What do I mean by "subversive"? Well, from the POV of one on "the Right", it's not--it's all about taking care of yourself, family, and neighbors without having to rely on the government.
Which means, of course, that from the viewpoint of one--or One--who wants to turn the USA into a great, big, worker's-peasant socialist paradise, that it's subversive as Hell.
The common theme throughout CERT Training is the need for self-reliance: You need to be able to take care of yourself, your family, and your neighbors. When "sizing up" a situation, say a collapsed building, the most important factor is not "How many people might be trapped in there?" but "Can I rescue anyone who might be trapped in there safely?"
No one is going to be there for you. In fact, it was stated on Day One that "The Fire Department is going to be occupied with bigger problems than yours, the Police are going to be directing traffic1, and FEMA doesn't even have any assets to save you--You Are On Your Own."
We in the gun rights community have been telling people this for years, of course: When seconds count, the police are minutes away. Less dramatically, but more importantly2, the Supreme Court has denied any obligation on the part of the police3 (or, presumably, other government agencies) to provide any individual citizen with emergency services.
Is CERT necessary? Not if you already know all this stuff. And, to be honest, I haven't learned much that I didn't already know--yet. But what I have learned, is specifics about how my community plans or expects to operate, plus the ever-valuable4 "networking" with neighbors.
***
1. Actually, what firefighters say about police officers is less complimentary, but I don't buy into their labor union crap.2. Granted that dramatic sound bites are useful when arguing with liberals, as that seems to be the way they think...
3. Google "Supreme Court police protection" and you'll find several cites.
4. A difficult admission for an avowed anti-social curmudgeon to make, I assure you...
3 comments:
I've been trying to work my schedule to match up with a CERT clas for about 3 or 4 years now.
In Vancouver, they're only offering it in the spring and fall. I had all kinds of time this summer. Now I've started my MBA program, and I just don't have the time.
The CERT meetings I have gone to, haven't been super impressive. Most of the people barely learned their lessons as if it were some kind of foreign language they took for a year in college a lifetime ago. Not as if they were mostly common sense modes of thinking. Of course, I'm not allowed to participate fully because I haven't been certified and issued the gear (never mind that I have my own).
It's enough to make me wonder whether it's worth it, but I had the same goal of being plugged into the emergency responder network for my own education and safety purposes.
There are a few things I've picked uip about assessing the safety of a damaged structure. I'd like to learn more about that, but I think I'll have to pick it up on my own...
Ah, grasshopper, you can do the "Introduction to CERT" course on the FEMA website and get most of it.
Introduction to Community Emergency Response Teams
Indeed. I have done some of the FEMA online courses.
Post a Comment