TEOTWAWKIAIFF

Today I wanted to share some thoughts on mutual aid groups (MAG) and the roles that need to be filled in them. Every group is unique, so I am presenting archetypes, rather than specifics. As groups get larger, then specialization can allow the persons knowledge to go more in depth in an area, but not as many subjects. Specialization also means the tool sets are better for their task, but don’t overlap as much with specialties. Tool sets gain more functionality, but are not necessarily any cheaper.

Let’s look at an example of this. If your MAG has a dozen adults, then your “handyperson” might be able to patch a roof with scavenged supplies, perform basic plumbing and electrical and build outbuildings and such. They can do some maintenance to keep equipment running, but might not be able to manufacture parts they need for in-depth rebuilds of a generator engine, or make shingles for a new shed from scratch.

Now if your MAG had a hundred adults, then the “handyperson” archetype might be spread across a dozen people. These people could then focus on one topic very thoroughly, knowing that others will be there to support them with whatever they need. So you might have in that handyperson group a carpenter, blacksmith, metalworker, woodworker, plumber, electrician, auto mechanic, diesel mechanic, small engine mechanic, lumberjack, and a welder.

In a group of any size, I cannot stress the importance of cross-training and shared labor. Obviously, you want to have two people who can do a job function in case something bad happens tot he primary person, but also a second set of hands is good to tackle larger jobs. A third set is even better. Complementing that is that people need to have different things to do, and to get practice in their backup specialties.

Here are the archetypes I thought of:

• Builder – This archetype is in charge of maintaining the MAG’s shelter, and expanding it when needed. I would include any of the construction trades here, because if the Shooter wants to build a defensive barricade, the builder would most likely have the skills to build it correctly.
• Caregiver – Not only will there be children to watch, there will be older people in the group that will eventually need care as they age, or others will need help from recovering from an injury. The Caregivers watch kids and seniors alike so adults can focus on their specialties, without worrying about the kids. In this archetype, I would include those who prepare food.
• Communicator – Monitoring radio traffic for news, and facilitating communications between other MAGs and inside your own group could be critical if the poop hits the fan in a really bad way, and Rule of Law has been abandoned. The Communicators are also the diplomats of the post-TEOTWAWKI world, one of their duties would be too contact and maintain communications with your neighbors.
• Councillor – there is going to be friction within a group, and the Councillor’s job is to keep escalating negative emotions from causing a rift inside the group. Councillors also can aid Leaders and Communicators with their functions by giving insight into the other party’s mindset. (Think of Diana Troy from Star Trek: TNG.)
• Custodian – People and animals poop, and the Custodian’s job is to deal with it, and keep us humans from making a mess of everything. We humans are messy, and keeping a sanitary camp or home goes a long way towards keeping everyone healthier and happier. I’m willing to bet that if you toured a camp that was tidy a month after TEOTWAWKI, then that group would be able to survive – and even prosper where a retreat that had litter would not. Be careful of keeping the perimeter too clean, it might tip off people that someone has the energy to maintain the area is nearby.
• Energizer – Although a large number of preppers feel we are “going back to 1800,” the reality is we have access to electric and internal combustion machines that make our lives easier and more productive. The Energizer’s job is to provide the group with power, and more importantly – heat for warmth and cooking. This can include alternative energy, natural resources like wood, and even the manufacture of fuel like biodeisel, woodgas, alcohol, etc.
• Entertainer – Without ten thousand channels of cable TV, movies, video games, etc. Someone will have to keep everyone entertained during the evening hours. Your Entertainer might be whover happened to grab thier iPod on the way out the door, or someone who can play an instrument. Maybe you have  someone who is willing to organize a variety show once a week. I think this will be a vitally important job if the crisis lasts a long time. People need to let off some steam – before bad feelings can start causing the Councillor to work overtime keeping the group running smoothly.
• Grower – The cornerstone of nutrition in an extended crisis will be the group’s ability to grow its own food. I would also add that gathering wild fruits and vegetables is important for both the short and long term.
• Healer – People in your group are going to get hurt, sick or pregnant. Band-aids can only go so far, and I think it’s impossible to stock enough condoms. No matter what you do for “natural” birth control – pulling out, watching her cycle, etc… eventually she will get knocked up. Most people don’t know that there are sperm in “pre-cum” that are just as vigorous swimmers as their brothers and sisters in the “money shot.” Then Nature has a way with randomly kicking a woman’s cycle out of whack every now and then, foiling attempts to use natural birth control. Oh yeah, before I forget – condoms can only be stored for a few years.
• Hunter / Husband (as in animal husbandry) – Meat is good, you should have some after the end of the world! Someone will need to tend to the livestock, and take advantage of whatever game is in the area.
• Leader – Someone has to be in charge, and this person is it. Even if the job is to juggle the guard rotation and direct labor to a common purpose, it still takes time and some skill to do it well.
• Mechanic – If it has a gas tank, then the Mechanic’s job is to keep it running. Here I would also include any of the metalworking trades, including welding.
• Merchant – There are two aspects to this archetype, and those would be the quartermaster, and the horse trader. Someone needs to maintain a hold on the resources of the group, and dole out supplies as necessary. The other aspect, the trader is more along the lines of my specialty. There will be a time when your group has an excess of a resource, and a deficiency in another. It’s going to be the horse trader’s job to get the best bang for the buck for your group. Think of Klinger or Radar from M*A*S*H. those two were always trading cases of peaches for jeep tires to get a case of toilet paper from the 8063rd.
• Scavenger – this Archetype’s job is to convert trash and junk into useable resources. For example, a broken-down abandoned car can be stripped for a lot of useable material, while removing an eyesore. Empty and abandoned homes will present a safety hazard, hence the specialized skillset to recycle the useable parts and disposing of the rest.
• Shooter – The most common idea out there on the web is some “lone wolf” sniper who weighs in a svelte “tree-fity” who thinks he’s some uber-tactical genius because he plays Call of Duty: 3. There is more to this archetype than being able to fire a weapon. Off of the top of my head we have a few skills that most don’t even think of while pounding Mt. Dews and stuffing their pie-holes with Cheetoes.
• Ammunition Reloading
• Camouflage
• Combat Engineering – Building defensive structures and how to assault  the “bad guy’s”  fortifications
• Demolitions – Improvised munitions, ordnance re-purposing, disarmament and safe disposal
• Hand to Hand combat
• Law Enforcement TO&E for Local, State and Federal. Don’t forget BATF, ICE, FEMA, or other law-enforcement agencies that could be deployed in a crisis. To me, the non-traditional law enforcement groups, like ICE or the EPA would be more dangerous in a crisis because they do not have the same quality or quantity of training as regular cops, but they do have machine-guns and riot gear for their officers to wear.
• Melee weaponry & fighting skills – Knife, axe, sword, baton, quarterstaff, bo, jo, etc.
• Military – TO&E and tactics for the US, Canada, China, Russia and other potential “peacekeepers” that may be deployed inside the US. Don’t forget the National Guard and militias for your state and neighboring states.
• Primitive weaponry – Bows, spears, javelins, atlatl, and my favorite – bolas
• Prisoner management – At some point you will catch some outsider where they are not supposed to be and have to deal with them.
• Recon & Intelligence Gathering
• Stealth
• Strategy
• Tactics
• Threat assessment and management
• Training
• Weapon maintenance and repair
• Technician – Finally, we have the archetype that keeps all your electronic gizmos working. There are electronics in everything these days, and having someone around who can finagle with them is a good idea. Also, you have a tremendous labor multiplier with a computer system. There is also a possibility in a limited collapse that some Internet connectivity is maintained, or supplanted with another ad hoc network that could be used for communications and information.