That's a rather foolish generalization. First, short term disasters are more likely than TEOTWAWKI. It's foolish to be prepared for one? Buying extra of the stuff I use all the time until I have months or more supplies on hand is common sense. If nothing happens, I use it and buy more. Having the means of self-defense is common sense. So are basic first aid, alternate water supplies, heat, etc. IMHO there is at least a likely a slow descent into more poverty, higher crime, slower police response, and intermittent disruption of services as a general collapse. Basic prepping can help people get by until we the people can reestablish some order and prosperity.
That's not to say there isn't plenty of foolishness among some preppers. First there's the "space capsule survivalist" types, who plan on hiding in a bunker with a years supply of MREs and a thousand pounds of wheat. Then they will do what? Come out expecting to be welcomed by a world that has somehow been rebuilt by someone else? Then there's people who are fixated on one particular doomsday event like coronal mass ejection or polar shift, convinced that it will happen next year or something. These folks either have no understanding of statistics, or are simply nuts. They have far more chance of being killed while driving to buy their survival stuff than they ever will from what they prep for. Still, their preparations may be useful for a wide variety of other emergencies, and some are quite ingenuous.
Having time means you can make better decisions.
Some of my friends roll their eyes when I speak of preparing, others take it very seriously and have started actively stocking up.
This presents some very unpleasant thoughts. While I would have no problem killing a stranger trying to steal or hurt our group, I might hesitate if that person is someone I know.
Stay safe folks.
The smart way to prepare is to consider what events have happened in the past in your area and choose accordingly.
Within my lifetime here we’ve had one surprise blizzard, a couple ice storms that took out power lines and blocked roads for a time, tornadoes with similar effects since they didn’t hit the actual home but hit other parts of the county instead, even a hurricane once plowing far enough inland to cause some chaos.
If you want to prepare, prepare for what’s likely to happen. If the power’s likely to go out, make sure you have edible food and a means of cooking if required. If it’s cold, have spare blankets and handwarmers, perhaps a heater and fuel for it. If flooding frequently threatens the local water supply, draw water as you see this starting to shape up, have jugs of water on hand.
I love guns as much as the next country gal but if the rain started up tonight and flooded the treatment plant (which is entirely plausible), I couldn’t drink ammo. The chances of someone coming to the door trying to aggressively take your kettles of water are ludicrously slim locally, so where does it make more sense to put those dollars, into an arsenal or a case of Deer Park?