My Earthquake Personal Protection Tools

Last week we had a 5.8 earthquake in the DC area. I realize that to people out in California that’s nothing, but on the east, we’re not used to that sort of thing. I happened to be on the top floor of a building at the time and to tell you the truth I thought a bomb had gone off.

I exited the building rather slowly (as everyone else ran past me) because I wanted to make sure it wasn’t a terrorist attack and someone wasn’t waiting outside with an Uzi. Once outside I was surrounded by hundreds of people milling around on the streets, with a few of them so upset they were crying.

Quite frankly, there was very little damage and it wasn’t really that bad, but I was amazed at how people overreacted. I looked around on the street as people we’re freaking out and thought to myself, “there are hundreds upon hundreds of people out in the city streets right now. Had this been a ‘real’ earthquake it would only have taken one or two ‘punks’ to set off looting or some type of riot.”

Why Society is So Fragile…

It was a good reminder how fragile society is and how most people these days are not prepared for any disaster or even any adversity at all in their lives. For instance, during the earthquake, I was in the terrible state of Maryland because my wife goes to law school there.

This means I wasn’t carrying a gun at the time, but I did have my knife on me, my tactical pen and a 72-hour kit close by. As I looked around at people crying and panicking I felt confident knowing that I’d be able to defend myself and escape if chaos started breaking out.

Of course, I would have had my gun on me if I had been in Virginia at the time, but we all know there are plenty of places we can’t carry a gun and that some days people even forget to put their gun on before they leave the house.

The Tools You Need…

That’s why, at the very least, I recommend you have the items I had on me the day of the earthquake. First, get a quality pocketknife with a clip. I prefer the Benchmade brand of knives. Second, get a tactical pen. I carry mine everywhere (airplanes included) and know if I ever have to use it, the person on the receiving end is going to be in a world of hurt when I’m done with them (if they’re alive at all.)

Lastly, have a 72-hour kit close by, at your work or in your car. You never know if you’re going to have to abandon your car on the highway and hike several miles back to your house, or if you’re going to have to seek shelter for a period of time. Either way, if you’ve got food, water, and protection (my 72-hour kit also has a tactical pen, a collapsible steel baton, and a fixed blade knife with a sheath, in addition to food and water) then you’ll be better off than the majority of Americans.

The bottom line is, most of society is not prepared, which means they freak out when any disaster at all occurs, which puts all of us in danger. So if you can legally carry a gun, then you absolutely should have one on you. If not, have the other items I mention above, especially the 72-hour kit.