Duck and Cover: It’s the New Survivalism

New York Times ^ | 6 April 08 | By ALEX WILLIAMS

[shrinkermd]

...Preparedness activity is difficult to track statistically, since people who take measures are usually highly circumspect by nature, said Jim Rawles, the editor of www.survivalblog.com, a preparedness Web site. Nevertheless, interest in the survivalist movement “is experiencing its largest growth since the late 1970s,” Mr. Rawles said in an e-mail, adding that traffic at his blog has more than doubled in the past 11 months, with more than 67,000 unique visitors per week. And its base is growing.

“Our core readership is still solidly conservative,” he said. “But in recent months I’ve noticed an increasing number of stridently green and left-of-center readers.”

One left-of-center environmentalist who is taking action is Alex Steffen, the executive editor of www.wWorldchanging.com, a Web site devoted to sustainability. With only slight irony, Mr. Steffen, 40, said he and his girlfriend could serve as “poster children for the well-adjusted, urban liberal survivalist,” given that they keep a six-week cache of food and supplies in his basement in Seattle (although they polished off their bottle of doomsday whiskey at a party).

“The ‘where do we land when when climate change gets crazy?’ question seems to be an increasingly common one,” said Mr. Steffen in an e-mail message, adding that such questions have “really gone mainstream.”

Many of the new, nontraditional preparedness converts are “Peakniks,” Mr. Rawles said, referring to adherents of the “Peak Oil” theory.

The topic, which was the subject of a United States Department of Energy report in 2005, has attracted attention in publications like The New York Times Magazine and The Wall Street Journal, and was a primary focus of “Megadisasters: Oil Apocalypse,” a recent History Channel special.

[shrinkermd]

Something to worry about for everyone--the ultimate egalitarian wishful fantasy.

[Vince Ferrer]

...interest in the survivalist movement “is experiencing its largest growth since the late 1970s,”

More like 1999. This is something I have noticed too. Previous to the bubble collapse, the only people that seemed worried were the far right. But now when I look at housing blogs, there seem to be a lot of left wing economic apocolyptics around, perhaps in the majority now. They are usually very pro-Obama, although I'm not sure why.

Such as: The World Made by Hand

[Kozak]

I’ve always felt having a couple of months of food on hand was just common sense and cheap insurance for my family.

[hiredhand]

To plan for the results global warming and call it survivalism is lame, moot, and pointless. :-) What a bunch of weenies. So what if the "poster children" have a six weeks supply of food cached? What about AFTER that? ...and what if before the six weeks is up, somebody tries to take it away from them? Something tells me that the leftist cache of food and supplies doesn't include any EBRs and the necessary operational accessories. :-)

[Squantos]

Agree .......freepmail !

[PowderMonkey]

Yep. Ya got that right. The Sheeple are getting nervous, eh? I seriously doubt any have succesfully grown kit-garden tomatoes on their window sill. Wait till their lives depend on the next crop comming in. There’s high anxiety for you. Hunger? Deprevation? They have no idea. Katrina gave us a glimpse of what a society becomes, when its people can’t even make fire. Survive? They won’t. No most will turn belly up long before their stockpile of cigarettes, cornchips, and soda pop runs out.

[hiredhand]

Yep. Ya got that right. The Sheeple are getting nervous, eh? I seriously doubt any have succesfully grown kit-garden tomatoes on their window sill. Wait till their lives depend on the next crop comming in. There’s high anxiety for you. Hunger? Deprevation? They have no idea. Katrina gave us a glimpse of what a society becomes, when its people can’t even make fire. Survive? They won’t. No most will turn belly up long before their stockpile of cigarettes, cornchips, and soda pop runs out.

I wonder how they'll react when section 9 housing occupants come to their nice neighborhoods TAKE what they need? If they live in an urban area, they should take this into consideration. Leftists just don't change. They put a little pile of food in the basement and the "feel good factor" goes up, but they still live in a dream world. If the doo-doo does hit the fan, they'll have a couple of snacks at best from their pile in the basement before bugging OUT of the area for safer digs just to save their own skins, and I doubt they'll be hauling six weeks of food in the back of the Volvo sedan.

[eXe]

Yup.. they may not “like guns” but they better have them when the lesser classes come to take away all their food.

[Squantos]

[FReepapalooza]

Are you implying a parallel?

Imagine that!

One freaking misstep or calamity at this point is all it will take to tip Humpty-Dumpty off the wall.

[hiredhand]

Yup.. they may not “like guns” but they better have them when the lesser classes come to take away all their food.

They're irrational about weapons. I personally don't "like" them either. I'd say that I have a fond respect. :-) I'd much rather spend time with a person whom I like. But firearms are very, VERY useful in many areas...particularly in the area of physical security! The last time I checked, physical security is on the TOP of most peoples' priority list. But lefties just can't get past the hi-cap mag, and the pistol grip and the "blackness"....and I know that a revolver is often sufficient, but something tells me that when the gov't supplied masses don't get what they think they need, they're going to go out looking. Historically, we've learned that a good many of them are NOT going to be very nice about it too! I'll stick to an EBR for that. But even with that, it's just a "tool". In this case, it will be a tool for keeping people from taking my food or valuables....or for killing/gathering more food!

Like I was saying, leftists live in a dream world. They've forgotten NOLA in the weeks and months after Katrina. They should plan for the "hood" that might be nearby...even across town. Because if we suffer a systems breakdown, everything is going to change.

[hiredhand]

Good parallel! It doesn’t matter what the catalyst is. The outcome is “reasonably” predictable. ...and therefore, we can to a “degree” prepare for it.

[FReepapalooza]

I’m just thinking the people from Jericho were pretty civilized in their reactions, considering what happened. I don’t think things would be as organized and democratic if it happened for real.

[mtbopfuyn]

building a simple cabin in a remote West Texas desert

Okey dokey, and where is he going to get his drinking water and water for livestock and a garden in the middle of remoste West Texas, huh?

[hiredhand]

I’m just thinking the people from Jericho were pretty civilized in their reactions, considering what happened. I don’t think things would be as organized and democratic if it happened for real.

That's the problem with things like this. Even we would like to think that we can imagine how it will unfold. But I don't think that even we can truly plan for what's going to happen. We'll be better prepared than most, but NOLA was but a small smattering of what we have to look forward to in "urban" areas. Mayhem, looting, LEOs abandoning their posts...and then we had gun round-ups of course.

We refuse to live in urban areas. The last time we moved and had the opportunity to choose where we were going to live it was prior to Y2K. I work in IT and never thought Y2K was going to amount to much. But I don't have the same feeling about what's coming next.

Whatever happens next will be the biggest mess we'll ever get to see. Our nation as a people has lost a LOT of "intestinal fortitude" since the last time we had a real depression. We have too many people who depend too much on the government, and it seems to me that far too little will cause it to totter and break the delicate balance that keeps us operating as a nation. I'm guessing that the coming problems are going to be economic/financial, but nothing would surprise me anymore.

[Lurker]

Love that show, although the ending was a bit cheesy.

I've always figured it was just good policy to have some basic skill sets like being able to grow a decent amount of food on a small plot of land, do basic and advanced first aid, brew beer, distill liquor, reload ammunition, cook safely and well for large groups of people, etc, etc.

Once one runs out of 'stuff' to trade, skills like some of the above will be worth more than gold.

L

[Squantos]

woof !

[papertyger]

I bought the entire series off itunes. It’s the first I’ve found that my artsy wife will watch that I think helps inculcate the proper mind-set for living in such situations.

Even the dopey stuff, like the shootout where Hawkins was counting rounds to know when the Ravenwood guy would reload, is useful. It gave me the chance to explain “tactical reload” to her.

I don’t intend any kind of condescention when I say this, but watching Jericho with her is a lot like supervised viewing of “adult” programing with your children. Her mind just doesn’t naturally go in those directions, but I believe it is important to expose her to it to the extent she’ll tolerate.

[hiredhand]

WOOF! :-)

[Lurker]

Mrs L really liked Jericho. We'd sit there together and pick little flaws like that out to each other.

Since she already understands tactical reloads she turned to me and said "He'd be dead if he tried that sh** on me. You taught me to reload before I'm empty." I just smiled.

She also wondered why no one seemed to be able to can food or jerk meat. She was a chef in another life, so that's natural for her.

We're a couple of lucky men you and I.

L