669 Prohibited Washington Gun Buyers Attempted Purchases Since 2017

According to KING 5 News, November 30, 2018:  A report from the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs found 669 people who are not allowed to buy a gun tried to since 2017.

There were 3,248 denied firearm applications between July 2017 and July 2018. Six hundred sixty-nine were referred to law enforcement. The law does not require law enforcement agencies to investigate.

The report by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) says it notified law enforcement about 264 people who made multiple attempts to purchase handguns through licensed firearms dealers, 103 background checks that failed after the buyer had received the gun, 192 people who had protection orders against them that barred them from owning guns, and 255 people with felony convictions.

The report says 12 cases that were referred to prosecutors were charged, and 13 cases were not charged.

In most cases, prohibited purchasers fail to receive the firearm, because they do not pass the background check. However, applying for the purchase of a firearm is itself illegal for felons, people who have protective orders against them, those convicted of domestic violence, and the mentally ill who have been involuntarily committed.

The WASPC report also noted instances where firearms purchasers were “…incorrectly being denied transactions” because of paper work errors and mistakes – although it couldn’t determine how often this occurs.
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According to the FBI, there were 491,011 background checks conducted in Washington state (Jan 1 - Oct 31, 2018) and 579,678 background checks conducted in 2017.

So, of approximately half-a-million background checks, only 669 denials were of a nature to be referred to law enforcement for investigation, and only 12 referred to prosecutors were charged.

Even taking the worst case scenario that all 3,248 denied firearms purchase applications posed a threat to the community (and it is not really reasonable to believe that this is the case), only about one-half of one-percent of total firearms purchases were denied.  Criminals do not get their guns by purchasing them at the local gun store.

As we have recently seen, a UC Davis study examining the first ten years after California adopted universal background checks shows that those checks did not reduce homicides.

Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:

A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

Veteran’s Suicide Prompts Seminar for Deploying JBLM Airmen

A military mom is trying to make a difference after her son killed himself after returning from deployment in Iraq.

“You could see he was sad, you could see he was struggling,” said Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Saudi McVea. Her son, Bryce McVea, killed himself last year. McVea said her 26-year-old son was never the same after returning from a deployment to Iraq in 2011. He suffered a concussion and burns from an IED explosion.

When her son came home, he was more distant and had trouble sleeping. McVea said she now believes those were warning signs and wished she had sought help.

As part of their upcoming drill weekend, 300 service members from the 446th Airlift Wing will hear a presentation on resiliency from retired New York firefighter Tim Brown. The 446th Airlift Wing deploys overseas next month. McVea hopes after talking about resiliency they’ll be better prepared to handle the stress that comes with the job.

Those who need someone to talk to about suicide can call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 24-hours a day at 1-800-273-TALK.  (KING 5 News, November 29, 2018)
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JBLM Service Members (and civilian employees) are not getting the help they need for mental health related issues, as we saw in a recent report:   Army Punishes JBLM Soldiers Who Need Help.

The Suicide Prevention Lifeline can help, but there is too often a large number of people in line and very long waits in order to connect with anyone, as can be see with 71 people in line on August 19, 2018, and 85 people in line on September 11, 2018.

 

 

While there is, of course, a need to maintain order and discipline within the armed forces, personnel suffering a service / workplace related mental health issue need to be afforded treatment and counseling, not just thrown out of service.

Six Soldiers Hit by Truck at JBLM in Early Morning Accident

Six soldiers were hit and injured by a truck at Joint Base Lewis-McChord Friday morning. Two were transported to area hospitals with critical injuries.

The incident appears to be an accident, said JBLM spokesman Gary Dangerfield. The injured soldiers were in a formation about 7:30 a.m. during a “rucksack march” when a truck driver turned his vehicle into them, Dangerfield said.

A full investigation is under way. (Tacoma News Tribune, November 30, 2018)
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Pierce County Settles Lawsuit Filed by Family of Slain Nurse, For $7.8 Million

Jessica Ortega, was shot to death by her estranged boyfriend in 2016.

Tuesday, Pierce County Council members approved a $7.8 million settlement that ends a wrongful-death lawsuit filed by Ortega’s family.

The decision “allowed Pierce County to avoid an embarrassing trial,” according to a statement from the law office of John R. Connelly, which represented the family. “This murder could and should have been prevented.”

The lawsuit contended that the Sheriff’s Department failed to protect her after she sought help, and fell short of reasonable standards in their response to her initial call to law enforcement.

“She had contacted them pleading for help, and informing them that she was going to be killed,” attorneys wrote in a court briefing filed Nov. 9. “Unfortunately, she did not receive assistance and she was killed as she feared.”  (KIRO 7 News, November 28, 2018)
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In Warren v. District of Columbia, 444 A.2d 1 (D.C. Ct. of Ap., 1981) the Court stated that a "fundamental principle of American law is that a government and its agents are under no general duty to provide public services, such as police protection, to any individual citizen."

The seminal case establishing the general rule that police have no duty under federal law to protect citizens is DeShaney v. Winnebago County Department of Social Services (109 S.Ct. 998, 1989; 489 U.S. 189 (1989)). The court in DeShaney held that no duty arose as a result of a "special relationship," concluding that Constitutional duties of care and protection only exist as to certain individuals, such as incarcerated prisoners, involuntarily committed mental patients and others restrained against their will and therefore unable to protect themselves.

Did the Pierce County Sheriff's Office fail in its duty to protect Ms. Ortega? Many court decisions would suggest that as a rule, law enforcement has no duty to protect any individual citizen. Of course, law enforcement may be said to have duty toward the community as a whole.

In this $7.8 Million settlement the Pierce County Council has declared that the Sheriff's Office has failed in its general duty toward the community.

The murder of Ms. Ortega is certainly a tragic loss for her family, but was her death the result of the Sheriff's Office failing to do its job?  What do you think?

Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

UC Davis Study - Universal Background Checks Do NOT Reduce Homicides

A UC Davis study examining the first ten years after California adopted universal background checks shows that those checks did not reduce homicides.

In other words, the very checks that the Democrat Party pushes on the national level — the checks that Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) describes as the gun control “north star” — already exist in California, and they did nothing to reduce homicides during the time frame studied.

Townhall reported that the study was conducted by UC Davis’s Violence Prevention Research Program (VPRP) and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

The study “found no net difference between firearm-related homicide rates before and during the 10 years after policy implementation.”
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Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

Yakima Police Officer Who Kicked Teen at Fair Won't Face Charges

A Yakima police officer who was videotaped kicking a 17-year-old boy who had been pepper-sprayed will not face criminal charges.

Yakima County Prosecuting Attorney Joe Brusic said “I hereby find that YPD Officer Cole reasonably believed he had to utilize this push kick to control (the boy) and bring a prompt resolution to the situation to preserve his and others safety,” Brusic wrote in a three-page letter. “His use of force, namely the pepper spray and one kick to the back, was reasonably and necessarily used to enforce compliance with his commands and to prevent further injury from all involved and/or watching the fight.”

But that may not be the last word, as the attorney representing the boy said the family will file a claim against the city.

“Our version of what happened is the truth, and that is not changing because of the efforts of the police department to justify their misconduct,” said Yakima attorney Bill Pickett.

Pickett also renewed his calls for an independent civilian review board to look into such complaints, rather than having the police investigate its own officers.  (Yakima Herald, October 18, 2018)
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Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

 

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

 

 



 

Woman Spent Months in Jail Because Cops Thought Cotton Candy Was Meth

Back in July 2016, police in Florida arrested a very unlucky retiree after mistaking the blue glaze from the guy's donut for crystal meth. The man was strip-searched and held for ten hours before everyone realized the donut frosting was, well, just donut frosting. But apparently, that 64-year-old got off pretty easy for his Krispy Kreme meth debacle, because a Georgia woman just spent months in jail for the same goddamn thing.

Now, Dasha Fincher is suing Georgia's Monroe County after spending over three months in jail—all because the cops thought her cotton candy looked like meth.

According to the lawsuit, Fincher was arrested back on New Year's Eve 2016, after being pulled over because cops thought her tinted windows were too dark. The windows reportedly wound up being totally legal, but that wasn't exactly the worst mistake police would make that night. The two officers who stopped her, Cody Maples and Allan Henderson, spotted an open bag on the floor of Fincher's car containing "a light blue substance, spherical in shape," the suit reads. Fincher told them the bag was full of cotton candy, which it was—but the pair weren't buying it.

It somehow took until March of 2017 for anyone to do an actual, honest-to-god drug test on the cotton candy and clear Fincher of her charges. She was finally released on April 4, four months later.
(VICE, November 26, 2018)
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The facts of this case are outrageous, but sadly, they’re not the product of any single bad actor or law. On the contrary, they reflect a criminal justice system that’s structurally broken at almost every level. Police investigations are invasive, unchecked, and can cause far greater harm than the underlying [alleged] criminal act; and it is nearly impossible to hold police liable for misconduct. Until we address those systemic problems, we should expect more tragic cases like this one.

Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

 

 

Army to Charge Green Beret with 2010 Murder of Taliban Bomb Maker

A Green Beret, who admitted to killing an assumed Taliban bomb-maker, will be charged with murder by the U.S. Army after a two-year lull. Special Forces Maj. Matthew Golsteyn admitted during a polygraph test that he shot and killed the suspected Taliban bomb maker on Feb. 28, 2010, after he was informed that the man concocted an explosive that killed two Marines. 

Golsteyn issued a statement on Friday through his attorney, that said, “The investigation into my actions began over seven years ago when the Army saw I intended to resign for an opportunity to work for a government agency. After four years of investigation, it resulted in the Army seeking to administratively separate me. For over two years now the decision to separate me or retire me has been pending in Washington, D.C. During those years, the Army allowed me to move on, begin a new career, and start a new family. If it’s true they now want to prosecute me for allegations that have already been resolved — this vindictive abuse of power must know no limit. (American Military News, November 27, 2018)
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OK, there is no statute of limitations on murder. The question posed here by Maj. Golsteyn is if the Army was going to charge him with a crime, why not do so back in 2010?  Are these charges justified, or is this an abuse of power to target someone for political purposes? What do you think?

 

Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

JBLM Soldier Killed in Afghanistan Likely The Result of Friendly Fire

An initial review indicates Army Sgt. Leandro A.S. Jasso was likely accidentally shot by partner Afghan forces while conducting an operation in the Helmand province and there are no indications Jasso was intentionally shot. (KOMO 4 News, November 27, 2018)
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The loss of a Service Member in combat is always sad. The loss of a Service Member to "friendly fire" is truly tragic.

R.I.P. SGT JASSO.

U.S. Army Veteran, Two Others Kidnapped in Mexican Border City

PIEDRAS NEGRAS, Coahuila – A team of cartel gunmen kidnapped a U.S. Army veteran, his sister, and her boyfriend in this Mexican border city. Coahuila state authorities recovered the body of one victim and rescued the two others. Officials transported the U.S. veteran and his sister to a Texas hospital where he is listed in serious condition.

The kidnapping took place on Friday night when a team of at least 20 gunmen riding in three SUVs stormed a home in the Infonavit neighborhood on a mission to kidnap 29-year-old U.S. Army Vet David Gutierrez, his sister, 28-year-old Sarai Gutierrez, and her boyfriend, 27-year-old Argenes Gonzalez. A witness to the kidnapping told authorities that the gunmen also stole a 2010 Jeep Cherokee and a 2018 Toyota Tundra. (Breitbart, November 25, 2018)
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Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:

A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

 



How Gun-Free Zones Invite Mass Shootings

According to the Chicago Tribune (November 20, 2018): People have been acting for a long time like the United States is the world’s hotbed of mass public shootings. This belief is constantly used to push for more gun control. If we can only get rid of guns in the United States, we will get rid of these mass public shootings and be more like the rest of the world, gun-control supporters preach. But America doesn’t lead the world in mass public shootings. We’re not even close.

Over the course of 18 years, from 1998 to 2015, the Crime Prevention Research Center developed a list that contains 2,354 attacks and at least 4,880 shooters outside the United States and 53 attacks and 57 shooters within this country. By their count, the U.S. makes up 1.49 percent of the murders worldwide, 2.20 percent of the attacks, and less than 1.15 percent of the mass public shooters. All these are much less than America’s 4.6 percent share of the world population.

Of the 97 countries where they identified mass public shootings, the U.S. ranks 64th per capita in its rate of attacks and 65th in fatalities. Major European countries, such as Norway, Finland, France, Switzerland and Russia, all have at least 25 percent higher per capita murder rates from mass public shootings.

While Americans are rightly concerned by the increased frequency and severity of mass public shootings, the rest of the world is experiencing much larger increases in per capita rates of attack. The frequency of foreign mass public shootings since 1998 has grown 291 percent faster than in the U.S.

The media bias on this is overwhelming. Even after President Donald Trump again raised the danger of gun-free zones, the news media still refuse to mention this fact in its reporting of mass shootings.

The attack earlier this month at Borderline Bar & Grill occurred in a gun-free zone. Unlike in 39 states, concealed handgun permit holders in California are banned from carrying permitted concealed handguns into bars. The mass shooting Monday at Chicago’s Mercy Hospital & Medical Center in Bronzeville was at a place where law-abiding citizens were banned from having guns.

Most gunmen are smart enough to know that they can kill more people if they attack places where victims can’t defend themselves. That’s one reason why 98 percent of mass public shootings since 1950 have occurred in places where citizens are banned from having guns.
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Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

City Apologizes After Kirkland Police Remove Black Man from Store

KIRKLAND, Wash. – City leaders are apologizing for the actions of two of its police officers who were called to a yogurt shop and told a black man to leave the store.

Byron Ragland, the man who was asked to leave, plans to speak outside the store on Tuesday morning, denouncing what he terms as racial profiling.

The 31-year-old father, veteran and college student insists the only reason he was asked to leave a Kirkland yogurt store was because of his skin color.

Ragland works as a court appointed special advocate. On Nov. 7, he was at Menchie’s to supervise a visit between a mother and her child. Ragland sat at a separate table from them, and when he didn’t order anything, employees got nervous and called the owner, who then dialed 911.

The workers never shared their concerns with Ragland. His first indication of trouble was when officers showed up and told him to leave. City officials said that should never have happened.

The city launched an investigation and plans to overhaul its training protocols for officers. (KOMO 4 News, November 19, 2018)

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What possible reason could the police have for ordering Mr. Ragland to leave a store that is open to the public? He isn't causing a disturbance, he hasn't been asked to leave by the store owner/manager and refused (trespassing), he has in fact done nothing wrong! 

The police responded after being call to the store by an employee. Upon arriving the employees point out Mr. Ragland who is making nervous because he is sitting at a table and hasn't ordered anything. But upon making this determination, what crime do the police suspect Mr. Ragland of having committed? What authority do they have to remove Mr. Ragland from the store? 

"The very fact [that the police] came in and learned he was here legitimately, they should have corrected the action and walked away," said Seattle King County NAACP President Gerald Hankerson.

Calling the police because someone is sitting in a store is an improper use of police resources. It is not the job of the police to conduct social interaction for you. The employees should not have used 911 in this way.

When the police arrived and saw that Mr. Ragland was doing nothing wrong, should they have left him alone? Do you agree that the police were acting properly when they ordered Mr. Ragland to leave the store after being called by the employees?

 

Norman Spear - The Base

Norman Spear [an alias], an Iraq and Afghan war veteran and resident in the PNW, is a self-proclaimed white nationalist with a significant online following. His latest act involves bringing neo-Nazis together, regardless of affiliation and ideology, into a militant fascist umbrella organization. His tool for doing this? A social network he calls “The Base,” which is already organizing across the US and abroad, specifically geared toward partaking in terrorism.

Spear and his burgeoning global web of terror cells are networking, creating propaganda, organizing in-person meet-ups, and discussing potential violence or “direct action” against minority groups, especially Jewish and black Americans. An extensive online library contains a trove of manuals with instructions on lone wolf terror-tactics, gun-smithing, data mining, interrogation tactics, counter-surveillance techniques, bomb making, chemical weapons creation, and guerilla warfare.  (VICE)

A discussion with Norman Spear is on YouTube, discussing white nationalist tactics.
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While far-left groups like Antifa are participating in public protests and demonstrations, right-wing groups are attempting to recruit personnel from the military and law enforcement communities.

Right-wing literature is quietly distributed in our communities, and on our military installations, with little if any effort to stop it. Of course, it is not the place of the government to suppress 1st Amendment rights, even when speech is highly objectionable, but there can be limits placed on recruiting members of the military and law enforcement into hate-groups, and distribution of extremist literature on military installations can be restricted. 

    

Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:

A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

 

ATF Identifies “Assault Weapons” As a Politically Contrived Term

A Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF) “white paper” correctly identifies “assault weapons” as a politically contrived term with no real meaning and recommends dramatic federal law revisions in how they are regulated.

Authored by ATF second-in-command Ronald Turk, the “white paper” says that the misleading “assault weapons” term to describe AK-and-AR-style rifles should be replaced with a “modern sporting rifles,” to reflect how the use and popularity of these firearms has grown. In fact, he noted, their use in “sport shooting” has grown “exponentially” and such guns “are now standard for hunting activities.”
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Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:

A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.

Seattle Police Seize Guns, Suspect Charged with Perjury for Lying to Police

Police seized three assault-style rifles, a shotgun, two handguns, high-capacity magazines, hundreds of rounds of ammunition and a samurai sword, among other items, from a 31-year-old man's Belltown apartment after he was ordered by a judge to surrender any weapons but claimed he didn't have any.

Seattle police officers trained to deal with people suffering from mental illness first encountered Peavey in July, when Peavey called 911 to report someone was tampering with his food. Officers found no evidence that anyone had been in his apartment, charging papers say. Peavey, who appeared paranoid and delusional, told the officers he’d just moved to Seattle from Ohio, say the charges.

Though police found no records showing Peavey owned firearms or had a concealed-pistol license in Washington, officers began the process of obtaining an Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) because they felt Peavey was an extreme danger to his neighbor, according to the charges. But after  consulting prosecutors, the charges say, a police sergeant determined that Peavey’s behavior didn’t meet criteria for an ERPO, which allows police to seize firearms from people who are considered at high risk of harming themselves or others.

Peavey made his first court appearance the next day and signed the non-surrender declaration, which includes a warning that failure to comply with an Order to Surrender Weapons could result in misdemeanor or felony charges.

The next day, Nov. 10, Peavey’s apartment manager lawfully entered Peavey’s apartment in the 2200 block of Second Avenue to check for damage before formally evicting Peavey, the charges say. The manager saw multiple assault-style rifles in the apartment, took photos of the weapons, and called police.

Officers obtained a search warrant that night and seized three rifles, a shotgun, two handguns, more than 50 high-capacity magazines, more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition, two ballistic vests and a ballistic helmet, two gas masks, a can of tear gas and a samurai sword, along with a multicamera surveillance system, say the charges. The Seattle Police Department posted a photo of the weapons on its online blotter.  (Seattle Times, November 15, 2018)
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Although Mr. Peavey has been charged with a crime, and my be suffering from mental health concerns, he has not been convicted of a crime, and Seattle Police determined that his mental state did NOT the criteria for an ERPO. Yet, police seized Mr. Peavey's property anyway.

If we accept that the nature of the charges against Mr. Peavey warrant seizure of the firearms, what is the purpose of seizing the flack vest, helmet, gas masks, or security camera system? - I guess it makes a better picture than just seizing three rifles, a shotgun, and two handguns (something any gun owner in WA might have).

Operating in Hostile and Non-Permissive Environments:
A Survival and Resource Guide for Those Who Go in Harm’s Way

 

Military personnel deployed to a combat area, their supporting contractors overseas, government civilian employees overseas, non-government organizations (NGOs), journalists working on international stories, businesses attempting to establish a foothold in developing countries, and individual travelers to remote areas of the world can all find themselves in hostile and non-permissive environments. This guide covers a broad range of subjects that are intended to aid individuals, living and working in dangerous areas, in being safer in their daily lives and in being better able to protect themselves and survive in case of an emergency, disaster, or hostile action.