Economy, blogs give survivalists new reason to look to NW

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by ColtCarbine, Feb 11, 2012.


  1. ColtCarbine

    ColtCarbine Monkey+++ Founding Member

    Economy, blogs give survivalists new reason to look to Northwest

    While white separatists for years have called for a racial homeland in the inland Pacific Northwest, an even bigger movement of survivalists, Christian fundamentalists and political doomsayers is fueling the idea of a defensible retreat west of the Rockies.

    By Kim Murphy
    Los Angeles Times

    SPOKANE — The American Redoubt lies in the high country of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Eastern Washington and Oregon.
    For a growing number of people, it's the designated point of retreat when the economy hits the fan. When banks fail, the government declares martial law, the power grid goes down. When warming oceans flood coasts and a resurgent Russia takes out Eastern Seaboard targets.
    While white separatists for years have called for a racial homeland in the inland Pacific Northwest, an even bigger movement of survivalists, Christian fundamentalists and political doomsayers is fueling the idea of a defensible retreat west of the Rockies.
    Armed with stocks of brown rice, weapons, battery-operated radios and razor wire, many are preparing isolated homesteads that can be turned into armed fortifications when groceries disappear from stores and hordes of city-dwellers flee a flu pandemic or run out of oil.
    The guru of the movement is James Wesley Rawles, a former Army intelligence officer and author of the best-seller "Survivors: A Novel of the Coming Collapse."
    The book tells of military veterans who lead bands of tough-minded Americans through a period of marauding rioters and the collapse of the supply chain and technology, and of a provisional government "determined to take over America and destroy the freedoms upon which it was built."
    Rawles, a former editor at Defense Electronics magazine and technical writer at Oracle, in 2005 started what has become one of the country's most widely read survival blogs, which claims to attract up to 300,000 unique visitors a week. He published one of the bibles of modern survivalist tactics, "How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It," in 2009.
    Places such as northern Idaho and western Montana always have been ripe territory; the low mountains around Bonners Ferry, Idaho, and Montana's Flathead Valley long have had more than their share of cabins populated by wary loners. But Rawles has given a name to this idealized retreat — the American Redoubt — and framed the geography.
    It's impossible to say how many have heeded the call — analysts say it's probably not all that many so far — but adherents say that's because the need is only now becoming apparent. Boise last year hosted a survivalist trade show featuring electric generators, dehydrated food and water-purification devices.
    With the rising federal debt and prospects for another credit crisis, Rawles said by telephone, "it could turn into a full-scale economic rout in short order. And under circumstances like that, I have encouraged my readers for many years to relocate themselves in lightly populated agricultural regions that are well-removed from major population centers, where there'll be large-scale rioting and possibly looting in the event of an economic crisis."
    Rawles has his retreat, but don't ask him where.
    The most he will say is he lives on a ranch — presumably in Redoubt territory.
    He said he has livestock, three years' worth of food, a functioning garden and the weapons needed to hold back the hordes.
    "Because of the nature of my blog," Rawles said of the secrecy of his location, "I'm in an almost unique situation, in that I might be considered the go-to guy for 160,000 survival blog readers.
    "I don't want to be that guy. I don't want anyone knowing where I live, because some morning I may wake up and find my barnyard full of tents and yurts and RVs."
    In Idaho and northwestern Montana, hotbeds of American Redoubt sentiment, websites offer help finding jobs in the new homeland until the time for full retreat is at hand, as well as lists of sympathetic churches.
    Some feature real-estate agents who can find that 20-acre hilltop parcel, invisible from the road, with solar power. (Try Revolutionary Realty in Northern Idaho or IdahoJoe Realty, run by Joe Rohner of Boise, who bills himself as a "redoubt Realtor.")
    "Interest is growing," Rohner said. "A lot of people have come here, and a lot that none of us know about, because a lot of them do it on their own. It's a growing movement that's not very centralized, and probably never will be, because these people tend to be kind of secretive anyway."
    Chuck Baldwin, a prominent conservative preacher and radio host — and 2008 presidential candidate for the Constitution Party — has bought in.
    In a message to supporters, he credited Rawles' vision of the American Redoubt for helping shape his vision for his family's future.
    "It is our studied opinion that America is headed for an almost certain cataclysm," Baldwin wrote. "As Christians, we suspect that this cataclysm could include the judgment of God. As students of history, we believe that this cataclysm will most certainly include a fight between Big-Government globalists and freedom-loving, independent-minded patriots. I would even argue that this fight has already started." On his website, Baldwin has appropriated some of Rawles' checklist items for those he is encouraging to populate the Redoubt.
    Develop a home-based business, Baldwin says; bring your guns; home-school your children.
    "Make a clean break by selling your house and any rental properties," he advises. "You aren't coming back."

    http://community.seattletimes.nwsou...tion=DESC&column=rating&offset=0#post_3481607
     
  2. ColtCarbine

    ColtCarbine Monkey+++ Founding Member

    The Pacific NW is full of hippies and it rains a lot.
     
    Alpha Dog likes this.
  3. Redneck Rebel

    Redneck Rebel Monkey++

    I do not miss the ton of "Northwest Migration" spam I received for years on end.
     
  4. Espada

    Espada Monkey+

    I believe that applies (in spades!) to the part west of the Rockies... east of there, the Chinook winds are pretty much dry. but I'm with you on wet and hippies... no thanks.
     
  5. BTPost

    BTPost Stumpy Old Fart,Deadman Walking, Snow Monkey Moderator

    Well I don't know about the Hippies, but it certainly rains a lot......

    Most of the REAL Hippies, are My age, or Dead, by now..... Most of the idiots that run around looking like Hippies, are either Hippy WannaBees, or just plain Bums... All the Second Generation, Hippy raised, children, are in their 30s and 40s.... and most are just a little left of center, but still very good folks, once you find out how they were raised. As one who did live a Communal Life, back in that day, (Previous Lifetime) I still keep in touch with a few of former commune members, two of which are still my Partners. They are in interesting Bunch, but nothing like the folks you see strutting around, that look like the Hippies of Old..... ..... YMMV.....
     
    chelloveck and ColtCarbine like this.
  6. ColtCarbine

    ColtCarbine Monkey+++ Founding Member

    It's too bad more people like yourself hadn't migrated here over the last couple decades. It really is a great place to live, it is just too bad that the majority of people that have migrated here are of a hippie mentality and of a leftist persuasion.

    I was also being somewhat sarcastic that it rains a lot, that pertains to the western portions of Oregon/Washington. Between the Cascade Mts. and the Rockies is a much drier climate.

    Whoever wrote the above article is somewhat clueless. I'm not sure where they get the white supremacist crap from. What they speak of only pertains to a very small portion of the region (Northern Idaho). The writer obviously has an agenda or is like I said clueless what the region is about or who populates the areas.

    If only this would have been written 20-30 yrs. ago we probably would not so many fruit loop lefties living here.

    ETA: As much as I hate to admit it. I am a Northern California transplant (35 yrs. ago) but do not share their ideology and did marry a Native Oregonian, so most natives give me a free pass. So of them take being a native quite seriously.
     
  7. Redneck Rebel

    Redneck Rebel Monkey++

    I'd love to have packed up and went, but honestly due to the liberal populace I'd probably never have gotten further west than Montana or Idaho. A visit to your area is still on the bucket list as part of an idea I had to take the truck and do some mild offroading and bar hopping in as many states as possible. Something like a One Lap of America type deal (minus the rush) but just me and the pickup hitting as many midwestern and western states as possible within a 1 month time frame.
     
    ColtCarbine likes this.
  8. larryinalabama

    larryinalabama Monkey++

    Your "cool" in the N.West as long as you didnt come from Southern California.
     
  9. ColtCarbine

    ColtCarbine Monkey+++ Founding Member

    A person can avoid most of the fruit loops if you stay away from the larger cities and heavily populated urban areas. There are still plenty of people with a community mindset and conservative ideals but we are outnumbered. Most of these areas are east of the Cascade Mts., south of Eugene/Springfield and/or in farming/logging/coastal communities in the western part of the state.

    True but a lot of them are hard to reason with, especially those that think they are trying to preserve the environment or a person's right to protect themselves. Yes most everybody here is quite friendly in the larger cities and nothing like big cities elsewhere in the country.
     
    BTPost likes this.
  10. Redneck Rebel

    Redneck Rebel Monkey++

    It's mainly an issue of being outnumbered 10,000 to 1 come election time that is troublesome. It's bad enough we're so heavily outnumbered in national elections, don't really want that on the state level as well.
     
  11. ColtCarbine

    ColtCarbine Monkey+++ Founding Member

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