“Clack clack clack” shouts Ralph Severe, mimicking gunfire as he points his camouflaged Kalashnikov assault rifle past his students, transitions to his pistol and spirals his massive frame to the floor and into a gymnastic roll. It's a humid mid September day in suburban Plano, Texas. The Texas Survivalists, clad in khaki pants and combat vests, gather in their instructor's back yard to train in ground engagement and weapon articulation. Members of this militia group, operating in Dallas, Texas, are fearful of bad times. Economic collapse, overnight inflation, invasion and fuel shortages are real worries. They are steps ahead of most, putting their energies into combat training, food storage, ammunition stockpiles, escape routes, and survival kits. “They're talking about a bunch of bananas costing $64 in another year. There's going to be dead bodies everywhere, and I feel sorry for those that aren't ready because those are the same people who's dead bodies I'm going to be stepping over” said Harold Rosenbaum, member and Vietnam veteran. Fear and a need for complete independence drive the individual efforts of members, consequently impacting on lifestyle. In member's living rooms homemade stab weapons are hidden under coffee tables, pistols are permanently secured to belts and hollow-point rounds are employed to cause maximum injury. In an environment of economic instability and beneath the fearful mention of “terrorism,” the ranks of survivalist militia groups in the United States are growing. Amongst the line of middle aged men that gather to practice magazine reloading, women in their mid twenties are appearing, heavily armed with AR-15 rifles and Glock pistols. Members say that since 9/11, there has been increased interest in their plight. Dishes are left dirty in sinks, dust settles on TVs, and possessions are piled in disarray on bare floors. Regular housework seems pointless when preparing to leave everything and escape the city at a moments notice.