Prepping to be a prepper

[Inthealders]

I thought I might begin to give some thought to this whole idea and I was wondering what you guys know and what you monitor on a regular basis that gives us a head's up on what's coming (or might be coming). In other words, what this is all about; what evidence/political or economic indicators started this whole movement? In order to begin to commit to this, I'd like to get caught up on the particular evidence. Is there perhaps a website that keeps track of these indicators that you all visit regularly? I am just trying to make an educated decision about the eventualities and their probabilities before starting down this path.
Thanks all.

[Petrol & Powder]

It's real simple, like many schemes developed to make your wallet lighter and their wallet heavier; it relies on fear.

Fear is generated and you are told the only way to survive is to acquire a whole bunch of stuff. Then, conveniently, they just happen to have a whole bunch of that same stuff available for sale.

There you go, that's prepping in a nut shell.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Gee.......I guess I'm one of the nuts........I see nothing at all wrong with "prepping", especially if it's done with some thought as you seem to be willing to do. Stuff happens. Earthquakes. Fires. Floods. Riots. Terrorism. Etc. If you have a few cases of bottled water and some spare flashlight batteries in your garage, I guess that's prepping. Some food might be nice if you can't get to the store, or if the store's been cleaned out. A couple of years ago I was wishing I would have prepped some more .22 L.R. ammo than I had on hand. Better to have, even if not needed, than not have and be hungry, thirsty, injured and without basic medical supplies, and so forth. Sure, it does cost money, and anything can be carried to an extreme. You have to give it a lot of thought, consider what the most likely disaster you might face in your area, and prep accordingly. It's kind of naïve to believe that the government or relief agencies are always going to be there for you, and there's a saying that seems applicable, "The Lord helps those who help themselves".

[ascast]

Prepping for what exactly? I have enough food for a week any time because of heavy snow and or power outage. A generator also for freezer. Past that, it all a big guess. Worst case I see in large scale power outage, like whole north east, or eastern sea board. That will cause people to move in mass. If that happens, it will get very dicey. Forget about shooting deer and the like. They will be all gone with in two weeks. Just depends on how far down the road you want to go.

[dverna]

Anyone who is not prepared is a fool. Since the beginning of time we have had natural disasters, wars and civil unrest. And on a smaller local scale boil water alerts, or power outages that last less than two weeks. Even cities like Lansing MI have had areas without power for a week....what would you do if it was wide spread and lasted longer? And what will others do?

In looking at your preps, realize you can live for 3 days without water and about three weeks without food. I live in northern Michigan, so in the winter heat is also important....although freezing to death is permanent, it is not too terribly long and painful.

Having things to allow you and yours to survive, also requires the means to protect them and your family. In a protracted event, you will need some type of mutual aid group.

There are numerous senarios that could happen. Not many preppers only plan for one, in spite of TV shows like Doomsday Preppers.

Build your preps around water, food, energy, weapons and ammunition. Try to maintain a balance. It is pointless to have a year of food stockpiled and no way to get water. Most Preppers also have some cash and precious metals (silver being one of the best) put away.

[salpal48]

Prepping For what. basically The only thing a Prepper needs to prep for is to being prepared to be Separated from Your Money
Just Like Every other Scam. . This is one of The better Ones.
If there Is anyone Interested I do have some Big bridges for sale

[Petrol & Powder]

Having the ability to get through a situation such as a hurricane, fire, flood, blizzard, power outage, etc. is wise.
I like to think that I'm prepared enough that I will not become "part of the problem" in some large scale situation that deviates from the normal condition.

However, the "prepper" mentality often gets real weird, real fast. People often say there's a line been preparation and paranoia and I've seen a LOT of people attempt to financially exploit fear and push preparation into full blown paranoia.

If you live some place where hurricanes are possible, it is wise to be ready to handle a few weeks without electricity and running water.
If it snows a lot where you live, you should probably be able to go a few weeks without a trip to the store and have some backup heat source.

If you are preparing to hold off an invasion of people after the breakdown of society........you might have slipped into paranoia.
If you are preparing to grow food after spending 4 years in a fallout shelter.........you might have slipped into paranoia.
If you ever use the word "zombie" without at least a little snicker and a wink..........you might have slipped into paranoia.
If you spend inordinate amounts of your monthly income purchasing supplies for the end of the world..........well, you get the point.

[Artful]

It's real simple, like many schemes developed to make your wallet lighter and their wallet heavier; it relies on fear.

Fear is generated and you are told the only way to survive is to acquire a whole bunch of stuff. Then, conveniently, they just happen to have a whole bunch of that same stuff available for sale.

There you go, that's prepping in a nut shell.

Hmmm, how does this conflict with your second post? You know about being prepared for flood, storm, fire, power outage, etc

Having the ability to get through a situation such as a hurricane, fire, flood, blizzard, power outage, etc. is wise.
I like to think that I'm prepared enough that I will not become "part of the problem" in some large scale situation that deviates from the normal condition.

However, the "prepper" mentality often gets real weird, real fast. People often say there's a line been preparation and paranoia and I've seen a LOT of people attempt to financially exploit fear and push preparation into full blown paranoia.

If you live some place where hurricanes are possible, it is wise to be ready to handle a few weeks without electricity and running water.
If it snows a lot where you live, you should probably be able to go a few weeks without a trip to the store and have some backup heat source.

If you are preparing to hold off an invasion of people after the breakdown of society........you might have slipped into paranoia.
If you are preparing to grow food after spending 4 years in a fallout shelter.........you might have slipped into paranoia.
If you ever use the word "zombie" without at least a little snicker and a wink..........you might have slipped into paranoia.
If you spend inordinate amounts of your monthly income purchasing supplies for the end of the world..........well, you get the point.

I guess I didn't get the point of your first post correctly.

[Houndog]

Having enough food, water, an alternate source of heat and armament to protect what's yours for a week or two is just good common sense to me, no matter where you live. A natural disaster can happen anywhere at any time. A total meltdown is something else!

[Petrol & Powder]

Being Prepared is one thing. Being paranoid is something completely different.

The in vogue word "prepping" carries a connotation (at least for me) of a more intense systematic behavior related to irrational planning. Often gathering supplies for bizarre contingencies such as the general collapse of society.

Someone that lives in an area prone to snow that keeps some extra food on hand and has a wood stove to back up their furnace; isn't a "prepper" in my book. That's just normal behavior in those environments. If that same person is afraid to leave their house because they don't want to get too far from their 4 years worth of freeze dried food, hazmat suit and fortified bunker......Now we're getting into "prepper" territory.
Most people do not describe themselves as "preppers".

When I was a kid, I lived in a part of the country that was prone to hurricanes. We always had plenty of non-perishable food, drinking water and basic supplies on hand. We had anchors in the walls to hang pre-cut, pre-drilled plywood shutters and could board up the windows in less than an hour. We were not "Preppers", that was just normal behavior so that we could protect our property and be self-sufficient in the event of a hurricane.

I watched people purchase all sorts of weird stuff in 1999 out of fear of the alleged "Y2K" event. They purchased gas masks and potassium iodide. They closed their banks accounts and converted ALL of their money to cash. They purchased some gold in case the cash was worthless. Some people purchased large amounts of hard liquor in the little airplane bottles "so they could bribe people as needed". I saw lots of weirdness and lots of people using fear to exploit others. That is "Prepping" in my book.


The point is "Prepping" can mean a lot of different things and sometimes those things involve other people convincing you to spend a lot of your money.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Oh..... don't forget some toilet paper!

[jdfoxinc]

The first time there was an emergency prep. show here in Denver it was received with horrified expressions of, 'Oh my they are militias looking to overthrow our govt.!!!'

Two to three years and a couple of natural disasters later FEMA started recommendations of having 72hr to one week min. Of food and water.

[Inthealders]

I guess I have my answer, ironically by no one actually giving me an answer.
Have fun guys.

[RogerDat]

You want to know when SHTF or EOTWAWKI will happen? My best guess is about a week after I become debt free by paying off the mortgage and car and all store and credit cards. So my advice is don't worry about that sort of scenario, I'm sure between wife, kids and myself not likely to become debt free anytime soon. If I get close I'll give you all a heads up.

There are the known unknowns - stuff that can happen. Watch your local weather station. If you get hurricanes look at what hurricanes disrupt and "prep" for that situation. Blizzards then supplies for that. Forest fires you leave so plan for leaving. Tornadoes or floods might be handled differently but well you get the idea. No one can tell you when this stuff may come up (timing is unknown) but the situation is known possibility.

There are the unknown unknowns that strike fear in peoples hearts and greed in pre-packaged freeze dried food sellers minds. Lots of web sites track the stuff that predicts that which we don't know if it will ever happen, so we darn sure don't have any idea when. But there is someone just dying to tell you how all the signs are there of a stock melt down, hostile power taking down the entire infrastructure. Mass social breakdown, cannibalism. Excessive pop-up ads overrunning the internet. And fighting to the death to protect your small plot of wheat and corn which for some reason no one has except your well prepared self.

You know having some extra food on hand of the type that won't spoil and you use anyway is generally smart. We buy dog food in large bags, and always have the next bag on hand. Wish we would also do that for coffee a little more. Soup, stew, rice, beans, canned fruit or veggies, canned stewed tomatoes (yummy) a pantry that gets replaced as you use it. Regular food is cheaper and it isn't going to sit on a shelf doing nothing but proving it has a 20 year shelf life while it wastes you money. Prepper pudding won't do anything regular canned pudding won't do. And you can patch a leaking roof with canned pudding. Not having to run to the store for flashlight batteries and bottled water at the same time as everyone else getting ready for the storm is not a bad idea.

As for digging a survival shelter, stocking it with six months worth of special expensive food and then sitting around hoping something happens vs. having a stocked pantry of food I will buy anyway, plenty of ammo and components because I would anyway, and knowing where the flashlights and led lanterns are. One makes sense for my peace of mind, the other makes dollars and cents for the people selling the stuff. Fresh 5 gallons of gas (rotate with snow blower or lawn tractor) 6 gallon water jugs from our camping stuff to fill from the well in case power goes out. Fill bathtub for toilet flushing. Not ever having less than a week or two worth of toilet paper on hand. Takes up space but running low is annoying so have two and buy another whenever one gets used up. Extra couple bottles of propane and kerosene for the lead smelter and garage heater.

If I lived in an area that might require me to bug out to get away from forest fires or hurricanes I would find good maps showing all the small county level roads worthwhile. Useful in ordinary circumstances but if enough people are trying to leave your phone map application might not be available. And one can use maps for finding short cuts to garage sales. So win-win. A buddy system with a neighbor to make sure you both get out costs nothing. A couple of tools in the attic if you live where it floods so you can get through the roof may serve you well if you don't like being trapped in the attic by flood waters. Again a couple of pry bars are cheap insurance for something you know may happen, don't need a web site to track the signs of approaching doom. Am radio and local weather got you covered.

Some here I'm sure are bigger on the prepper type stuff and it's their money and time. If they want to use it that way not my call. Me I would rather own a new mold than a weeks worth of civilian MRE's I'll use the mold, I already have out of date MRE's someplace, anyone else recall Y2K? Only good thing about that is I have never run out or even terribly low on .22 LR ammo since then. Learned something from it too. Wife will not eat spam. Post apocalypse, choice of cannibalism or spam. it would be close, might come down to how fresh the dead person was and if she had makings for gravy.

[Artful]

-WW2 - rationing for civilian supplies, gasoline, tires, etc were in short supply - trading was often between locals -were they survivalists - you bet.

-During Korean War - .Gov required everyone to keep a supply of food on hand in case supplies were interrupted or Nuclear option was played by Communists.
That would be considered follow common sense orders by some but hoarding (by those who didn't have food) - survival strategy you bet.

Did many people build fallout shelters - you bet and the government encouraged it, why, playing the odds I'd guess.

- A friend moved to the south east, first major storm alert went to go buy supplies at local store and people were lined up
- mainly with beer in their carts. During Medieval times, lots drank beer as it was a time when you couldn't trust the water supplies in many places.
Survival buying - I'd say so.

In my community we did live 10 miles from town and kept a month or more of provisions (No not some special fancy freeze dried food), as we lived across a rive/creek that would flood each winter/spring, and snowfall could keep you from driving to town and they didn't clear the country roads until the primary roads were cleared so it could be 3 weeks or more before you could go back into town. The house did have gas furnace and wood stove at the same time and the propane tank was large enough you only had to fill it twice a year. - common sense or survivalist - you be the judge

At one point there was meat rationing because the government had subsidized the ranchers to NOT raise cattle, imagine that - we still pay people to not grow wheat.

Now let's flash forward a little - gasoline shortages happened in the 70's - Oregon would only you go to the pumps every other day (last # of your license plate the deciding factor) and many stations had limits as to how much you could pump. Would it have been nice to have a drum in case the service station was out of gas (which happened), you bet.

- Now lets flash forward again- I was a shooter and Slick Willie Clinton was in office and there was a shortage of primers
- you'd still get some by mail order but it was always back ordered and nothing on the shelves. If you had a couple of months on had you did OK.
- I learned from that and keep enough primers that I can shoot for a year without having worry.

Let's flash forward a little more Barack Obama became our President (Hope and Change guy), Sales of firearms immediately went up and ammo (expecially 22LR) had almost disappeared,
my liberal bother-in-law even bought a handgun (Californian immigrated from Boston) - then discovered he couldn't get ammo. I had to cover him with a box of 38's and we went out practicing and
he would have been hard pressed to hit a person at 10 yards. I had already had my lesson from Slick Willie so I had a large supply of what I regularly shot on hand and started the process of
back ordering stuff so that the coffers remained at a decent level (even if my bank account complained). I noticed that 40 S&W did seem to be in stock at a lot of shops, so now own a firearm that eats that - Live and learn, adapot - overcome and survive the challenges thrown your way.

https://www.mormonchannel.org/blog/p...th-food-supply
https://www.lds.org/topics/food-storage?lang=eng

http://readynutrition.com/resources/...time_20082013/

http://www.offthegridnews.com/off-gr...st-shelf-life/

[MUSTANG]

Snowed Friday, Saturday, and Sunday - Guess What! Nothing happened. We had fuel in all the vehicles. We had a 1000 gal Propane tank at about 70%, Still have 1 & 1/2 cords wood for the winter, Well is working but the Generator Runs on both gas and Propane should the power go out plus several multi-fuel lanterns with fuel for 3 months of light. Did not have to go to the store for food as we have 3 full freezers, a large pantry with canned vegetables, beans, corn, rice, oils, and...., an enclosed porch with several boxes of potatoes & onions, and a large free standing group of five shelves full of pasta and ...

As I said; nothing happened as we can live comfortably for months should some unexpected event occur. Did not start "Prepping" with the 1970's "Survivalist Movement", nor with the 2000's "Prepping Movement"; rather it goes back to how I was raised as the Son and Grandson of those who survived the Great Depression of the 1930's and the Dust Bowl.

[sparkyv]

Having enough food, water, an alternate source of heat and armament to protect what's yours for a week or two is just good common sense to me, no matter where you live. A natural disaster can happen anywhere at any time. A total meltdown is something else!

I agree. I am prepared for about 1-2 weeks, mostly if we have to hunker down during a hurricane. Harvey was pretty bad out my way, and we survived just fine. Water is the most difficult item for me to "prep". Ammo supply will not be an issue for me ever again. We prep, but are not paranoid.

[jdfoxinc]

You can all ways subscribe to Rush Lindbaugh and Alex Jones. Discount their gloom and doom by 75%. Then factor in your own feeling about political/social/whatever and go from there.

Me I watch the weather, politics, social uprisings, etc. What I have is in excess,(just ask my wife), and can be bartered for what I don't have. One can of beans for 5 5.56 cartridges. 5 empty cases for one loaded, etc. I have enough chemicals to reload 5000 SPP. Hundreds of pounds of lead/alloys, brass in 5 gallon lots for the popular cal. Gas check makers, .224 from .22 brass swaging dies/press, reloading stuff for .22 wmr.


Just starting to stock up on canned goods to rotate into everyday use as use by dates get close. I make my own jerky, pickled eggs and other long shelf life foods. I make soap and candles. Have blacksmithing and copper/tin smithing tools, (still practicing). Know how to make a brass/bronze casting setup out of (of all things) ceramic or terracotta flower pots and refractory cement.

So I could be called a nut job, or an historical reinactor, prepper, survivalist, separatist, whatever by the nay sayers in this thread. I like the ant don't care and won't cry for the grasshopper when whatever happens.

[762 shooter]

As Trotsky stated, Everything is relative.

Or "Everything is relative except relatives, and they are absolute." - Alfred Stieglitz.

Everyone is a prepper. It's just a matter of how prepped for how long.

From the person that buys his toilet paper one sheet at a time or his gasoline 1 gallon at a time, to doomsday class operators.

It's based on time. How long do you want to be self sufficient?

In my case, the threat of hurricanes is my guiding factor. I tailor 90% of my preps to keep me viable for two weeks.

Asteroids and the ending of the rule of law I assess at about 0.002473% probability and expend my energy accordingly.

762

[M-96 Hunter]

All you really need are guns and ammo. With them you can get everything else you need. W/O them someone else will come and take everything you have.

Best movie on prepping is THE ROAD.