It isn't a joke, it is smart thinking.RJGold wrote:Mrs. RJ and I joke sometimes about going "off the grid"...
This nonsense is making that feel less like a joke every day...
In all seriousness, this is a serious threat and we have to be vigilant, aware, and informed...
I didn't read this thread until after Deputy Goforth was killed. It sure seems like this is one plausible motive the DA is searching for...
My wife and I have been talking about this for several years, and have been advancing our plans to carry it out. I expect to own such land within 4-5 years. I own my home free and clear, so I could take a mortgage and go into debt to buy a rural property, but I don't want to do that as I will be in a position to pay cash for it in just a few years. That is my plan - owe nobody anything for it, so it cannot be taken away without a protracted legal battle which I have a good chance of winning, and which if I lose (eminent domain) would compensate me with enough money to acquire other, similar property.
I spent the past two opening days of this Dove Season hunting with AndyC on the recently acquired farm of a friend of his - 150 acres fronting the Brazos, about a 3 hour drive from here. 150-200 acres is exactly the amount of land I would like to buy - big enough for some solitude, but small enough to be manageable for a single family. That friend of Andy's bought that farm exactly for the kind of reasons being discussed here. Furthermore, of the 6 men in camp those two days, all either already owned or were on track to acquire rural land exactly for that reason. These men are all people with professional skills, educated, and gainfully employed. During the campfire conversation Tuesday night, I commented that it was a remarkable thing that 6 men, who appear rational and competent in all respects, had all arrived independently at the same conclusion.
Going off the grid is no joke either. I do NOT advocate going completely off the grid for a lot of reasons.....at least for myself. We are of an age that having halfway decent facilities like hospitals, etc., not too far away is a part of our planning. But that said, I DO advocate being prepared to go off the grid if necessary. What that looks like for my wife and me is this: We like country living. We also like town living. We have a beautiful and comfortable home in suburbia, and we like it here. Things here are convenient and living is relatively easy. Once we have acquired the rural property, we'll likely divide our time between the two, and maintain the rural place as a retreat to fall back on if necessary.