Guest Post: What is A Prepper?

YeOldFurt - Old Lightning

Preppers are not survivalists. Survivalists and that mindset is a remnant of the 50s when some people were determined to survive a nuclear holocaust. Preppers are far more focused to withstanding climatic and social catastrophes, not just nuclear devastation.

Preppers are individuals preparing for personal catastrophic events. These may be extremely personal such as unemployment and meager funds to pay bills and buy groceries, or the events may be widespread due to climate/global catastrophes. They may also include a simple desire to return to living frugally and within their immediate means of support, independent of exterior or governmental support or mandates.

Prepper individuals believe in the old Boy Scout motto of “Being Prepared”. They stock up on food, water and other supplies so that in the event a situation develops, these individuals can be self sufficient as to their resources and continue their lifestyles without suffering unduly. Preppers have been known to even assist others who might have become destitute in catastrophic situations.

All too often, the perceived cause or correct equipment for a possible situation has led to schisms between preppers. From a difference of political opinion to even a difference of proper firearm or fire starter has been debated hotly between preppers, leading to irrational anger and hostility. Denigration, name calling and hostility serves no useful purpose and creates divisions of resources and knowledge. Certainly a mature individual, attempting to provide security for their family would not disregard another individual’s expertise in a subject only because they disapproved of their selection in firearms or supplies.

I believe that political leanings drive a large proportion of preppers. The current political trend toward collectivism and centralized government dictating daily life has convinced many preppers that being prepared for social unrest or upheaval is paramount. This is certainly a major theme I see daily on the blogs and internet news pages. But we must not forget that a climatic scenario can also cause a disruption in our daily lives. Earthquake, hurricanes, tornadoes and such can cause an immediate threat to life and family.

The great majority of preppers believe in the individual responsibility of self versus the collectivism of government controlled social welfare. Being prepared is an outgrowth of this belief. Some people consider this “conservatism”. Just another label in my opinion. The basis is still individual responsibility for self. No one else, including government, can be or should be responsible for your welfare. Only the individual can provide self-sufficiency for their needs and survival.

Collectivism has many labels, such as socialism, fascism, marxism and communism. Collectivism is a mind set that removes the individual responsibility of self and places it onto a governmental body. Requiring the governmental body to collectively care for all the individuals regardless of their abilities, needs or failures. All personal responsibility has been removed and the only personal fault is resistance or disapproval of the governmental control. Failure to follow the governmental mandates result in harsh disciplinary action against the individual. Collectivism has no place for individual preparedness or individual responsibility.

Preppers need not be divisive among themselves. Each individual is unique in their thought process and what they perceive as their greatest threat to their survival and well being. Collectivism threatens all preppers, but other threats are based on a more personal perception of future circumstances. Denigration of prepper by prepper only serves the old adage of “Divide and Conquer”.

To paraphrase A. Lincoln, “A House Divided Cannot Stand” and B. Franklin, “We Must All Hang Together Or We Shall Most Assuredly Hang Separately.”

Modern Survivalism Tenet Number One

Lew Rockwell.com
By: Jack Spirko

This is a great article, really puts prepping into perspective.

The survivalist community is often perceived as a bunch of gloom and doom types sitting on a pile of MREs, ammunition and guns in some far out corner of the North West. Of course the survivalist is also typecast as expecting TEOTWAWKI (the end of the world as we know it) to occur any day now, in fact he is actually hoping for it. Honestly it is time for this stereotype to die a deserving death. Modern survivalists are many things but very few are actually concerned about the infamous black helicopters or FEMA Camps. Most instead are simply realists who understand that sometimes things do go wrong and it is better to be prepared than to expect someone else to solve your problems.

The real key to modern survivalism is the Modern Survival Philosophy which is a group ten key principles that guide the actions of many survivalists. While all are important it is tenet number one that really sets the stage for separating the doomsday stereotype from the reality. Survivalists are generally thought of as people who prepare to deal with disasters, shortages and anything that disrupts society. Modern survivalists do this but they do so in a way that improves their lives even if nothing major ever goes wrong.

For example many survival-minded individuals grow gardens and develop more permanent food-producing crops like fruit trees, berry bushes etc. on their property. They generally stick to organic production methods, focus on water harvesting and attempt to maximize production per square meter. This is a classic survival technique designed to remain sustainable if anything hits from simple loss of personal income all the way up to a collapse of US infrastructure. So yes in the event of economic collapse this makes a tremendous amount of sense as a modern survival tactic.

Now let’s examine the other side of the issue. What if we never have an economic collapse, what if there are no food shortages in the next 30 years and what if the survivalist never even has a layoff to contend with? Flat out for the foreseeable future absolutely nothing goes wrong. If you have your property landscaped with sustainable organic food-producing crops are you not still better off?

Consider that by setting up sustainable and productive organic agriculture that your property value will be increased if for no other reason than environmentalism is a huge movement right now. You will spend less money over the years on buying food which can be saved, invested, used to reduce debt, etc. Further your health will be improved by eating high-quality fresh produce not to mention the exercise you get. Of course the list of benefits from having a solid sustainable edible landscape on your property is exhaustive and could go on a lot further but hopefully this begins to make the point.

Let’s examine more briefly a few more common things that survival minded individuals do and consider what benefit they have to us even if nothing ever goes wrong.

One key to modern survivalism is debt elimination. In the event of a disaster from personal up to global those in less debt are better suited to handle what comes their way. Yet even without any type of disaster having low to no debt will result in a much more sustainable and rewarding lifestyle.

Having firearms and the training to use them is useful in anything from a garden-variety home invasion to a true societal breakdown and it can be the difference between life and death. Yet if nothing goes wrong the armed citizen is still more confident and makes decisions based on reality vs. fear.

Storing extra food is “Survivalism 101” and there are many things that can go wrong from a personal up to a global level where such stored food is potentially life saving. Yet by following the mantra of “store what you eat and eat what you store” modern survivalists actually spend less money via a classic method known as “capital deferral.” This is accomplished by purchasing what will be used anyway at today’s prices to beat inflation, much the way Southwest Airlines does by purchasing fuel contracts while prices are lower.

This concept simply continues though just about every facet of survivalism. If you put in solar panels and/or wind generators, and you are ready to handle a black out no matter what the cause or how long it lasts. Yet even if nothing goes wrong, and you pay less for you electric bill and increase your property value.

Learn to “live off the land” with hunting, fishing and foraging and you will be more likely to survive a disaster but if nothing goes wrong you are enjoying the outdoors, getting exercise, saving money and eating better quality food all at the same time.

This formula is practically bullet-proof as long as you keep the first tenet in mind as you make lifestyle and purchasing decisions; again that tenet is,

“Everything You Do Should Improve Your Position in Life Even If Nothing Goes Wrong”

This keeps you from using survivalism as a convenient excuse to blow money and go into debt, which would violate one of the other tenets anyway. For instance fishing is a great way to add another low cost protein source to the household if done with practical and modestly priced equipment. Yet if you go out and purchase a 25,000-dollar bass boat and fancy equipment you will never get an ROI on your production. Now if you want a nice boat, this is America, there is nothing wrong with that but if you want to be a survivalist, save your money and buy what is adequate with cash. One version is an expensive hobby, the other is a way to improve your lifestyle.

It is really a simple core guiding principle: each time you are making a decision about where to spend time, money or resources you simply ask the question, “Will this action improve my ability to live a sustainable lifestyle if we have a disaster or even if we don’t.” When the answer is yes you make it part of your survival planning. If the answer is no, that doesn’t mean you don’t do it, it simply means it is a luxury not an investment in an asset that provides for your future and hence you prioritize it accordingly.

There is a fundamental reality that most Americans are living beyond their means in an unsustainable way. They are one or two paychecks from poverty, consuming food that is unhealthy, working far to hard for far to little and above all many are miserable. Yes miserable! They work at a job they hate, drive on a commute they hate even more and give up the best parts of their lives simply to earn enough money to pay the interest on their debts. They then retire with a social security check that keeps them just to the south side of the poverty line and by the time most 30–40 somethings retire they won’t even get that.

The modern survivalist simply realizes that is not good enough, that life is precious and as humans we have a fundamental liberty that many choose to sell for far to low of a price. The good news is you have a choice, you can choose to walk though life with a credit card at the ready or you can choose to live a life that can be sustained in both good times and bad. It all starts with asking the simple question, “will this choice improve my long term sustainability,” on a daily basis. Simply asking that question will put you on the path to becoming a modern survivalist.

What is a Prepper?

My good friend and fellow prepper Mayberry posted this on American Preppers Network and I wanted everyone to see what this prepping business is really all about. The Prepper movement is moving like wild fire across the country and also in Canada. This post should give everyone an idea why and what we are trying to prepare ourselves for. We hope you will all join us in getting prepared for whatever the future of this country holds for us.

What is a Prepper?

As times get tough, and the bad news keeps coming in bushels, many folks are asking themselves the question, "What should I do"? Many search the Internet for answers, using terms like "preparations", "how to be prepared", or maybe "preparing for what's to come"....

Some folks stumble across the term "prepper" or "prepping", and dig a little deeper out of curiosity. Some worry about their survival and search along that line. Or they arrive by one of a hundred other possibilities.....

I am a prepper. Survivalist. Whatever you want to call me, it doesn't matter. Five years ago, I had a good paying job, my wife and I got the "big" mortgage, the SUV, a nice big boat...... Then I lost my job. I struggled and struggled some more, sometimes working 3 jobs. I saved our house from foreclosure on the courthouse steps.

Things got a little better, but I just couldn't help but see that for every step I took forward, the world found a way to kick me two steps back. I've got a decent job now, and my wife works, but we're still barely keeping our family's heads above water as the price of life outpaces our "cost of living" raises.....

About 18 months ago, I came to the realization that things just weren't working anymore. Our money didn't go nearly as far as it did before. Whatever we had saved was eaten up by life, and I was in a place I didn't want to be: living paycheck to paycheck, doing without basic needs, with no safety net whatsoever. I've got a family to feed, shelter, clothe, and care for. Our situation was not good.....

I began my search. I read and read and read some more. I burned down the Internet looking for answers. I looked for ideas I could use to simplify our lives, cut our expenses, and rebuild our savings for the proverbial "rainy day". I stumbled across folks who are living in "voluntary simplicity", living "off grid", building "unconventional" homes, and homesteading in self reliance. Being one who has always done most everything for himself, these things appealed to me.

As I continued to search the Internet, I came across many blogs and websites on every topic under the sun. Being a voracious reader, I learned a great deal in a short span. In May of last year, I had an epiphany: bad times lay ahead. I accurately predicted the current financial crisis back then, and with my new found knowledge, I don't see much hope for recovery any time soon. I've learned that our "global economy" is nothing more than a great Ponzi scheme, and I've come to realize that the only way to insulate one's self from the collapse of that scheme is to prepare for self reliant living.

Am I way out there in left field? Maybe. But left field is getting pretty crowded these days! But the way I see it, at worst, I'll have saved my family a tremendous amount of money by paring things down to the bare essentials, stockpiling food, medical supplies, and emergency gear (and yes, that includes a few guns, and ammunition) at today's prices versus tomorrow's inflated prices. At best, I may have saved my family's lives.

It doesn't hurt at all to be prepared for what life might throw your way. Think of how different the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina might have been if the people of New Orleans had prepared. Whether it's the loss of a job, the loss of a mate, a natural disaster, financial collapse, or alien invasion (just kiddin'. Maybe..... heh heh heh), whatever your motivation, it's just good sense to have plans and preparations in place for the unknown. We buy insurance to cover us against the unknown and the unforeseen, and that's exactly what preps are. An insurance policy for life's unknowns. We do it for our families, and our friends and neighbors, because that's what life is really all about. That's why I'm a prepper......