I support police officers 100%. My question is do I have to answer the door if the police knock? There have been people knocking on doors impersonating police. So, I would rather ignore them. But I don’t want to get in trouble if it’s real cops.

-From Taylor T.

Answer: If you didn’t commit a crime or didn’t ask the police to respond to your house, then they shouldn’t have any reason to knock on your door and you don’t have to open the door to them. (You can just talk to them through the door like you would a delivery person or anyone else.)

Criminals who impersonate cops likely don’t have any information about you and can’t answer questions accurately. My point is, if you talk to them through the door, you might be able to decide if they are legitimate or not.

Also, remember that you can always call dispatch and ask them if they have an officer who is at your door.

 

What’s the best way to build a shelter if lost in the woods?

-From Xavier R.

Answer: It all depends on your environment, but one of the simplest shelters to build is called a lean-to.

The way this works is you would take multiple sturdy sticks and lean them against a strong horizontal brace such as a tree or another stick you have running horizontally.

After you have the sticks in place you would cover the leaning sticks with leaves, grass, moss, or anything nearby that could provide shelter from the elements.

Another option is to always carry a quality poncho in your bug out bag as they can be used for shelter.

Personally, I’ve built plenty of lean-to’s over the years in survival training.

 

I’ve heard some people recommend tactical (high-lumen) flashlights, as an alternative to guns. Are they worth considering in certain situations, even if I already have a gun?

-From Luke C.

Answer: I would never say that a flashlight is an alternative to a gun. I definitely want a gun as my primary weapon.

But, tactical flashlights are great for obviously helping you see in the dark and they can blind an intruder too.

Plus, if you choose not to carry a gun you could strike an attacker with the flashlight.

I personally own several tactical flashlights, but a gun is always my choice of weapon and the flashlight is a great companion to the gun.

 

As part of my emergency plan, I have a good amount of cash available in case of a real “bug-out” emergency. How much would you recommend? What would be the safest manner of protecting it?

-From Bethany P.

Answer: I recommend having at least 6 months’ worth of your living expenses saved in a bank and at least one months of living expenses in cash in your house.

I would keep the one month of cash in $20 bills that you keep in a small, fireproof safe. Sentry is one such company that makes inexpensive fireproof safes.

If you have multiple fireproof safes, it’s a good idea to keep a little bit of money in each one. During an emergency, you might not be able to get to your “main safe.” It’s a good idea to keep guns and cash in different parts of your house.

 

Lately there has been a guy that hangs out at a local park who is a known pedophile. The other day he was holding a camera in his hand and taking pictures of kids. Can I call the police about something like this?

-From Curtis T.

Answer: I would confront the guy and ask him what he’s doing. (Not everyone should do this, but I would).

Then you could call the cops and advise them that there is a suspicious person who is taking pictures of young children.

Another thing is, the police can check to see if the man is supposed to be at parks or in the vicinity of children. He could be breaking his parole or probation if he is a convicted criminal.

Also, you should hang onto any pictures you took of the guy and provide them to police in the hopes they can build a case against the guy if it comes to that.

 

Thanks to your great advice I got two Baofeng UV-5R radios. Do I need to have an FCC license to use this type of radio?

-From Randall E.

Answer: When it comes to these types of radios, license-requirements are based upon the band or frequency you wish to use, not the specific radio.

An amateur radio license is required for transmitting in the amateur bands regardless of equipment used to do so.

With that being said, you can use the UV-5R as a two-way radio using the Multi-Use Radio Service (MURS) on channels in the 151 – 154 MHz spectrum range.

These channels are for short-distance, two-way communications using small, portable hand-held radios.