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Is there actually a stigma for being prepared?
"Being prepared" is a lot like sex, no one talks about it (except to sell newspapers/media) but most people are doing it ha.
Seeing natural disasters coming more frequently and hitting harder/more people: Calif. wildfires, Puerto Rico/Texas/Florida/New Jersey hurricane disasters has made many people aware that they should not rely on anyone except themselves. We've seen it and been through several FL hurricanes and know for a fact that "government" is not prepared.
Media generally shows wild-eyed preppers talking about Armageddon (edited for their craziest remarks) which makes normal preppers not want to talk about their plan to family or friends.
And for a lot of people, who cannot imagine the actualities of being without power or water, it will never happen because it never happened to them or anyone they know.
Prepping, like everything in life, is about degrees. How far are you willing to go in prepping. A little bit, to get you through a week? Prepping for a month of disaster? A year? Or TEOTWAWKI? TEOTWAKI is not likely but those extreme preppers get media attention.
We are "above-average prep" compared to general population, moving towards medium/30 day prep status. Getting more bases covered is on our mind but not exclusively. Life also needs to be lived or what's the point?
I don't agree there is a stigma for being prepared, I'll bet most people wish they were prepared for simple disruptions. The stigma is some preppers have too many guns that makes them look like potential problems themselves.
I'm picturing some survivalists as the Clive Bunday type.
They will violate and cheat all the rest of us, steal what is not theirs, government feeding right on BLM property. When they had a singed contract to up hold the law. They want no laws so they can steal from others.
I have had rich friends that fell into this, of course not as extreme. But they were taken to the cleaner by a builder who stated they would build them a non impremiable fortress. We warned them, but they wouldn't listen. Don't cry for them, they still have money but about 2 million less.
The builder then killed himself and murdered his wife as the lawsuits were building up.
No I realize this is not the norm. But perception is everything. I hear about these 2 examples. And think This thread doesn't help.
And then the massive stock piles of guns. If there are 4 of you and you have 100 guns, how is one going to control the rest if you are under attack? And whom is attacking you. Just askin' Most of us aren't so tied to this world and would rather be dead than live under what I've read on here and other places.
I'm glad I have faith and don't need to live under such false conditions. Get yourself right with whatever higher power you believe in and you won't be so fearful of the afterlife. Cause what you describe here isn't 'living.'
Does anyone think that pop culture could sway public interest towards being a prepper/survivalist? There are so many books, movies, and television series now about post-apocalyptic societies, particularly the increasingly popular zombie apocalypse scenarios, that I would think more people would be interested in this whole topic. (OTOH, the vast majority of people in the US continue to have a meltdown when they have a 48 hr power failure due to a storm.)
Does anyone think that pop culture could sway public interest towards being a prepper/survivalist? There are so many books, movies, and television series now about post-apocalyptic societies, particularly the increasingly popular zombie apocalypse scenarios, that I would think more people would be interested in this whole topic. (OTOH, the vast majority of people in the US continue to have a meltdown when they have a 48 hr power failure due to a storm.)
I think it was unfortunate a show like Jericho was cancelled so abruptly. I thought that really had potential to reach people and get them to consider themselves In That position and what they would do. This would have been a great mainstream avenue to expose people to this concept.
Here is a suggestion for a really good book to read for anyone not sure they should be preparing but who is genuinely open minded ...Ted Koppel is a fairly well known investigative journalist. He even politically leans to the left so he is not far right wing fringe whacko. He did an investigative report on how prepared our government is to handle a large scale grid down scenario. He had access to fairly high government officials for his investigation and the more he learned the more frightened he was and realized how screwed regular citizens would be and the government was very I'll equipped or prepared to handle a major event. The book is called "lights out" by Ted Koppel
After everything Ted learned he openly admits he went from being skeptical to actually being a prepper himself. It was eye opening for him.
I think if people can logically show reasons and examples of real concerns and steps you can do to mitigate them people would be more receptive.
There are people who just don't care and don't want to hear it for whatever reason. I think some humans have evolved to block out unpleasant thoughts and just continue on in their normalcy bias and just expect the good times to keep rolling and find it unimaginable that bad things can happen. Unfortunately history has shown us time and time again, it's only a matter of time until something hsppens whether it's war, natural disasters, pandemic, economic collapse, etc..
There is a guy I have known for a while, and I like him a lot. One day he confided he is a Prepper and it kinda made my opinion of him change just a little. He started telling me how he had all this stuff stored, and how he was going to limit who he was going to take into his "compound". While I don't think of him as being crazy, he does seem to have some very radical views.
But, if you want to see the future as some Mad Max scenario, that is your right. Me, if the SHTF, I'm not sure I want to be around to live in the aftermath.
Depends on how the SHTF.
How ma y times has the govermment been "shut down" since 2000, because politicians can't get their heads out of their asses? Suppose it shut down for a year?
What about the mayoral disasters the hit Puerto Rico? Those people would kill for a Lifestraw,with which to drink water more safely. No electricity, no food, no water, for at least a month? Or longer?
How about the wild fires in California? They now have nothing.
You could easily survive those disasters, doesn't have a nuke bomb dropped on top you.
I've lived through a hurricane, no fun when power is gone for more than a week. I've lived through floods and had no electricity for at least 6 days. Several times, it floods the substation, automatically no power 6 days after. We finally bought a generator. Ibe had a fire that took my house. In all those cases things were operatibg nearby or soon after, but what if, like PR, it lasted?
What if the national electric grid, already in trouble went down for good, or at least for say, a month or two? And all had no electricity?
Food supplies are generally only 3 days to depletion, and water isn't far behind.
With the constant power outages I started to become a "casual preper." We tried eating a defrosted from frozen piece of meat the next day and both got very sick, even though I cooked it to death on the propane stove. Decided it was time to have stored food alternatives, and to stock those up.
If the h bomb or an n bomb gets dropped, yeah I don't wabtvto be around but it can be something simple setting us back into the dark ages. Then I want to be prepared for at least a month or two, if not longer.
Just in case.
I've got bug out bags in the car, if we can even go anywhere, but try will come in handy here in the house too.
Best of luck when the lights do go out. I've got candles to light my way.....
Did you see the latest episode of "The Orville"?
An alien survivalist saves a woman, but keeps her locked up, so she kills him. But she makes a point of only stunning the other aliens who are trying to kill her.
Dude, survivalists have a bad image!
Did you see the latest episode of "The Orville"?
An alien survivalist saves a woman, but keeps her locked up, so she kills him. But she makes a point of only stunning the other aliens who are trying to kill her.
Dude, survivalists have a bad image!
Did you see the latest episode of "The Orville"?
An alien survivalist saves a woman, but keeps her locked up, so she kills him. But she makes a point of only stunning the other aliens who are trying to kill her.
Dude, survivalists have a bad image!
For those that are older have you seen the value of preparedness and self sufficiency vastly decline in your lifetime?
There is definitely a decline in self sufficiency. I’m almost 70, and when I was a kid, plenty of mothers put up their own canned fruits and veggies, etc. I have the knowledge to do this, but not the desire.
We just rode out a hurricane, with plenty of bottled water and food, a generator to run the refrigerator, freezer and a few other things, a gas grill to cook on, and plenty of gasoline.
Do I prepare for some cataclysmic event? No, and I don’t worry about it either.
We have guns, and although we don’t hunt, our sons do, so if we all banded together we could get by.
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This thread doesn't help. 
