I’m not a fan of what I call “Prepper Porn”. That’s the content of thousands of books, websites, articles, etc. predicting the Apocalypse and what everyone must do to survive scenes like those depicted in “The Walking Dead.” On the other hand, I was a Boy Scout in the old days when the BSA was the character and skills training ground for young men. The slogan was “Be Prepared.”
While it’s impossible to be prepared for everything: TEOTWAWKI (The End of the World as We Know it), SHTF (‘Stuff’ Hit the Fan), Armageddon, a nuclear holocaust, reversal of the Earth’s geomagnetic poles, a direct hit from an asteroid, EMP (Electro Magnetic Pulse), CME (Coronal Mass Ejection), a Zombie Invasion…common sense suggests that being prepared as much and as realistically as possible for life’s emergencies is a hell of a lot better than being unprepared!
Once upon a time I had two 55 gallon drums of water in my garage, several buckets of raw wheat and a few other items that amounted to “preparation.” The fact that I never used them didn’t discount their value, but even if a catastrophe had occurred, they wouldn’t have done me or my family much good.
As I look back on the emergencies that befell us during various times and in various living locations, I’m nevertheless grateful for the preparedness mindset that my Scout days imprinted on me. While the worst hasn’t happened yet, our family was subjected to a lot of natural and man-made problems: hurricanes, tornadoes, thunderstorms, high winds, bad snowstorms, localized floods, heat waves and other harmful natural events; relatively sudden general and personal economic downturns; supply disruptions of food, gasoline and staples; strikes; prolonged power outages; mass transit failures; accidents; pest infestation; injuries; illness; and of course, 9-11 and the Pandemic. Each was a wake-up call.
Yet each time, once the emergency had passed, we retreated into complacency and a sub-conscious attitude that “we weathered it and we’ll do so again when and if it happens.”
Does any of this sound or feel familiar?
Some of the emergencies were man-made, some were natural. We survived them all, and our pain ranged from mild inconvenience to some downright difficult times where we thought our lives were ruined and we thought we’d have to completely change them.
The vicissitudes of life are such that it’s likely we’ll be faced with emergencies, mini and moderate disasters and other trying times in the future.
However, TODAY, the risk of man-made hazards is greater than I’ve ever seen in my lifetime!
If you have any doubt about this, just open your eyes and look around. If you still think everything’s either just fine, or will work itself out as it always has, don’t bother reading any further.
On the other hand, if like so many millions of our fellow Americans you clearly see what’s happening “right here in River City”, right before eyes, and are not just alarmed but pessimistic that for the first time in many generations we won’t be able to give our children and grandchildren better lives than we had; if you sense the threats to our freedom, peace and prosperity are mounting as each day goes by; if you see our very civilization being systematically destroyed (“fundamentally transformed”) then friends, “Be Prepared” needs to become your slogan as well!
If you’ve spent any time thinking about Emergency Preparedness, however, you know how long the lists of considerations, questions and answers are.
There are literally thousands of resources available. I’ve spent countless hours researching the available literature, videos, websites to get answers. The array of products, services and printed/published information dedicated to “prepping” is vast. It’s available from government and commercial sources, some of it general, some of it very specific, some of it good, some of it bad, some of it useful and, in my opinion, some of it useless or even harmful.
The fundamental problem with most of these sources is that they don’t address the individual needs, preferences and budgets of families living in diverse locations, with different circumstances.
So concerned am I about the future of our country and the impact the Leftist juggernaut is having on the lives of my immediate and extended family, however, that I’ve solicited help in making sense of the matter. I have become a practitioner of the principles espoused by a new organization: Suburban Readiness Institute (SRI). One of their key tenets is secrecy – it stands to reason that the more people know about your preparedness, the less secure your family will be if things get bad. All communications and interaction with them have been and will remain discreet. Thus, I won’t be describing their means, methods, etc.
But I urge my readers to visit their website (https://suburbanreadiness.com) for a general overview of what they’re about.
And whether or not you engage with them or some other organization to assist you with your planning and preparation, I can’t overemphasize the importance, AT THIS PIVOTAL TIPPING POINT IN OUR COUNTRY’S HISTORY, of thinking seriously about and systematically, methodically, pragmatically and resolvedly preparing for what may lie ahead.
Once an emergency happens or is about to happen, with or without warning, the time for preparation is past.