Starting out

[MaryN]

It seems an age since I joined this Forum. I was so pleased to find that there were other people out like, like me, who were having real concerns about the way things were going. The wealth of information from the members on this site, in particular, NR and Scythe, and the hilarious (not always intentional, I'm sure) comments from so many of you have been so helpful. I now consider myself to be pretty well informed and much more alert to the possibility of problems. I'm not saying I would necessarily be better at dealing with problems, but I would be right on top of understanding what was going on. Thanks, Folks.

Since then, however, things in the world seem to have got progressively worse with so many more threats around, some of them truly horrible (IS and the Muslim problem in the Middle East), economic downturn in the EU, and so on, and it seems to me that I need to get a whole new handle on things. It all seems a lot more complicated than just simply ticking off to-dos on a list (get water filter; order heritage seeds; fit logburner, etc.), and I wonder if this doesn't warrant some rather more in-depth discussions as to what and how these newer threats are to be fielded.

I think we all had a view that economic collapse was a good possibility, and of course there are all the "natural" events, like quakes, floods, etc. to consider, but now we have cyberattacks; hacking; people being unliked on Facebook, and all sorts of other more "technical" problems to consider. Personally I rather liked BP's idea of reverting to the Amish way of life without the religion, but would that necessarily work in the face of all this modern stuff? I'm probably not explaining myself very well, but it all seems to be getting so technical...... I don't want a smart meter watching what I'm doing; I certainly don't want to control my heating by phone, and the thought of having my fridge lecture me about my eating habits does not amuse. It seems to me that a big problem is the invasion of privacy with a view to potential malice.

Any thoughts?
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[Steve]

Consider moving to Wales.

I'm serious, it's like stepping back in time. There is a real sense of community here, houses are cheap and many come with land. Statistics say that jobs are scarce, but my wife and I walked straight into jobs we enjoy.

Once you are here you can start the long journey towards self sufficiency. It's challenging if you have a full-time job, but rewarding too.

[Midnitemo]

Skean Dhude will vouch that I'm technically quite un savvy , I manage to live my life with as little technology as I can get away with,love simple sturdy and robust over sleek,suave and high spec everytime....I guess I'm a luddite...like to understand stuff....and as for Wales I'm constantly on the lookout for a pad/piece of land...I guess the less reliant you are on tech the less you will miss it if it goes.

[Devonian]

Good post Mary and yes I understand where you are coming from, but rather than things having got more technical, maybe it is just that you better informed and have a much better awareness of the issues that surround us?

For example of all the "non" preppers that I know, to them Ebola is just something in Africa, and as for the issues in Ukraine/Putin's posturing, well they are completely oblivious to that and also have no idea that our gas is actually supplied via pipelines from Russia through Ukraine.

IS is perhaps a little more on their radars....

As for the technical stuff, yes most are completely reliant upon it, from their games consoles to their social networks, to online banking, and as you say smart meters and al sorts of other connected appliances, none of which I can see providing any real benefits other than to keep tabs on you....

[MaryN]

Steve, I quite agree with you about Wales, it is a beautiful country and well worthy of checking out for places to live. In fact we did have a good look round before we settled in East Anglia, but unfortunately nothing that we saw met my rather stringent requirements. I am also not sure whether settling in a really remote area will solve the problem; in fact I don't think the problems are geographical. If anything, being fairly remote could, in today's world, add to the difficulties in some ways. For example, we live in a fairly rural area now - one bus a week in fact - and without a car we would be screwed. This does mean that without things like internet banking and other online facilities, we could be in difficulties. I understand the realities the the modern age, but it does make me uneasy because much of it appears inescapable - unless you really want to do down the Grizzly Adams route, and for us that would not be really possible.

So, we're stuck in this limbo between necessary techie stuff - annoying though it is - and trying to keep as low-key as possible. At the moment, I can't see a way out of it. I know the required "hard" prepper response would be to pack bags and hi-tail it, but it is not a feasible thing. I shall be resisting smart meters. My TV - which keeps "recommending" programmes - may well have to go on an enforced digital diet; and there is no way that I would get any household unit that could be controlled by smartphone. But, I'm still uneasy.

[bigpaul]

I have never been a "technical" person, even my computer skills( or lack of them) are self taught and basic to say the least, which is fairly obvious in some of my links which only work about half of the time so if everything went "pear shaped" and we had to live a life more like the 1950s(if not earlier) it would not be a hard thing for me to do, but there are many I am sure who would find it difficult if not downright impossible. the "internet generation" would be the worst affected and many would not cope without Xboxes, Facebook and Twitter and even dare I say without electricity. its not so much could they cope, they would darn well have to or go under, the ones that came out the other side would be the ones that could adapt and thrive to the new circumstances and the new more basic lifestyle.i truly believe that some calamity is about to face the world, or at least the "westernised" side of it given what we see going on around the world every day, having said that I know people who don't watch the news or buy a national paper and who will be totally unprepared for that which is to come.