"Lone Wolf" terror: ordinary armed citizens

[Jumping Frog]

‘Lone Wolf’ terror attacks: We're sitting ducks and ordinary armed law-abiding-citizens are our last line of defense.

I always enjoy Mr. Lott's commentary.

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2014/10/ ... -are-last/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Keith B]

I have very close ties to the counter-terrorism community. They have always been worried about the 'Lone Wolf' terrorist. Foreign or domestic they are a threat that is hard to identify and very tough to stop before they carry out their form of terror. Domestically, think Timothy Mcvey, Ted Kaczynski (Unabomber), anthrax and Ricin attacks, etc.

One of the biggest concerns now are the US recruits and sympathizers to ISIS and their being swayed to radical Islam. These people are able to travel and move around much more freely than someone who comes from a known terrorist training area and may be able to get converted, trained and then carry out their attack before being stopped.

[Cedar Park Dad]

Meh, I lived in the bad part of LA for five years. We're in a state bordering a failed nation with an open civil war between the government and drug cartels.


Lone wolf terrorists are nothing.

[Keith B]

Meh, I lived in the bad part of LA for five years. We're in a state bordering a failed nation with an open civil war between the government and drug cartels.


Lone wolf terrorists are nothing.

Tell that to all of the victims and families of those killed in the Oklahoma City bombing.

[Cedar Park Dad]

Meh, I lived in the bad part of LA for five years. We're in a state bordering a failed nation with an open civil war between the government and drug cartels.


Lone wolf terrorists are nothing.

Tell that to all of the victims and families of those killed in the Oklahoma City bombing.

Does that make you feel better?
People get killed here all the time. They arrest cartel guys here all the time. There are threats all the time. Eventually you're going to to die. But it won't be from lone wolf terrorists.
Again if this is a concern for you, you're living a pretty sheltered life.

Be aware of your surroundings and always have your trusty Swiss Army Knife. Thats the best you can do and don't sweat it. As the immortal bard once said: Keep Calm and Kill Zombies.

[StewNTexas]

I agree with Megan Kelly that these are not 'lone wolves', but are 'lone nut cases'.

A lone wolf has usually been banned from the pack, and that may apply, but I much prefer to refer to them as lone nut cases.

Just my opinion...

[Keith B]

Meh, I lived in the bad part of LA for five years. We're in a state bordering a failed nation with an open civil war between the government and drug cartels.


Lone wolf terrorists are nothing.

Tell that to all of the victims and families of those killed in the Oklahoma City bombing.

Does that make you feel better?
People get killed here all the time. They arrest cartel guys here all the time. There are threats all the time. Eventually you're going to to die. But it won't be from lone wolf terrorists.
Again if this is a concern for you, you're living a pretty sheltered life.

Be aware of your surroundings and always have your trusty Swiss Army Knife. Thats the best you can do and don't sweat it. As the immortal bard once said: Keep Calm and Kill Zombies.

I can guarantee you I don't lead a sheltered life. I am VERY aware of ALL the threats that exist, probably more so than you are due to connections I have with various sources engaged in identification and enforcement of these and other threats. While Lone Wolf jihadists are not the only threat, and the risk to me personally may be lower than some other thing, the overall risk to America and our way of life is very real and increasing daily.

As for Cartel's, they are a form of terrorist. They strike fear into those along the border by the violence they carry out. Gangs are terrorists as well. Overall, no matter what the threat, the risk for you, me and everyone else is increased because of Lone Wolf types. If they can carry out a mall attack, sporting event attack, or even detonate an IED or some type of dirty bomb in a concert, they will cause way more harm than the local mugger that might take your wallet or your car.

If you don't prepare for ANY potential attack by ANY source and make preparations for protecting yourself and your family as best possible, then you are the one that is naive and leading a sheltered life.

[Cedar Park Dad]

As for Cartel's, they are a form of terrorist. They strike fear into those along the border by the violence they carry out. Gangs are terrorists as well. Overall, no matter what the threat, the risk for you, me and everyone else is increased because of Lone Wolf types. If they can carry out a mall attack, sporting event attack, or even detonate an IED or some type of dirty bomb in a concert, they will cause way more harm than the local mugger that might take your wallet or your car.

And if any of those attacks occurs, how do you intend to prepare for them? Hide in your house and not go to a game? Not go to the Mall? Not go out?
None of these things you can prepare except to hide, and then the terrorists have already won.

And why just worry about terrorists? The Russians have escalated flights to intimidate the Balkans. That could escalate and we could be in a shooting war in 24 hours. Better build a fallout bunker. The Rooskies could nuke us.

Again, the best you can do is be aware of your surroundings. Everything else is a false sense of security. but if it makes you feel better, do what you want.

[Keith B]

As for Cartel's, they are a form of terrorist. They strike fear into those along the border by the violence they carry out. Gangs are terrorists as well. Overall, no matter what the threat, the risk for you, me and everyone else is increased because of Lone Wolf types. If they can carry out a mall attack, sporting event attack, or even detonate an IED or some type of dirty bomb in a concert, they will cause way more harm than the local mugger that might take your wallet or your car.

And if any of those attacks occurs, how do you intend to prepare for them? Hide in your house and not go to a game? Not go to the Mall? Not go out?
None of these things you can prepare except to hide, and then the terrorists have already won.

And why just worry about terrorists? The Russians have escalated flights to intimidate the Balkans. That could escalate and we could be in a shooting war in 24 hours. Better build a fallout bunker. The Rooskies could nuke us.

Again, the best you can do is be aware of your surroundings. Everything else is a false sense of security. but if it makes you feel better, do what you want.

I never said we need to hide; not sure where you have come up with this. Just saying it is a real and growing threat. And apparently you feel that threat is real as well http://texaschlforum.com/viewtopic.php? ... 6&p=938992" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Cedar Park Dad]

There are lots of threats. But one should look at the threats realistically and assess, what if anything one can do about it, and whether its a realistic threat.

Lone wolf guys exist and I put them at the same level as the average psycho. Again, be aware of your surroundings, know where the exits are, trust your gut when it tells you something, and always carry a brace of attack wiener dogs.

I'm not going to worry about dirty bombs, truck bombs, IEDs, nukes, bio bombs, etc. etc. I can't do anything about that.

[Jumping Frog]

There are lots of threats. But one should look at the threats realistically and assess, what if anything one can do about it, and whether its a realistic threat.

Lone wolf guys exist and I put them at the same level as the average psycho. Again, be aware of your surroundings, know where the exits are, trust your gut when it tells you something, and always carry a brace of attack wiener dogs.

I'm not going to worry about dirty bombs, truck bombs, IEDs, nukes, bio bombs, etc. etc. I can't do anything about that.

The point is not which threat is the biggest, most dire, or most common. You are missing the point.

The point is when the black flag goes up, having an armed civilian populace is the last and best line of defense. You and I simply want the ability and right to defend ourselves and our loved ones, regardless of the kind of threat.

All the NSA spooks, Special Forces troops, or local police officers are meaningless if someone walks into the restaurant where I am sitting and eating lunch and starts sawing heads off or robbing customers.

[Cedar Park Dad]

There are lots of threats. But one should look at the threats realistically and assess, what if anything one can do about it, and whether its a realistic threat.

Lone wolf guys exist and I put them at the same level as the average psycho. Again, be aware of your surroundings, know where the exits are, trust your gut when it tells you something, and always carry a brace of attack wiener dogs.

I'm not going to worry about dirty bombs, truck bombs, IEDs, nukes, bio bombs, etc. etc. I can't do anything about that.

The point is not which threat is the biggest, most dire, or most common. You are missing the point.

The point is when the black flag goes up, having an armed civilian populace is the last and best line of defense. You and I simply want the ability and right to defend ourselves and our loved ones, regardless of the kind of threat.

All the NSA spooks, Special Forces troops, or local police officers are meaningless if someone walks into the restaurant where I am sitting and eating lunch and starts sawing heads off or robbing customers.

Agreed on all points.

[anygunanywhere]

Best medicine for lone wolf terrorists are lone wolf sheepdogs

[The Annoyed Man]

There are lots of threats. But one should look at the threats realistically and assess, what if anything one can do about it, and whether its a realistic threat.

Lone wolf guys exist and I put them at the same level as the average psycho. Again, be aware of your surroundings, know where the exits are, trust your gut when it tells you something, and always carry a brace of attack wiener dogs.

I'm not going to worry about dirty bombs, truck bombs, IEDs, nukes, bio bombs, etc. etc. I can't do anything about that.

The point is not which threat is the biggest, most dire, or most common. You are missing the point.

The point is when the black flag goes up, having an armed civilian populace is the last and best line of defense. You and I simply want the ability and right to defend ourselves and our loved ones, regardless of the kind of threat.

All the NSA spooks, Special Forces troops, or local police officers are meaningless if someone walks into the restaurant where I am sitting and eating lunch and starts sawing heads off or robbing customers.

I'll buy a pound of that. I think it is almost impossible to prepare for a specific kind of terror threat. Even if, like Keith, you are socially well-plugged in to the anti-terror intelligence community, there is much that they cannot tell you because it is classified. They might be able to tell you there is a credible threat in, say... Houston, but they can't tell you (if it is classified) if the threat is specifically against Mort's Sandwich Shop or a specific Walmart or high school football stadium. So for most of us, there is simply no way to know these things.

I do think however that it is possible....not even that difficult, actually....to be prepared in a general way for the possibility of a terror attack. A LOT of what we already discuss here just in terms of having your CHL and carrying a sidearm applies. We are (or should) already be practicing situational awareness and have other skills related to gun-handling, marksmanship, knowledge of cover and concealment, always be looking for a way out, etc., etc., etc. And beyond that, we can prepare our homes and families for bug-in/bug-out scenarios. And bugging out doesn't have to always be viewed in paramilitary terms. It can be simply like having a disaster-survival kit in your home.......which lots of people do. We always had an "earthquake kit" in our home in California.....not because we were some kind of survivalist whack-jobs (like I am now ), but because that is normal for SoCal homeowners to have something put together. You may not be able to escape the destruction of your home, but you can by golly have a go-bag packed with toiletries and some changes of clothing, and maybe duplicates of your prescription medications. If you're a gun person, that bag might include a few additional things. But having a go-bag is just good policy, and it certainly is one small contribution to being prepared for a terror attack.......even one you cannot predict.

But MY biggest worry about "lone wolf" warnings from the gov't has less to do with real terrorists than it has to do with gov't identifying people like me as a terrorist because I do not view gov't - as it currently behaves - as legitimate. My personal viewpoint is that the federal government has become an administrative occupation......I don't mean "occupation" like "job"...... I mean "occupation" like "army of occupation". I am not a violent man, but I am hostile to the government because I no longer trust or have faith in its benevolence. To such a bureaucracy, am I a lone wolf?