Author Topic: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World  (Read 2106 times)

SAMSON123

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Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« on: February 14, 2010, 07:46:10 PM »

Americans stock up to be ready for end of the world


Recession and the constant threat of terrorist attacks have given new life to the ingrained survivalist instinct

Tess Pennington, 33, is a mother of three children, and lives in the sprawling outskirts of Houston, Texas. But she is not taking the happy safety of her suburban existence lightly.

Like a growing army of fellow Americans, Pennington is learning how to grow her own food, has stored emergency rations in her home and is taking courses on treating sickness with medicinal herbs.

"I feel safe and more secure. I have taken personal responsibility for the safety of myself and of my family," Pennington said. "We have decided to be prepared. There all kinds of disasters that can happen, natural and man-made."

Pennington is a "prepper", a growing social movement that has been dubbed Survivalism Lite. Preppers believe that it is better to be safe than sorry and that preparing for disaster – be it a hurricane or the end of civilisation – makes sense.

Unlike the 1990s survivalists, preppers come from all backgrounds and live all over America. They are just as likely to be found in a suburb or downtown loft as a remote ranch in the mountains. Prepping networks, which have sprung up all over the country in the past few years, provide advice on how to prepare food reserves, how to grow crops in your garden, how to hunt and how to defend yourself. There are prepping books, online shops, radio shows, countless blogs, prepping courses and prepping conferences.

John Milandred runs a website called Pioneer Living, which is one of the main forums for discussing prepping. It provides a range of advice for those who just want to store extra food in case of a power cut, to those who want to embrace the "off the grid" lifestyle of America's western pioneers. "We get inquiries from people from all walks of life. We had a principal from a school asking us to talk to their children. We have doctors and firemen and lawyers," he said.

Milandred lives in Oklahoma and, should society collapse around him, he is well placed to flourish. Indeed, he might not notice that much. His house has a hand-dug well that gives him fresh water. He grows his own food. He has built an oven that needs neither gas nor electricity. He can hunt for meat. "If something happened, it really would not affect us," he said.

There are several reasons for the rise of prepping. The first is that, in the post-9/11 world, mass terror attacks have become a fear for many Americans. At a time when US diplomacy is focused on preventing Iran getting nuclear weapons and terror experts continue to warn of "dirty bombs" on American soil, it is no surprise that many Americans feel threatened. Added to that paranoia has come the recession. Suddenly, millions of Americans have been losing their jobs and their homes, reinforcing a feeling that society is not as stable as it once seemed.

Hollywood has caught on. A succession of films, such as 2012, The Road, The Book of Eli and Legion, have tapped into an American Zeitgeist that is worried about the end of civilisation.

"Prepping masks a wide range of stances and ideologies. But the more people are prepared, the more they are likely to have an apocalyptic way of thinking," said Professor Barry Brummett, of the University of Texas-Austin.

Even government officials have accepted that the financial crisis posed a threat to social order. In recent testimony before Congress, treasury secretary Tim Geithner admitted that top-level talks had been held on whether the US could enforce law and order in the wake of a collapse of the financial system.

Certainly, Tom Martin agrees. He runs the American Preppers Network, which helps provide a wide range of resources. Martin, a truck driver who lives in Idaho, believes that more and more people will become preppers. "Millions of people now have the mindset that they want to be prepared for something, but don't know what to call it," he said.

That rings true with Pennington. In the 1990s, survivalism was the province of anti-government militiamen or loners in the woods. But preppers are more concerned with stocking up on food and water and relearning skills so that they can fend for themselves.

To that end, Pennington has set up a website called Ready Nutrition, which teaches basic food skills to prepare for a time when pre-packaged goods at a supermarket might not be available: "Prepping is not taboo, like survivalism. There is no negative connotation to it. We are not rednecks. In many ways, our ancestors were preppers. So were the Native Americans. It is just going back to being able to look after yourself."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/feb/14/americans-prepare-for-apocalyptic-disaster
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Soul Crusher

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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #1 on: February 15, 2010, 05:38:05 AM »
Better to have and not need, than to need and not have.   

SAMSON123

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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #2 on: February 15, 2010, 09:02:23 AM »
Better to have and not need, than to need and not have.   

True indeed... Hate seeing the same reactions in the time of an emergency people wandering around clueless, not just because of the physical destruction, but because the masses are clueless to smoe basic knowledge: CPR, First Aid, Living off of the land, Farming Skills, Mechanic Skills, Carpentry Skills, Camping out/Survival Skills etc etc
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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #3 on: February 15, 2010, 09:05:01 AM »
True indeed... Hate seeing the same reactions in the time of an emergency people wandering around clueless, not just because of the physical destruction, but because the masses are clueless to smoe basic knowledge: CPR, First Aid, Living off of the land, Farming Skills, Mechanic Skills, Carpentry Skills, Camping out/Survival Skills etc etc

EMS had 25% of a load of stuff I picked up over the weekend.   Just basic stuff. 

Funny you mention the CPR course, I was talking about that w my GF this weekend that taking a basic first ais course would be good to take from the Red Cross or something. 

SAMSON123

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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #4 on: February 15, 2010, 09:32:00 AM »
I have taken infantm adult, child CPR for years now as well as first aid. Ya just never know when it will be in need...and just like you said earlier better to have and not need than to need and not have...
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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #5 on: February 15, 2010, 09:36:31 AM »
I have taken infantm adult, child CPR for years now as well as first aid. Ya just never know when it will be in need...and just like you said earlier better to have and not need than to need and not have...

Basic first aid seems like a great thing to have. 

The next thing I really want to learn is food gardening like they did in WW2. 

To me, its not paranoia, its just increasing my basic skill set.   

 

MuscleMcMannus

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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #6 on: February 15, 2010, 10:11:13 AM »
Oh brother...........I'm all for being prepared but people are becoming fucking morons with this survivalist shit.  First off........if it ever comes down to having to treat sickness with herbs society as we know it will have deteriorated to the point where people will be killing and murdering each other left and right, especially in the suburbs where most of the wealth is.  That being said this bitch would be better off stocking up on guns and ammo and learning how to defend herself and her family. 

Secondly, there isn't much point in learning how to treat the common cold with herbs when nuclear war breaks out or your city is hit with a fucking suit case nuke.  If people are serious about survival in a SHTF scenario they should be building an underground fallout shelter, arming themselves to the teeth with weapons and ammo, stockpiling potable water, and having NBC suits for them and their families.  Water is more important than food.  You can go a long time without food.  And days without water. 

It's good people are trying to become more independent and self sufficient but some of this is downright silly.

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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #7 on: February 15, 2010, 10:15:29 AM »
Oh brother...........I'm all for being prepared but people are becoming fucking morons with this survivalist shit.  First off........if it ever comes down to having to treat sickness with herbs society as we know it will have deteriorated to the point where people will be killing and murdering each other left and right, especially in the suburbs where most of the wealth is.  That being said this bitch would be better off stocking up on guns and ammo and learning how to defend herself and her family. 

Secondly, there isn't much point in learning how to treat the common cold with herbs when nuclear war breaks out or your city is hit with a fucking suit case nuke.  If people are serious about survival in a SHTF scenario they should be building an underground fallout shelter, arming themselves to the teeth with weapons and ammo, stockpiling potable water, and having NBC suits for them and their families.  Water is more important than food.  You can go a long time without food.  And days without water. 

It's good people are trying to become more independent and self sufficient but some of this is downright silly.

What if, hypothetically of course, they were already armed to the teeth?   ;D  ;D  ;D  ;D  ;D

SAMSON123

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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #8 on: February 15, 2010, 10:39:38 AM »
If things should become extreme wherever you are on the planet

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MuscleMcMannus

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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #9 on: February 15, 2010, 10:43:26 AM »
If things should become extreme wherever you are on the planet



Yeah and what are you going to do when millions of other people head out into the wilderness en masse?  LOL.  You think you're going to have miles and miles of pristine wilderness at your disposal?  You know what happens when millions of millions head out into the wilderness and there is no sewage system?  Look all this talk of Red Dawn end of the world type shit is fun to think about.  But in the end it would be hell on earth if something like that happened to America. 

SAMSON123

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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #10 on: February 15, 2010, 10:47:42 AM »
Yeah and what are you going to do when millions of other people head out into the wilderness en masse?  LOL.  You think you're going to have miles and miles of pristine wilderness at your disposal?  You know what happens when millions of millions head out into the wilderness and there is no sewage system?  Look all this talk of Red Dawn end of the world type shit is fun to think about.  But in the end it would be hell on earth if something like that happened to America. 

SO you would prefer to not know shit should something extreme happen. Millions will not be running out into the woods, chaos and carnage will not be happening IF people knew what to do. I posted this in hopes that some will learn from it and hopefully teach others. I guess in this case you will be the first one SHOT because you know nothing and in an emergency you will attempt to steal from someone else who has gone through great pains to educate themselves on survival as well as gathered for the sake of their family...only for you to try and steal.
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funk51

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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #11 on: February 15, 2010, 10:48:57 AM »

Americans stock up to be ready for end of the world


Recession and the constant threat of terrorist attacks have given new life to the ingrained survivalist instinct

Tess Pennington, 33, is a mother of three children, and lives in the sprawling outskirts of Houston, Texas. But she is not taking the happy safety of her suburban existence lightly.

Like a growing army of fellow Americans, Pennington is learning how to grow her own food, has stored emergency rations in her home and is taking courses on treating sickness with medicinal herbs.

"I feel safe and more secure. I have taken personal responsibility for the safety of myself and of my family," Pennington said. "We have decided to be prepared. There all kinds of disasters that can happen, natural and man-made."

Pennington is a "prepper", a growing social movement that has been dubbed Survivalism Lite. Preppers believe that it is better to be safe than sorry and that preparing for disaster – be it a hurricane or the end of civilisation – makes sense.

Unlike the 1990s survivalists, preppers come from all backgrounds and live all over America. They are just as likely to be found in a suburb or downtown loft as a remote ranch in the mountains. Prepping networks, which have sprung up all over the country in the past few years, provide advice on how to prepare food reserves, how to grow crops in your garden, how to hunt and how to defend yourself. There are prepping books, online shops, radio shows, countless blogs, prepping courses and prepping conferences.

John Milandred runs a website called Pioneer Living, which is one of the main forums for discussing prepping. It provides a range of advice for those who just want to store extra food in case of a power cut, to those who want to embrace the "off the grid" lifestyle of America's western pioneers. "We get inquiries from people from all walks of life. We had a principal from a school asking us to talk to their children. We have doctors and firemen and lawyers," he said.

Milandred lives in Oklahoma and, should society collapse around him, he is well placed to flourish. Indeed, he might not notice that much. His house has a hand-dug well that gives him fresh water. He grows his own food. He has built an oven that needs neither gas nor electricity. He can hunt for meat. "If something happened, it really would not affect us," he said.

There are several reasons for the rise of prepping. The first is that, in the post-9/11 world, mass terror attacks have become a fear for many Americans. At a time when US diplomacy is focused on preventing Iran getting nuclear weapons and terror experts continue to warn of "dirty bombs" on American soil, it is no surprise that many Americans feel threatened. Added to that paranoia has come the recession. Suddenly, millions of Americans have been losing their jobs and their homes, reinforcing a feeling that society is not as stable as it once seemed.

Hollywood has caught on. A succession of films, such as 2012, The Road, The Book of Eli and Legion, have tapped into an American Zeitgeist that is worried about the end of civilisation.

"Prepping masks a wide range of stances and ideologies. But the more people are prepared, the more they are likely to have an apocalyptic way of thinking," said Professor Barry Brummett, of the University of Texas-Austin.

Even government officials have accepted that the financial crisis posed a threat to social order. In recent testimony before Congress, treasury secretary Tim Geithner admitted that top-level talks had been held on whether the US could enforce law and order in the wake of a collapse of the financial system.

Certainly, Tom Martin agrees. He runs the American Preppers Network, which helps provide a wide range of resources. Martin, a truck driver who lives in Idaho, believes that more and more people will become preppers. "Millions of people now have the mindset that they want to be prepared for something, but don't know what to call it," he said.

That rings true with Pennington. In the 1990s, survivalism was the province of anti-government militiamen or loners in the woods. But preppers are more concerned with stocking up on food and water and relearning skills so that they can fend for themselves.

To that end, Pennington has set up a website called Ready Nutrition, which teaches basic food skills to prepare for a time when pre-packaged goods at a supermarket might not be available: "Prepping is not taboo, like survivalism. There is no negative connotation to it. We are not rednecks. In many ways, our ancestors were preppers. So were the Native Americans. It is just going back to being able to look after yourself."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/feb/14/americans-prepare-for-apocalyptic-disaster
                                  it's like arthur jones said having a gun on you is like having a tournequet. you don't often need it but when you do  you really need it.
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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #12 on: February 15, 2010, 10:49:26 AM »
Actually, thats a good point.  I read a book by a guy Cory Loundin who made that very point about the game being killed off quickly if everyone heads for the forests.  

It was very sobering and made me realize that keeping food, water, supplies, is the way to go as opposed to shooting game.    

tonymctones

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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #13 on: February 15, 2010, 11:25:14 AM »
I think everyone is in agreement that these basic skills need to be acquired but I also agree with MM sorry folks when the shit hits the fan im looking after me and mine by any means necessary.

Guns and protection will play a huge role if something does go down but so will ppl with medical skills and basic survival skills. 

Soul Crusher

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Re: Americans Stock Up To Be Ready For End Of The World
« Reply #14 on: February 15, 2010, 11:29:34 AM »
I think everyone is in agreement that these basic skills need to be acquired but I also agree with MM sorry folks when the shit hits the fan im looking after me and mine by any means necessary.

Guns and protection will play a huge role if something does go down but so will ppl with medical skills and basic survival skills. 

This book was very good on these issues and made me really re-think a lot of my beliefs.  This is actually on of the better books on the subject at hand.