>> and putting up a windmill is putting up a beacon that says “WE HAVE ELECTRICTIY HERE!”
LOL! Yeah, I didn’t think about that.
On the other hand, rural self-sufficiency is hard to hide anyway. Cattle are big and hard to keep hidden; you can’t move your garden nor can you keep it in your basement; you can cover up your solar panels, but they don’t work so well that way.
In spite of what everyone says about guns ‘n ammo and romantically smiting hordes of unwashed invaders, the fact it, if the stuff REALLY hits the fan and the countryside is full of hungry bands of marauding parasites, it’s going to be darn difficult to defend your place with just you and the missus and a couple other hands. That’s not romantic, it’s just reality.
I’m not doing the majority of my planning with that grim and intractable scenario in mind. I just want to be (say) 100% self sufficient on water, 80% self sufficient on food (which approaches 100% if you just eat less), and as self-sufficient on energy as I can afford.
Then if there’s inflation, or stagflation, or biflation, or whatever, we can afford to live it out. Until we get sick, anyway. :-(
Besides, my real treasure is in the next life.
When the SHTF a few heads placed on stakes should send a message.
And some claymores on triplines.