Last nights US DDP on Nat Geo

[NorthernRaider]

now this was much more about prepping than the DDPUK2 show which was 99% bushcraft and wilderness survival.

They started with a retired couple of Floridians who were still fit and active after working as Paramedics. They moved to Virginia ( I think) and invested ALL of their pension funds and savings in a 40 acre hillside plot in which they appear to be moderately successful at living entirely off grid and 100% self sufficient.

I dont normally agree with the driving factors behind the US preppers motivation but I do agree with the very good level of thought and commitment this loving couple had put into creating a modern version of a homestead.

They grew their own crops, raised critters and chooks, were self sufficient in mountain fed spring water and had about 30 to 40 PV panels set up to charge a bsattery bank. they even kept multiple Bee hives to generate honey and beeswax as a barter currency with their neighbours. They also barter PV electricity for goods and services off their neighbours.

This was much more my flavour of prepping and I enjoyed watching it, though I am by no means knocking the UK preppers efforts I just see it as being more about wilderness survival for singles than self sufficiency for families. two interesting shows though.

[Tarrel]

I didn't see the show but, from what you describe, that's much more my style of prepping too. But, the trouble is you run up against the old conundrum of being a possible target in a post-SHTF situation if law and order break down.

I think the problem is we really don't know what would happen in a rural environment post-S. I.e. would we indeed get the roving gangs of mutant zombie bikers? There aren't really any precedents for this. Most of the recent real-life SHTF episodes that we can look to for clues, are urban. E.g. Selco's posts about Sarajevo at SHTFschool, Hurricane Katrina, etc. if we're honest, much of our conjecture about what would happen in a rural environment is based on speculative fiction.

The benefit of their approach to prepping is that it covers a range of severities, ranging from low-cost living in a BAU world, through to being self-sufficient if the whole support structure breaks down (apart from maybe healthcare, that is).

[I-K-E]

I'm not impressed the OH deleted it of the sky+ box

[NorthernRaider]

(6 June 2013, 20:43)Tarrel Wrote: .

I think the problem is we really don't know what would happen in a rural environment post-S. I.e. would we indeed get the roving gangs of mutant zombie bikers? There aren't really any precedents for this. Most of the recent real-life SHTF episodes that we can look to for clues, are urban.

Agreed, we may not know what would happen to rural preppers but at least theres a reasonable chance many of us would get by unnoticed.

I think think most of us know what is likely to happen in urban environments because much of it is already happening now and when TSHTF the last bits of civilised behaviour will end.

[Prepper1]

I think its all, ifs buts and maybe's, six of one and half a dozen of the other.
Theres that many different scenarios that could play out.
I dont think theres one way of telling or the other if country folk are will be safer if anything goes on.
They'll probably have different stuff to contend with.
City folk probably be gangs, roaming about, raiding, house breaking that sort of thing, countryside probably displaced refugees stripping the land of edibles.

---

maybe...

[Tarrel]

Yes, but we do KNOW what happens in an urban collapse scenario, because we,ve seen it happen, during natural disaster, war, etc.

It would take a national, or global, SHTF situation to create the sort of impacts that would hit remote communities, and we haven't seen that yet.