# Important questions to preppers from my Husband



## Salekdarling (Aug 15, 2010)

My husband is a non-prepper. He think you and I are crazy. He even told me so, not even five minutes ago. He told me to ask you folks why do _you_ prep? He thinks that we are all prepping for the end of the world. I cannot convince him that this is not the case. A few months ago I was able to feed the two of us when we were having issues with our bills, and could not buy groceries - it's obvious that it didn't help him realize that what I'm doing for our family is a good idea. :brickwall: So please tell me:

*Why are you prepping?*
*What are you prepping for? *

I'm going to redirect the answers to my husband, and I'll let you know what his response is.


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## drissel (Oct 23, 2011)

I'm prepping for job loss, power outage due to ice storm, thunderstorm, just like those in NJ who are doing without power and food...we had a flood back in '96 and were able to help out many with our supplies....call it economy insurance, like life insurance, car insurance...it is just in case...plus you can save time and money, like buying while on sale, and it is nice when you are cooking and run out of something, you don't need to run to the store....so it does save time.


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## mdprepper (Jan 22, 2010)

mdprepper said:


> No doom and gloom for me. Just feeling lead to do it, a prompting in my heart. I don't know how to describe it. I can tell you that for ME, every time I have had a STRONG urge to make sure I am stocked up, I have a "personal shtf" happen. I (almost) always have just the right amount on hand to get through.


That was my response to Magus when he asked and it remains the same. For us one of the personal SHTFs has been my Hubby being laid off. Unemployment only stretches so far. Also, when my Dad was dying, I took unpaid leave in order to take care of him 7 days a week for a few months. I had to drive 50 miles round trip every day and it took all we had to pay for the gas. It was a blessing to not have to worry about where our next meal was coming from. We have gone so low on our preps that I had to go to the food bank once in order to make it through. I am eternally grateful that it was there to get us through, but it was a truly humbling experience that I never want to go through again.

Magus' thread can be found here:

http://www.preparedsociety.com/forum/f56/why-we-doing-10010/#post116909


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## Rainy13 (Aug 5, 2011)

I prep more for a disaster's...a tornado would be more likely for me since i am in Kansas... and also anymore no one knows how long their jobs are going to last anymore, and there can always be a deadly virus outbreak or flu....
Just always figure that i would rather eat than go hungry in any of these situation's.....
Congrats on being able to feed your family when you were having troubles with your bills...(another good reason to prep)
It's okay i am already called "the crazy cat Lady" i have a sign in my kitchen that proves it. and also the cats.


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## BillS (May 30, 2011)

I'm prepping for the collapse of the dollar. The Fed is creating at least $100 billion out of thin air every month. It's only a matter of time before we have hyperinflation like Germany had in the 1920s. Hyperinflation is a 100% certainty. You can't keep drastically increasing the money supply without drastic increases in prices eventually. You might want to have him read this article in wikipedia about hyperinflation:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperinflation


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## pawpaw (Dec 21, 2011)

Even in 'normal' times, we recently had to rely on our preps for a time due to an unexpected and otherwise catastrophic expense.
We'd been marking products' prices on them with a sharpie before we stored them. Now we're replenishing them, and guess what?
Prices ARE up by anywhere from 25-60% on every single item. Never mind that the packages or cans are now smaller as well. Simply send him to the store for a jar of peanut butter. Surely this is the same man who constantly moans about how much something 'used to' cost?
It's here......


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## Bobbb (Jan 7, 2012)

Can your husband predict 6 months in advance whether you will be buried under a massive snow storm or whether your neighborhood will be hit with a tornado, hurricane or earthquake? If not, then why does he believe that the normalcy of your life will continue forward without threat?

Why does he believe that what is befalling Greece at this very moment will forever bypass us?

Why does he believe that we can continue to "spread the wealth" and the government can equalize all people's outcomes when we're already straining at the job and failing miserably at it?

The impression I get, and I could be completely wrong, is that your husband is trapped inside a bubble of normalcy bias - that is, everything is working well enough now and therefore it always will. Well, things were working well in Greece until they no longer did.


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## Tirediron (Jul 12, 2010)

Other than being able to look after my family and self when any number of things go wrong, electric power, Supply chain failure or even glitch, most big city grocery stores want the replacement product coming off the truck just as one sells off of the shelf, even here in the wild wild west most grocery store only have 1 1/2 days normal run supply on hand. A big snow storm that shuts things down for even a couple of days causes mayhem. Buy non perishables when they are on sale, better than money in the bank.


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## Salekdarling (Aug 15, 2010)

*His response:* "That stuff's fine. Having a pantry full, and the freezer/fridge full... that's what you need to survive a couple weeks or months of bad luck. Preparing enough food or water for years is just ridiculous. If things are going to get that bad your little barrel of water isn't going to save you. Your handgun that you barely trained on won't save you when the military is at your door. I also don't understand how some people think they can survive for years underground. I don't understand the point of having an underground bunker, 25 weapons per person, and having enough ammo to kill everyone twice. That's just spreading paranoia."


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

I have to ... could not change it even if I wanted to ... It was the way I was raised, "Take care of you and yours" ... "Make sure you have food and water, so to weather any storm" ... "When Mother Nature Speaks take the time to listen" ...

It is a way of life and I would not have it any other way. (Thanks Mom & Dad)


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## nomadjanet (Mar 28, 2011)

Salekdarling said:


> *His response:* "That stuff's fine. Having a pantry full, and the freezer/fridge full... that's what you need to survive a couple weeks or months of bad luck. Preparing enough food or water for years is just ridiculous. If things are going to get that bad your little barrel of water isn't going to save you. Your handgun that you barely trained on won't save you when the military is at your door. I also don't understand how some people think they can survive for years underground. I don't understand the point of having an underground bunker, 25 weapons per person, and having enough ammo to kill everyone twice. That's just spreading paranoia."


so he's not against being prepared, he just thinks some people go overboard. guess what? he's right, be happy he is agreeable to food etc, you can like different things than he does, its ok.


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## Lake Windsong (Nov 27, 2009)

To your husband: Do you have home insurance? Ever had to make a claim? You still make those payments, just in case. Fire, tornado, hail damage to the roof...it could happen, and that peace of mind is what keeps you writing the premium checks.

I've used my preps through flood damage, unemployment, and maternity leave from work. Call it stocking up on sale, buying from thrift stores and yard sales to be frugal, call it whatever you want. The boy scout motto is be prepared, isn't it? If the words survivalist and prepper cause such a problem for you, don't use them. Just be glad your wife sees the need to provide some peace of mind for the family when otherwise y'all would be deciding whether to pay the light bill or buy groceries.


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## UncleJoe (Jan 11, 2009)

Food prices are rising. The last time we went to the store, I saw tuna "on sale" for $1.00 a can. 2 years ago it was "on sale" for $.50 a can. I bought close to 100 cans at that time. No, not all at once.  Over the course of 6-8 months I bought about 20 of the twin packs of Jif PB at $8.68. Last year, due to bad weather and low yields, the price nearly doubled. A year later it's still $4.00 more than what I paid for it. AuntJoes's freeze-dried coffee is up nearly $3.00 a jar. Haven't had to buy any for over a year and still have 2 years worth on the shelf.

It's a hedge against inflation. 

It's also very comforting to know that if the trucks stop rolling, for whatever reason, I will be able to go downstairs to our own private supermarket.


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## Bobbb (Jan 7, 2012)

Salekdarling said:


> *His response:* "That stuff's fine. Having a pantry full, and the freezer/fridge full... that's what you need to survive a couple weeks or months of bad luck. Preparing enough food or water for years is just ridiculous. If things are going to get that bad your little barrel of water isn't going to save you. Your handgun that you barely trained on won't save you when the military is at your door. I also don't understand how some people think they can survive for years underground. I don't understand the point of having an underground bunker, 25 weapons per person, and having enough ammo to kill everyone twice. That's just spreading paranoia."


Does you husband have auto insurance and home insurance? Has your house ever burned down? Do you regularly total your car?

Insurance works by spreading risk and by paying a little now in order to avoid the prospect of paying a lot if an unlikely event happens. This same principle is in play with prepping.

How much is his life worth to him, go ahead, put a dollar amount next that. Now how much is his wife's life worth to him, how much are his children's lives worth to him?

The likelihood of actually needing to rely on a year's worth of food is pretty low but the cost of not having that food there when you need it is either slow starvation, a lot of pain and misery (children wailing about being hungry and not eating for a week) and even death. So, if the cost of preventing this outcome is less than the value he attaches to everyone's life, then the smart thing to do is to buy the insurance to prevent starvation.

Secondly, in terms of insurance, the money one spends on fire insurance is gone and if at the end of the year you haven't filed a claim then you received no value in return. With prepping, once that food and water are stockpiled, the costs come down to zero and that food gets used via stock rotation, so in terms of economic costs all we're looking at here is buying a year's worth of food in advance of using it, basically having a one year buffer. The cost of this is actually zero (if we discount the time value of money) and if he ever decides to abandon prepping then he can convert that food stockpile into cash by eating the food and not buying as much food from grocery stores until the stockpiled food has been completely used.

Would have, could have, should have, are of little help when your child is starving. He buys fire insurance to protect against a rare event like a house fire and for most of us that money is down the drain, but he's balking at buying insurance to keep himself and his family alive in a situation where the food infrastructure gets derailed? That doesn't make any sense to me and as I noted above it looks to me like he's stuck in a normalcy bias bubble - society works now and therefore it MUST always function and so no insurance to prevent the death of his family is necessary.


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## hiwall (Jun 15, 2012)

Headlines from 3 news sites today- - -

Jobless Claims Rise to 1-1/2 Year High

Eurozone Dips Back Into Recession

claims for unemployment benefits surged by 78,000 to a new 2-1/2-year high

unemployment at levels unseen since July 2008, just prior to the start of the U.S. financial crisis.

Dow Jones Industrial Average has plummeted 675 points, or 5%, in since the day after the U.S. elections

More Layoffs Announced, Including 500 At NBC, Citibank

Israel, Gaza slide closer to war

US poverty edges up

Seven states qualify for secession response from White House

Consumer Prices Edge Up in Oct.

Nearly 750,000 sign petitions to secede from the US

Fiscal Cliff Could Force Hard Decisions

Wall Street Pounded, Nasdaq Hits Correction Territory

Scores isolated as new outbreak of Ebola fever

Uncertainty Hits Record High in Latest Optimism Index


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## emilnon (May 8, 2012)

Salekdarling said:


> His response: "That stuff's fine. Having a pantry full, and the freezer/fridge full... that's what you need to survive a couple weeks or months of bad luck. Preparing enough food or water for years is just ridiculous. If things are going to get that bad your little barrel of water isn't going to save you. Your handgun that you barely trained on won't save you when the military is at your door. I also don't understand how some people think they can survive for years underground. I don't understand the point of having an underground bunker, 25 weapons per person, and having enough ammo to kill everyone twice. That's just spreading paranoia."


Sure, everything he said makes sense... If all you're preparing for is a spot of "bad luck"... And he's right, a barrel of water and stored food can't "save you", but mental preparedness and knowledge absolutely can! 
Sounds like he just fired off a bunch of examples of extreme prepping- most of which, I believe, are too extreme (at least for me). 
But to not even want to try and make it through a life altering occurance reeks of indifference and lethargy. Does he not know (or care) that there are a variety of preppers? I prep for natural disasters & economic collapse. But mostly I long to be a full blown self-sufficient homesteader. I do not own 25 guns or an underground bunker, and I do not spread paranoia. Sounds like he has his mind made up that we are all crazy, but I think he's the one off his rocker


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## MsSage (Mar 3, 2012)

To be honest I have always wanted a stocked pantry. I have use that stock many times....yeah my ex thought the same way even went so far as to say I need to move to Montana and join a militia group LOLOLOL wow 
I didnt have much when hurricane Hugo went through Charlotte and it was NOT easy. The next few years we had ice storms and snow and had plenty. I will admit I got him to agree a little bit to getting extra for Y2K ~he was starting to be a computer geek.... well needless to say the stuff got incorporated into camping... then about 2 years later a big winter storm was going to hit us...I went out and a bunch of "camping" food turned out we had 4 of the neighbor's kids staying with us. We had a fireplace and a way to make hot food. by the end of the first week we were the place for hot coffee, bring your own food to be cooked, and kid sleeping place. We were without power for 3 weeks. Sorry to say even after that he never came around. Along with him having a long term girlfriend I left. I now have a sorta LOL like minded mate .....yeah the fine details we disagree on BUT he dont say much unless I ask what else we need. I used a bunch when I got hurt at work and was out for 6 months yeah got workmens comp but only enough to cover the big bills .....still trying to restore what I used.
Until something catches his attention ...nothing you say will change his heart or mind. sending prayers it happens soon so he can get some of the things he needs and helps ease your burden. The problem as I see it is no one has gone "hungry" in way too long so there is no fear in the food NOT being there.


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## oif_ghost_tod (Sep 25, 2012)

Salekdarling said:


> My husband is a non-prepper. He think you and I are crazy. He even told me so, not even five minutes ago. He told me to ask you folks why do you prep? He thinks that we are all prepping for the end of the world. I cannot convince him that this is not the case. A few months ago I was able to feed the two of us when we were having issues with our bills, and could not buy groceries - it's obvious that it didn't help him realize that what I'm doing for our family is a good idea. :brickwall: So please tell me:
> 
> Why are you prepping?
> What are you prepping for?
> ...


Prepping for "The end of the world" is a common misconception about preppers.

I like to think of it as personal disaster preparedness, up to and including 'TEOTWAWKI'. If you are prepared enough for that, you should easily make it through something like hurricane sandy or the sudden wildfires in the west this year.
Everyone here probably will give a different answer for how specifically they are preparing, and for what, but the point is the same. They have a plan.

Ask yourself a few simple questions:

How do I plan to eat when the shelves are bare in the stores?
How do I get fresh water?
Shelter? Heat? How to cook food?

Prepping is all about intentionally thinking about, planning, and preparing for the eventual crisis or disaster that could effect you.

There is not a place anywhere on earth that is unaffected by natural or manmade disaster, so it would be prudent to have a plan.


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## Lake Windsong (Nov 27, 2009)

Oh my, I just used the same train of thought as you, Bobbb. Maybe I should get off the train at the next station.  j/k
I agree, with Uncle Joe and Bobbb. Prepping is very much an investment against inflation, and by prepping, you are insuring some sense of normalcy in what could be hard times, either a personal shtf scenario or widespread.

It does sound like your husband understands why to prep. Everyone has different goals and different scenarios they see likely to happen. So everyone preps according to what they feel they need to be prepared for.


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## pawpaw (Dec 21, 2011)

"Plausible Deniability"


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

As a former member of our nation's military and a state police officer I am prepping because I have seen a major shift in society. We have gone from self reliance to utter dependency. And I know first hand that in the event of a true critical incident there is little the government can or will do to help. Aid and supplies are days away, if they come at all. The US gov't will take care of itself first, the military second and everyone else last (if there are any supplies left). I have sat on disaster committees for everything from severe weather and pandemics to terrorist attacks. These committee recommendations are always long on the safety and security of people and embarrassingly short on the actual means to do any of it. When the state started discussing plans on how to store (or dispose of) mass amounts of corpses, I decided it was time to take care of my own. If I am wrong and nothing ever happens (and I pray that I am wrong) all I did was stock up on supplies, most of which I will use in rotation anyway. But if I am right my actions and choices will result in my family having a fighting chance. I don't know if I am a prepper or a survivalist or a realist, but I damn sure know that I am not going to be a victim.


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## tugboats (Feb 15, 2009)

Salekdarling said:


> My husband is a non-prepper. He think you and I are crazy. He even told me so, not even five minutes ago. He told me to ask you folks why do _you_ prep? He thinks that we are all prepping for the end of the world. I cannot convince him that this is not the case. A few months ago I was able to feed the two of us when we were having issues with our bills, and could not buy groceries - it's obvious that it didn't help him realize that what I'm doing for our family is a good idea. :brickwall: So please tell me:
> 
> *Why are you prepping?*
> *What are you prepping for? *
> ...


I keep a good spare tire in all of my vehicles and hope that they will never be needed.

I buy life insurance. I'm betting that I am going to die before the end of the term, the insurance company is betting that I will live and I hope the insurance company wins.

Ditto with car and home insurance.

I have a good boat with a good hull but I have many bilge pumps onboard just in case. It is considered rude to let passengers die while out cruising. I also have a life raft onboard........for those mortal people. Other than having it retested often I hope it never needs to be used.

We have endured several disasters. One man made and three natural disasters. Life continued as normal for us. We were "prepped" with a generator, gas, food, water, medicines, coffee, heat and the most vital of all my preps........Jack Daniels and Labatts blue.

My preps are for the betterment of my family. I will never let any of my kids be in need of a meal. If there is a natural calamity and the food supply chain is disrupted for a couple of weeks all will continue as normal. Many years ago we endured a severe ice storm. Power was out for 13 days. Our house was the "go to place" for the most part. We had heat, water (at that time we were on a well) food, and JD. We took in a lot of the people around us until they could find a place to go.

The charity that we gave was returned to us many fold. That wacky guy (me) that had food, water, gasoline, generator and beer turned out to not be so OFF. Those people soon got onboard and started getting prepared for such a disaster.

Job loss, medical issues, natural calamities and possibly "man caused" problems are good reason to have some supplies put back.

Tugs


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## katen (Aug 25, 2012)

Why do I prep? What do I prep for? Here is why...









My husband and I owe it to them! Blizzard, flood, financial collapse, global warming, unemployment...the lists can go on and on but when it comes down to it....why do u prep-to keep my kids safe with plenty to eat.


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## DJgang (Apr 10, 2011)

I think that I prep mostly because I've seen what people will do and act like during a disaster, seeing folks freaking out because they may not have power for five days... Actually confirmed my 'gut' feeling.

Also, we have ice storms here occasionally and I will lose power for possibly a week. So I've always been prepared for that even as a young child.

Lastly, I just sense something. I can't put my finger on it, not sure that I really want to...

I don't like being around people, I don't trust the government, so I sure won't be standing in any line if I can prevent it.

Oh and I sure to heck don't want to be on the shooting end for food if I can prevent it as well. The thought of possibly killing another in order for my family to eat, no, I don't like....so...I will do everything in my power to not have to do that.


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## emilnon (May 8, 2012)

katen said:


> Why do I prep? What do I prep for? Here is why...
> 
> My husband and I owe it to them! Blizzard, flood, financial collapse, global warming, unemployment...the lists can go on and on but when it comes down to it....why do u prep-to keep my kids safe with plenty to eat.


Awwwww! What a beautiful family


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## ZoomZoom (Dec 18, 2009)

A plethora of reasons have been given in this thread and I try to prepare for all those mentioned.

For any of those situations, it's a matter of how you would fare if for whatever reason, you couldn't leave your house or property for X period of time. That means you're not going to work, you're not going to the store. It could be metaphorically or actually but the world and your little place in it is living on the edge. When on the edge, it's whether you can tilt things in your favor. Being prepared does in fact do that.


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## Jimthewagontraveler (Feb 8, 2012)

Ooohh man so very tempting.
Have your husband read this

Hello I'm Jim.

I have to confess if I could have found a way to involve 
Tinfoil hats while being chased by zombies I would have 
replied with that but I'm lousy at stories.
( go read hozay buck for that)

I prep because of things like what's happening on our east 
coast right now)

I have seen my neighbors hungry and cold while my grown kids 
came to me when the nearest town went without
food water or heat for 9 days.

I have no doubt it will happen again.

I have no doubt they will come again.

Only this time there will be grandchildren.

I also remember my dad and 7 other men getting together
to shovel a driveway and part of a road (1/4 mile)
And then building a wood fire in metal buckets to heat up a
Sand rail.

I still cry as I remember mama jumping up and down while
Praising God and those men from hearing the sand rail scream
to life.

It was so cold and quiet that rail was heard for miles.
The store had food and fuel but it was 2 miles away
and no man could walk that far and live.

I remember that rail exploding out of an old mans dilapidated 
Garage to the cheers of every man woman and child in our
suburban neighborhood!

He made it past the turn before he slide of the road.
10 men picked the old man and sandrail up and put him back
on the road.

He roared off down the road and jumped a snow dune 
where the men had to quit shoveling snow.

He rolled on top of the snow to pick up 7 men who all got to 
cling to any place they could find on a 2 person vehicle.
They were gone 2 hours and it was so quiet I remember 
hearing the women lose faith and begin to weep.

I then remembering hearing the women catch their breath
because we heard the far away echo of that throbbing engine.
And then we heard the engine DIE!

To make this story shorter the rail had gone in a big ditch
and the men had to pick it up and scrape the snow of the engine
before the engine got to cold to start.

A few min later we just barely heard it cough into life.

You should have heard the women and children when that bent
Beat up junk rolled back in the garage.

Each man had been allowed to buy 1 bag cash only.
My mama cooked potatoes in a fondue pot ALL day 4 potatoes.
3 days later we saw the first snow plow.

We were the only family to stay and watch over the neighbor 
hood.

Several days later my mom was on the phone in tears(which oddly enough worked the whole time)
She began to agree to abandon the first house they ever 
owned when the lights flickered.

By the way we live in very southern Missouri.

My grandparents were always preparing for hard times.
My parents had to learn the hard way.
I'm going to try to be smart enough to learn from other peoples
mistakes.

I don't ever want to see my children that hungry and cold.
Both of my kids keep preps ( I doubt if they think of it that way)
Both of them have chains on a 4 wheel drive.

I have huge horses that I have learned to use the body heat 
from to keep me warm when I ride across god awful places.
If you are alive today somebody in your past planned what to do
when bad stuff happened.

If you don't want to plan ahead that's fine.
Now if you'll excuse me I have to go back to making tinfoil hats
And zombie repellent.
( YES I KNEW I COULD WORK IT IN) triple fist pump!!!


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## Bobbb (Jan 7, 2012)

Let's get down to the brutal basics. Play this game. If I offered you $1,000,000 in exchange for you not feeding your children for 5 days but allowing them to have water and guaranteeing you that you could pull out of this experiment if your child was on death's door step, would you take it? That is, the harm to your child would be temporary but the money is real. I'd say that most people would take that bargain.

Now, just as with the classic lady is a prostitute example, let's drop the offer down to $100 in order to forgo feeding your children for 5 days. Everyone here would turn that offer down.

What is the cost of buying a year's worth of food for your children? If you don't buy that food then you've entered the game above except the conditions on this real world game are not as controlled as in the contrived game above. On the one side, in the real world the game we play is not a certainty like the contrived game, we may have to play it or we may not and if we are forced to play this real game then the condition of only 5 days of no food plus a guarantee of our children's safety is also off the table for now our children can die as a consequence of being forced to play this game in real life.

The cost to me of buying a "Get out of starvation card" is quite manageable and now I've exempted myself and my wife and children from having to roll the dice on that game. After all, the cost of buying this insurance is not $1,000,000 meaning that I might have to think about the hardship I will have to endure to buy this insurance to protect my children and whether the wiser thing might be to roll the dice and not spend the money.


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## Salekdarling (Aug 15, 2010)

Bobbb said:


> Can your husband predict 6 months in advance whether you will be buried under a massive snow storm or whether your neighborhood will be hit with a tornado, hurricane or earthquake? If not, then why does he believe that the normalcy of your life will continue forward without threat?
> 
> Why does he believe that what is befalling Greece at this very moment will forever bypass us?
> 
> ...


This is his response pertaining to having a job. "If all the restaurants in the world shut down, and all of the computers stop working, than we will have a problem. If computers all over the world fail, than the world is over." (He works in IT, and worked in food service until he graduated college. From 15-23 years old)

His mentality on that situation is that if computers fail than we should just give up. There will be no such thing as normal. It won't be long til people die off, and the few that do survive, won't last very long. It's obvious he doesn't know much about human nature. We are resilient creatures, and can overcome almost any thing short of the world disintegrating. And I don't know about him, but I want to survive to see another day. Although I'll be excited to see my Creator one day, just not yet. 

I asked him, "As an individual, wouldn't you want to try and survive for your family... try to get through the problem?"

He said, "And what? Live in the woods, and reminisce on what we use to have?"

What I'm trying to get at with him is that we should want to survive, and we shouldn't blindly rely on the government to help us in the event of the SHTF. We should rely on ourselves and our local community. I was watching PBS news tonight and this woman caught in Sandy just said "I'm still waiting for FEMA to help." I don't want to be that woman. If there was such a huge disaster to the point where I have to return to my BOL on foot or vehicle, I will have to drag my husband with me, and he'll have to rely on me to keep a clear head, and to use the skill set that I've been developing over the years. I wish he would at least try to be supportive in my endeavors.


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## Dakine (Sep 4, 2012)

I personally feel the dollar is in severe trouble. Our economy is actually worse than Greece, but because we manipulate our currency with QE and all sorts of other smoke and mirrors we're still motoring along. Everything is fine as long as everyone is drinking the same koolaid and agrees it still tastes the same as before.

The problem with that is, as others have noted above, that's not the case anymore. Products are smaller and cost more. The power grid is fragile and can be disrupted by mother nature, flat out human error (our SoCal power outage was because they were doing preventative maintenance to insure we didnt have an outage... irony eh??) and then there's man made problems to deal with. 

1 fire bug arsonist starts major fires
OPEC decides to go to their basket currency instead of trading oil in USD
Russia, Japan, China and the EU all decide to dump the USD as their reserve currency.

Argentina went through a collapse in our life time, only ten years ago actually. We're not special... we might be next though! We sure operate our government and economy as if we'd like to be next! :scratch

If something like that happens, and I spent money that could have been used to obtain independence and security instead of any number of vices or ways that are fun to waste money but have nothing to offer in return other than the enjoyment of the moment, then I'd be nothing more than the sheeple that will be wandering about wondering where their next meal will come from. I don't have any intention of ever being in that position and as long as I have the means to make sure I wont be, that's what I'll do. If I'm overtaken by events, that sucks, but until then, I'm going to do my best to look out for my best interests, even when times are very hard.


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## neldarez (Apr 10, 2011)

katen said:


> Why do I prep? What do I prep for? Here is why...
> 
> View attachment 3254
> 
> ...


What a beautiful picture..........


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## kejmack (May 17, 2011)

I prep so that when something happens I do not have to depend on the government like those people in NJ and NYC are still doing three weeks later.


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## ZoomZoom (Dec 18, 2009)

Salekdarling said:


> His mentality on that situation is that if computers fail than we should just give up. There will be no such thing as normal.


Have him drive 45 miles West or North and try to explain that to the Amish.


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## DJgang (Apr 10, 2011)

Yeah, what if it's not a total collapse, just things get downright tough. You wouldn't want to just give up and die, would ya? 

Much more to life that electricity and the things that use it, life is precious. A gift.


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## kejmack (May 17, 2011)

Salekdarling said:


> His mentality on that situation is that if computers fail than we should just give up. There will be no such thing as normal. It won't be long til people die off, and the few that do survive, won't last very long.
> 
> I asked him, "As an individual, wouldn't you want to try and survive for your family... try to get through the problem?"
> 
> He said, "And what? Live in the woods, and reminisce on what we use to have?"


Honestly, I don't know if you can do anything for a man who would give up rather than fight to save his family. I can't imagine there is any hope for someone of that mindset. Most men I know would do anything to protect their family.


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## Bobbb (Jan 7, 2012)

Salekdarling said:


> His mentality on that situation is that if computers fail than we should just give up. There will be no such thing as normal.


Has he ever had to watch a loved one die? Maybe a parent or grandparent. What usually happens, in my experience, is that from the moment of diagnosis, after the shock wears off, people decide that they like living and they want to fight to stay alive and they go through some pretty horrible medical procedures. Then, when their bodies are pretty much wasted away and they are lying in a coma, they are still fighting for breath.

My point is that the will to live is pretty strong in most of us.

There being no such thing as normal doesn't translate into committing suicide through willful abandonment of trying to continue on. People face setbacks in life all the time and most of us soldier on. Those who decide to end their lives are usually left with nothing in terms of relationships, that is, they don't have anyone in their life who is worth living for. Their children are gone, their spouse is gone, their friends don't have time for them - they're all alone and so life isn't worth living. However, those who face setbacks but still have a rich emotional life do have a reason to continue living. They don't give up. People go bankrupt, people become paraplegic, people have strokes, and they choose life because even though they've lost important things in life there are still different important things in their life that they're not ready to give up on. For most of us parents our children are what keep us living in the face of disastrous setbacks.



> It won't be long til people die off, and the few that do survive, won't last very long. It's obvious he doesn't know much about human nature. We are resilient creatures, and can overcome almost any thing short of the world disintegrating. And I don't know about him, but I want to survive to see another day. Although I'll be excited to see my Creator one day, just not yet.


Keep working on him. Keep using reality to slap him in the face. Will he really take a long walk off a short pier when things go south and his family desperately needs him? Will life be not worth living if computers can't operate anymore? Will it be better for his children to have no life than to have to live in a world without computers?



> I asked him, "As an individual, wouldn't you want to try and survive for your family... try to get through the problem?"
> 
> He said, "And what? Live in the woods, and reminisce on what we use to have?"


Yes, live in the woods and every day see your children growing a day older, finding happiness in the little things. What's the alternative? I'll tell you what it is, it's the death of your children. Now choose - which do you prefer, living in the woods or watching your children die?

It sounds to me like your husband is just being stubborn at this point and digging in with these excuses because he doesn't want to admit the strength of the arguments he's facing. There's no shame in saying "You know what, I had never thought of this question in those terms, but now that I do I see the sense in it. Count me as being on board."

Now if he doesn't see the sense in these arguments then he has to do a lot better than the "living in the woods" argument because I can't believe that he would rather see his own children dead than having them living in the woods with their mom and pop.


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## NaeKid (Oct 17, 2008)

Salekdarling said:


> My husband is a non-prepper. He think you and I are crazy. He even told me so, not even five minutes ago. He told me to ask you folks why do _you_ prep? He thinks that we are all prepping for the end of the world. I cannot convince him that this is not the case. A few months ago I was able to feed the two of us when we were having issues with our bills, and could not buy groceries - it's obvious that it didn't help him realize that what I'm doing for our family is a good idea. :brickwall: So please tell me:
> 
> *Why are you prepping?*
> *What are you prepping for? *
> ...


To Salek's hubby ...

My paycheque doesn't seem to change from month-to-month as I get paid for 40hrs each week, but, the cost of fuel for my vehicle to get to work changes regularly, sometimes it is $1.00 per liter and sometimes (like today) it was $1.27 per liter, and, it was only $1.05 yesterday! To put that into gallons, $4.20 / gallon yesterday and $5.08 / gallon today! Prepping means having the means to store fuel at $4.00 / gallon for the days that it is $5.00/gallon ...

I like my electronic-toys - musics, phones, computers and without power, none of them work. So, what do I do to prep for a power outtage (like happened only a couple weeks ago all over NewYork during H.Sandy) is I purchase rechargable batteries and solar panels and inverters and converters and I can make sure that my electronic toys continue to function long after everyone elses electronics (and lights and such) have ceased to function.

I also like to eat. Food keeps me happy! There is a grocery-store in town that sells out of product regularly. I cannot get a fresh ring of shrimp anytime I want, so, when possible, I will buy ten rings of shrimp when it is on sale, toss them into my freezer and when I want the shrimp, I have them in my personal store ... _by-the-way_, do you know what store means? *Store* is just a shortened word for *storage* ... so ... have the storage at home or at the building down the street - it is still stored, the only difference is that you choose the hours that your store at home is open and someone else decides when the building down the street is open ...

I like to have clean hands before I eat. To have clean hands I need to have clean water, to have clean water when the power is out I need to boil it first, to boil it without electricity I need a fire. The easiest way to make fire is to have a propane-bottle and a camp-stove. Propane stores forever, but, you can run out easy enough, so, I have 7 bottles of propane always ready to use, all 20# bottles, two are attached to my camping trailer, three are attached to my three BBQs in my backyard and that leaves a couple spares to swap quickly in case a bottle runs out in the middle of cooking a nice meal.

So, you see, I am just doing "normal" things for myself instead of stressing out when someone else doesn't have time to do it for me - like all those poor souls who have no food or electricity or water or .... all over NewYork because they didn't prepare for the hurricane in the weeks ahead of landfall - and - if they had prepared for those kinds of problems a year ahead, it would have cost them even less money, because, as soon as the weather-service advertised the hurricane, prices of stuff took a huge jump due to supply-n-demand.

Salek, I would suggest a movie-night with your hubby - toss a movie called WaterBorne into the player and after watching it see if the two of you can have a nice little discussion about what lessons could be learned from it. It is a little story about the water being turned-off in Los Angeles ... could happen, especially if the power goes out long enough.


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## CulexPipiens (Nov 17, 2010)

Salekdarling said:


> This is his response pertaining to having a job. "If all the restaurants in the world shut down, and all of the computers stop working, than we will have a problem. If computers all over the world fail, than the world is over." (He works in IT, and worked in food service until he graduated college. From 15-23 years old)
> 
> His mentality on that situation is that if computers fail than we should just give up. There will be no such thing as normal. It won't be long til people die off, and the few that do survive, won't last very long. It's obvious he doesn't know much about human nature. We are resilient creatures, and can overcome almost any thing short of the world disintegrating. And I don't know about him, but I want to survive to see another day. Although I'll be excited to see my Creator one day, just not yet.
> 
> ...


To be blunt, if he was on a forum I'd swear he was a 'troll' arguing just for the sake of arguing.

I've worked in IT for nearly 25 years now. I prep. Until 35-40 or so years ago we all got by pretty much without computers. So, society survived and even flourished with no computers for how many thousands of years but now suddenly after having them for a few generations we're all helpless? Heck, that alone is a fantastic reason to prep. I still remember how to do things without computers but I'm also smart enough to take advantage of technology while I can. A million dollar server room is great to play with but a guy with a tractor can bring it down in a matter of minutes. As a result I have redundant machines, RAID drive systems, backup connections, backup power, backup cooling, etc. If I (and I assume him or his company) can take those steps for an inanimate object (a computer) it is just plain stupid to not do at least as much if not more for those you love and care about.

Look at Katrina. Look at Sandy. Look at any Joplin. Heck, google map it... you'd be shocked at the destruction easily visible on the satelite view. Sure, if you're ground zero of the tornado your stuff is gone, but what about the rest of the town still there but without power or services for days, weeks or months... Wouldn't it be nice to eat, drink and stay warm (or cool)? Does waiting in line 8 hours each day with your gas can (i.e. Sandy victims) sound like something you want to do?

I also noticed your reference to PBS. This sunday there is supposed to be a Ken Burns movie on the dust bowl years. Ya know what, with year after year of crop failures people somehow still survived. People came through and continued on with their lives. Think what the dust bowl farmers could have done if each family had 5 years of LTS food stored away to supplement what little they could grow or buy.

Basically it comes down to, does he care about manning up and taking care of his family or does he think it's fine for you all to end up in the New Orleans superdome with no food, no water and two legged animals preying on the people (women) there? Yeah, a 25 gun armory and a bunker with 20 years f food stashed away might be on the extreme end of prepping, but really, other than movies, JDY's stories and maybe a few rich people, how many people really have a setup like that?


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## Frost (Nov 8, 2012)

I am prepping because I suspect that the economy is going to get to the point that the government will stop the food stamps and all the free living and other "things" that will cause the "I'm to stoned to get a job, but I have a stereo on my car that's so loud as to wake you up 3 blocks away, AND cost more than your house payment, people" *uckTards will riot and as I live near them, id rather not have to shoot at the people who shoot at cops on a weekly bases here. so a stockpile here for a month or two, a remote location, should I need to get my cracker arse out of the hood. 

Make sense? 


Or.. in case I go another 6 months with out a job and the State says I cant collect until I get a physical, the food stamps never even RESPONDED to my application. "(which by the way, asks "color?") That I wont be asking my wife to eat ramen for 4 meals a week, like me.
Hows that make sense?


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## PennyPincher (Dec 5, 2011)

Just point him to reports of what's still happening in NY and NJ. The day after the storm hit some people had no food, no electricity, no water, no heat. Now 2 and 1/2 weeks after the storm and people are still without power, food and water. How well would he do without these things for 2 and 1/2 weeks? When will they get power back? How do they wash their clothes etc?

My husband has been laid off 3 times in 8 years. In 8 years he was out of work for more than 2 years. Our biggest expenses were always housing and food. Now while he was working we were diligently putting money into 401K's. That didn't help us when we were trying to pay the bills and put food on the table. Now we are stocking food to protect against inflation. 

The other benefit of stocking food is that I make EXCELLENT and very HEALTHY soups, stews, chilis. I like to make big batches and can it so I can have a tasty and healthy lunch. My husband brings these for lunch sometimes. 

I got frustrated with forgetting to defrost things for dinner. Now I can simply open a jar of a meal ready to eat that I made or a jar of chicken to start a meal or whatever.

I also prep for power outages. It happens every year. Last year 5 days nd everything 20 miles around was out. We have a generator. This year we lost power for 27 hours. We were the only ones on the street with power.


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## Dakine (Sep 4, 2012)

he doesnt seem to want to survive. if there's an event that shocking and cause that kind of change in the status quo, he doesnt want to be part of it. 

From other forums, texts and first hand accounts I've read about hunters surviving in the wilderness, plane crash survivors in the middle of nowhere, etc.. this is what kills people. NOT the cold, NOT the hunger... they simply lack the desire and will to survive and keep pushing on.

Personally I dont hold it against them, I dont feel pity or scorn... this is their choice, I wish they'd see it differently but I cant force them to and if I tried I think it would end up badly. 

The only caveat to that is, for me at least its not SO, DW, etc... so I'm a lot more detached from it than most people get to be. I'm sorry :\


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## Frost (Nov 8, 2012)

Bobbb said:


> Why does he believe that we can continue to "spread the wealth" and the government can equalize all people's outcomes when we're already straining at the job and failing miserably at it?
> 
> Well, things were working well in Greece until they no longer did.


Bobbb I think you had a point on that, until you stepped off the deep end. 
I don't know what you think the government is spreading what wealth, other than to take from us poor and give it to the Rich. 
and your comment about Greece is like "its always in the last place you look" No kidding? if you found it on the table, would you keep looking?

There are days Bobbb I think you should put down the crack pipe, and back away sloooowly.

But bob Did have a valid point. Why would your ole man think next week will be just as it was last week? 
"shite happens" 
"snafu" 
"good things happen to bad people. and bad things happen to good people" 
"these things just happen"
"oh my god! Why did that happen!"

These are out there, there are more of them. We know them, we know more.
Why would you expect a ever changing universe to remain stagnant just for your life?
:scratch

and my best offer... It is better to have it and not need it, then to need it and not have it.


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## pixieduster (Mar 28, 2012)

Four kids. Living through Hurricane Katrina with no power for 7 weeks, no stores, and contaminated water. Prices are spiking out of control. I still need to feed my family even after a major surgery few weeks ago and couldn't work. I'm back at work on light duty because I begged my Doctor to allow it. Otherwise we would be destitute without the preps. Had Hurrican Issac recently. Had no power for a couple days and stores were closed. THANK GOD, I had my preps so we didn't have to bat an eye at the inconveinence. We didn't go out all crazy at the Walmart like everybody else. We stayed home nice and safe, got out the generator, flashlights and candles. Was actually fun for the kids to play like we were camping. Storm blew over and we roasted marshmellows on the firepit, cooked up chilli and hot dogs, all on the fire pit with the cast iron pots. I feel secure knowing that whatever is thrown at my family, we will be just fine. But only because we are PREPARED.


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

It is what it is ...

I know as a pub ed teacher that some folks "just don't get it" ~ for what ever reason...

You can preach till you are blue in the face and it will not make one difference. 

Not till it hits home, will some folks come around. (sorry ~ that is a facts!!!)

After 8 years ... I tossed in the towel.

Because it is simple ... you need a student to teach ... others are but, yeah and why ... 

You can only help the ones that want to know/learn ...


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## SouthCentralUS (Nov 11, 2012)

God bless you Pixie.


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## Dakine (Sep 4, 2012)

Frost said:


> Bobbb I think you had a point on that, until you stepped off the deep end.
> I don't know what you think the government is spreading what wealth, other than to take from us poor and give it to the Rich.
> and your comment about Greece is like "its always in the last place you look" No kidding? if you found it on the table, would you keep looking?
> 
> ...


wealth redistribution doesnt have to be limited to just one group of people being forced to give money to another group.

I'm not the 1% but my money has been taken from me for as long as I've been living off my own work.

The power companies have special programs for those that make less than X dollars per year, does that come from their profits or do they raise the price on what I pay to cover it?

I have medical insurance and pay taxes, but illegal alien john doe can walk across our boarder and surrender and during his interview announce he has liver problems or TB or whatever his ailment might be... do we kick him back across the boarder? No of course not, we give him free medical aid.

I pay taxes and expect my money to be used to be judiciously and honestly, and yet our gov't has become one giant snakes nest of graft, corruption, greed, power brokering and pay offs.

What we're talking about are 2 different concurrent forms of wealth redistribution. Warren Buffet isnt paying for it, we are, the middle class. Just like the war on drugs, the war on crime, the war on terror... we're funding both sides.

We're in the middle paying the people who hand out a portion to the very poor so they'll vote the way they want them to, to maintain the illusion of democracy, and they keep the rest for what they want to do with it.

Do you really think the govt only gives to the rich? Have you forgotten all of the entitlement programs and beurocracy that is maintained to support them?

The government lives with a single thought process... "dont tap the glass, it scares the fish"


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## trooper0366 (Sep 27, 2012)

Why am I preping? Because the alternative is not acceptable.
What am I preping for? Everything I can reasonably concieve of occurring.


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## Jimthewagontraveler (Feb 8, 2012)

The government lives with a single thought process... "dont tap the glass, it scares the fish"

Oh wow I love that one


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## radio477 (Feb 9, 2012)

For me it is everything. The world just seems broke. Droughts, melting ice sheets, the breaking down of society, the absents of morality, Israel being under attack, the fiscal cliff, hurricanes, blizzards, floods, tornados,earthquakes, terrorist attacks, how can anyone believe that they are in some protective bubble? Life happens, why not be ready? What else does he have to do? Golf, watch tv, casinos, yoga? He doesn't have to be a fanatic, just be aware and prepared.


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## Salekdarling (Aug 15, 2010)

Sorry about the slow response, I'm at work now. 

He also believes that prepping is a form of hording. I tried to explain that yes, It can be viewed that way, but if we rotate our stock out and have a certain amount of supplies, does it even really count as hording? 

I asked him to get to the nitty gritty of why he is against prepping. "I'm not against prepping at all. I'm against the paranoia." Simple answer for a simple question.

Aren't we suppose to go with our gut feelings? Are we not suppose to be weary of a too large government? Or of economic crisis? Or a lack of work? Even though Mr. Salek is employed, it doesn't mean he will be tomorrow. He thinks that other people are just too lazy to go out there and look for work. Even if I changed my career, it doesn't mean the next line of work I want to try will hire me.

All of the responses I'm receiving are quite overwhelming, and I appreciate it immensly. This gives me a piece of mind that it is okay that I prep without my husband's assistance. I wish he would come around, but like Andi said - It'll take a true SHTF for Mr. Salek to understand that I'm doing what is best for us. Even then, he might not come around, but I'm okay with that because I can handle it. If I have to bark orders at him than so be it.

Naekid, thank you! I'll check the movie out. Most likely, he'll refused to watch it with me though.


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## invision (Aug 14, 2012)

Salekdarling said:


> His response: "That stuff's fine. Having a pantry full, and the freezer/fridge full... that's what you need to survive a couple weeks or months of bad luck. Preparing enough food or water for years is just ridiculous. If things are going to get that bad your little barrel of water isn't going to save you. Your handgun that you barely trained on won't save you when the military is at your door. I also don't understand how some people think they can survive for years underground. I don't understand the point of having an underground bunker, 25 weapons per person, and having enough ammo to kill everyone twice. That's just spreading paranoia."


I have spent 20 years in the IT industry, 12 years of it in senior management or consulting at the C-level for a wide variety of customers - from 12 person attorney firms to the Fortune 100. Over the last 10 years my specialty has been in BCP (business continuity planning) and DRP (disaster recovery planning) primarily to the financial sector, including asset management and banking industry. I have several clients where their C-level has become close personal friends. 8 months ago, I didn't have a care in the world in regards to being prepared, until I had some casual conversations with these friends. What started out discussions about Romney Vs Obama, turned slowly into educational discussions (for me) about the actual seriousness of not only the fate of the USD, but as a nation as a whole. As my eyes slowly opened, and I educated myself not only on the vast differences between the two candidates, what Obamacare actually means to the SMB market, and the continuance of year after year of mounting national debt, I started actively talking to more people - mostly clients, friends, and family. That started me preparing - buying food, storing water, medical supplies, and other equipment as well as PMs. I have always been a life member of the NRA and owned weapons, I don't have an arsenal, but I do have what I feel is adequate to protect myself and my immediate family if the SHTF. Living in the better areas of Atlanta is also a huge concern for me, the likelihood of "zombies" traveling north out of the city is a concern since every Tom dick and Harry will think they can just head to the national parks and hunt... Hopefully, it will never happen, but everyday the more I read from a variety of media outlets from Fox to CNN etc, the more concerned I become.

It doesn't take someone with a PhD in economics to study what we are facing as a country economically to understand that we ARE in trouble and face the largest obstacles ever for a nation like ours... I encourage him, not to read propaganda BS from the Hard Right or Left, but try to focus in the middle of the road, look at the numbers, run them over, up, down, and sideways to get a true feeling of where we are at, then consciously look at how we can get out of this mess... If he is like me, and realizes just how much hatred there is between the two parties, he will most likely start to except that the grass isn't green and the roses have started to not smell so good.


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## thoughtsofTHAtmom (Apr 21, 2011)

I'm prepping for a normal emergency like a natural disaster, job loss, unexpected medical issues, etc.

We have been there. We have experienced a couple of these and gotten by because of our prepping. We have experienced a 2 week power outage because of an ice storm. We have experienced job loss. We have experienced unexpected medical issues. When THAT one hit, we lived off of our stockpile for a year. For awhile, we didn't even buy fresh foods because it cost $350/month just to feed and medicate our infant son...and we only had a grocery budget of $200/month. 

We prep because we have lived the "unexpected"...that really is actually to be expected in life. As such, we should do our best to prepare.


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## thoughtsofTHAtmom (Apr 21, 2011)

Food insurance!



drissel said:


> call it economy insurance, like life insurance, car insurance...it is just in case...plus you can save time and money, like buying while on sale, and it is nice when you are cooking and run out of something, you don't need to run to the store....so it does save time.


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## ChicoDaMan (Nov 6, 2012)

My wife is not on board yet, but with the poor response to Katrina and Sandy by our ever providing government, she is starting to wake up. 

Living in California and with the population density in the SF Bay Area, the increasing state government and people's dependency on it, I feel it is a matter of time until something happens. 

It might be riots d/t the federal economic collapse or the state filing bankruptcy (which I feel is closer than most think), a natural disaster which many feel is way overdue, or terrorist attacks in the major cities of the US. All I know is I need to be prepared to hunker down for a bit, get a grasp on the overall situation, and if necessary, work my way to high ground where I can keep my family safe. That's why I prepare. Like my grandpa always said..."it's better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it." I hope and pray I never need it, but I'll be sure to have it if I do. Good luck


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## CrackbottomLouis (May 20, 2012)

Zombies.
Actually, I prep because Ive lived in places where s has htf and it was an eyeopener. A lot of my family is from Zimbabwe. Ever want to know what 100,000% inflation is like? And they had the benefit of black market US dollars to help. I was also right across the Zambezi when ebola broke out in Zaire. People do crazy things when they panic. I also had a wake up call when I had to stand gaurd over a hanging in Afghanistan. The gov there hung the women for being Christian. People can be pretty awful to one another. Sad but true. Then you have mother nature. Earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, etc.

Bottom line is I prep because I refuse to allow the responsibility of me and mines well being to rest in any other hands. Ive seen how that works out in bad cases.


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## thoughtsofTHAtmom (Apr 21, 2011)

Salekdarling said:


> *His response:* "That stuff's fine. Having a pantry full, and the freezer/fridge full... that's what you need to survive a couple weeks or months of bad luck. Preparing enough food or water for years is just ridiculous. If things are going to get that bad your little barrel of water isn't going to save you. Your handgun that you barely trained on won't save you when the military is at your door. I also don't understand how some people think they can survive for years underground. I don't understand the point of having an underground bunker, 25 weapons per person, and having enough ammo to kill everyone twice. That's just spreading paranoia."


Most preppers don't have an underground bunker, 25 weapons per person, & enough ammo to kill everyone twice.

We have a good bit of weapons in our family, but my oldest is hoping to be a competition shooter. As such, she needs to train on multiple kinds of weapons. What we don't have, we borrow from friends for her to practice on. Her favorite gun? Daddy's AK-47. No boy's gonna mess with OUR girl! LOL No, really. Many of them have been shooting with us and she's a far better shot than any of them!


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## GlockPrepper (Nov 12, 2012)

This is a fair representation on how I feel. Haha.


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## cnsper (Sep 20, 2012)

Well when I grew up it was normal to have 1-2 years worth of food. We ate it usually within a year but it could be stretched to 2 very easily because we always had extra.

Canning - We did this so that we had veggies etc all year round, not just when the garden was ripe. If that is prepping so be it.

Meats - We killed two hogs, one steer and about 50 chickens every year. The animals were not agreeable to us only cutting out what we needed for that meal so we had to put the whole thing in the freezer. If that is prepping then so be it.

For one the cost of food is lower doing it this way which leaves money for other things that you like to do like fishing and hunting.

I don't have 25 guns and the last time I looked, I had to go down the stairs when I walked out of my house.

For me it is not prepping really, it is the pride of knowing that I do not have to count on someone else to support me. For this reason I have never filed unemployment when out of work. More of a matter of pride. Some will not agree but that is ok too.

Today it is called prepping, 25 years ago it was called common sense. At a minimum, I think that everyone should have a 90 day supply of food and water. You may only need 3-21 days but it can also be much longer in a job loss situation.


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## BillM (Dec 29, 2010)

This is what I prepare for.

When you drive down the street and look at any home on that street, there is one thing you can say for sure.

The house will eventually collapse, burn or be torn down.

Society is like a house.

The simpler it is the longer it will survive.

The more complicated it is, the more likely it will collapse or be destroyed from within or without.

While our society is very technically advanced, it is also very vulnerable to a sudden debilitating collapse. It is like a house of cards and we are up to four decks tall. Collapse is inevitable.

Great societies have been built before and they all have collapsed.

We as humans have a built in desire to believe every thing will remain normal. This is called a Normalcy Bias. We all have it.

You are more able to survive a collapse if you divorce your self from your normalcy bias and prepare for the inevitable.

I do not expect to survive the end of the world or even a long time collapse of our present society.

I would like to provide a means for my children and grand children to survive the temporary dangers of a collapse.

Going back to the analogy of a house collapsing, remember another house will be built in its place.

I am preparing for that interim period of time.


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## emilnon (May 8, 2012)

BillM said:


> This is what I prepare for.
> 
> When you drive down the street and look at any home on that street, there is one thing you can say for sure.
> 
> ...


Well said, Bill!


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## mosquitomountainman (Jan 25, 2010)

Sentry18 said:


> *... I don't know if I am a prepper or a survivalist or a realist, but I damn sure know that I am not going to be a victim.*


I love that last line!!!!

Thanks


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## siletz (Aug 23, 2011)

It seems like your husband is ok with you prepping as long as it's not "overboard". So I would suggest that you stop trying to convince him and start preparing for a natural disaster. Each time you go to the grocery store, buy a couple extras of whatever is on sale. Buy what you would normally eat and rotate your stock to not let anything go to waste. When he asks why you bought those 50 cans of tuna or green beans or whatever, just tell him you were running low. :teehee: With the slow government response to any crisis (Katrina, Sandy, etc) I don't see how any rational person could say it was a bad idea to have 30 days of food and water in their house. That's just prudent.


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## northfarmer (Oct 18, 2012)

You only need to come to one very simple conclusion.

The debt cannot be paid back.

When you understand this and the consequences of this,you need no other reasons.


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## brightstar (Apr 24, 2012)

I prep for weather emergencies bc we live in a high snow area that tends to lose power for a week at a time and job loss. The latter came in handy when I lost my job due to corporate restructuring and we didn't have to worry about how we were going to eat.


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## Jimmy24 (Apr 20, 2011)

Salekdarling said:


> My husband is a non-prepper. He think you and I are crazy. He even told me so, not even five minutes ago. He told me to ask you folks why do _you_ prep? He thinks that we are all prepping for the end of the world. I cannot convince him that this is not the case. A few months ago I was able to feed the two of us when we were having issues with our bills, and could not buy groceries - it's obvious that it didn't help him realize that what I'm doing for our family is a good idea. :brickwall: So please tell me:
> 
> *Why are you prepping?*
> *What are you prepping for? *
> ...


Ask your DH, does he pay insurance premiums? And why? I'm sure he's a great driver. No speeding tickets, never an accident. So why pay auto insurance?

Intends on living a totally healthy life so no need for health insurance. Right?

And obviously has located the Fountain of Youth, so he and you will live forever, correct? Life insurance, shoot save your money....

Oh yeah, that Home Owners policy you have on your house, stupid mortgage company, what do they know...nothing will ever happen to it, huh?

If one treats their preps as insurance, it's makes it more plausible and maybe easier to deal with.

And ask the one question. Can you eat or protect your family from physical harm with those insurance papers??? Don't think so.

Heck even the guberment says have a plan...

Just a few things to lay on him.

Jimmy


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## NaeKid (Oct 17, 2008)

Salekdarling said:


> Sorry about the slow response, I'm at work now.
> 
> He also believes that prepping is a form of hording. I tried to explain that yes, It can be viewed that way, but if we rotate our stock out and have a certain amount of supplies, does it even really count as hording?
> 
> ...


Prepping is not hoarding. Hoarding is knowing that a major problem is about to happen (hurricane) and going out and buying out everything from a grocery-store so that no-one else can buy it. Prepping is buying everything from a grocery-store when no-one else is needing it and keeping it at home for when you need it (might be next week or next month).

The difference between a prepper and someone who is featured on that TV-show "hoarders" is that a prepper will use the stuff that is collected, and as that stuff is used, abused and thrown-out, replacements are put into place. A prepper normally keeps a house that looks normal / average and a vehicle that looks normal / average and will try to "blend-in" with the average joes and janes, but, know that if something was to happen, they would not be in a line-up with their hands out begging for someone to do something for them ...

BTW: Its a great movie with some fairly well known actors / actresses in it ... You'll love it just for its story-line. It has drugs, fights, blood, gore, guns, stress, relationships (sorry, no porno-rated sex) ... all the good stuff!


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## bugoutbob (Nov 11, 2012)

After two debilitating car accidents and going two years with no income, it seemed prudent to me to be better prepared. We liquidated all of our savings and investments, charged up the old plastic and came close to losing the house. All that in a thriving economy. That was a convincer for me.

To top it off, if every level of government ( national, provincial and municipal) is recommending we all be prepped for at least 72 hours without essential services, how bad is it really? The Goverment must have an understanding that it will take at least that long to reset abolish essential services and we all know the Goverment is much less responsive than they will admit


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## Indiana_Jones (Nov 15, 2011)

I find it amusing that whenever someone questions why we have a mindset that we need to be prepared, many of the prepared folks rise to the occasion in a fury of explanations. A sense of pleading and guilt bubbles to the surface. 

This is my opinion and my opinion only . . . please don't view this as a personal attack - just discussion. I never answer anyone who questions my efforts to be prepared. If they do not feel the need to prep, it's OK with me. If they are too fat and lazy (physically AND mentally) to plan for life's surprises - that's great. Just don't bother me with your doubts, condescending comments, and ridicule because I'm doing my thing and don't really care about your opinion. It's called confidence, assertiveness, and winning.

I was in a very terrible war for 19 months in 1968/69 and I know first hand how evil and destructive humans can be in dire circumstances. In a crisis situation, when people are faced with immediate emergency life/death decisions, preparation and training is just about the only thing that will help.

People who must ask why are typically among the losers who voted for that piece of dung in the Whitehouse.


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## RoadRash (Sep 29, 2010)

For me I have been a Maintenance planner supervisor for the last 12 yaers it has been part of my job to plan for spares and back up machinery parts.... Based on equipment history supplier recomendations and budget. Due to economy 5 years ago I lost a very good job ended up being a Environmental supervisor at a Long Term Care planning for pandemic flu etc. This is when it became apparent to me that the gobberment does not or can not help.
So I have started building food supplies bought a BOL ( cottage which rents itself out to pay for itself) I have a few weapons and gaining knowledge to look after my family and trying to pass onto them. I would like a one year supply of food but I am happy with 3 months as I can fish n hunt. Some may call me crazy others see me as a planned person so be it, my comfort level is to survive n enjoy any hard times that come I pray they don't. So to ur Hubby do you take ur care in for regular oil changes see ur Dr 1 a year u are doing preventive maintenance which to me is another form of prepping. UFO's and End of the WORLD not likely to happen sorry tin hat people. Loss of job or 1 income yes flood , super storms yes , So look at life and world without blinders keep a semi open mind and if you want u may learn something ....and free knowledge is always good 
Good Luck


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## FrankW (Mar 10, 2012)

Why are you prepping?
What are you prepping for? 

1) Years ago, I once got sick and was unable to go out to buy anything and realized I had only half a days food in my house ( as always)
Lost alot of weight. Having lived in Manhattan for a while I had not chnace but to realize what a deathtrap the place is. 
ANY distruption of either power or gas or food will kills LOTS of people staring wihtin a few days. 
Evacuations of major Metro areas are simply impossible in a reactive timeframe...

2) It's diffult to predict what the future will bring.....
but even though we still enjoy a golden age (people have NEVER been as safe and well fed as we are) no golden age lasts forever. and we are so dependent on a multi component distrbution system so anyhting that affects it will cause alot of damage. 

Also Humanity is due for a major pandemic as our unprecedented global high poluation density and our unprecedented international mobility almost guarantee one.

3) Plus its a more practical hobby than sinking money into my race car and is almost as much fun.


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## 101airborne (Jan 29, 2010)

Salekdarling said:


> *His response:* "That stuff's fine. Having a pantry full, and the freezer/fridge full... that's what you need to survive a couple weeks or months of bad luck. Preparing enough food or water for years is just ridiculous. If things are going to get that bad your little barrel of water isn't going to save you. Your handgun that you barely trained on won't save you when the military is at your door. I also don't understand how some people think they can survive for years underground. I don't understand the point of having an underground bunker, 25 weapons per person, and having enough ammo to kill everyone twice. That's just spreading paranoia."


Salederling
Tell your husband I agree a bit with him, but just a small bit.

The storing of food for years is a luxury many of us don't have. I currentlt store about 8 months for the wife and I. But using history as an example and if we have another "great deppression" and there is little/no work those supplies won't last a long time. Plus me/we having supplies will help take the strain off what is available and let them go to people who need them ( ellderly, kids, handicaped) True I agree that "my little water barrel" won't save me/us BUT our well will, our 10,000 gallon swimming pool will help, the rain water catch set-up will help add water to the pool will help.
Also IMHO the last thing any of us will have to worry about is the military showing up at our door(s) They will be busy enough in the big cities, and protecting their bases and own families to worry about what little we have in comparison.
The thing is IMHO very few of us have the underground bunker, I don't. 
I don't want an underground bunker. IMO the only real advantage of one is POSSIBLE protection from a nuke attack, and then it depends. I don't think most preppers even consider being able to survive for years totally underground.
Very few of us have 25 weapons, I don't I have a couple of handguns, a shotgun, a .22 rifle, a 30.06 for hunting and an AR for defense. 
Most of us here are trained with our weapons me 18 years military time.
As for ammo I stock ammo for hunting first, defense second. 
As for spreading parinoia...... I disagree, who's to say some kind of sever situation will never happen.
Not beating a dead horse here, but......... If you think of the problems with hurricane Katrina, If people had been prepared there would have been a lot less loss of life. While true lessons were learned there, the recent storms that hit the east coast are STILL causing problems. Now ask him to imagine a true superstorm that hits the entire east coast with a combination of the eastcoast storms, katrina, combined? What about a massive quake in California? The new madrid fault line? Heck a meteor hit or even a super bad (pandemic) flu bug? Personally rather than paranoia spreading it's trying to get people to see what just might happen. What they would do IF something happens. Heck FEMA even says everyone should have supplies for at LEAST three days. That's for the best of a worse case scenerio.


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## 101airborne (Jan 29, 2010)

Sentry18 said:


> As a former member of our nation's military and a state police officer I am prepping because I have seen a major shift in society. We have gone from self reliance to utter dependency


#@%$ %%$#@ Senrty I have to agree with you AGAIN! :dunno: LOL
Just a week or so ago I was watching TV and they wer talking to people in New york about the storms people where whining about they still had no of all things cell phone service. They were boo hooing about where was the dovernment? why were they not there to take care of them? what were they supposed to do? Not one of them even considered living dangerously and taking care of THEMSELVES!


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## 101airborne (Jan 29, 2010)

Salekdarling;190697His mentality on that situation is that if computers fail than we should just give up. There will be no such thing as normal. It won't be long til people die off said:


> Tell hubby to sit down, He's liable to faint whe I break the news to him..... MILLIONS of people survive just fine without computers OR resteraunts. There are MILLIONS of people who have never set foot in a resteraunt. The world did quite well for THOUSANDS of years without computers.
> Now here is the shocker for him.... IF the computers fail some will not survive, but may will just adapt pick up the peices and go on with life. That old primative survival instinct will kick in and while things won't be easy people will survive and life will go on.


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## 101airborne (Jan 29, 2010)

Salekdarling said:


> He also believes that prepping is a form of hording.I asked him to get to the nitty gritty of why he is against prepping. "I'm not against prepping at all. I'm against the paranoia." Simple answer for a simple question.
> 
> gives me a piece of mind that it is okay that I prep without my husband's assistance. I wish he would come around,


Salek... I disagreee on the hoarding question. If while things are normal, you go to the store and buy ten cans of soup. Even if that empties the shelf, there is more in the stock room, or on the way from the warehouse. No harm your not taking away from others. HOWEVER if things have gone bad for whatever reason short time or long term and you run out and grab everything in sight leaving nothing for others and no forseealbe supplies coming then your HOARDING.

If it helps my wife feels kind of the same way, she doesn't see my mindset for long term prepping but she doesn't complain (much anyway) about it. I think there are several of us "singles" out there who are married if you know what I mean.


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## AnonyManx (Oct 2, 2012)

ZoomZoom said:


> Have him drive 45 miles West or North and try to explain that to the Amish.


Although this doesn't help the discussion much, I have to reply to this part of the thread...

We have several pieces of furniture built by the same Amish businessman up in PA. He does wonderful work at a very reasonable price (because of this, you have to wait several months for custom pieces). His shop office is separate from his house (across a driveway with parking area), and wired to a large propane-run generator. He has a phone line and fax machine in his office, and runs his business on a Dell laptop! That said, I don't think his laptop is on the internet, and none of this technology is in his home (which is apparently the critical point).

It still amused me - what a commercial that would make! "Dell. The official computer of Amish businessmen."


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## Indiana_Jones (Nov 15, 2011)

BlueZ said:


> . . . 3) Plus its a more practical hobby than sinking money into my race car and is almost as much fun.


Oh, I can relate to that :congrat:. Isn't it funny how we can dump our hard earned dollars into mindless amusement. I wish I had all the money I have wasted over the years. But then, what price do we put on our sanity? Hobbies and interests keep us grounded sometimes.


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## kappydell (Nov 27, 2011)

S-darling, it is ok to prep alone. my husband didn't get it for some time, and later, although he was more into prepping, (especially after we used some due to financial setbacks) and later even helped with it, he STILL would not talk about 'the end of the world' as he called it. he said it bummed him out to think about it that much, so he didn't want to talk about it. although its nice to have a spouse on board, it isn't critical. just prep on, and he will bless you for it if its ever needed. and if not, well, as my husband used to say "there are worse and more expensive hobbies...."


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## Jimthewagontraveler (Feb 8, 2012)

Prepping? What's that?
1I'm just getting ready for a yard party.
2 yea I forgot the grocery list again.
3 ???????
C'mon guys it's time to quit riding this horse so help me keep
this line going.
So who's got # 3


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## machinist (Jul 4, 2012)

There are two kinds of people, those who prepare for emergencies, and refugees. I prep because I don't plan on being I refugee if I can possibly avoid it. 

On the husband's comment about being paranoid and trying to store years of food and live underground:

No, living underground is not my idea of a good time, but it would beat the alternative, IMHO. No, you can't store enough to last forever. So, you have to learn to PRODUCE things. Productivity is a forgotten concept in most of the US now, much to my shame and dismay. It was the virtue that built the society we live in. 

Producing food, water, fuel for cooking and heat, and other of life's necessities is not rocket science, but it does require effort. It sounds to me like the DH is:
1) Overwhelmed by the idea of a societal collapse and can't face it, or,
2) He has little or no knowledge of alternative ways to live, or, 
3) He is too lazy to try. 

If there are other explanations, they elude me at this time. Numbers 1 and 2 can be fixed with education. Number 3 will be fixed when he gets hungry/cold enough.


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## Immolatus (Feb 20, 2011)

surprise surprise, everything i could add has already been said.
to summarize:
victims of sandy and katrina. noone wants to be in that situation with no power water and food for weeks.
its insurance. if there was never a possibility for anything to go wrong, insurance wouldnt exist. same principle when aplied to prepping.
all of his it systems have backups. why is that?
zpecifically for me, the economy. empires do not last forever, and the debt cannot be repaid. evrry dollar we print is worth less than the one before it.

good luck!


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## nomadjanet (Mar 28, 2011)

So Salekdarling, you have 8 pages of answers that you have presumably presented to your husband, did any of them do any good? If not, just let him think what he wants, and you can think what you want. Married couples do not always agree. Some people have a hobby of gambling, some people fish, some people hunt, so you prep it can be your hobby.


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## goshengirl (Dec 18, 2010)

Sorry to be coming late to this party, but here goes... 

After 9/11 my husband's industry (aerospace design) took a nose dive, and within a year he was laid off. For two years he was doing only temp work. By the time he had employment again we had depleted our savings. 

Then in 2008 hubby's laid off again. We'd hardly built any savings back up from the previous lay off, so we didn't have as much $ to fall back on. Had to be more creative when it came to feeding the family, and it was TOUGH. That's not something you forget - every. single. day. your family asking you what's for breakfast/lunch/dinner, and every. single. day. you're not sure.

Within six month my oldest son was admitted to the psych ward for several months. Yeah, that's something that no one thinks will ever happen to them.  The cost for psychiatric institutionalization is astronomical. Tens of thousands of dollars. We sold our house in suburbia and moved to the country, to a property worth half as much and resembling a junk yard. We paid off our debts from the proceeds of the house sale, and hubby found work (underemployed, but better than unemployed). 

So you see, we lived a comfortable life - lived well, but not extravagantly - but didn't stop the unexpected from happening. 

So yeah, I prep now. The first layoff should have been a wake up call for me. (No wait, going further back, the divorce from my first husband and single motherhood should have been a wake up call. ) In any case, by the time the second layoff occurred, I was awake. I knew I wanted to NEVER be unsure of feeding my family again. So why store food that lasts for months or years? Because layoffs can last for months or years. We know.

Additionally, my shopping has changed. I don't buy anything at regular prices anymore. I buy lots of each item on sale, and nothing at regular prices. So the result is that, after two years of doing this, I have a well-stocked basement of shelf-stable foods. Does this make me a hoarder? No. It makes me a woman who saves an average of 35% on the grocery bill by buying in this method. I can no longer afford to buy groceries the way I used to.

Another thing that's influenced my thinking is the fact that I am a student of history. There is nothing new under the sun. To think that things won't change is to live in a bubble. And yet, it took our own SHTF (and more than one) for that fact to drive home. I knew history before, but didn't apply it to our own lives. Now it's like my brain has opened up. I can see more clearly how unstable life has always been - just because I didn't see that before doesn't mean that it isn't true.

I find the hoarding comment from your hubby to be interesting. Why is it that non-preppers get focused on the 'stuff' of prepping? There's so much more to it - skills, knowledge, preparation. And while I may have some of the 'stuff' of prepping as well, I probably have less of some of the items that some people today think are essential. I have a low-end computer. I forgo a nice cell phone with texting capabilities in order to buy the materials to build a chicken coop. So what's 'stuff'? Everyone has stuff. We just have different kinds of stuff. 

Now, I will admit that I do more re-purposing of items. For example, today I pulled nasty ugly wire mesh from an old fence out of the woods, and instead of throwing it away I'm going to re-purpose it for the garden, turn it into bean and pea trellises. Of course, before becoming a prepper, I didn't have a mammoth sized garden, either... I grow a garden so we can eat. I can food so we can eat. I don't want to ever have to depend on anyone so that we can provide for that basic need.

So in a nutshell, I prep in order to be independent.

As far as your hubby not wanting to survive if things got tough - wow, that's a hard one. At least he's honest with you, and it is a choice he is certainly in his right to make. But you are also in your right to make yours, too.  Maybe you can both respect each other in that. Just let him know that you DO want to survive, so this is just something you have to do for yourself, and ask him to respect you in that decision.


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## BillM (Dec 29, 2010)

*Interesting*

It is always interesting to hear someone say , "I would not want to survive if".

Until TSHTF, they don't realy realize what they are saying.

I love hearing mothers say , "My child won't eat anything but french frys and hamburgers."

When the missed meal cramps hit, it has a way of changing peoples minds about what they don't want to live through or what they will or won't eat.

I wonder what a poll of the Donner Party would have revealed on this subject before they were trapped and after they were trapped in the mountians!

:dunno:


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## jsriley5 (Sep 22, 2012)

Salekdarling I read a whole bunch of this earlier this week, and have not bothered to catch up I searched my mind up and down left and right and never did figure anything helpful to say. I have no point of reference to even begin to talk to a guy who does't presume himself his famiilies main provider and protector. Here I am disabled and not doing a hell of a lot but I still consider myself the main first line of defense for the family and the main one who is to plan and prepare for their provisions. I hope you are successful as it is a much easier chore with your SO helping and not hindering you and much less daunting to think about knowing when somthing happens you don't essentially have another child to take care of inspite of themselves. I suppose it makes it easy put all the ammo in one pile then take one round out and put it by it'self. The big pile is yours for shtf and the small pile is his. please report in with good news as I continue to run this through my mind everytime I see the headline and it just blows my wee wittle mind.


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## Salekdarling (Aug 15, 2010)

nomadjanet said:


> So Salekdarling, you have 8 pages of answers that you have presumably presented to your husband, did any of them do any good? If not, just let him think what he wants, and you can think what you want. Married couples do not always agree. Some people have a hobby of gambling, some people fish, some people hunt, so you prep it can be your hobby.


Hey folks! I'm back. Sorry about the slow response. I've been working all weekend. 

Anyway, after reading the responses back to Mr. Salek, he's basically told me to let it go because he was getting irritated. I dropped the subject completely with him as he didn't have much else to say besides "paranoia, hoarding, and 'there's nothing you can do' if the SHTF.

I think he definitely understands the point behind our "food insurance", but I've come to the final conclusion that there is nothing short of the end of the world that will convince Mr. Salek that he should join in on the prepping. He is an absolute stubborn mule, and so am I. I would LOVE for him to join in and be a bit more supportive, but that won't happen any time soon. Oh well.

Eventually we will have children, maybe then, he'll come around to the idea because he'll have something more to worry about than just me and his job.  Don't worry he loves me, and takes care of me just as much as I take care of him. We have a great relationship. :kiss: Please don't think any less of my husband. He's a great man, just stuck in the normal bubble, as someone had said earlier in the thread. I tolerate his talks of computers and sports (but I love hockey... WOOO HOCKEY!), and he tolerates my talks of police work, "grandma and ******* stuff" (ie: guns, gardening, traps, crocheting, sewing etc.), and prepping.

I've decided that I will give him small lessons in gathered knowledge. Such as how to make a bow, tying knots, emergency birthing, dehydrating, canning, cooking foraged food for him (I'll tell him where I got it, why I got the foraged food.) He will sit and listen to me when I feel that the knowledge is important. I will also ask for his help in growing vegetables, and herbs this spring. He's a smart man, and retains knowledge very well. To a point, he'll unknowingly prep. Maybe he'll get some satisfaction out growing his own tomatoes or jalapenos 

I really *REALLY *appreciate everyone's responses. Reading through each and every reply has given me a sense of relief that I'm not just a nutball for doing this. I'm glad there are other folks within our little community that are experience something similar to my situation. Keep calm, and prep on, brother and sisters!

Salek


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## jsriley5 (Sep 22, 2012)

Well you always know you have your support group here
Just stand and say "Hi I'm Salekdarling and I"m a prepper" 
I hope he does come around your family chances of survival grow exponentially by adding to the team. One alone, especially if they have to care for others, is reduced to practically nil chances of survival in my opinion.you can only do it all and stay alert and on gaurd so long before you are just spent. 

YOu have my best wishes and prayers for you and yours. Hey maybe you can back door him by starting off on EMP/Solar EMP type discussions and how to protect his precious technology? How to provide power to his toys of the grid goes down for any one of a number of plausible reasons? And then grow to the other things that will be of concern. Maybe get him started on a computer controlled home and grounds surveilance unit a force multiplier for your small force? Thats basic home security and is "mainstream" so even if that is as far as he can go it would still be very handy while you bug in. kinda playing to his streingths.


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## alwaysready (May 16, 2012)

BillM said:


> It is always interesting to hear someone say , "I would not want to survive if".
> 
> Until TSHTF, they don't realy realize what they are saying.
> 
> ...


My Dad always said a few missed meals is the best seasoning ever. It works on everything.


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## glorysue (Nov 18, 2012)

Salekdarling said:


> My husband is a non-prepper. He think you and I are crazy. He even told me so, not even five minutes ago. He told me to ask you folks why do you prep? He thinks that we are all prepping for the end of the world. I cannot convince him that this is not the case. A few months ago I was able to feed the two of us when we were having issues with our bills, and could not buy groceries - it's obvious that it didn't help him realize that what I'm doing for our family is a good idea. :brickwall: So please tell me:
> 
> Why are you prepping?
> What are you prepping for?
> ...


I'm prepping for, Economic collapse, natural disaster, power outage, or job loss, then there is friend and family! I want to be prepared for anything! We take care of ourselves I will never depend on this government for anything!


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

I know this is an old thread but here is my 2¢ any way!

I started prepping as a way to make myself feel better about the world around me. Not being able to control inflation and job loss I slowly started storing cleaning supplies and personal hygiene products. I felt better when K would yell from in the shower that he was out of soap (never telling me before he would need a new bar) and handing him one from the cabinet. 

When Roo came into our lives knowing I was saving us money by getting everything on sale in bulk made our tiny income stretch in ways I didn't think it could. It also took a lot of stress out of being a mom when K was laid off not long after Roo was born. I can feed my child and not worry about where the money was coming from. 

In California unemployment doesn't really cover the cost of rent let alone bills and food. If you have to live near work your rent is going to be over $1500 a month. Unemployment is $1600 a month if you make more than that a month when you are employed.

So prepping in the fat times help when times are lean.


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## Jewel (Sep 6, 2014)

I agree completely. I never prepped for the end of the world, I started prepping when I was 17 because I had gone hungry, been poor and been homeless at 13. I never wanted that again. Homeless might be unavoidable but being prepared is not.

You can also loose all your preps in an instant but no one can take the knowledge you learn or your ability to start over with that knowledge.


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

glorysue said:


> I'm prepping for, Economic collapse, natural disaster, power outage, or job loss, then there is friend and family! I want to be prepared for anything!


I can't prepare for ANYTHING - but I do prep for Economic collapse, natural disaster, Grid/power outage, or job loss


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## Txcatlady1 (Nov 9, 2014)

I consider myself a provider. My husband sees no reason to participate. I have done this for the last 42 years of marriage, 5 daughters and now 14 grandchildren. I have asked him to look at the pantry and tell me what we need. He says more food, but it is for me to do, not him. When elections look dismal or a late freeze in the valley, or hurricane, or a freeze/winter storm, he tells me to stock up on food or ammo. I don't buy ammo for him, but I am okay. Don't have a bunker or gallons of water, but can make do. I am cautious in crowds and always watching around me. No big stores around so don't have to watch exits. I think I am normal. I was asked to speak to a group about preparedness but declined. When I told her I didn't want people to know what I had, she understood. Told her I would answer her questions the best I could. I grew up this way. My daddy was the provider. We ate anything he killed. They were school teachers in rural TX and with 4 kids it was tight. People know I kill, clean and process my deer and chickens. Can't stand waste. Can put a meal on table quickly. Sorry so long


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## doubleTHICK (Jun 19, 2012)

Off the forum for a few days and was wondering what would make a topic spread 10 pages so quickly . . . oh, we're crazy for being a prepper - that explains it all.

At this point and time in our country (and world), if an individual is not able to see the writing on the wall ***for whatever reason(s)*** and what is blatantly right in front of their face, then NOTHING will! :lalala: To the OP; as much as I hate to say this to you, I don't think your husband will see the proverbial poop even when it is hitting him after coming from the fan.

After having read all these pages I can't remember who posted the _normalcy bias _theory - but spot on.

Furthermore, I've been saying there is no rule anywhere that says 'history must repeat itself', it's just that 'history has always repeated itself'. Do a little homework and you'll see what is soon to come. 1890's depression to 1920's depression. How is that any different than 2008 and probably 2016-17? Other than the $17 trillion and counting.

Better yet, scare the living sh!t out of yourself and read about current reports on the *IMPOSSIBLITY * of ever paying that debt off. <---- that should make any breathing human being want to start preparing, even if a little

Why are preppers the "crazy" ones and the average American who buys water/milk/bread 2 days before a huge hurricane slams your city normal? I cannot figure that one out for the life of me. So if I buy supplies for prepping *BEFORE *an event happens I am the oddball, but if you wait to buy water *AFTER *the water supply has been contaminated then you are doing what is perfectly normal?
WTF!

To recap; if at this point in our country an individual cannot see what is right in front of their face, then unfortunately nothing will.


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

doubleTHICK said:


> Off the forum for a few days and was wondering what would make a topic spread 10 pages so quickly . . . oh, we're crazy for being a prepper - that explains it all.
> 
> At this point and time in our country (and world), if an individual is not able to see the writing on the wall ***for whatever reason(s)*** and what is blatantly right in front of their face, then NOTHING will! :lalala: To the OP; as much as I hate to say this to you, I don't think your husband will see the proverbial poop even when it is hitting him after coming from the fan.
> 
> ...


*
This thread is two years old!*


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## Dakine (Sep 4, 2012)

Grimm said:


> *
> This thread is two years old!*


there are threads that should be bumped, there's TONS of posts that are lost from humanity because they are on a thread "somewhere"...

I even remember reading Salek's post the first time back then... I wonder what her husband thinks now. given the last few years my guess is he thinks she's whacky and there's no reason to prep whatsoever...

He'd certainly have odds in his favor if he skews "no emergencies" vs. "SHTF" events in life, but... I don't prep for hiccups, I worry about something big and want to help my family and community.

I don't ever want to be "right" about a prep thing, but how I use them is part of every day life... the EMT kit I put together while in training is 100% adaptable to the baby next door choking as it is the other neighbor who cuts her hand chopping veggies for dinner.

I haven't filed an auto insurance claim for the last 20 years, why do I keep full coverage insurance? spending $40 more per 6 months for lots of extra coverage is WAY cheaper than when I finally have a wreck and total a vehicle.


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

Dakine said:


> there are threads that should be bumped, there's TONS of posts that are lost from humanity because they are on a thread "somewhere"...
> 
> I even remember reading Salek's post the first time back then... I wonder what her husband thinks now. given the last few years my guess is he thinks she's whacky and there's no reason to prep whatsoever...
> 
> ...


FYI
I'm the one who bumped it.


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## Dakine (Sep 4, 2012)

Grimm said:


> FYI
> I'm the one who bumped it.


I know... I saw that lol


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## Country Living (Dec 15, 2009)

Since it's been two years, I wonder if hubby ever got on board with prepping...


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## Quills (Jun 14, 2011)

I know that this thread is old, but I see that Salek is still on occasionally, and I want to respond.

I prep because my grandparents lived in Germany prior to WWII. My grandfather didn't talk much about that time, but he did make it very clear to us grandkids that when the "government" controls the food, they control you, and when your children are starving, there isn't much you won't do or agree to to get them food.

My second reason for prepping is because I have been hungry, I have felt the clawing emptiness of no food in my belly for days. I refuse, point blank, to let that happen to my children. Ever.

I prep for the unexpected which, by it's very definition, is UNEXPECTED. You can't predict the future, but you sure as heck can prepare for the bad times. I do.

My husband, who is also in IT, wasn't on board at first, but he sure as heck respected me enough to try to understand why it was important to ME, and he NEVER was so disrespectful of my life experiences and choices as to tell me I was a hoarder or paranoid. Several times over our marriage (over twenty years now) he has had proof that my "prepping" was a good choice, and now, he is fully on board, to the point where we live on a farm in the middle of nowhere, and raise most of our own food. 

I hope your hubby at least has come to respect your reasons and choices, Salek -- otherwise, I hope I'm wrong when I say you've probably got bigger problems, long-term, than you realize.


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## Tirediron (Jul 12, 2010)

Jewel said:


> I agree completely. I never prepped for the end of the world, I started prepping when I was 17 because I had gone hungry, been poor and been homeless at 13. I never wanted that again. Homeless might be unavoidable but being prepared is not.
> :congrat:
> You can also loose all your preps in an instant but no one can take the knowledge you learn or your ability to start over with that knowledge.


:congrat:

that is the truth in a single sentence. knowledge and skill.


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## offgridcooker (Mar 5, 2012)

The term prepper has been "kookified" by television and some on the left, so
Tell him that you have decided to stop preppin and instead you are just going to stock up.
Some small amount of peppers are kooks and It is the odd that gets the attention.
To me being prepared is the purpose not having a label.


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## fteter (May 23, 2014)

Interesting thread...glad it got bumped.

I prep because my parents were children of the Great Depression. They baked self-reliance and "preparing for a rainy day" into my psyche when I was very young.

Hope I never have to rely on my preps. But I sleep better for having them...


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## ras1219como (Jan 15, 2013)

I prep because we never know what will happen with the future. I prep because I like the security that it provides. I like knowing that I can feed myself for months without ever spending a dime, I can keep my house heated, myself and my clothes clean, and I can keep myself safe. 

Disaster can strike in any form. SHTF doesn't always mean a world wide apocalypse. Sometimes it's a personal event, like a job loss or a sickness. Prepping means being prepared for the little things just as much as the big things.


Sent from my iPhone using Survival Forum. Please forgive typos.


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## stpeterspioneer (Nov 10, 2014)

ras1219como said:


> I prep because we never know what will happen with the future. I prep because I like the security that it provides. I like knowing that I can feed myself for months without ever spending a dime, I can keep my house heated, myself and my clothes clean, and I can keep myself safe.
> 
> Disaster can strike in any form. SHTF doesn't always mean a world wide apocalypse. Sometimes it's a personal event, like a job loss or a sickness. Prepping means being prepared for the little things just as much as the big things.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Survival Forum. Please forgive typos.


Totally agree with you. Although preparing for the things you mentioned, I have a fear of cyber attacks shutting down our power. Or Hemp attacks blacking out our nation. Like you, I want to have comfort in knowing that my family will survive weeks if not months or years of no electric or running water. I got a long way to go, but I'm working on it. I figure we're better off than the people who laugh at us!


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## crabapple (Jan 1, 2012)

My family has caned, frozen,dried & raised food for over 200 years, that I know of.
That makes it a family Tradition, besides I do not smoke, get drunk or sky dive.
A guy has to have a hobby or two, so that it.
If the job runs out or it snows 10 feet or something else, then I guess I can eat my hobby.
AND IT IS FUN TOO!


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## tc556guy (Apr 28, 2011)

Salekdarling said:


> My husband is a non-prepper. He think you and I are crazy. He even told me so, not even five minutes ago. He told me to ask you folks why do _you_ prep? He thinks that we are all prepping for the end of the world. I cannot convince him that this is not the case. A few months ago I was able to feed the two of us when we were having issues with our bills, and could not buy groceries - it's obvious that it didn't help him realize that what I'm doing for our family is a good idea. :brickwall: So please tell me:
> 
> *Why are you prepping?*
> *What are you prepping for? *
> ...


Bad things happen that aren't neccesarily "the end of the world"
Look at the Buffalo NY area this past week for one example
Not exactly "the end of the world" unless you're one of those poor souls trapped in a snowbound vehicles for days slowly freezing to death

Ask your husband if he enjoys the prospect of sitting in a dark cold house for days during the next power outage, or looking at empty food shelves.

Better safe than sorry


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## Tweto (Nov 26, 2011)

stpeterspioneer said:


> Totally agree with you. Although preparing for the things you mentioned, I have a fear of cyber attacks shutting down our power. Or Hemp attacks blacking out our nation. Like you, I want to have comfort in knowing that my family will survive weeks if not months or years of no electric or running water. I got a long way to go, but I'm working on it. I figure we're better off than the people who laugh at us!


Would we even know or even care what happened after a Hemp attack.:laugh:


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## stpeterspioneer (Nov 10, 2014)

Tweto said:


> Would we even know or even care what happened after a Hemp attack.:laugh:


I meant EMP that would shut down our grid and everything we depend on so much.
In military terminology, a nuclear warhead detonated hundreds of kilometres above the Earth's surface is known as a high-altitude electromagnetic pulse (HEMP) device. Typically the HEMP device produces the EMP as its primary damage mechanism. The nuclear device does this by producing gamma rays, which in turn are converted into EMP in the mid-stratosphere over a wide area within line of sight to the detonation.

A high altitude nuclear warhead detonation may not be a good thing at all, but won't necessarily kill us. The gamma rays cause EMPs that destroy our grids and puts us back to the 1800's.


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## Padre (Oct 7, 2011)

Salekdarling said:


> My husband is a non-prepper. He think you and I are crazy. He even told me so, not even five minutes ago. He told me to ask you folks why do _you_ prep? He thinks that we are all prepping for the end of the world. I cannot convince him that this is not the case. A few months ago I was able to feed the two of us when we were having issues with our bills, and could not buy groceries - it's obvious that it didn't help him realize that what I'm doing for our family is a good idea. :brickwall: So please tell me:
> 
> *Why are you prepping?*
> *What are you prepping for? *
> ...


From most likely to least, and inversly least dangerous to most:

I prep because every 10 years or so we have a major snow storm or hurricane that disrupts utilities and the food chain for up to a month.

I prep because my home is near the water and in a similar situation as New Orleans if hit directly by a cat 4 hurricane "storm of the century".

I prep because I live within the 20 mile mandatory evacuation zone of a nuclear power plant, which BTW is of the same design as Fukashima.

I prep because the power grid is according to multiple national security reports, declassified since I worked for the Federal government, exceptionally fragile and susceptible to terrorist attacks either physical or remote.

I prep because according to every national security council member I have heard its not a matter of if but when NBC terror or EMP is used against the continental US.

Ultimately, I prep because I am a student of human nature and no matter what the nature of the disaster I fear what people are capable of if any disaster causes the break down of utilities and/or the rule of law.


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## doubleTHICK (Jun 19, 2012)

Grimm said:


> *
> This thread is two years old!*


:laugh: Didn't realize that

The awesome thing about this thread is it standing the test of time. We hear that quite a bit, something "standing the test of time". Unfortunately many people run into this problem now, not to mention somebody will have the same issue two years from now.

Except, maybe in two years prepping will not be prepping, but surviving. Things have the potential to be really F-ing different in two years.

How about this Grimm? Two years from now give this thread another bump to reflect on the societal climate. <-- That actually scares me a little, the uncertainty of _just _two years from now


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## tc556guy (Apr 28, 2011)

Grimm said:


> *
> This thread is two years old!*


I've never understood the internet "rule" that says don't bump old threads.
I'd rather see a meaningful continuing dialogue on issues that are important to the membership no matter how old the thread.
If its a two year old thread about some time-sensitive specific events then yeah why bump it.
Ultimately the readership will determine if a bumped thread deserved to be brought back to page one because they'll simply not reply to it and it'll sink back into obscurity


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

tc556guy said:


> I've never understood the internet "rule" that says don't bump old threads. I'd rather see a meaningful continuing dialogue on issues that are important to the membership no matter how old the thread.


I agree.

A lot of good information often gets obscured just because it's 2, 3, maybe 4 years old.

A lot of the skills, methods and techniques we discuss here on P.S. are hundreds of years old... so a couple more years shouldn't hurt


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## sillybilly (Sep 18, 2014)

Then build a box and make a faraday box and keep your solar( every prepper should have) and radios; anything electronic put into it so after its hit, wait a bit and then guard your preps with ways that would make it hard for a band of thugs to get it. I use my hunting rifle set up for hunting but the same configuration as was my sniper rifle when I was in as a sniper. I can hit a headshot at minimum 500 meters so keep your enemies as far out as you can. I am using all my skills from the service to gauge our preps. We had a saying, if you are defending your home or BOL with pistols, something went wrong cause those are supposed to be your backup weapons and rifles are your number one defense. 
Surplus stores, amazon or other surplus online should have army manuals for just about anything from tactics to making your own shape charges. Lots of resources you just need to start reading. You can download these PDF form manuals for free onto your laptops. Then use your solar batteries to power and read.


Sent from my iPhone using Survival Forum


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## Boris (Apr 10, 2009)

as a christian, i guess yes i am prepping for the end of days. but it is also proper to prep because of job loss, natural disasters, and even to help a family if they have come on hard times. which we have done several times . the more self reliant you are the less you have to depend on the govt,etc. i won't post the biblical verses for this as this is not the proper place for it, but that is why. i have never regretted it. and there have been times i have been glad of it. there are other reasons mainly my occupational background why i do it. better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.


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## jjgrask (Jan 14, 2015)

I'm 64 and on SSN, my hubby is 67 and on SSN. That alone should tell you why I am learning to prep. My grandmother passed down a lot of information to me that I was too young and foolish to remember. Now I need it and she is not here. So I am learning, saving, and growing. Not just material things but in spirit, health, and peace of mind.


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## slowimplosion (Sep 9, 2012)

I think your husband is *thinking* about this and that is a good thing. Myself, I have food, water, firearms, ammo, and much more that I have accumulated over the years. What am I preparing for? What have you got? 

I think people take the functioning of society way too much for granted. I think people don't really understand currency (money) and the shadow banking system's inherent fragility. I think that for every foreseeable disruption of the food supply and normal life, there is one that no one has even thought of waiting in the wings. 

I think there are any number of natural or man-made disasters that could disrupt our lives with little or no notice. I see almost no downside to being prepared.

That said, if it comes down to the "Mad Max" scenario, with roving bands of armed gangs seeking food, I agree that no amount of preparation will be sufficient and that is not what I am preparing for.

Oh and one more thing. People who are unprepared have to be "right" every day. The prepared person only has to be "right" once (when the unthinkable actually happens and he is not caught completely off guard).


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## headhunter (Nov 21, 2008)

Growing up the family camped. If there was an electrical outage, the camp lantern and stove were used. I was a Boy Scout-be Prepared. We traveled some/ many two tracks in dad's 2 wheel drive sedan.
Have you watched news clips from the northern states, "---drivers just walked away from their stuck vehicles." What the heck, were they too lazy to throw a shovel in when they left home.
The wife retired from teaching after 37 years. She drove 43 miles one way and made it when people that lived in the town called in to say they couldn't make it. She drove a Jeep or Jeep type vehicle. Yes it was more expensive. We both felt she had a responsibility to make every effort to get to the job, she put in into the ditch twice, but, dressed for the weather. Preparedness makes success possible.


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## mariah2430 (Sep 19, 2014)

stpeterspioneer said:


> Totally agree with you. Although preparing for the things you mentioned, I have a fear of cyber attacks shutting down our power. Or Hemp attacks blacking out our nation. Like you, I want to have comfort in knowing that my family will survive weeks if not months or years of no electric or running water. I got a long way to go, but I'm working on it. I figure we're better off than the people who laugh at us!


Can I ask what you mean by hemp attacks? Sorry I just dont understand your use of the term in this context.


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## Cotton (Oct 12, 2013)

mariah2430 said:


> Can I ask what you mean by hemp attacks? Sorry I just dont understand your use of the term in this context.


Hemp&#8230; "High altitude" electro magnetic pulse. Most folks use the general term "EMP".


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## mariah2430 (Sep 19, 2014)

Cotton said:


> Hemp&#8230; "High altitude" electro magnetic pulse. Most folks use the general term "EMP".


Thank you for clearing that up. I was thinking hemp as in cannabis. Seriously wondering how that would cause a blackout. I have always just heard the term EMP not HEMP for electro magnetic pulse. Also I didnt know it was high altitude. Thanks for teaching me something new today.


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## musketjim (Dec 7, 2011)

Interior Alaska is at the end of the food chain literally. Any issues on the west coast (dock strike, earthquake, tsunami) can break that chain very quickly. We are in a very active earthquake zone and can have extended cold snaps and winter storms. Alaska the land of disaster. With our extremes up here it's irresponsible not to be a prepper.:beercheer:

"The good guys aren't coming."


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## 4wdCountry (May 18, 2012)

Grandparents grew up through the depression, and every lesson i have heard grandpa preach on was solid sense either related to work, food, or family. Fast forward to the 90's, to a kid fresh out of school. Went through three tornadoes, two ice storms (power outage for 5 days and 23 days on the ice storms) and a pair of potentially catastrophic job layoffs. Each time, I had just enough money and resources to make it through, except for the 23 day power outage. That wasnt pretty, but it worked out. I believe that personal responsibility for my family is a very honorable and necessary trait to have. I'd be embarrassed to need a handout when i can make/store resources to help myself. 

20k rounds of ammo and 90 guns do seem extreme, especially if that person has a dollar in change in their pocket, 14.00 in their bank account, 2 boxes of mac and cheese in the cabinet, and a mountain of credit card debt. Folks get caught up in Hollywood survival scenarios. Not all of us are like that. Many just like having the ability to be responsible for us and ours.


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