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I have lived in FL for 6 years, and am now a permanent resident. But there is a strong segment of the local culture that I just don't get. What is the deal with a large percentage of Floridians being obsessed with survivalism when they tend to live in relatively safe neighborhoods?
1. For example, there is the constant worry about home invaders, people always shouting about the need for guns to protect oneself - and yet in all my time here I have never seen a reason for such incredible worry over it (and I lived 5 yrs in Miami). It doesn't seem nearly as common as the amount of time people put into worrying about it happening. Please, let's not get into a shouting match about gun rights. I'm looking for calm insights as to WHY there is a culture of people feeling so afraid here. It doesn't seem to be more dangerous to live in FL than any other state for the most part, but there seems to be far more concern for one's survival than in other states - it would seem disproportionately so.
2. Also, Floridians as a whole seem to take themselves far more seriously than I am used to people doing in other states (I've lived in several). As a whole they seem much more angry, and have no sense of humor whatsoever about things that FL may not do as well as other states. Up North, when someone points out something the state or city is doing wrong, people just laugh about it and roll their eyes and say "yeah, the govt., what a bunch of idiots! Our city is so backward..." Maybe they get involved and try to change it.But it's not personal. Down here in FL, if someone mentions that the city or state ever does something wrong or could be better, people get all defensive as if it's a personal attack. Or, they get angry and start talking about dismantling the govt. entirely and living in anarchy - ...wait, what?? Of course, that comes back to needing guns to be prepared...
Why are our only two options accepting govt inadequacy completely, or grabbing an arsenal of guns and taking the whole govt apart? Umm... is there no third option?
VS.
3. Then there is the survivalist culture. Militias, people preparing for zombie apocalypse, people stocking up on supplies for a century to come. Even on Amazon, you can see the endless Floridian reviews of knives, dry stock supplies, rope, tools - and they're not calm reviews about preparing for hurricanes. They're really impassioned reviews about which would be better to kill people with in hand-to-hand combat, or which is the best to use for that inevitable time when we will be living in the wild with no govt. or roads with hordes of thieves roaming the countryside. Did we just get transported back to the Middle Ages? These reviews inevitably mention FL, so I'm just saying...
Am I missing something, or are Floridians living in a war that none of the rest of us knows about?
Obviously, I know a ton of Floridians who don't fit into this stereotype. But there are also plenty who do. So even if it's not everyone, what's the deal with a significant segment of the population always preparing for the End Days?It seems more than in most other states.
People just seem to be a little bit... wound up, here. And I'm just wondering WHY? Is it the water? Will I one day be bitten and become a zombie too?...
Your post really made me laugh! I will never understand the "culture of fear" that you describe.
Get ADT and stop believing in Zombies. I don't know, relax, enjoy the sun and have a strong tropical beverage.
That's what I do when in Florida.
But then, I don't live there full time.
I have never encountered this in FL. After last Winter, which hit us with such a ferocity that I currently suffer from PTSD when I see a picture of a wintery landscape; we are thinking of getting a second home in Florida.
However, I have no desire to spend a month or two around dooms day people or "preppers".
My guess is that the transient nature of Florida and the fact that everyone there, or many people there, come from some place else, thus raising the level of suspicion.
Since I'm interested in having a second home, and I am decidedly disinterested in living around these folks, can you tell me in what part of the state these individuals live in perpetual fear?
Because I can tell you, I don't want to be anywhere near there. Nor do I ever want to debate "dooms day scenarios" with such people. I may as will stay home, shovel snow, and freeze my a$$ off.
Obviously, there is a lot of defensiveness for those who are obsessed with survivalism and the end of the world when this topic is brought up. It's really not common in any of the places I have lived before, and that includes several states and also both large cities and small towns. So the fact that it took no time at all to get multiple Floridians to defend fearing for one's life does show that it's present here in good numbers. In in my personal experience, far more so than places who actually have a much harder daily life with ACTUAL reason to fear getting shot on the daily in their neighborhood - and yet those people are very chill by comparison.
There is a huge difference between preparing for a major hurricane, and preparing for the apocalypse. For one, again I point you to the endless Amazon reviews discussing which tool is better for "killing someone in hand to hand combat."
The question is not about other states, or other countries. Is it about why this is such a movement in FL - no other comments need apply.
I think it is very naive to say that this is a movement of all people, and that anyone not building a bomb shelter in the backyard and running militia tactics with their friends in the woods has their head in the sand. After all, hundreds of millions of families have survived in the US (and in FL!) for multiple generations, through 2 world wars, multiple terrorist attacks, and through mass poverty like the Great Depression - all without owning either guns or gas masks. Sure, someone could attack your home, or your tiny town with a single stoplight might get targeted by terrorists for no reason. However, it is FAR more likely that you will be in a car accident, or deal with a hurricane, than that the end of the world cometh.
As the John Lennon saying goes, "Life is what happens while you're busy making other plans."
It would appear to me that many Floridians are so lost in fear of the End Times they're missing out on the great enjoyment to be had living in FL. Some people are happier stockpiling machine guns like they're going out of style I guess, then just relaxing and enjoying the safety they're actually experiencing today.
I guess we just have different definitions of what it means to have a hobby.
Obviously, there is a lot of defensiveness for those who are obsessed with survivalism and the end of the world when this topic is brought up. It's really not common in any of the places I have lived before, and that includes several states and also both large cities and small towns. So the fact that it took no time at all to get multiple Floridians to defend fearing for one's life does show that it's present here in good numbers. In in my personal experience, far more so than places who actually have a much harder daily life with ACTUAL reason to fear getting shot on the daily in their neighborhood - and yet those people are very chill by comparison.
There is a huge difference between preparing for a major hurricane, and preparing for the apocalypse. For one, again I point you to the endless Amazon reviews discussing which tool is better for "killing someone in hand to hand combat."
The question is not about other states, or other countries. Is it about why this is such a movement in FL - no other comments need apply.
I think it is very naive to say that this is a movement of all people, and that anyone not building a bomb shelter in the backyard and running militia tactics with their friends in the woods has their head in the sand. After all, hundreds of millions of families have survived in the US (and in FL!) for multiple generations, through 2 world wars, multiple terrorist attacks, and through mass poverty like the Great Depression - all without owning either guns or gas masks. Sure, someone could attack your home, or your tiny town with a single stoplight might get targeted by terrorists for no reason. However, it is FAR more likely that you will be in a car accident, or deal with a hurricane, than that the end of the world cometh.
As the John Lennon saying goes, "Life is what happens while you're busy making other plans."
It would appear to me that many Floridians are so lost in fear of the End Times they're missing out on the great enjoyment to be had living in FL. Some people are happier stockpiling machine guns like they're going out of style I guess, then just relaxing and enjoying the safety they're actually experiencing today.
I guess we just have different definitions of what it means to have a hobby.
I don't know who you have seen, or spoken to, to get the impression that the extreme survival mentality you describe in your post is as prevalent among Florida residents as you claim it to be. While I'm sure there are folks who believe and act as though they're convinced of "end times" around the corner, it's a mistake to base your assumption that this mentality predominates among Florida residents on a few folks you have met here or there who responded to your (probably patronizing, if the tone of your posts on the topic is any indication) queries about their "survivalist" perspectives.
I can assure you, based on my own experience at having lived in Florida for nearly 40 years, ( both in southeast and southwest FL), and traveling extensively all over the state, that the state is NOT overrun with "extreme survivalists" building bomb shelters, stockpiling weapons, gas masks, nonperishable food or other supplies. In all the time I have lived and worked all over the state I've yet to run across anyone who has expressed the paranoia you claim they do- if they're preparing for anything they're private about it. Or they make their preparations, don't advertise them, and then knowing they've done their best, go ahead and live their lives.
I do hope you aren't labeling advance preparations for hurricanes/tropical systems and their aftermath as "extreme survival" preparations and calling the folks who do prepare "paranoid", because after all, in your way of thinking, so it seems, the "guvmint will take care of them". Those of us who are veterans of a number of hurricanes, AND their aftermath ( worse than the storm itself) know it's foolhardy NOT to prepare. Should you be unlucky enough to live in an area that sustains a direct hit from major hurricane, you'll see how essential those preparations are, because the government can't ( and won't, I'm sure) be right there to "take care of you".... I'd hope you know better than that, but it may be helpful to point out that self-reliance does not make one a "paranoid survival extremist".
So there's no ability to calmly address the issues and fix them as in other states - the only option in Florida is to arm oneself and prepare for the End Days?
Of course the world is in some turmoil. But millions of other people around the country are able to take it in stride, and are surviving - even those in NYC who were actually bombed in their own city by invaders. And yet, they have adjusted and are ok. Not roaming the streets with machine guns and helmets, totally freaking out. People in suburban FL are not likely to experience that scenario any time soon, and yet you would think they face it daily based on all the "preparation for the worst."
Might there be an in between? Like you don't like the way your govt is going, so vote differently, or get involved yourself? Do you really need to stock pile your resources in the backyard and start learning the language of potential space invaders?
So tell me then, just where is it that you saw people in suburban Florida roaming the streets with machine guns and helmets, totally freaking out, eh?
Or perhaps you've seen this in your Keys paradise?
...that the state is NOT overrun with "extreme survivalists" building bomb shelters, stockpiling weapons, gas masks, nonperishable food or other supplies.
Obviously, there is a lot of defensiveness for those who are obsessed with survivalism and the end of the world when this topic is brought up. It's really not common in any of the places I have lived before, and that includes several states and also both large cities and small towns.
Umm... the defensiveness is a bit of what I'm talking about. What are you taking this personally? I'm simply asking a question about an aspect of the culture that is not common in the multiple other states I've lived in, at least in the communities I have been a part of - all of which were far more dangerous than the 2 Florida communities I've lived in.
I don't have to read every newspaper and watch every TV show in the country. Why should I be an expert on something to ask a question? In fact, not being an expert is exactly the kind of person who should ask a question!
And simply because the almighty "forum" has declared that Floridians are 100% transplants does not make that true. I am in a line of work where I go out of my way to encounter local culture, so it is no surprise that I have met and befriended many multi-generation Floridians. Maybe if you went out of your way to try to meet them, you would find them too. It's silly to pretend that entire culture has been wiped out, simply because it's not the majority. "Native Floridians" of today are not the same as the REAL native Floridians, the Seminoles - they are certainly still around.
[And although I have absolutely no intention of getting into an argument that is so far off topic, it is the stupidest thing I have ever heard to make fun of NYC residents' reliance on their govt. for catastrophic disasters. Not one NYC resident would say their govt. failed them in 9-11. All of them who lived there at the time - including myself - were incredibly grateful for how quickly order was restored and things went back to normal. In fact, I even traveled 30 min. out of the county to a party with friends at the beginning of October, not even a full month afterwards. We lost many friends, but life moved on, and thanks to our govt. and rescue workers, the danger was minimized. The vast majority of people in this nation are very grateful and understand how much worse it could have been. People who were never in any danger can say what they want. I lived 5 blocks from the World Trade Center and I know because of emergency response in the city I am alive today. I WAS in one of the closest things this country has to an apocalypse, and I survived just fine, thank to my govt. and to having common sense. No gun is going to save you from a hurricane or terrorist attack, by the way - I can tell you from experience of both.]
LOL, looks like I poked one of your Sacred Cows in that remark ( which, BTW, was meant as tongue-in-cheek, but we all know there's truth to it). I mean, just look at how you've dumped all over that remark with your comments about 9/11. No one's arguing about the great job done in the aftermath of the attacks by the Bush administration, and Rudy Guiliani specifically, in making New Yorkers and the country whole again ( as far as possible) after the WTC attacks, or about the tragedy that this event represented to both NY and the entire country. We had relatives there too, as did many many other people. It wasn't just you.
But for you to take such offense at an offhand remark about the dependence of NYers on their government- in response ( in jest or not) to your comments about the foolishness of "many Floridians" being paranoid survival extremists", as you claim that such mentality does not exist in other states- well, frankly, given the impression I had of you from your other posts, this surprises and disappoints me.
But so it goes.
Last edited by Travelassie; 06-06-2014 at 01:06 PM..
But there is a strong segment of the local culture
Reading is very important, rather than simply making up things you want other posters to have said.
In the very first two sentences of the entire thread I said - one, this is a bit of a joke, which several people obviously got, and which obviously flew way over the heads of several other responders. And two, I never said it was a majority of Floridians. I simply said it was a strong segment. And some the responses here - most insanely over the top - have certainly proven that right.
Again, a sense of humor will go a long way. If you really want to live longer, cultivate that, not your ammo supply.
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