ALERT & ALIVE

SITUATIONAL AWARENESS AS PART OF EVERYDAY LIFE

BY DAVE WILLIAMS, GUNNERY SERGEANT, USMC (RET.)

In recent months, we have seen an escalation in violence around the world—not the type of violence we traditionally expect, such as out-of-control regimes and dictatorships. This is a new type of violence: terror-inspiring attacks on our way of life. Suicide bombers, active shooters, mass murders and rioters have left us all feeling vulnerable and confused.

The escalation of these attacks has systematically stripped away our civil liberties. They are also paving the way for police actions, raids and increasing regulations on just about everything in the name of public safety. As a society, we have a duty to our republic to remain vigilant and aware so we keep ourselves safe and preserve our liberties.

I don’t want to simply regurgitate the normal EDC drivel or try to tell you how to become Jason Bourne. I want to focus on a few things that the average person with little or no special training can do to keep themselves and their loved ones safe; a few things you can do, regardless of your station in life or available resources.

In order to accomplish this, I will explain a few habits that have allowed many others (and me) to come home from multiple combat and peacekeeping operations around the world.

AWARENESS: A MACRO TO MICRO DISCIPLINE

Anyone who has served in a combat zone knows that events in one part of a country impact that entire region. These events either inspire more or deter them—but they will always have an effect. Often, there is a large-scale, polarizing topic of national debate that inspires random acts of violence on the local level. The informed citizen knows what those topics are and how they are affecting the immediate area.