The "Are you a prepper" subject has been a fun topic for me over the last few years because I got to see such a wide range of opinions. Its funny because I never gave any thought about prepping before. Sure, I had talked with people before who were "Survivalist" and wanted to move to a cabin in the wilderness of Idaho with 10 years worth of food and a million pounds of ammo. I thought they were quacks but hey, who am I to say you're wrong, it just wasn't my cup of tea. I can hunt, fish, grow a garden and take care of my family. I got guns and bullets... who's worried? If we have a collapse, I got it covered..
Then I had an interesting conversation with a "Prepper"... It went something like this....
He was talking about an economic collapse, which I do believe could happen. I dont put anything past those lunatics we have in office. He asked what I would do if it happened. I told him my standard line about being an outdoorsman and here is what he said. He said "lets break it down and see how your argument really plays out".
"Here is the scenario. One of two things have happened. Either a total meltdown of the US economy or just a complete stoppage of government handouts. you take your pick. either way, there is a huge amount of people who are now angry, hungry and desperate. correct?"
Sure, I said
"And those people are going to cause great havoc very quickly, including mass riots, home invasions, murder and robbery, correct?"
Sure, I said again
"and with 8 out of 10 people in America (true statistic) receiving some form of government check (disability, state or federal retirement, SSI, welfare..) dont you think the streets would soon be filled with a lot of angry, desperate and hungry people?"
Yeah..
"And the police and sheriff officers will all show up to work every day to fight this instead of staying home to protect their own families, right?"
Uh.. probably for a while.. I said.
"Now, you said that you are an outdoorsman who can provide for your family, right?"
That's right! I said.
"You can hunt, fish and grow a nice garden.."
Sure can!
"And you already have the seed, fertilizer and garden tools stored safely at home because the co-op and the Wal-Mart just got looted and have none available. Not to mention that the city is unsafe to go to because of the rioting and crime."
Uh.....
"And you have a plan for what you will eat while you wait to plant your garden because this happened in October and you are almost a year away from harvesting anything from the garden you haven't planted yet."
Uh...
"And you have a tractor or tiller in working order and plenty of fuel put back to run it for breaking the ground."
uh..
"And you have someone to guard that garden while you are out hunting and fishing, guard it with deadly force if necessary, because there are a lot of hungry people out there that will stop at nothing to bring food back to their starving children."
uh...
"And you have the equipment and supplies to can or preserve those awesome vegetables so they will last."
OK.. so maybe the garden wont work too well.. I can still hunt and fish.
"OK. and you have someone to guard your home and protect your family from theft and home invasions while you are sitting on a lake or in a treestand?"
uh...
"And you can walk to these hunting and fishing spots because fuel is almost impossible to find or afford?"
well..
"And you have plenty of ammo, fishing and hunting equipment, ziplock bags, freezer space, and any other thing you would need that you would normally stop at Wal-mart to pick up?"
Maybe..
"and you catch fish every time you go and you are such an awesome hunter you take large game on every trip?"
uh.. sometimes..
"And you have a plan on how to hunt and fish when every other person is out there doing the same thing because they all had the same idea? People with no hunting experience, walking all over the woods, trying to kill something to eat. Many of them desperate, hungry and armed."
I didn't think about that...
"And you feel that the game will not only remain in the area but will not be killed off and become hard to find with all of the people now depending on them for food every day?"
well.. I never thought it out quite like that...
"The problem is people put modern, safe behavior patterns into disaster scenarios and they forget that the absolute safest place to be during a disaster, whether its short lived or long term, is at your house, protecting what is yours. In order to do that, you need to put some things back. Food, water, ammo, gear.. things like that. Another mistake people make is they say it cant happen. Look at what is happening in Europe right now. Read up on the fall of the Roman empire. Saying something "cant happen" or "shouldn't happen" or "has never happened" doesn't mean it wont happen. One minute, you are dogging the government saying what a bunch of idiots they are and then you say the government wont let this happen or will take care of us if it does. Make up your mind. Are they idiots or saviors? What does it hurt to put back 6 months of food, some ammo and some gear?"
I became a prepper that day. Maybe not the live in a bunker kind.. Call me a prepper lite LOL
I owe it to my wife and my children to be prepared for anything. I dont plan of having a wreck but I have car insurance. I have no intention of dying anytime soon yet I pay life insurance every month. I put money in savings for some unknown emergency and I think nothing of it.
If I spend money here and there putting a years worth of food back, a bunch of ammo and gear and things I think I might need if disaster strikes and nothing ever happens, well... I still have all that food, ammo and gear. I rotate out the food and ammo so nothing gets wasted. However, if something does happen, I am better prepared to deal with it and can look my family in the eye and know I did something to protect them. The last thing i ever want to do is watch my family starve to death or be killed by some welfare creep who ran out of handouts.
In other words, if I'm wrong, no big deal. If you say it wont happen and you're wrong... well, dont show up at my house looking for a handout. All you will see is a gun barrel.