Reality Check

[Paul]

Hi All.
Back from the wilderness.

My SWMBO realized that I wasn't enjoying the UK forum scene anymore, not really learning anything new, and was fed up with all the political raving, militia / para military talk, conspiracy theories, religious nutters (thankfully absent on this forum), and nonsense non prepping cr@p which I was being bombarded with on the various forums I 'frequent'.

So a reality check was called for. She was right too.
I'd like to share my findings with you.

I've been trolling through every site I could find in my IP address book.
Be they commercial, personal, BBS (old style messaging forums still used by some older US sites) or forums I could find to work out what was going on.

It hasn't been a happy journey either.
Old friends have gone silent key (i.e. died), old logins rejected, and a higher order of mistrust and suspicion exists on the US specialist sites. I'm thinking they are all getting ready for their governments forecasted crackdown.

I'll add too this the snobby UK sites and forums where if you're deemed unacceptable by some jerk off your 'application' for membership is revoked.

Boy have I had fun there. Two logins from anonymous IP addresses with deliberate errors in statements to get a reaction then revealing the 'truth' when accepted with a benign milk sop introduction.

Funnily enough the general US sites are a LOT more sensible than UK sites are. Seems their moderators are a tad more laid back about things then the jerks who "run" other UK sites and forums.

Most every site I've visited has a core of basic information.
Content virtually word for word copied from standard references. (FM 21-76 US ARMY SURVIVAL MANUAL comes to mind).
Then they suddenly stop updating the core subjects and somehow lose focus on pure prepping and survival shooting off in all sorts of directions which must drive newcomers to prepping and survival absolutely bananas.

Anyway it's got to a point where if you read just one sites base articles, you've read them all.

Some of the proper survivalist sites and especially the US militia sites are developing daily with mountains of useful information.
It's got so bad (or good depending on your point of view) on some sites that the resources exceed 10GB of PDF files.
Where they get some of these documents from is frightening if you actually take the time to read the restrictions for publication notices plastered all over the front covers.
My library was always good but the temptation to fill my hard drive with junk has been overwhelming.

The raving loony sites where political, gun hoe, and religious talk takes priority over prepping and survival talk abound now.

The popular press both here and abroad all have the impression that the average prepper and survivalist is a gun toting redneck loony with sloppy trigger control and one step away from being a full on militia type domestic terrorist.
They're probably right too.

Death threats to presidential nominees aren't too useful to the prepper movement are they?

Add to that the increasing fear of TPTB cracking down on "stockpiling" and drawing up lists of people buying weapons, paranoia abounds.
Except in the UK where government intervention and monitoring is largely ignored (The ostrich head in the sand approach) as not likely to happen to us.
After all this is the United Kingdom and we have rights!
Besides they wouldn't dare.

I'm so surprised that some UK press agency hasn't done an expose and hatchet job on UK prepping based on site and forum content.

After all if it's not someone pushing shotguns, it's crossbows or airguns against human targets. It's socialism verses capitalism, race and religion, immigrants, TPTB and 'us'.

It's going to make really interesting reading when they do because the lines between "anarchy" sites and prepping or survival sites are getting "blurred".

What's readily apparent though is there is no common bond with UK preppers.
There's 60 odd million individuals live in the UK I'm thinking.
Some have similar thoughts.
3,000 (ish) active UK preppers do but apart from religious organizations (LDS) and self help co operatives (like the Ludlow Survivors), the general UK prepping world hasn't got any cohesion like the US prepping, survivalist, and militia groups have.

No bond, no organization means that when TSHTF only those who have personal friends within spitting distance of each other will be in a position to help each other with the rest of us ending up as "one against many".

RV's don't help or often work here. It seems that either no money, work, or plain old apathy rules when talking RV's.
Everyone is probably too distant from each other anyway.

Add the UK prepper paranoia of losing their PERSEC, it's overriding the advantages of building physical bonds with like minded people.

Or is it still the so called "British reserve"

It's good to know though that noble ideas of creating a national prepper communications system will ultimately be used to tell someone that there are 1000 odd rioting sheeple looting your home.

Ho hum.

[TOF]

Good to see you back.

[IB1]

Good to see you back paul. I think we all need to take a step back from things at times, have a timeout and reassess where our preps are going. The thing is though I always seem to come back even if its a couple of years later

The thing that is different now is that i have lowered my expectations of what can be achieved by forums so I dont get wound up anymore (unless anyone mentions lizards )

The downside of having my attitude is that i dont contribute much of note to the forum, out of the 100+ posts I have made here I dont think I have once mentioned any kit or skills I might have, no reviews, nothing. It's a good job not everyone has a similar attitude as me

The reason I view forums is that I find the subject interesting, sometimes very amusing, and often irritating, but I just generally enjoy reading about and discussing prepping. What I dont do is plan my prepping based only on what I read on forums, some of it is good, some it is carp.

[Hrusai]

Nice to have you back good sir,
I must say I thought we were in the crazy house over here,
but it seems like you found some truly crazy asylums
Very informative post, I didn't realise things were so
different around the net on different prep sites,
boy am i glad to be over here where every article hasnt been stolen from 20 other sites xD

Anyway see you round the forums buddy

[Scythe13]

Hi Paul, UKS had a similar thought about whether prepping was right or not.

I often wondered if I'm wasting my time....but then I realised I'm actually living it up, having fun, enjoying myself, and learning cool new skills. Is it weird to prepare for some bad s**t to happen? NO.

Sometimes there is a clear feeling that the thrill of a catastrophe provides excitement in people's lives. Yes, that is natural. It's expectation and anticipation, which cause a small natural high, like a shot of adrenaline. Some people buzz off the bad news, and they use that as a way to enjoy mediocre lives. But thankfully the crazy bunch on this forum, that I'm a part of, are not like that.

Other people like to use prepping as more of an "I'm a super ninja assassin" and "Look at my cool equipment, because I'm a stealth ninja one man army" excuse. Those people just use prepping as a way to validate buying LOADS of gear and basically living/preparing for a fantasy world where they call themselves 'Mad Max'. There will always be people like that on all forums. To date, nobody here has suggested they are able to take out 25 marauders with a team of one. Bayonets on air rifles is about as far as I've heard from this forum. But there's still time for the crazies to step in/up. Society will not become like something from lord of the rings. If anyone does think that.....sorry to say it, but it won't.

However, people have previously, always prepared for things to go wrong. That's why we all buy insurance for certain things. Having insurance for a collapse of your insurance policy/company, is a more intellectual way to look at prepping. If something happens, and my insurance company is going to be caught in the same issue (economic collapse, major war, EMP wiping their records). So if you have preps set aside, you have a self produced insurance policy.

That's how I see it..........and as an extra excuse to have a crate load of fun!!!!

[Straight Shooter]

good to have you back paul !and many thanks for a great post i agree with pretty much all you have said..but we all go off on tangents here and there .....its enough to know our hearts are in the same place, thats my r check.......welcome home

[NorthernRaider]

For me prepping is an always will be just another form of insurance, nowt glam, gung ho or ramboish, just bloody minded common sense.
Before supermarkets everyone was a prepper by default, you grew or bought stuff when available / affordable and put it in the larder or cellar or outhouse to see you through the winter. Now in 2012 the supply chain for the supermarkets is so complicated and extended most inteligent people can see the vulnerability in the system and take out insurance in the form of extra grub supplies.

The same issue exists with energy supply prices and vulnerability
The same issue exists with crime and protecting your family from ethnic gangs, chavs, terrorists or extremist government.

---

Look, do you trust the state to look after you when it cannot even cope with a flood in one village, Do you trust a government that responds to terrorism by creating laws that targets the innocent majority, Do you trust the Supermarket supply chain, Do you trust the Russians and Ukranians to keep supplying us with cheap gas, do you trust the EU?, Do you trust the police to protect you if your family is attacked, do you trust the NHS to be functioning after a huge major incident.

I trust myself, immediate family and about a dozen preppers and that is it.

[BDG]

In terms of prepping, I think at least for me I am prepping against any number of small events, not one large one. For instance, growing a considerable amount of my own food protects me against price hikes or a break down in the supply chain however it may be caused. Seeking other sources of fuel, again, down to cost. Learning and keeping skills going that are relevant to things I like to do or because an inquiring mind needs to know. Being brought up doing as much as I can for myself and never seeing a tradesman at my home as a child - my Father could and did all of the things tradesmen do. Sure, I payed a guy to fit my boiler because it would have been illegal for me to do so, but anything I can do, I make sure I can do. I get a massive sense of satisfaction from it.

The look on someones face and how much they thank me when they eat some meat I have cured, some sausages I have made, some beer or wine I have brewed or something I have grown.

The sense of satisfaction holding a green MOT (as was) in hand knowing I had done the welding to get it through its MOT, or rebuilt the suspension or the breaks or other parts.

The feeling of sober responsibility that I have when someone comes to me for advice on growing things.


Prepping for me is not about some big event that may or may not happen in the future that destabilises everything that is out of your control.

it is about taking as much into your own control now so if small events do occur, they are mere blips. If a big one does come off, the impact is smaller and you are better placed to thrive afterwards.

[NorthernRaider]

BDG = The archetypal Common Sense Prepper !!

[BDG]

Or maybe just someone with a fair amount of Yorkshire blood in them that does not like spending money that does not have to be spent.