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win308
02-16-2007, 01:42 PM
Many towns in the greater Boston are organizing a Medical Reserve Corps (http://www.medicalreservecorps.gov/HomePage).

Do you have any experience with the MRC and have you thought about security and how to maintain law and order if a real emergency happens.
springer
03-06-2007, 06:46 PM
I am a member of one of the larger local MRC groups. The benefit of being a member is that you and your immediate family will be the first people to be vaccinated in the case of a pandemic. I do believe that in the case of a pandemic that all of the medical and law enforcement resources will be quickly overwhelmed. It's not a coincidence that DHS's center for domestic preparedness teaches this class:

http://cdp.dhs.gov/resident/basic.html

I ask LEOs in Mass if they have ever gone to the CDP to take the totally free classes, and they universally have no interest. It would interrupt their real job of staring in potholes.
LenS
03-06-2007, 07:25 PM
Most MA LEOs that I've met have the "union mentality". If the chief won't pay them OT, etc. they have no interest in attending any training whatsoever.

There are a few that actually want to learn more just so that they will know the info "in case", but that seems to be the exception here rather than the rule.
springer
03-06-2007, 07:31 PM
the "union mentality" is strong in the MA fire departments also.
rscalzo
03-06-2007, 09:22 PM
Most MA LEOs that I've met have the "union mentality". If the chief won't pay them OT, etc. they have no interest in attending any training whatsoever.

It exists in almost every department. It seems to be a recent thing. When I came on you didn't think to ask for overtime regardless of the reason.
Jose
03-06-2007, 09:57 PM
Many towns in the greater Boston are organizing a Medical Reserve Corps (http://www.medicalreservecorps.gov/HomePage).

Do you have any experience with the MRC and have you thought about security and how to maintain law and order if a real emergency happens.
Can I ask a basic question? What does maintaining security and law and order have to do with a "medical" corps? Does the MRC have a SWAT team? Seems like every alphabet soup agency has one.

I know how to maintain security for myself and what is mine in a real emergency. As for law and order, that's someone else's problem.
Jose
03-06-2007, 10:51 PM
It's not a coincidence that DHS's center for domestic preparedness teaches this class:

http://cdp.dhs.gov/resident/basic.html

Department of Homeland Repression
win308
03-07-2007, 06:20 AM
Can I ask a basic question? What does maintaining security and law and order have to do with a "medical" corps? Does the MRC have a SWAT team? Seems like every alphabet soup agency has one.

I know how to maintain security for myself and what is mine in a real emergency. As for law and order, that's someone else's problem.

If there is a pandemic and the population is told they are likely to get gravely ill unless they get the shot then several things will happen:


The MRC will be activated
The area will be quarantined
The population will panic


The question is how do you keep the MRC teams safe? Who is going to guard the vaccine? Those will be a very valuable commodity. We can assume that security is someone else problem, but the LEO will be overwhelmed.
springer
03-07-2007, 10:15 AM
If there is a pandemic and the population is told they are likely to get gravely ill unless they get the shot then several things will happen:


The MRC will be activated
The area will be quarantined
The population will panic


The question is how do you keep the MRC teams safe? Who is going to guard the vaccine? Those will be a very valuable commodity. We can assume that security is someone else problem, but the LEO will be overwhelmed.

There is no MRC swat team. The only security plan that I know of is using a very few auxiliary police and emt's (armed with a set of trauma shears and wearing an orange vest that has security printed on it.) From what I've seen, MA leo and fire agencies don't want to have minimal involvement in these drills because they're missing out on OT money. When the stuff hits the fan during a pandemic, you can guess what will happen.
Jose
03-07-2007, 01:11 PM
. When the stuff hits the fan during a pandemic, you can guess what will happen.

Every man will fend for himself and the strong will victimize the weak.

Being armed and being willing to use such arms is the only way to security.
springer
03-07-2007, 02:16 PM
Every man will fend for himself and the strong will victimize the weak.

Being armed and being willing to use such arms is the only way to security.

Does the definition of arms include trauma shears?[rolleyes] Jeeze, I can't even poke someone with them.
Jose
03-07-2007, 04:03 PM
Does the definition of arms include trauma shears?[rolleyes] Jeeze, I can't even poke someone with them.

Carry a concealed handgun. If you never need to use it, the DHS overlords will never know about it. If you do need to use it, the fact that the DHS overlords object to you being armed will become irrelevant.
springer
03-07-2007, 04:18 PM
Carry a concealed handgun. If you never need to use it, the DHS overlords will never know about it. If you do need to use it, the fact that the DHS overlords object to you being armed will become irrelevant.

I don't understand, why would I need to do that? I've been told that I will be safe and protected. Plus, I do have the intimidating vest and deadly trauma shears. It's not my place to protect myself in Massachusetts, that's what the goverment does. They're looking out for my best interests. A lowly plebe of a citizen such as myself wouldn’t have the honed law enforcement skills need to protect myself. Thank god for the auxiliary PO’s with 120 whole hours of training.
Jose
03-07-2007, 06:50 PM
I don't understand, why would I need to do that? I've been told that I will be safe and protected. Plus, I do have the intimidating vest and deadly trauma shears. It's not my place to protect myself in Massachusetts, that's what the goverment does. They're looking out for my best interests. A lowly plebe of a citizen such as myself wouldn’t have the honed law enforcement skills need to protect myself. Thank god for the auxiliary PO’s with 120 whole hours of training.

[wink] [smile]
KMaurer
03-07-2007, 08:08 PM
Carry a concealed handgun. If you never need to use it, the DHS overlords will never know about it. If you do need to use it, the fact that the DHS overlords object to you being armed will become irrelevant.

+1

I volunteer with CERT, which operates under the same FEMA/DHS rules prohibiting carrying weapons. Big bleepin' deal. Being asked to leave if someone were to find out would be rather inconsequential comparied to saving my life, which would most likely be the only way anyone would ever know. That is, of course, if I actually were to carry, which I can neither confirm nor deny. [rolleyes]

Ken