Earlier this year ago I added a flagpole to my backyard so that I could proudly fly the American flag.  Since my home is on a corner lot that borders a walking trail, there are hikers and bike riders that pass by regularly.

An interesting thing happened when my flag first appeared.  Some people stopped to salute.  Others paused, standing tall, and appeared to undergo some sort of inner reflection.  I honestly had no idea there was so much patriotism in a neighborhood filled with mixed political ideologies. I was and am still thrilled.

These are my thoughts on what it means to fly the American Flag.

The post What It Means to Fly the American Flag by Gaye Levy first appeared on Strategic Living.

For the past year, I have been in a funk.  Undoubtedly being my own worst enemy, and with time on my hands, I devour the news with disbelief at how bad the United States has descended into tyranny.

This is something I wrote about often at the now, apparently defunct, Backdoor Survival.  At the time, I spoke of the erosion of civil rights and the perfect storm for economic and political collapse.  My timing was off but as many in the survivalist prepper community have predicted, things are now happening on the public stage that are far worse than we imagined.

All that being said, for Independence Day, I wish to share the following tome with you.  Although I have made slight changes, it was originally was shared over a year ago by a member of my community and is a reminder that as far as I am concerned, we live in the greatest country in the world, warts and all. 

It is a quick read, but well worth it.

The post The Meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance by Gaye Levy first appeared on Strategic Living.

There was a time about nine years ago where I came to accept that I may be on an active prepper list being compiled by the US government.  Although I may sound a bit paranoid, to this day I still feel such a list consists and that a time may come when the PTB will come after preppers and confiscate our stuff.  They definitely plan to do that with our firearms.

With that out of the way, let us move on to the present.

Lists are being compiled.  Broad segments of our population are being publicly canceled and the media is telling anyone who will listen that 74 million citizens need to be cleansed of our ideology. 

Politics aside, this is just plain wrong.  It is Totalitarianism relabeled as "Cancel Culture".  What happens next is downright scary. Who will they come after next in a world turned upside down from the angst created by a global pandemic and political strife? 

The post And Then They Came For Me by Gaye Levy first appeared on Strategic Living.

I am normally a happy person that likes to think of myself as peaceful and loving with a kind heart and gentle soul.  Alas, current events have me questioning myself, suspecting everyone, and trusting almost no one.  I hate that I am accused of being systemically racist and living a life of white privilege even though nothing could be further from the truth.

There are many elephants in my room.

Sadness, boredom, and even a bit of depression lurk in the recesses of my daily life.  I say this with the knowledge that I was mostly prepared for the multiple SHTF events that have occurred this year.  That said, I was not and am not immune to the long-lasting effect of being locked down in social isolation.

This is not the way I want to live this chapter of my life and I suspect many of you do not as well.

A popular podcaster that I follow likes to remind us that if things are not right in your world, do something.  Don't sit on your bum fretting, but act.  Talk.  Open yourself to discussion and, like I said, do something. 

And that, my friends, is the topic for today.

The post Opinion: The Elephant in Our Room by Gaye Levy first appeared on Strategic Living.

Those of you that follow my Strategic Living Facebook page are aware that my former website, Backdoor Survival was recently resold to an entity in the Philippines.  For now, I will refrain from lambasting prepping and survival sites owned by investors and not preppers.  Instead, I wish to publicly make you aware of a grievance I have with the new owners. 

In brief, they are misusing my name and personal story by claiming they belong to the founder, a so-called Mary Johnson. This is a lie.

Because they have failed to respond to my numerous emails and attempts to content them via social media, I will frame this as an "Open Letter" and hope they see it and respond.

The post An Open Letter to Backdoor Survival by Gaye Levy first appeared on Strategic Living.