The Real Modern Day Militia

Today’s militia, for all intents and purposes, is not that different from the colonial militia that secured this nation’s freedom in 1776. Let me be clear, I am not referring to those individuals or groups who have no regard for the government at all or who wish to have no governing authority or law and order of any kind. I’m not talking about armchair patriots who rant and rave on Facebook or the over the top conspiracy theorists. I’m referring to people like myself, people like those I have met and trained with since becoming part of my local militia group. I have met many others in this state wide organization and while we are all individuals with differences, our main purpose and goal is a shared one.

Our individuality is so diverse. We have Christians and Catholics, Mormons and non-believers. We have engineers and accountants, tech guys, mechanics, pilots, nurses, and personal trainers, just to name a few. We are white, Hispanic and black. We are Independents, conservatives, Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians and Tea Party members. Most of us are preppers to one degree or another and some of us are survivalists. Some of us are former military and some are not. Some of us are gun enthusiasts to the point of literally being experts in firearms and marksmanship, while others would be considered beginners or novice level shooters.

But more than any of that, we are freedom loving Americans who embrace the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. We are all supporters of the 2^nd Amendment and the right to bear arms. We understand the dangers an insecure border can present. We resent those laws and regulations that an over reaching government may impose that restrict our rights or are in direct violation of our beloved constitution. We are law abiding citizens and Second Amendment advocates. We remember how we felt on 09/11 and we recognize the dangerous path our country is headed down and want to be prepared to stand and do something about it when and if that time comes. We value and appreciate our families, friends and neighbors, as well as our God given rights and are willing to do what we must to protect them. We refuse to be defenseless and to act as sheep led to the slaughter.

We are not a hate group or a band of religious zealots. We are not intolerant or racist. We do not allow people who openly express those views to be part of our group. We are not anti-government, but we are pro-constitution. We insists all of our members go thru an application and vetting process specifically designed to weed out those individuals whose purpose for joining are not in line with the groups goals and vision. We are not a threat to the federal government, the military or the local and state level principalities or police. But we will stand in the gap to protect the innocent from an unlawful violation of their rights. We will defend our homes and our families from all enemies-foreign or domestic. We refuse to be victims and seek to gain the skills and knowledge necessary to prevent us from being so.

A big part of that preparation involves immersing ourselves within a group of like-minded people. There is, after all, strength in numbers. This does not mean joining a patriotic Facebook group and pounding on our keyboards to vent our frustrations or waste our time arguing with the ‘butters’, plants and trolls. We meet and attend events for and against those causes we support and talk and share with people. We foster relationships with one another and build genuine friendships amongst ourselves so that there is a level of trust and cohesiveness in our methods of operation and how we interact with each other. We develop plans and help each other prepare for situational contingencies. We study skills such as triage and first aid, outdoor cooking, tracking, navigation, fire starting, security, defense tactics, and so on. We discuss logistics and prepping tactics and practices. We train, hard. It’s not a game. It’s a commitment of time, energy and resources.

Now, this is not just my own ‘idea’ of what a Militia should be. In my experience, this is what a true Militia is, this is what a Constitutional Militia is supposed to look like. The examples I have given are not made up or a fantasy, but are actually based on my own personal experiences of being actively involved with a Constitutional Militia over the past year. There are groups out there that are far from what I have experienced and in my opinion those are the groups giving the true Militia’s a bad name. I would steer clear of them.

There is a stigma associated with the Militia. The media, or certain aspects of it, tend to demonize the Militia, referring to them as ‘fringe groups’ or ‘domestic terrorist’, rednecks or gun crazy enthusiasts. Some of our own representatives in the Senate and Congress , even the President have contributed to this misleading and erroneous perception about who the Militia is and what their intent and purpose truly is.

My Unit CO came up with what he calls a 30 second elevator pitch that quickly and succinctly explains who we are and what we are about. The following statement is the embodiment of that ‘shared goal’ I wrote about in my opening paragraph:

Our Vision is to know one another, to train hard and to knowledge share. Our motto, the words that we live by, are to protect our family, friends and neighbors, to preserve the Constitution of the United States, and to defend our state and country.

It really is as simple as that. If you can see the value and necessity of such a group, I strongly encourage each and every one of you to get involved with your local Militia if you’re not already. If they do not represent the same goals and ideas as you are seeking, try another group or, if there isn’t one nearby, start one yourself. You are the Militia. Welcome aboard.

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