Something wicked this way comes

 

Regular readers know that for months - no, for years - I've been warning them to get ready for economic hard times, to bolster their preparations so that they can withstand hard times for at least a few weeks or months, to move out of cities to safer places, to beware of a legal and prosecutorial system that is more and more biased against "normal" people in favor of the politically "advantaged", and so on.  I'm sure I've bored a lot of people, partly because some think such warnings are crazy, partly because others already understand the need and don't require reminders.

I've had more than one person tell me, rather snootily, that collapses simply don't happen that fast.  If one comes to America, they say, it'll take decades, and be a very slow-motion decline.  We'll have time to batten down the hatches and prepare.  When I cited my experience in the Third World and what I'd seen there, I was loftily informed that "this isn't the Third World, and that can't happen here".

Well, if you've been following events in Afghanistan over the past couple of weeks, you begin to get some idea of what I'm talking about.  Sure, America isn't Afghanistan - but a whole lot of Americans (by some accounts, thousands, by others a few tens of thousands) are still in that country.  Why the hell they didn't get out when the first warning signs appeared, I have no idea - but it's too late now.  Today, those in Kabul can't get to the airport safely, and even if they do, they may not find a plane available to get them out.  Those outside Kabul are probably doomed, because there appear to be no plans to rescue them.  They saw all the same warning signs everyone else did - and, like almost everyone else, they ignored them.  They said "Oh, that'll never happen to us!"  They said "Oh, we'll have time to prepare or get out - we won't be caught by surprise!"  Guess what?  They were wrong.

Divemedic speaks of a lady he knows who's trapped in Afghanistan.

There is a teacher that my wife and I used to teach with. My wife still speaks with her by text from time to time. She left teaching and became a DOD contractor. She has been working in Kabul for the last several years.

My wife was talking to her by text this afternoon and the said “Things are getting interesting here, but I will be fine.”

I told my wife that she will likely not see her friend again. The Taliban are not very forgiving of Americans, of women, and especially not American women. That poor woman will likely not survive more than a couple of weeks.

And, in a later post:

Her masters is in a subject that is sought after by the Christians in Action. She just sent us a picture, taken at 6:30am this morning, east coast time. She and her coworkers are trying to burn all of the classified stuff that they can. She is still convinced that the government is going to get them out. After seeing the videos this morning, I can’t see that she is going to ever get out.

I agree with him.  If she gets out, it'll be a miracle.  As far as the hardline Islamic fundamentalist Taliban are concerned, organizations like "Christians In Action" are the Devil's tools, and those who work for them are the agents of evil.  If they get their hands on her, and realize or find out who she's working for . . . it's not going to be pretty.

Trouble is, that's more and more the attitude we're facing in this country from the "woke" and the "politically correct" and the progressive left.  Just as the Taliban believe they represent God's cause in Afghanistan, the far left truly believe they represent the "one true faith" in America.  As far as they're concerned, those of us who don't agree are apostates, traitors, pagans, blind to reality, obstructionists, heretics . . . pick a word.  In that sense, the struggle we face in America is very similar to the struggle in Afghanistan, and our Taliban (the progressive left and its hangers-on) is just as dangerous as Afghanistan's version.

I'd like to refer you to three articles on other blogs, writing about America today.  Phil, writing at Bustedknuckles, posts a long list of problems and atrocities taking place all around us right now, and concludes:

All of the above came right off the top of my head in the time it took for me to type it out and is in no way a thorough analysis or even a semi complete list of what is going on in this country RIGHT NOW.

I’m sure you can think of some things I missed but my point here is that this is what the collapse of an empire and a country looks like in real time and you are right in the middle of it watching it all happen and don’t realize it.

The Shit Has Hit The Fan people.

There is no more waiting for it, it is here now.

And from Sarah Hoyt, who experienced the Carnation Revolution at first hand and knows whereof she speaks:

Something changed with [the fall of Afghanistan], something material. I don’t know what. But the mood in the country is different. It’s not quite 9/11 level, but there is a sense of vital outrage. I think people who’ve never paid attention are now awake and watching.

. . .

There is a sense of a grinder heading towards us, perhaps one that will mill very finely indeed.

Once again, make safe what can be made safe. Get you and yours to a safe place.

This is your warning: Sauve qui peut.

And keep your clothes and weapons where you can find them in the dark.

And from Daisy Luther, the Organic Prepper:

This is like an instant replay of 2020 but sprayed with jet fuel.

If this looks familiar, it’s because it is. It’s nearly identical to what happened before. Now pile on top of that more than a year of stress and anxiety, loss, financial problems, and media-driven and politically instigated divisiveness. We’re being encouraged to hate and fear one another, blame each other, and react to extremes. It’s like spraying the fire with jet fuel.

Americans have had enough, no matter what their political affiliation.

. . .

You need to focus right now on what you can do. Not on who is right and who is wrong or whether the vax be mandated or not. Not on the school system, the national debt, or the politician you love or hate. None of these are things you can change.

But you can change your personal circumstances. You can focus on the basics of survival, learn skills, and stock up while you still can. If money is tight, then focus on skills – particularly the acquisition and production of food. You can do this, but you need to do it now.

Ms. Luther offers some useful advice on how to get your preparations in order.  It's geared towards another lockdown rather than societal unrest, but it'll work for the latter as well.  Recommended reading.

Oh - one more parallel between America's progressive left and the Taliban in Afghanistan.  Reuters reports:

Taliban fighters in the Afghan capital, Kabul, started collecting weapons from civilians on Monday because people no longer need them for personal protection, a Taliban official said.

"We understand people kept weapons for personal safety. They can now feel safe. We are not here to harm innocent civilians," the official told Reuters.

Does that remind you of gun control pressures in America?  It should.  And just look at the Taliban's definition (in practice) of what "not harming innocent civilians" looks like:

Taliban forces in Afghanistan are targeting known critics for attack despite claiming that they have ordered their fighters to act with restraint, Human Rights Watch said today ... Among recent cases, the Taliban executed a popular Kandahari comedian, Nazar Mohammad, known as Khasha Zwan, who posted routines that included songs and jokes on TikTok ... “Taliban forces apparently executed Khasha Zwan because he poked fun at Taliban leaders,” said Patricia Gossman, associate Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “His murder and other recent abuses demonstrate the willingness of Taliban commanders to violently crush even the tamest criticism or objection.”

Uh-huh.  No, you don't need a gun in Afghanistan, because "you can now feel safe" under Taliban rule.  D'you think it'll be the same in America if the progressive left seizes control?  I certainly do!  That's why I'm not handing over my guns, and you shouldn't either.

Friends, I can't help seeing the signs all around me:

• increasingly rampant inflation and senseless economic policies;
• a progressive left that's determined to impose its will on the rest of the country and will brook no opposition;
• a largely manufactured health crisis that's being used to manipulate agendas, policies and society across the nation;
• and a hapless, feckless foreign policy that's causing our friends to distrust our promises (and rightly so) and encouraging our enemies to regard us as a toothless paper tiger.

These factors, taken together, are more than enough fuel for a potential bonfire of colossal proportions.  Anything or anyone might strike the spark that sets it ablaze.  No, I'm not exaggerating - I've seen this before, remember?  The United States isn't above the same human reactions that have caused societal meltdown in other nations.  It can happen here, too.

I'm checking my family's existing preparations, and topping up a few essentials.  I'm making sure every magazine I have for my weapons is loaded, and stored ready for use if necessary.  I'm keeping our vehicles topped up with gas, not dropping below half a tank, and preferably not below two-thirds of a tank.  I'm keeping a careful eye on local and regional developments that might spill over in this direction.

I'm not paranoid.  I'm practical - and I've seen and experienced too much in my life to take lightly the signs of our present times.

I can only advise you to do the same.  If I'm wrong, you'll have lost nothing but a little time - you can eat or otherwise consume all your preparations, so nothing will be wasted.  But if I'm right . . . 

Peter