I can see this working in some parts of the country, but not everywhere.
Rural people, while friendly, do not integrate outsiders easily. You may be left alone, but you won't be part of the local network.
And despite the prevalence of the Internet, most of us rural folks still rely on landlines, local radio, local papers and word of mouth communication.
The nationwide network of truck drivers alone would quite quickly serve as an underground news network, bypassing any centralized control, not to mention all the oil (and other) industry workers (at least those who are left) that routinely migrate with job projects.
We're basically outsiders although very rural for almost a decade, and it's not unusual to discuss SHTF scenarios. Usually it's weather or disaster-related but you can be sure people think about the government, military or hordes from the cities streaming in. We already know what neighbors can be trusted (the vast majority), where travel choke points are, where the alternative back roads are (not all are mapped) and how we could thwart entry if need be. Most of that info we need in case of heavy snow, mudslides, tree falls, flooding, etc. When we have a weather event outside the towns, the locals take it upon themselves to restore access. Those same people with that same equipment could easily make travel impossible for anyone from the outside.
I can see this working in some parts of the country, but not everywhere.
Rural people, while friendly, do not integrate outsiders easily. You may be left alone, but you won't be part of the local network.
And despite the prevalence of the Internet, most of us rural folks still rely on landlines, local radio, local papers and word of mouth communication.
The nationwide network of truck drivers alone would quite quickly serve as an underground news network, bypassing any centralized control, not to mention all the oil (and other) industry workers (at least those who are left) that routinely migrate with job projects.
We're basically outsiders although very rural for almost a decade, and it's not unusual to discuss SHTF scenarios. Usually it's weather or disaster-related but you can be sure people think about the government, military or hordes from the cities streaming in. We already know what neighbors can be trusted (the vast majority), where travel choke points are, where the alternative back roads are (not all are mapped) and how we could thwart entry if need be. Most of that info we need in case of heavy snow, mudslides, tree falls, flooding, etc. When we have a weather event outside the towns, the locals take it upon themselves to restore access. Those same people with that same equipment could easily make travel impossible for anyone from the outside.