Archive for June, 2016

Condition Yellow

Sunday, June 19th, 2016

308643main_codeyellowDo you feel that you are prepared, not just for a physical attack, but prepared for a mass shooting, disaster, medical emergency or even a financial one? I’ll bet you dollars to donuts, you can’t say yes to all of these items.

Jeff Cooper penned the Condition Color code system that is still relevant in today’s crazy ass society. On a day to day basis, my family and I are in condition yellow, calm alertness, scanning and being aware of potential threats.

The other day another mass shooting, what would you do if you were there? How about tomorrow your business closes it’s doors, are you ready for three months to live without a paycheck? Is your ninjutsu training teaching you the skills necessary to survive during either of those two events? Well, I haven’t been in a shooting (but oh yes, I practice my firearm skills regularly so that if I need to use a weapon I can) but several years ago I was hit in a layoff. Now it did shock my world, but I was also somewhat prepared financially to live a few months without a steady check, and I was able to work some light construction to stretch out my savings until I was ready and found a job that I wanted to take. Now I don’t say this lightly, you need to be prepared to do many things, and a ninja of old had no one to rely on, other than himself and family. They knew how to do basic medical treatments and first aid, they farmed or knew what they could forage on a mission, they could be financially prepared , communication skills, etc. All skills that have fallen off our training and life as we become so much more beholden to technology. I am not trying to be a doomsayer or a technophobe, I love technology and use it for all it’s worth, but I also have a few back up plans incase my tech goes down. I teach my scouts basic orienteering skills and one of them said to me “I will just use my GPS and find my way out” well on a recent trip there was no GPS signal and yes we relied on a map and compass!

But back to condition yellow, are you aware of what is going on around you on a daily basis and are you making plans to be prepared for whatever is coming your way? If not take a moment to work on the following skills:

  • Financial – 3 months cash put away in case you need it quick have some of it out of the bank and in your home.
  • Medical skills – Take a CPR/First aid class. I cannot tell you how many times I have helped or administered first aid to someone.
  • Weapon skills – Augment your training with your EDC weapons whenever possible. Take a firearms handling class so you are more prepared and trained than your opponent
  • Basic survival skills – firebuilding, shelter building, water purification. Know these three things and you will be a lot better off than 80% of the population
  • Become self reliant! (more posts coming on this one)

 

Alright, I have left you with a lot to get going on, but do not forget the primary lesson here is Condition Yellow mindset in all things. You will thank me for this reminder someday when something goes to hell in your day and you were able to deal with it effectively!

Bufu Ikkan

Airyu – “Living the Ninja Lifestyle!”

Whew – just got off the home range with the family, great times and awesome movement drills!!

Grey Man Series update

Sunday, June 5th, 2016

Grey ManHello My Fellow Ninja Practitioners!

Today’s post is following up on our popular Grey Man Series and outlines a few financial alternatives to help you lower your financial traceability in society.

Do you know that 48% of all monetary transaction are now electronic? Think about the debit and credit cards you see everyone swiping at the store, and then asking for cash back. Now think about all of those data breaches that have occurred in the last few months, and yet we still don’t change our ways….pretty sad actually.20140826_Data_Breaches

Ok so now what should you do to help become the grey man or modern day ninja for purchasing on or off line? Well, of course the first thing is CASH! If you haven’t figured it out yet, it is hard to beat cash in society. Many people will deal in cash and give a percentage discount so they don’t have to pay fees on the credit card or check processing. Not only that, cash does not show up anywhere if you have a stash of it in your home, so how are you doing on that 52 week financial challenge?(over $200 there now!)

I know you can’t use cash over the internet but there are several ways you can get around that as well.

  • Paypal
  • Prepaid credit or debit cards
  • Alternative currency

Let me just focus on prepaid credit/debit card. I love these things as you can usually reload them when they are low, and if you are careful will not have any hidden fees, slowly draining your resources away!(So pay attention to those cards!) I have used mine on line several times with no problems, and I usually have 1 or 2 on me with either $50 or $100 on it. If it is lost stolen or hacked in anyway it limits me to $50 or $100 bucks and not my whole account. It doesn’t even have to use my name, so someone prying into my purchase habits is going to have a really hard time doing that!

Alright, so a few things to think about and put into action, so get moving!

More lessons to come….

Bufu Ikkan

Airyu – “Living the Ninja Lifestyle!”