A common question I ask myself should "something" happen is..stay put or retreat. I guess to answer this question, one would have to answer what that "something" is. Where I live, in Northern Idaho, my biggest concern is fallout from Seattle, Portland or Spokane Washington. I don't necessarily mean Nuclear Fallout, fallout could be a mass exodus from those cities-west. With a major interstate running nearly through my back yard, and living approximately one full tank of gas away from Seattle, I feel this is a major concern for me to consider when debating on when to defend what is mine.
In 1982, during the Mt. St. Helen blowup, my property took a heavy hit from the ash, leading me to believe that in the unlikely event that Seattle or Portland take a major hit, that I would receive at least some fallout of the Nuclear type as well. Spokane is no longer considered a primary target since they moved the bombers out, but that by no means makes it less of a consideration on my part.
Economic collapse, all out war, chemical or biological threats, hurricanes, or floods. Each one of us has to determine the threats most likely to effect them, and the best way to handle them. To stand or retreat.
To make that decision, each of us has to look at the event that each individual feels is the most likely event to directly effect their way of life and prepare for that event first. If you live near a river that is prone to flooding, you wouldn't plan to stand by filling your basement with supplies.
A Realist should look at every concievable event and ranks them in order of "likely to happen". In Northern Idaho, I have very little concern for a tornado, but being snowed in in November is a very real concern for my family.
After ranking each event, then you have to decide what you would need to prepare to stand through that event and what you would need to retreat from that event. Weigh each option, provisions for holding out vs. a public shelter or a secondary holdout point such as an in-law down south ect.
