The claim by the city of Vancouver, where the concept of H.A.R.T. appears to have been concocted, is that these police state squads are necessary to address what the government claims is a "public health hazard" posed by people who have too much stuff.
The goal is to have local fire departments team with property inspection departments and mental health "experts" to pursue residents of British Columbia (B.C.) who hoard things "that seem unusable or of limited value to others, such as old newspapers, clothes, and broken or old gadgets," the city of Vancouver explains.
It's an entirely subjective approach to dealing with the problem of "clutter" that opens wide the floodgates of government intrusion into people's personal lives – including people who choose to stock up on emergency supplies that others might perceive as dangerous "hoarding."
"Since 1999, (the) government has been mobilizing strategies to combat what they perceive as hoarding," writes Celeste for Shepherd's Heart about the Canadian government's backdoor scheme to gain access to people's homes without due process.
"They have made tremendous strides in their campaign ... Over the next months you will notice firefighters being trained to take proactive steps against hoarders. You will see firefighters using the same template that they have for Defensible Space to minimize wildfires, only this strategy will include the inside of your home."
According to government officials in B.C., people who "hoard" have questionable physical and mental health, and thus need an "intervention" by the state – which is where this whole situation gets disturbingly Orwellian.
The justification for raiding people's homes uninvited will be that they're somehow "mentally ill," and in need of "help" by state workers, presumably armed, who will come into their homes and conduct "inspections."
If it's found that such folks are stocking up on things that the government determines to be "dangerous," whether it's piles of old newspapers or boxes of canned food, then the state will proceed to seize all of the "dangerous" items and make the homes "safe."
"Hoarding has a very subjective definition and is in the eyes of the beholder," writes Celeste, echoing this sentiment.
"For instance, having two dogs or two chickens, in some areas can qualify you to be labeled as a hoarder. Having more 'essentials' than the government recommends, can activate the Hoarding Response Team to your home for a mental evaluation."
While it's true that some people truly are hoarders who are putting their own lives and the lives of their families in danger, there are many others whom, seeing the writing on the wall, are simply prepping for the worst – and others who are blind to what's going on might misunderstand their intent, and consequently report them to the authorities.
This precedent could even become a threat to preppers who stock up on firearms and ammunition, as they could eventually be accused of "hoarding" weapons.
"When you do stock up with preparations you do need to learn how to manage those preparations. That is part of the art of wisdom of this Preparedness Skill-Set," Celeste adds.
"My concern is that there are certain Executive Orders at all levels of government ready to unload your hoarded supplies as an asset of the government. There is no doubt, that our current laws and regulations have made that threat very real to your family."
For more news about how to get prepared, be sure to check out Preparedness.news.
Sources for this article include: