Just because you are paranoid doesn't mean someone isn't really out to get you....

OK, I really don't consider myself paranoid. I don't spend my days wearing tin foil hats, watching for the black helicopters and complaining about the liberal elite/biased media/military-industrial complex. I would say I live in level White and Yellow on the Cooper Color Code. For those of you who may not be familiar with this, Lt Col Jeff Cooper wrote a seminal work called Principles of Personal Defense where he adapted the Marine Corps readiness color codes.

The color code has nothing to do with tactical situations, or even with alertness. It actually dealt with a persons state of mind, pertaining to everything around them. Think of it this way; it isn't determined by the actual amount of danger that you feel, but by your mental state in terms of noticing and dealing with any dangers that might come up. It has as much to do with being a pedestrian on the street or walking up stairs as it does preparation for an attack. You don't "set" yourself in one of these conditions. You just always "are" in one of them, and you determine how you move between them. By default, if you are not in one of the elevated conditions, you are in Condition White and a potential  "victim" of whatever occurs around you. . Everyone should pay attention to this, not just armed citizens.

Cooper's color code looks like this;

• White - Unaware and unprepared. If attacked in Condition White, the only thing that may save you is plain dumb luck, or the inadequacy or ineptitude of your attacker. If you are confronted by something nasty or a car suddenly swerves on to the sidewalk, your reaction will probably be "Oh my God! This can't be happening to me."
• Yellow - Relaxed alert. No specific threat situation. Your mindset is that "today could be the day I may have to protect myself." You are simply aware that the world is a potentially unfriendly place and that you are prepared to take care of yourself, if necessary. You use your eyes and ears, and realize that "I may have to REACT today." You don't have to be armed in this state, but if you are armed you should be in Condition Yellow. You should always be in Yellow whenever you are in unfamiliar surroundings or among people you don't know. You can remain in Yellow for long periods, as long as you are able to "Watch your six." (In aviation 12 o'clock refers to the direction in front of the aircraft's nose. Six o'clock is the blind spot behind the pilot.) In Yellow, you are "taking in" surrounding information in a relaxed but alert manner, like a continuous 360 degree radar sweep. As Cooper put it, "I might have to shoot."
• Orange - Specific alert. Something is not quite right and has gotten your attention. Your radar has picked up a specific alert. You shift your primary focus to determine if there is a threat (but you do not drop your six). Your mindset shifts to "I may have to shoot HIM today," focusing on the specific target which has caused the escalation in alert status. In Condition Orange, you set a mental trigger: "If that goblin does 'x', I will need to stop him." Your pistol usually remains holstered in this state. Staying in Orange can be a bit of a mental strain, but you can stay in it for as long as you need to. If the threat proves to be nothing, you shift back to Condition Yellow.
• Red - Condition Red is fight. Your mental trigger (established back in Condition Orange) has been tripped. If "X" happens I will shoot that person.

Many people (including myself) think there is a 5th level, Condition Black. Where Red says "if x happens, I will shoot", Black says "now x has happened, and I am squeezing the trigger".

Condition Orange is really fairly stressful. You have identified a specific thing that concerns you, so your level of attention starts to narrow and focus on the potential threat. You can't stay in this state for long, because you are so focused and intent. Condition Yellow allows you to remain in it for much longer periods of time, but everyone slides in to Condition White. Inadvertently when you are in public and talking on your cell phone, or reading a book. But intentionally when you are in your own home without a specific threat of danger.

So, is spending most of your day out in public in Condition Yellow being paranoid? I say no, it is being quite rational. It simply means that you have chosen to take responsibility for your own safety, regardless of where you are and whether you are armed or not. Condition Yellow is every time you stop at a crosswalk and wait for the signal to change instead of blindly walking out in traffic and hoping you don't get run over. It is every time you hold on to the handrail on the stairs in case you slip rather than throwing yourself headlong and out of control down the steps. And it is every time you thinks "hey, those three guys just suddenly walked out of that store and are right behind me". You aren't wishing for anything bad to happen, or even exactly expecting anything bad to happen. But you are aware that something might, and you chose to maximize your chances of remaining safe.



Because I refuse to allow my health, happiness or life to be dependant on dumb luck, or somebody else's good will.