories and essays may be found at EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.comalong with excerpts from his five novels: the Enemies Foreign and Domestic series, Castigo Cay and The Cliffs of Zerhoun. His essays and short stories can be found in “The Bracken Collection: Essays and Short Fiction 2010 to 2019”. All of his short stories and essays may be reproduced on the internet, in part or in whole, as long as proper attribution is given, and they are not sold for profit without the permission of the author.

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22 Comments

  1. Matt in Oklahoma August 4, 2019 at 08:51

    Thought about this long and hard and I couldn’t disagree with you more on this article except on the point of having extra firearms for certain people.
    Members of my team might need them if theirs goes down, they get cut off from theirs or battlefield loss.
    Other than that I disagree.
    There will be no great awakening of the warrior in the sheeple. For the few that do they are not my responsibility.
    In my area every single household has a firearm anyway except one. There is a reason for that. We already live that way. Why anyone would choose to live differently is beyond me. Why would I not surround myself with people who don’t have the same basic beliefs?
    The elderly? My mom is 76 and mother-in-law is up there too and both carry. Age in both directions is not a reason you don’t own a weapon in your house especially today in America with our Ruger LCR, S&W EZ, Snake Charmer 410, Cricket 22 and so on.
    Fixed income price points =High Point.
    In Mexico it has taken generations to finally arm themselves and fight back in towns and that movement is small. In Venezuela they chose to be subjects and disarm. In the Balkans they would step over AKs and walk on by living the struggle because of mindset.
    I’ll not live in a state or place that is of the mindset, beliefs and values as these countries where you think it’s my responsibility to arm them when times get bad.
    No Sir because that type of thinking got us here. They go play and when it gets bad “someone” will take care of them. Yeah they will get taken care of alright. That $300 plus ammo SKS money will go a long ways to food put back to feed my grandkids who will be guarded with the true love of a rifle and quality people not the fake love of a Seadoo and sheeple. I suppose next I’m to feed them sheeple too so they are alive to shoot my gun.

  2. Anonymous August 4, 2019 at 09:51

    5

  3. Bryce Sharper August 4, 2019 at 10:29

    5

  4. Survivormann99 August 4, 2019 at 10:43

    There is a wide range of situations for which those who are interested in preparedness are concerned. On one end, some prepare for dealing with the aftermath of a hurricane where they might be on their own for a week, for example. On the other end, some prepare for a Mad Max World where it’s dog-eat-dog with no likelihood that law and order will be restored for weeks, months, or even years.

    I’ve seen this issue addressed before. Some will always contend that it is dangerous for you to hand out firearms or to barter ammunition because a neighbor who receives the gun or ammunition will be able to use them on you. I see this possibility as being likely in only the most extreme dystopian circumstances. After all, he’s still likely to be living in the neighborhood, and he will have to contend with the other neighbors with regard to his bad behavior.

    Others caution about handing firearms out to those who aren’t familiar with their use. Obviously, at least some instruction would be required under all circumstances but, in a Mad Max World, I would rather have an 80-year-old widow blasting away at a feral male and missing, than to have the feral male able to solely focus on me. The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid is an excellent example. A cacophony of rounds from AR15s–joined by those from revolvers or bolt action Moisin-Nagants from different locations–will have a way spoiling the concentration of two-legged predators. No rational person in the midst of a shitstorm like that will say to his buddy, “Ignore them. Most of these people couldn’t hit the broadside of a barn from inside the barn.”

    The more guns there are in the neighborhood, the less likely it will be that the neighborhood is regarded by predators as being the low hanging fruit. If nature tells us anything, it is that hard targets are usually the last ones on predators’ list, whether the predators are the four-legged or two-legged type.

  5. NOG August 4, 2019 at 11:37

    Matt the Okie, I think you missed his point. He is not saying you will supply a platoon of new warriors. He is not saying feed your county. What I think he is saying is….. I have a neighbor. He is a very good man. Helps me around my place, I have helped him around his. He does not have a gun due to severe money problems. Most months he does not have enough to make ends meet but he raises a large garden and goes fishing often for food. I can trust him. I have a rifle and a revolver put aside for him IF needed. He had a 30/30 but had to sell it for heart meds. I bought one just like it. He will be a safety net on the west side of my place. He has gardening skills far beyond mine. I have extra food put away if he needs it. His friendship has earned him my help. Now on the other hand, the druggies down the road? Nope. Just be selective, use common sense and you can have a bigger tribe to protect your turf. The bigger your group, the less likely you will have a problem. The average feral gang won’t have perhaps more than 6-10 members, just due to logistics. Those animals won’t want to take on 20 armed. They will move on to the druggies down the road. I just won’t blame the sheeple. Most have been indoctrinated in public schools from childhood. They just cannot think for themselves. When SHTF, SOME will wake up. Those are worth adding to your tribe. The rest? You cannot save everybody.

  6. vyt1az August 4, 2019 at 12:54

    I think it’s important to have some sympathy for people that have procrastinated with arming themselves due to being in tough situations or simply having normalcy bias. I was one of those people at one time. I was lucky to have one family member teaching me to shoot a .22 once or twice as little kid. Most of my family didn’t have firearms and never even thought about them. It took a very scary event as a young adult to get me serious about being armed, and I had that tiny bit of training to get me past the safety concerns.

    I only have a small handful of people in mind with some of my “extras.” People who have a pistol but are too poor to buy a rifle. In another case, the husband likes shooting, but the wife would go ballistic (pun intended) if the husband had a gun because of ignorance of firearms and having little kids around. I’m pretty sure she’d change her mind in a bad situation.

    With all that being said, 99% of people that are around me are people that I don’t know enough about to actually trust. That’s the biggest issue in all of this for me. Populations are so transient that you never really know people well enough to consider arming them. If you arm a person that you _think_ you trust, they may turn on you, dime you out to an unfriendly group, etc.

    How do you know who you can trust?

    I’ve heard a few people on the left at work talk about if the SHTF, they’d go find someone with all the guns and hunker down with them. Nice fantastical thinking that is…

  7. James August 4, 2019 at 13:15

    I know someone who has a neighbor he gets along with,shoots with and learns from due to neighbor being in military and having combat experience.Said neighbor on a tight budget with family but gets by,that said,affording ammo a rarity thus his neighbor keeps him supplied to a degree and gets some decent training in return.I see no problem with helping a neighbor in these types of situations,but,learn to work together now if you can so things go very wrong you already have time working together building skills and trust.

    Given the recent events the old standby BLOAT also comes to mind.

  8. anonymous August 5, 2019 at 07:06

    Also consider the single shot break open shotgun. Extremely simple to operate and use safely. Many ‘social encounters’ will be after dark and a shotgun will be effective with the shorter ranges. I’d select the 20 gauge, as recoil in these is pretty stout as it is and 20 ammunition is just about as common as 12 gauge. You can find these in pawn shops very commonly. Not commonly regulated like ‘Black Guns’, ‘Handguns’, etc.

    BTW, stocking buckshot 5 shot packs would be smart, good barter or materials to be handed to neighbors who only have a box of bird shot for their guns. 2nd to a rimfire rifle is a shotgun of some sort in a household.

  9. brunop August 5, 2019 at 22:17

    This is one of those topics that reveals a *lot* about the person who chooses to respond one way or the other. If you don’t want to help the neighbor, you’re probably the guy that the neighbor doesn’t want to help. Not necessarily a problem, but each ‘way’ has its pros and cons.

    I consider the point made by Selco (shtfschool.com): [rough paraphrase coming…] “I would never consider additional people to be ‘more mouths to feed’, but rather ‘more people to help defend’ – because that is your biggest problem.”

    I wouldn’t arm the neighborhood, but I’d help arm good people near my house. I’m already planning on delivering bread on a regular basis to houses on the edges…

  10. Paul August 6, 2019 at 02:21

    All of this presupposes that power and drinking water still exists in cities and towns. If not, none of this will matter. If food and water are not issues, then you might think of arming the good neighbor. Remember that a hungry/thirsty neighbor is a BAD neighbor. And a neighbor that knows you are well-stocked might conclude that YOU are eating HIS food. Use extreme caution!

    All my neighbors are already armed and stocked, have wells, alternative power, live stock, etc. We’re not in the city! We have no homeless shelter, protests, and everyone knows which bathroom to use.

    Good luck!

  11. tropicthunder81 August 6, 2019 at 02:27

    We have extras for young fam who shoot but can’t afford to buy. Nothing for neighbors. Anyone that doesn’t already know how to use a gun will be a liability and a concern for many reasons.

  12. Montana Guy August 6, 2019 at 13:57

    Great article on why NOW is the time to CHOOSE your neighbors. Survivormann99 is correct that much depends on the situation, which can be fluid. If you think your situation will develop into Mad Max pick your tribe and plan on being equals and going down as a group if necessary. You can not have both ‘Feds’ and ‘Starvings’, or both ‘Defended’ and ‘Undefended’. So ‘YES’, resources must me shared amongst tribal members.

  13. […] Arm Thy Neighbor, by Matt Bracken […]

  14. greek01 August 7, 2019 at 16:08

    Matthew 25: 1-13

  15. Matt in Oklahoma August 7, 2019 at 16:40

    If they are all that to you then why not help him now and give them the gun, ammo, training or at least take them shooting right now?
    Why wait till SHTF?
    I think y’all missed my point. I’ll not help those who refuse to help themselves now but I will help you now. Come SHTF it’s not gonna happen.
    I’ve been around the world enough to know this “community” stuff is bunk. I’ve seen what folks do to one another and it ain’t “community”.
    I guess we are just gonna have to disagree on this one but that’s gonna happen from time to time. We got bigger problems coming our way soon.

  16. Jim22 August 7, 2019 at 18:00

    If you decide to do this DO NOT discuss it with your neighbor(s) ahead of time. Instead make your plans, do your purchasing, and set the extra stuff aside. If you have a neighbor you can trust today you may still trust him when times get spicy. But you may learn otherwise. If gun confiscation or the like come along it would be better that only you know what you have. Remove NRA and other stickers from your vehicle. If the powers decide to come down hard on gun owners they may offer prizes for information about neighbors who have guns. Those prizes could come in many forms. Money, food, access, or others. OPSEC is important. Practice it.

  17. […] At the same time, the federal government may define this surge of criminal violence as civil disorder and enact emergency decrees, especially if armed citizens begin to fight back on a wide scale. One need look no further than the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to see how officials react toward ordinary people with firearms during a period of civil disorder. A freeze on gun sales and/or ammunition is a predictable outcome during government-defined “emergencies.”MORE […]

  18. Bill Garrison August 8, 2019 at 10:47

    My house is a 2-story on top of a hill. I have a great view of everything around me, but to secure it properly will take 4 people and at 2 shifts will mean I need 8 people. This means I will need to bring in some more folks to provide a secure environment for us all. A .22LR semi-automatic rifle is easy to shoot, not too loud and has no kick. Just about anyone can learn to shoot it quickly, even a 6 year old (under supervision). A 25 rd magazine can be used as suppressing fire and will certainly make the bad guys take cover until someone with a more powerful weapon gets on site.

    Now is the time to start talking to neighbors about a community defense for the coming breakdown of society. Make plans, deciding on which houses will become the fortresses we will defend, who will go where and what needs to be stored in the way of food, water and fuel. Remember the 5 P’s

    Planning
    Prevents
    Piss
    Poor
    Performance

  19. Anonymous August 8, 2019 at 14:32

    4.5

  20. […] Arm Thy Neighbor, by Matt Bracken […]

  21. Anonymous December 3, 2019 at 19:46

    4

  22. vanvonu January 12, 2020 at 16:26

    Treason is defined in the Constitution at Article 3, Section 3, as consisting “only in levying War against (the United States), or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort.”
    All members of the American military take an oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; (and to) bear true faith and allegiance to the same.”
    When the military is committed to foreign actions without a declaration of war by Congress, as required by Article 1, Section 8, Paragraph 11 of the Constitution, that is a violation of the Constitution, arguably the action of domestic enemies.
    When a member of the military participates in an unconstitutional foreign military deployment, s/he violates both the Constitution and his/her oath to “support and defend” it, giving “aid and comfort” to it’s “domestic enemies,” committing treason by the definition given by the Constitution.

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