Last night, I was thinking about your post and this thread as I sat around talking with a neighbor who I forward articles to and he was again asking me for advice. As though I'm the one with the answers. I went through the basic personal money management thoughts (pay off your debt, save 3 months worth of expenses at home, keep your job, no matter how much you hate it, etc, etc), and some preparation ideas, such as KABA matters and basic sustenance. The truth is that most people have no idea how to be remotely self-sufficient. It is like their brain shuts down and cannot process basic logic. And he is just one of a group of friends who are going through similar thinking.
He has enough foresight to see the potential danger, but his mind will not let him come to grasp it. He waffles between “what do I need to do to prepare my family for potential unrest” and “this is outrageous, it can't happen here”. There are many people out there who think everything is just fine. "After all, look how busy Walmart is, and the restaurants and bars."
So I asked him to think it through with various scenarios. That helped a bit.
And, you know, we live in South Florida, where we routinely go through the hurricane prep days before a big storm is due to hit us. After years of episodic power outages for as long as two to three weeks some times, no gas, no work, no bank, no stores open, you'd think that men would learn a bit more than they do. But maybe I expect to much.
I ran through the basics. He thought I was “paranoid”. So, I suggested that he goes to ready.gov and look at how the fedgov thinks he should be prepared. And that site is simply about national disasters. So if the fedgov think citizens should be that prepared all the time, use your judgment about the potential future.
So many people think that “it could never happen here”, or that “the government would allow that to happen”. Really, without tilting your hand too much, all you can do is forward articles that you read and inform them so they can decide for themselves.
I mention the tilting your hand, because then there runs through my mind another thought. Let's say the time comes that the ecomony plummets in a worse case, or near worse case scenario. If you're not careful everyone shows up at your house, if for not other reason than the sheer fact that you were the one that saw it coming and maybe you have some more ideas. Too late. Now, how many of your unprepared friends and family can your preparations support? And where does your charity end and their responsibility begin. Tought questions.
Christ said that when he returns, blesed are those found feeding his sheep.
"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns." Mat.24:45-46
...food for thought. (pun not intended)