"Prepper" survey

[cjclemens]

I never really considered myself a prepper - I just keep on doing things the way we always have. Part of that has always been to be prepared for lean times, whatever the cause. It never really dawned on me that other people didnt do the same, until I saw that doomsday preppers show on TV. At first, I wondered why its such a novelty, but then I realized some people barely keep enough supplies to get through the week, let alone a year.  That's when I realized I'm a "prepper," too.

I don't keep a lot of supplies, but I think I could last a year on what I have, if I rationed.  If I can keep gardening and raising beef, i could probably last a long time. I don't believe one scenario is more likely than any other (except for an economic collapse), so I like to stay prepared for a general emergency. So, how many of you guys are "preppers" and what are you prepping for?

[cudatruck]

I learned growing up the value of keeping your pantry and freezer full. I have added ammunition, medical supplies, water storage, transportation and communications to our rediness plan. We garden, raise small animals, and go primitive camping every year. Trying to pass this on to my kids. In todays world the boy scout motto is more meaningfull than ever.
I do not believe we fit the description on tv! lol.

[jammer308]

generally, most p[eople i know are unprepared and many very naive. a handfull of people i know acknowledge the need to prepare and are fairly smart but still dont do enough if anything at all. i have a few select friends that have been actually doing something including myself, and although its not "enough" imo, its what we all can afford. we know who we are in the area and if the shtf we will be in contact with each other and screw everyone else. knowledge is priceless and i feel the growing desire to learn all i can about surving off the grid. with this current administration in government we're headed somewhere fast and it aint good. however, i dont like the term "prepper" it sounds like just another typical stereo type coined by the media and tv.. i think of myself more as a survivalist.. or better still, a student of life.       chris

[Old Syko]

I don't consider myself a prepper, but the way I live might be considered that by some.  We garden and can everything we can get our hands on.  We have always kept fuel, water, food, toilet paper, and other items enough to last for the distant future.  My parents experienced a depression upbringing and merely passed that lifestyle down to me.  We tend to try to teach others who want to know how but have little to no respect for those who refuse to learn.  As an example, during the last storm that caused a week or more long power outage, we lived much as we would anyway while others around us either lived in misery and complained or left the area to live with friends or relatives that had power.


Am I a prepper?  No.  But I do live prepared.  Or at least as prepared as I can be for the unknown.

[cjclemens]

I'm not that fond of the term "prepper," either, but you know how pop culture and the media have to label everything. To me, it's as offensive as calling semi-automatic rifles "assault weapons."

I'm like you guys - I raise my own food and preserve some of it through canning and pickling. Sure, it's more time consuming than just getting everything at the grocery store, but it's a way of life that I learned and enjoy. Being prepared is just a byproduct of that way of life. I guess I could have used a different term to describe it, but I couldn't think of anything else at the moment.

[BUGEYE]

I have food, meds, guns, ammo, TP, water, and I just had a spare set of teeth made, and I'm having another pair of glasses made at Walmart.
Plus I'm accumulating silver to buy stuff from you farmers.

[SHOOTALL]

there are two kinds of folks those who will depend on themselves or those who will depend on the govt. if you aren't prepared you better be sucking up to the govt. 

[bilmac]

I was a prepper before they had a word for it. They used to call us Boy Scouts.

[Ranger99]

i also dislike the term prepper.
i used to to like survivalist, until it
got to be synonymous with psychopath.
i know there are hordes of common
sense level-headed folks like myself
in the world who don't have to worry
about being ready for bad times.
you know , the ones you don't see on
the news fighting over flashlight batteries
during a tornado because we already have some.
it's trendy right now to be a "prepper" so
you can post a video on youbloob or
invent some "neat" gadget that isn't
real-world practical. 

[Swampman]

I believe it's the TV show that makes me hate the term prepper.  I haven't seen one person on the show that didn't come across as an idiot.

[burntmuch]

I've been raising as much of my own food as I can, for a couple years now,been stocking up on certain things, trying to be self sufficient  as much as possible.  I don't consider myself a prepper , my wife thinks I am, but she's starting to realize  how fragile our economic system, and our country's food supply is. So she appreciates the fact that I fill the freezer with fresh pork, chicken, and venison every year,  Not a prepper but a student of the old ways, That's what I'm shooting for . My 73 year old fathers garden still makes my garden look pitiful though. So still learning.

[cjclemens]

What I find odd about the show is that everyone they film is prepared/convinced that its gonna be one particular event. In this day and age, who can say what's gonna happen? Flu epidemic, economic collapse,heck - at this point, even a zombie apocalypse wouldn't be too far fetched, in my opinion. No matter what happens, I don't wanna be the one on TV, complaining about freezing my a££ off, cuz FEMA forgot to bring enough trailers.

[SHOOTALL]

I believe it's the TV show that makes me hate the term prepper.  I haven't seen one person on the show that didn't come across as an idiot.

yep idoits anyone who would go to the lengths they do then broadcast it across America and the world are idoits. Maybe actors is what they are really or hams .
If your life revolves around surviving only why live in todays world with all the opertunity that exist ? Better to live wise and enjoy living. Be careful be ready and insure you can survive but not become parnoid .Having the things we need is not prepping it's being wise. Sure we should have food and water on hand as we should have other things like medicine , glasses , extra clothes , ammo, medical supplies, fuel . Mayme as important we should keep up with day to day events and long term events, weather etc. but not go to ground everytime something happens .

[Old Syko]

The people who fascinate me are the ones who think they must have have a community or network they can count on.  The main thing I have learned over the years is that when the chips are down you can count on others for very little.  You have to be able to count on yourself 100% and if you can't do that you just as well be one of the first to lie down and die.

[SHOOTALL]

I think many can count on family , church members and friends and neighbors . But you have to be willing to return the favor.

[Old Syko]

I think many can count on family , church members and friends and neighbors . But you have to be willing to return the favor.

To be able to count on family is a given but for all others you better be able to give many times more than you expect to receive.  Like my late father always said, "Never loan anything you can't afford to give away."  When I hand, loan or in any way offer someone something I consider it a gift and expect nothing in return.  Life is better that way.

[SHOOTALL]

Yep. I was think time in need .

[Couger]

 
Couple of good quotes!
 

I was a prepper before they had a word for it. They used to call us Boy Scouts.

 

I believe it's the TV show that makes me hate the term prepper.  I haven't seen one person on the show that didn't come across as an idiot.

 
 
Yeah its important to be able to discuss ideas and methods on how to do things, but there's also much to be said for quietly and discretely just going about one's buisness!   
 
My neighbors DO NOT need to know what happens with my family or in our home!  Certainly not all of the time, nor the "latest and greatest."   

[BBF]

I'm to old/decrepit for all that prepper  "chit."

[Dixie Dude]

Tornadoes, Hurricanes, ice storms, all resulting in power outages, some for weeks.  Flu pandemics, other disease especially brought in by illegals like TB.  Food shortages from droughts, floods, storms.  Economic breakdown of society resulting in hyper inflation and riots.  Computer virus cutting off all food stamp receipiants with their hunger causing riots and flash mobs to steal food.  An EMP nuclear blast 250 miles above Kansas from a rogue state like North Korea or Iran, would knock off most power in North America which would take about 6 months to get all power restored, resulting in no frozen or refrigerated food.  No canning of food with power off, etc.  No gas pumping either.  Same could happen from a giant solar flare.  In our high tech electrified society, we would be at the mercy of too many things to go wrong.  If more people were self sufficient, had 6 months to a year's supply of food stored, could grow vegetable gardens in their yards like the WWII victory gardens, and were more civil like the 1930's, we might do alright.  If the power is off over 6 weeks, many people will starve to death in the big cities, gangs of young healthy men will spread out into the suburbs and countryside looking for food.  Only real way to survive is be in the countryside or small country towns with a food supply and the ability to grow and raise your own food, and weapons to protect from urban gangs coming for food.  Also some type of "militia" of these rural folks to help protect each other.  Having backup power like solar, wind, and generators to help keep food and to power HAM radio systems would be a big help.  Also to charge batteries for walkie talkies, for communication with each other for protection.  Horses might even be a premium for getting around quick. 
 
IF power companies are or would protect themselves from an EMP blast or solar flare, that would help a lot.  IF vehicles were all made with faraday cages around the electronics, that would also help.  IF the government would quit paying farmers NOT to grow stuff, but use the money instead to buy up any excess food and make it into MRE's, canned or dry goods, that would also help in agricultural emergencies.  IF more people prepped, that would help also.  Don't know if that would happen in todays hedonistic society.  Only 25% of baby boomers have any money set aside for retirement.  They are also probably the preppers. 

[BBF]

Why would the politicians worry. They've got that nice big hidey hole in the mountains of Colorado.

[Old Syko]

We raise a good garden every year and the things we can get canned without power for the most part because we don't want the mess in the house.  One realization we have came to was to can and dry store more and depend on the freezer less and less which eliminates the need for a power source.  We have alternate sources for everything we can think of.  Most never think of replenishing their water supply even if they presently store water.  The time to think of things isn't when it becomes a necessity.  Because I've thought of things and taken appropriate action doesn't make me a prepper it just makes me non-dependent therefore less effected by all the usually discussed scenarios.   

[Bugflipper]

I don't think I am. Those fellows on tv seem to be nut jobs. I really can't identify with buying up big stocks of items. Just seems a waste to me. I think it's more of an unnatural fear, kind of like the chicken little syndrome. I'm not talking about being self reliant. The ones I see are far from it. They just throw money at their perceived problem to come to a solution. Their so called expert  evaluation is generally a crock. I bet those experts would be done with before the folks on the show.


I was raised and live on a farm. Probably 90% of what we eat is either grown, raised or hunted at home. No feed is bought for the animals, it is grown. They fertilize it. Just like our food enough is put up in case of a couple of crop failures. A clean water source is here for us and the animals. It irrigates the crops as well. We don't get electricity from the power company. In fact they pay us for electricity. I have a full time job and work on side projects for others at home in my spare time. I research things and try to make major items instead of buying a store bought one, ie, saw mill, wood splitter, blacksmith forge and such. I don't pay people to work on anything. I learn how to do it and fix it or build it. If it's a new design that has a short life and is designed to be thrown away I won't buy it. That's how things where when I was a kid. It's a lot easier to depend on yourself than to worry about what will be or if the govt will help if things get bad.


 I don't think that's being what the people on tv are. It's just making sure you can get through hard times and making it easier when they are not. Even squirrels have enough sense to do that. It's called survival. Seems some folks aren't very fond of that. 

[Empty Quiver]

I'm not a prepper.


I've just got a lot of stuff.  


I would rather put a bag of groceries in the basement than a new DVD into the player. A new generator sounds nicer than Jerry Jeff Walker on a new stereo. Letting some gas age nicely in the garage like wine before burning it, rather than always using the fresh stuff. Two moderately nice vehicles rather than one really nice one. Multiple guns in multiple chamberings, just in case there is a run on 5.56 or 9MM, for instance.  I like the warm glow of a Coleman lantern... especially when the power goes out.

[SHOOTALL]

We used to say we had enough to get by , guess that ain't catchy enough to get ratings .

[blind ear]

Why would the politicians worry. They've got that nice big hidey hole in the mountains of Colorado.

-
If things get bad enough that you need to be a prepper to survive the public might revolt against the "ruleing class" which would be easiest identified as "politicians and bankers" as happened in the French Revolution. History has proven again and again that all we can imagine and worse  has and will happen again. ear

[SHOOTALL]

I would doubt that anyone could survive a massive civil up rising in a bunker or such for long and if by some luckthey did  when things settled down it might be doubtful if they would be accepted back into socicty . Maybe even jailed for not shareing what they had. Crisis always bring changes , things never return to "normal" .
 
like they say when others are starving and you remain fat people will notice and come looking to see why 

[BBF]

If you are talking about that hidey hole, they have plenty of every thing to last a long time while the ranks of the unwashed dwindle rapidly caused by ob violence,starvation, exposure and disease.
 
BTW. I think the Mormons have a similar hidey hole  somewhere sans the protection of the military of course.

[SHOOTALL]

so they retire to their hole and someone plugs the air inlet or just covers it up with a doizer  I think the Mormons have a plan to bind together with each other and others who offer protection , at least they say they do.

[briarpatch]

 Mormons were asked to keep a year supply of food and esensuals on hand in case of an emergency that would effect normal living. Layoffs, tornados, hurricanes etc.
Now they ask for 2 years for your family and neighbors or others that don’t have.
They also ask for an emergency kit that will do you and your family with all your needs for 72 hours. Something you can grab quick and leave if necessary.
There is no secret place to go unless you have one. Most will prepare to hang tough at home if able.