If all hell broke loose right now, what would you do?

[reaper239]

I've been rethinking my survival strat and realized that I'd need someone who knows how do drive and work heavy equipment. At the very least, I think I'll find a way to learn myself.

There are 3..wait, 4 places within 3 miles of me that have bulldozers, dumptrucks, backhoes and whatnot that would go a long way to helping me and mine survive. One place that sells motor oil and liquid oxygen. Yow!

What would be the best group size? I think 10 is about it for me, 20 at the very very max. If you lived in a compound environment, how would you handle crimes that are committed? No matter what, human nature kicks in. Imagine dealing with a group of Kelly's (like she was when she first arrived in the tower) and how you, as a leader would deal with that.

Solar power would be a MUST!!

I also realized that we'd be able to live fairly well by simply fishing in all the canals around Miami. Hell, i've seen fish in the lake/pond in my complex that are pushing 2 feet long. Fishing is one thing i'd never really considered before and its been sitting in front of me for 4 years now. LOL.
The ducks down here are the size of geese and easily domesticated. Yum.

So, when TSHTF and you can make it to Miami.. make it to Ronald Reagan HS and tell the gate guards "it's all in the reflexes"

Crowbar out!

i disagree, as long as your core agree to set standards and everyone else who joins you after that must agree to the same, it would be a fairly simple matter to maintain order. here is my plan for forming a colony:

Free and honest men, as is their tendency to do, will come together in the aide of one another in times of need and crisis. For their common defense, free and honest men will seek to reside near each other and to supply each other with resources to aide in their common survival. Men such as these will not seek wrong each other out of spite, yet disagreements will arise among them as they are imperfect men in an imperfect world. Not all men are free and honest as some are bound to sin and deceitful, and so it is for these reasons that we come together to ratify these standards for living peaceably amongst each other, and do affirm that all those who seek shelter amongst us shall abide the same.

1. Structure
2. The people shall come together as free men and women and shall decide together the fate of the colony, every man and woman, over the age of 16, having the right to vote and to affect the future of the colony. Every member of the colony shall also, at any time required by the needs of the colony, contribute to the collected defense of the colony.
3. Once the colony reaches a population of no more than 60, the colony shall organize into neighborhoods of no less than 20 and no more than 39 people, decided by locale, and the free grouping of free people.
   
   1. Each neighborhood shall elect one (1) individual to represent them in the Congress of the Colony (hereafter referred to as The Congress or simply Congress) in all matters affecting the whole of the colony. This representative shall attend The Congress to present the will of the people in his neighborhood and shall, upon recess of that Congress, report back to his neighborhood to inform the people of updates and decisions regarding the progress of The Congress, and shall continue in this manner until the conclusion of The Congress. A new election shall be held at the conclusion of every congress for each representative, and no man or woman shall be elected to that position more than two times in a row, nor serve as any more than every fifth representative.
   2. The Congress shall convene on the first day of every month to ensure that the business of the colony is managed properly and proceeds unimpeded. They will serve one day in session to present all business to be discussed at that Congress, and then recess for two days to present the business to the Citizens of their respective neighborhoods. On the fourth day they shall reconvene and shall each present the response of their neighborhoods to each article of business, except in the event that any of the neighborhoods have not reached a consensus on the business at hand, at which point a further day of recess shall be granted, not exceeding three (3) days. The Congress shall then have three (3) days to conclude business. The duties of The Congress shall be enumerated further in this document.
   
   
4. Once the colony has attained a size requiring the formation of twelve (12) neighborhoods, the colony shall be further divided into districts, each comprised of three to five (3-5) neighborhoods.
   
   1. Each neighborhood shall elect one (1) representative to manage the affairs of the neighborhood through service in the District Council (hereafter referred to as The Council or simply Council). The Council will operate in much the same manner as does The Congress, and their duties shall be listed further in this document.
   2. Each District shall elect one (1) representative to serve in The Congress which shall operate the same as prior except that there will be an extra day for initial recess as the Congressmen reports to the Councilors and they report to the people.
   3. Each neighborhood shall elect one Lawman who shall serve with the other Lawmen from the district to keep order and apprehend criminals. The term each Lawman shall serve is to be one quarter of the year, with the year beginning on January first, and no member of the colony is to serve more than one term as a Lawman in any given year. The duties and power of the Lawmen shall be enumerated further in this document.
   4. The Congress shall, from this point forward meet every other month and the election for Congressman shall be held in the second month of a congressional convention for the next cycle. In the event a special session is required for emergency business, the congress of the current cycle shall convene.
   
   
5. Once the colony has reached a size requiring the formation of twelve (12) Districts, the colony will be further organized into regions consisting of no less than three (3) and no more than five (5) districts.
   
   1. Each neighborhood shall elect one (1) representative to serve on The Council.
   2. Each District shall elect one (1) representative to serve on the Regional Assembly (hereafter referred to as The Assembly). The Assembly shall operate in the same fashion as The Congress and meet every other month, with elections being held in the second month of the cycle. In addition to convening on the first day of each new cycle, The Assembly shall also convene when The Congress convenes. The congressmen shall return to their regions and relay the business of the colony to the members of The Assembly. The Assemblymen shall then relay that business to their district Councilors and once they have delivered a verdict to the congressman they shall conclude the Assembly.
   3. Each Region shall elect a representative to serve in The Congress. The Congress shall be granted one extra day of initial recess, and shall meet in the first month of each quarter year, with the year beginning on January first, and elections shall be held in the third month of the congressional cycle.
   4. Each neighborhood shall elect one Lawman who shall serve with the other Lawmen from the district to keep order and apprehend criminals.
   5. Each District shall elect a Sheriff to coordinate the efforts of the Lawmen in their District and to cooperate across the Region. The term a Sheriff shall serve is one quarter of the year, with the year beginning on January first, and no member of the colony shall serve more than one term as either a Sheriff or a Lawman in any given year. The Duties of the Sheriff shall be enumerated further in this document.
   
   
6. Once the colony has reached a size requiring the formation of twelve (12) regions, the colony will split evenly, forming two fully functioning and self governing colonies. The colonies are then free to dissolve ties with each other or, in the spirit of this document, to band together and establish a higher form of government, preferably modeled after the Constitution of the United States of America, and work together for the betterment of their citizens, and the betterment of humanity as a whole.
7. Duties of Elected Officials
   
   1. Congress
      
      1. To settle disputes between the highest orders of organization (neighborhoods, districts, regions, respectively).
      2. To manage the dealings of the colony with outsiders who do not wish to join (ie, trade with other colonies, raiders, etc).
      3. To prosecute crimes that occur between the highest orders of organization (ie, a man from one region kills a man from another)
      4. To prosecute appeals from the highest order of organization.
      5. To prosecute crimes against the colony
      6. To protect the rights of the citizens. The purpose of law is the defense of personal liberty, not the rectification of social injustice. To that end, The Congress shall pass no law constraining the personal liberties of the Citizens of the colony, and shall only have the power to pass laws respecting the rights of the Citizens.
      7. To set and standardize the weights and measures.
      
      
   2. Council
      
      1. To settle disputes between neighborhoods.
      2. To manage the dealings of the district with other districts.
      3. To prosecute inter-neighborhood crimes.
      4. To prosecute Felonies.
      5. To manage the standard operation of the markets in their district.
      
      
   3. Assembly
      
      1. To settle disputes between districts.
      2. To manage the dealings of one region with another.
      3. To prosecute inter-district crimes.
      4. To prosecute appeals from the council level.
      
      
   4. Representative notes
      
      1. Councilors, Assemblymen, and Congressmen shall be compensated one days wage for every day in session. They shall serve the people from whence they come during the session and then return to their homes to continue in their business and earn their living as amongst free and honest men.
      2. A days wage shall be determined as what is likely to be required for sustenance and healthy maintenance of a single and averaged sized adult, and as the average of ammunition and supplies to be expended throughout the day.
      
      
   5. Lawman
      
      1. To conduct regular watches throughout his neighborhood and to organize a volunteer peace force to maintain watch.
      2. To apprehend for trial violators of the common law of the colony.
      3. The Lawman shall, when pursuing a suspect, have the power and authority to assemble a posse to assist with the apprehension.
      
      
   6. Sheriff
      
      1. To coordinate the efforts of the Lawmen under his jurisdiction.
      2. To pursue and apprehend, with the aid of the Lawmen, fugitives fleeing from one neighborhood to another.
      3. To transport suspects to trial and to transport convicts to have their sentence carried out.
      4. To facilitate the release of acquitted persons.
      
      
   7. Peace Force notes
      
      1. The Sheriffs and Lawmen shall be compensated with one days wages for each day of service.
      2. The offices of Sheriff and Lawman shall be issued some type of long rifle or shotgun for duty services as available.
      3. Volunteers for the Peace Force watch shall provide their own weapons, but shall be provided with two (2) loads of ammunition for the duration of their watch, to be returned to the Peace Force armory if not used.
      4. The constituency of the elected officer shall develop a defining uniform which shall be issued to each person holding that office.
      5. All citizens can, if witnessing a crime, detain the offender.
   
   
8. Common Laws
   
   1. The purpose of law, as stated previously in this document, is to defend personal liberties, not to rectify perceived social injustice. As such the only true law is common law, that which is naturally evident through observation in the world and behaviors around us. We find that the laws common to all man can best be enumerated through the inalienable rights endowed to us by our creator, and that among these are the rights to Life, Liberty, and Property.
      
      1. The right to Life encompasses many aspects of the common law. We have the right to live and so are guaranteed through common law a freedom from unwarranted attack, whether intended as lethal or non-lethal, a right to defend ourselves against such an unwarranted attack with lethal force, and a freedom to earn a living through any means we see fit, so long as that means does not violate the rights of another.
      2. The right to Liberty guarantees us freedom in activity. No one may inhibit the activities of another that does not violate the rights of any.
      3. The right to Property guarantees that every man is entitled his possessions and no others, and shall remain in possession of his belongings until such time as he should decide to part with it. People are not property
      
      
   2. While all men have certain rights residing within the colony is a privilege. As such all persons over the age of 16 have certain responsibilities.
      
      1. All men and women have a responsibility to contribute to the defense of the colony. To that end, all persons over the age of 16 are required to own and maintain a firearm within the colony and to keep it with them at all times.
      2. Every man shall keep regular training with his arms and shall, when available, be afforded two loads of ammunition for his weapon on every second month with which to train.
      3. All persons have a responsibility to provide for themselves. Every able bodied man and woman over the age of 16 shall work, either farming, maintenance, scavenging, or some other job for which they may collect their wage of their own accord, or trade their service for a wage to be bartered between the two parties of the transaction.
      4. For the privilege of residing in the colony, all members of the colony will be taxed by three quarters of one days wage at the beginning of every week, with any and all excess to be stored as a colony stockpile. The elected officials may not vote to increase this tax.
      5. The Citizens of the colony have the authority to vote to trade supplies from the colony stockpile for other types of supplies and equipment that may be of use to the colony. Trade may only be initiated once enough of the stockpile has been set aside to ensure that the elected officials are compensated as intended. The elected officials may not vote to initiate trade without the approval of their constituency.
      6. Once in every third month, stockpile permitting, the colony may elect to distribute three quarters of the stockpile back to the Citizens of the colony.
      7. Every man and woman, over the age of 16, shall, for the duration of their stay in the colony, be assigned a regular shift to keep watch on and about the exterior of the colony, in order that, in the event of attack, an alarm may be raised in a timely manner.
      
      
   3. The individuals elected to government are not special citizens and are in fact merely avatars to the will of the people. To that end there are limits to the power a government may wield over its people.
      
      1. The government may not alter this document, except through a ballot vote amongst the populace for which they receive two thirds approval to move forward with the selected alteration.
      2. As every man is a member of the militia defending the colony, no standing army may be raised as all defensive needs have been met through the militia.
      3. The government may not, in any way, limit where arms may be borne, nor in what fashion, nor which arms. The right to bear arms is absolute.
      4. The government may not levy any taxes on its citizens, other than what has already been established in this document. The government may also not tax goods coming in or out of the city.
      5. The government may not initiate dealings with outsiders without approval from the people in the form of a simple majority.
      6. The government may not pass any rule or regulation that in any way limits the freedoms of the individuals, except where expressly stated above.
   
   
9. This document is the framework we shall use for maintaining order, peace, and civility in the colony, and maintaining a safe environment. Following are the people who have read and agreed to this document and the rules set forth therein. Violation of this document may result in expulsion from the colony, and the signature of the violator following this document removes any question of knowledge from the proceedings.

ok, so the numbring didn't transfer exactly the way it was in word, but i think you can get the general idea. it's not perfect, but it's something. also, it only applies to a colony, alliances between colonies aren't covered and would equire a slightly different framework. i had fun writing this up, enjoy.