I have just discovered that I have become a 'God' member, I don't really feel like a God, perhaps there should be a Demigod level ?
Anyway;
It seems clear that people in the bar don't have much time for flat earthers. Since I have started watching a series on Preppers, who seem to be a distinct but related species, I was wondering how you feel about them?
Preppers are also called survivalists. They prepare themselves to survive various apocalyptic scenarios. I respect the life experiences of some of these people (for example ex-military who have been in countries that have descended into chaos), also some are undoubtedly highly knowledgeable and skilled, and it is hard not to admire their energy and single minded dedication. However the scenarios some fear put them firmly into the same group as flat earthers in my opinion.
Thankfully I have no personal experience of life in one the besieged cities in Syria but it does no harm to remind ourselves of the very thin line between our generally pleasant and protected lifestyle and the chaos in a place like that. There was similar chaos in France, Germany etc within living memory.
To my mind survival in that sort of chaos depends on our primitive animal instincts and I don't know if I would like to behave towards others in the way that might be necessary for my survival.
The stories of the lawless Wild West and the film Mad Max come to mind. And real stories from the jungles of Vietnam.
Their logic is flawed. They’ve made themselves a target. They’ve put all their faith into one plan. The end of the world requires a bit more flexibility than that.
I’d put my money on the cockroach infested hood rat over the clean shelved prepper any day of the week.
I imagine there is an Arduino connection for Preppers, battery powered laser communication (so the zombies can't overhear), magnetometers (in case the poles flip), solar power management, etc. I see a niche here.
Living in an urban location, I stand little chance of bugging out if things go south, so I don't see Prepping in my future ... Well, maybe:
I think it's a very good idea to be prepared for disasters (though I'm not so much). Bad things happen and the people who can take care of themselves free up official resources to assist the people who most need it.
That said, I don't like the mentality of some preppers. Some seem to be so anxious for the end times to come that they wouldn't mind helping it along a bit, and they have the weaponry to do so. You would think the preppers would be the ones helping out others in a disaster but I get the feeling these would be making matters even worse.
A lot of the prepper scene is dominated by marketing. I always laugh when I see their "bug-out bags" loaded down with so much junk they could hardly carry the thing.
There is a spectrum of what you could consider "prepping": From having some canned food in the cellar to an underground bunker filled with enough weapons and ammunition to start a revolution. Of course the ones we hear about most are the nuts. I know one of the things the HAM radio people are into is providing emergency communications during a disaster.
ChrisTenone:
... magnetometers (in case the poles flip) .....
We all know that you Illuminati have your secret bunkers so don't come it with the 'I have nowhere to bug out to' line.
It was preppers concerned about the poles flipping that actually nudged me to make this post. Yes the poles have flipped in the past, yes they seem to going to do it again. However these folk had built a fortress and stocked it with enough food for over 20 people for 15 years!!!!! They also had transport and food a fuel caches to make it to a second location if need be, and of course they were well armed.
Their fear was that the pole flip would be sudden and result in land being displaced hundreds of miles by earthquakes - that is why I rank them with the flat earthers.
pert:
...
A lot of the prepper scene is dominated by marketing. I always laugh when I see their "bug-out bags" loaded down with so much junk they could hardly carry the thing...
.... I know one of the things the HAM radio people are into is providing emergency communications during a disaster.
There is a very big sales and marketing effort around this. You can get things like "Tactical Apocalypse Survival Kits". One item that really made me laugh was a very expensive windproof lighter whose " 'clean burn' technology means that synthetic materials can be melted without depositing black carbon which may discolour equipment". Yes the End of the World in upon you but you don't want to get soot on your designer survival kit. There was a person giving a bugout route a test who was really struggling with the amount of kit being carried.
The HAM radio people are okay it's more of a hobby. Of course a prepper needs a faraday cage to keep the radio in because of Electro-Magnetic Pulses.
GoForSmoke:
A prepper who finds that the supplies won't last long enough or just forgot aspirin, what does that well-armed prepper do?
Well the one I watched tonight shot his thumb off - almost.
He takes his two young sons into the desert (not his daughter or wife mind, females are more sensible) because they can practice shooting in a more 'realistic' setting than a gun club - yes sounds like trouble. He then has a "misfire" by putting his thumb over the barrel and the gun going off. He passes out but the film crew get him to hospital. His thumb is now a fair bit shorter and as part of his prepping he has a much much bigger first aid box
I really cannot figure out how he managed to do that. They were not using handguns, so getting his thumb over the barrel of a rifle and firing it by accident could not have been that easy even with a short barrel.
I quite like these folks. The guy is trying to make money selling prepping tools he invents and his boys actually poked a bit of fun at him for shooting his finger off which he took with good grace.
ChrisTenone:
Right? Well, also the title of this thread is "Preppers - thumbs up or down". Shouldn't it be "Preppers - thumbs off"?
LOL very good.
Other preppers were a tea total Born Again Christian couple. They had an entire arsenal of weapons, about 70 which they kept loaded. They had guns in the bedroom, guns in the living room, guns hidden in chairs, guns in cars, guns in ankle holsters - unbelievable. Most of their prepping seemed to be storing alcohol to use either for bartering or as molotov cocktails. The guy almost started weeping on camera as he though about how bad things were going to get.
These people definitely did not seem very Christian to me, no way should they have guns.
Other preppers were a tea total Born Again Christian couple. They had an entire arsenal of weapons, about 70 which they kept loaded. They had guns in the bedroom, guns in the living room, guns hidden in chairs, guns in cars, guns in ankle holsters - unbelievable. Most of their prepping seemed to be storing alcohol to use either for bartering or as molotov cocktails. The guy almost started weeping on camera as he though about how bad things were going to get.
These people definitely did not seem very Christian to me, no way should they have guns.
Likely they can tell you how poor they are while "investing against the apocalypse" years worth of wages.
It's not unique to America except perhaps as a first world country.
Robin2:
He'd have been better prepared for trauma if he had watched Rambo
...R
But Rambo would have no trauma. Nor would any other Hollyweird Hero.
My guess is he watched too much bullshit and that's why he was so careless with a gun.
When I turned 12 I was given a 22 and got a $10/year gun range membership with safety course.
Before then I played with toy guns a lot in games like war and cops and robbers, man from Uncle, etc.
After that I didn't point toy guns or unloaded guns at people. Can't be pretend when you have the real, that can lead to mistakes.
As far as I can tell, lack of responsibility makes for empty heads.
There is something ironic about a christian prepping for the end of the world..... should he not prepare in the hopes he is taken early as a true believer as in says in revelations?