Posted on 03/18/2014 4:16:10 PM PDT by Kartographer
When people talk about "The End Of The World As We Know It” (TEOTWAWKI), it is almost always in ways of how we might prepare for the end, what equipment to have, how much food to store, and what skills we must learn. These are all valid points. Most people can agree on common standards in these areas, but what if the act of preparing for the end can cause danger to yourself and your family?
I'm not mocking prepping; I'm a prepper myself. I'm simply stating that a prepper must be in the correct mindset to make choices they may not have expected to make. Say a disaster happens; you've prepared for this years ago, and you know what to do. You go home, get your bug out bag, and get to your bug out location, which you have stocked with ammo, food, and everything you need to survive for at least a year. What if that location becomes compromised? Maybe, word got around about a guy with a lot of gear and food, and people slowly started to flock to your location. Some went to ask for food, and some that want to take it. What do you do?
(Excerpt) Read more at survivalblog.com ...
Preppers’ PING!!
This is a very important lesson. You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end—which you can never afford to lose—with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be.
If you've got soap, shaving cream, shampoo, laundry detergent, nearly unlimited well water, electricity, a year's supply of food, ammo, medicine, etc, perhaps you don't want to advertise it too much. I've thought a lot about whether to shave, keep my whites white and colors bright, and keep my hair conspicuously clean and combed in a SHTF situation. Do I want to advertise that I have an abundance of water? I've thought about how much electricity to use even if I have a surplus. Do I want that AC running and humming in the summertime? If I have enough and prepared neighbors, we can all be clean together and protect our homes together. If half of my neighbors are zombies, I may want to keep quiet about how comfortable my family is until their parasitic nature gets resolved one way or another.
In conclusion, I now only believe that the people truly prepared for disasters are the ones that are ready and confident to do so with NO supplies.
Positive mental attitude (PMA). Leadership skills and people skills are ALWAYS in short supply.
And an extra helping of Bacon always helps.
Agreed your mindset is more important than supplies.....
"Maybe, word got around about a guy with a lot of gear and food, and people slowly started to flock to your location."
A man I know used to live in a poor rural area besought with petty crime. All the houses in the area were a little bit shabby but if you went inside they were very nice.. the point is that no one wanted to display their wealth.... very different than what you see in neighborhoods today...
www.newmediaexplorer.org/chris/2004/04/14/cool_fridge_without_using_electricity.htm
Keep things cool without electricity. When I was a kid the old lady next door had a crock pot covered with a damp towel to keep her food cool.
also consider what may happen if some of the ‘prepared’ neighbors run out.
This has nothing to do with the article. There is a disease going through swine herds right now and if they don’t get a hold of it pork prices are going to soar. Beef is already in short supply because of the long drought and chicken will go up from demand, so if you have the money you should fill your freezer now.
I also consider what may happen if I try to survive completely on my own, and I think that is a bigger risk, although OPSEC matters even with apparent allies. I have a neighborhood map listing critical information. Who shoots? Who gets things done? Who is good with particular tasks? Who voted Obama? That last trait is the most important information of all - those are the dangerous ones in a tough situation.
I've posted this a while back, but here's another angle to consider: If food or other necessities get tight and the line forms to the right at the distribution center, SHOW UP, even if you have plenty. If you don't, and you're known in the community, inquiring minds might ask why you are not there, and come and check out your inventory for themselves.
of course, yoiu should. i am just saying think about others that are “prepared” but either not too well, or aren’t doing anything/right things to stay stocked. people can’ t let the guard down just b/c someone in the neighborhood appears okay. it’s too easy to write off someone as a non-threat and ever periodically re-assess.
We’ve lived in our isolated area almost 30 yrs. Husband has a reputation for being “difficult” (he has lots of KEEP OUT signs in the driveway and a reputation for being “snotty”). Most are retired out here; and maybe we would be able to work together, share skills and help each other survive. - We live pretty simple. Spiritual readiness will most likely be way up there on the list of important things. (Not weirdo spiritual readiness; but down to earth respect and godly attitudes.) - We’ve been at this ever since Y2K; so are old hands at it. Bugging out isn’t an option; here we stand.
Unrelated prepping topic - trash talk:
Has anyone looked at the trash our families generate each week and thought about how our trash would differ in a SHTF situation? Most of us don’t waste food now, even when it’s plentiful, but there may be a lot we throw away that could be used otherwise.
1. Anything burnable with no better use would be burned - for heating, for cooking, or for some other situation requiring fire.
2. Anything metal would likely have a better use than throwing it away - whether as a storage container, as a series of cans turned into a pipe, or hammered into another shape, and there would be less metal being “used up” in any case.
3. The rare inedible (and non-meat) food would go into compost pile, with much more attention to composting than today.
Other ideas about trash?
The part of the article talking about “no supplies survivors” is textbook survival bias.
Your post, combined with the comments above made me think of something you should consider: After the SHTF, if people look through your trash, they will know what you had and may wonder if you have more they can get you to part with.
Yes, it's called a zeer.
Pork has already gone up nearly double here.
I have to disagree with the article, most people won't be staying because of their "stuff", they'll be staying because they can't. Maybe they aren't physically able to hike out into the great beyond with just a backpack. Maybe they have loved ones who aren't able to survive without them and who also can't hike to the great beyond. Maybe there is no safe area in the beyond. Maybe there's no destination. I'm staying put as long as possible.
It's not "if". People who are hungry will look through trash and anything else in the open, and if SHTF people will be hungry. Trash is a source of resources for the prepper and for zombies, and it should be a major OPSEC concern.
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