How hard is it to disappear

I contemplated disappearing tonight and almost did it,if i didn't have kids I'd probably be walking towards Mexico right now. So the question I have is how hard would it be to vanish? Without anything except the clothes on your back. Curious to know thoughts.

Amst


P.s. Maybe I should make it clear that it was an impulse driven by frustration and I do not plan on disappearing

a reply to: amsterdamn87

I would hazard a guess and say not hard at all.
That is if you have no plans for coming back.

a reply to: amsterdamn87

Dont you ever disappear your kids need their father.

a reply to: amsterdamn87

I would venture to say it would be hard to leave no paper trail and live your life in the same means that you might today.

I don't know your life but if you enjoy any luxuries of the first world, you have a paper trail.

I guess the key would be how much cash you could get your hands on where ever you went.

Maybe talk to someone about what is making you want to disappear though.

It's not hard at all, if you're truly motivated.

I'd think twice about Mexico, though. They don't have the same lax immigration policies that we do and, if you simply "walk on over", you'll likely end up in a Mexican jail for a good portion of your supposed "emancipation".

Godspeed.

a reply to: TerryMcGuire
you know I was homeless for at least a year altogether but didn't leave the valley, its not that its hard to leave. But what about law enforcement, the internet, and say you wanted to leave the country? Don't you need papers for that ?

a reply to: SecretKnowledge
Hence this thread, and the mention of my kids. Sorry don't mean to sound offensive.

a reply to: Sremmos80

I believe that is point of this thread, mainly just venting about an impulse, although this is the first time I've had an impulse this strong. Nor am I susceptible to impulse, I usually try to keep a clear mind when my head wants to pop off.

a reply to: NthOther
That's part of the reason of asking the question, you can't just waltz into another country, without some sorta paper.

a reply to: amsterdamn87

You'd be surprised how many people on the road will be more than happy to help you shake your tails.

But watch out for the ones trying to take you back in deeper.

Best of luck dude.

originally posted by: amsterdamn87

Depends.

a reply to: amsterdamn87

I think it'd be easy to 'disappear.' A person can pack a bag and leave town and nobody would ever know where they'd gone.

The bigger issue would be what quality of life they'd want from the new life? Being homeless drastically reduces life expectancy because it wears a body down physically and mentally. Being homeless in a foreign country would likely be as bad or worse.

Using a bank account would identify the location and money is always needed. Maybe pre-pay credit cards would be useful? Salt away sums of cash and then purchase them one-by-one. Bitcoins are a little bit unpredictable in value, but a bitcoin wallet can be carried on a USB drive. A MicroSD could be used to carry copies of the credit cards - long number and security codes on back. These could also be backed up on an email account.

These are small things that can be hidden about a person and less susceptible to being stolen or robbed.

A throwaway phone could be bought using cash and a pay-as-you-go sim card to keep the anonymity. A new life would still have times when a phone number would be necessary.

Of course, ID would be a necessity eventually. No property, no bills, no wages etc without it. Apparently fake IDs are for sale on the internet. Seems a quick way to get ripped off though.

If someone did disappear, I think they'd owe it to family to say they were going. A letter or something. It's emotionally cruel to leave the burden of anxiety on them.

a reply to: amsterdamn87

Fairly hard.

These days you get profiled, tracked, filmed, followed and marked as a matter of course.

a reply to: amsterdamn87

In summary: it is not about disappearning, but all about re-appearing.

Just a heads up....traveling with a backpack and little else makes you a target for some Law Enforcement.

If you can, avoid ever soliciting or panhandling.
Stay on the up and up.
No signs or markers.
Stay on the down low.

I have a place and carry a backpack with my writings and works in progress on my walks to the cafe and some people regard me unfavorably, as if I were on the road and up to something. A lot of folks out there are on a state of high alert with backpackers for some reason.

Some towns get ruthless if you come off as sketchy or directionless.

Always have a destination, don't just wing it out there.

I guess disappearing depends on where you live, it's probably easier to disappear if you live in europe, alot easier to cross borders unnoticed without any form of identification, and to go very far.
It's probably quite easy to disappear, but it probably takes a couple of years of preparation, putting money aside (you will always need a minimum) and I would start by becoming legally homeless, not paying taxes, no bank account, only prepaied phone cards, and eventually you fall off the grid.

a reply to: amsterdamn87

as a purely intulectal exercise - the answer depends on :

who you want to disapear from and the lifestyle you wish to lead post disapearwence .

Threads like this usually end up as evidence scenes on 'The First 48'...

I reckon 12 hours in, as you got hungry and found sleeping on the street harder than you thought, you would realize that it wasn't that bad back home. You'd start thinking "maybe you could go back and hang out in your man cave mostly for a few days and tell the family to get lost till you felt like coming out again". Been there several times but never did it. A word of advice, don't go and sleep on your minister's couch for the night till you work out where to go, those darn guys have a way of making you see sense.