How would you rate yourself as "semi-serious" or "very-very serious" PREPPER.....???

[Amish Heart]

We pretty much know the city people aren't going to make it.

 

[UrbanHunter]

Here is the distinction I see, those hundred Millon people "WERE actually living it, in what was a crappy country before this got worse. I see that as vastly different then most Americans, getting thrusted into a lifestyle about which they have zero firsthand experience.

I think you have a rosy picture of the life that the American people have been living... We have crime, natural disasters, poor people (10% are at the poverty level), starvation is real in some neighborhoods, supply chain issues, work or no work (where I grew up there was 25% unemployment, today it still is 25%), people are in debt trying to survive living pay check to pay check. For the events you are talking about many Americans are frogs in a pot of water and the fire is slowly being turned up. The preppers you are asking about are the people who realize that the water is hot and they need to make personal changes to avoid being cooked alive. The city folks are in the worse shape, but there are country folks who are on the knife's edge too, everyone is in trouble (even Alaskans) and the clock is ticking.

 

[elkhound]

Here is the distinction I see, those hundred Millon people "WERE actually living it, in what was a crappy country before this got worse. I see that as vastly different then most Americans, getting thrusted into a lifestyle about which they have zero firsthand experience.

not all...i mean venezula was richest south american country for a long while and was very modern...but anyhow not all are poor crumbling crapholes like somebody said. i mean we need to look at some of our own infrastructure that needs or needed replacing awhile ago.we are only 330million out of global population of 8-9 billion...they all are not living a miserable dreary life..far from it in fact..lebanon use to be a great destination poit for travelers and some still travel there right now to vacation.


keiv and other cities in ukraine are pretty modern too. along with port cities..i mean you cant have a thriving export business going on with a junk port or facilities to house workers etc.

i think we all got to get it out of our heads that only u.s. has a modern infrastructure. all places have modern and slums and ghettos and poor country rural folks as well as rick country rural folks..lets face it poor farmers dont own multiple tractors or multiple $250,000 combine for grain.

 

[elkhound]

We pretty much know the city people aren't going to make it.

i am not so sure of that..why...venezula is on year 8 and still going..if they can go 8 years then they probably got 8 more years..lebanon has 3 years under belt so far.

maybe one of the ultimate test cases for us to view is cuba....under bullcrap sanctions since early 60's...they are doing it and living it and have multi generation underbelt now.

none of these folks gave up and rolled over and died.

 

[Biggkidd]

I often think of myself as a lazy prepper because there is always so much more I could do. If only I had the energy and money. But in reality I would say we are about an 8 out of 10.

Here's why I say that. We moved out to the sticks and live off grid since 08. We have animals and the ability to grow food. I have the tools and knowledge to make and or fix lots of things. We do buy animal feed because it's easy, we are setup to grow it if / when needed. Including seeds. I do grow and have grown some and we grow more every year. As we get more land opened up and tillable we can produce more of our own. The dozer has been a big help with opening more land. I don't really spend any money that isn't going to prepping over and above our living expenses. We fall short in stored food with only a few months on hand. Having said that those few months will get us into growing season no matter the time of year. Plus we always have meat on the hoof. We also stock plenty of liquid fuels to use while we start producing our own. We do have the ability on hand to make some alternative liquid fuels. So what we miss in stock piles of goods that we can not afford to buy we do have the tools to make with the fuel on hand.

 

[elkhound]

the real test in my mind is going to be what happens to customers of ukraine and russia food exports in MENF and more.the feed for livestock operation in europe especially spain and netherlands comes from ukraine.

apparently we are trying to make it legal for farmers to get acres out of conservation acreage to get into production to feed folks.theres about 4 million acres but i am not sure if theres time and seed and fertlizer or will to do it. after all farmers only got so much time and often are maxed out.

 

[elkhound]

 

[elkhound]

case study

 

[hashbrown]

I've thought about it a lot, my friends all think I'm a prepper but that's not what I consider myself. I stock a couple of years worth of food have an arsenal of guns and ammo grow gardens and can build and work on most anything I want. I learned to cure meat trap, fish hunt, can, forage, make whisky, wine and raise livestock and grow gardens from my Grandparents and Great Grandparents who all lived in the area and eked out a living out of these hills. Am I a prepper? Naw, I'm just a regular old Hillbilly.

 

[Weedygarden]

I have not read every post on this thread, but having a way of defining your level is helpful. Someone might consider themselves well prepared, while the next person might feel a great deal of anxiety if their situation was the same.

https://www.homesteadingforum.org/threads/levels-of-preparedness-take-2.7443/
5 Levels of Preparedness

Level 0 Every Emergency is a Disaster

Less than 2 weeks of food in the home
No water purification system
No bug out bag
No defensive weapons
No way to produce their own food
No physical gold or silver
No tangible assets to barter

Level 1 Can survive two weeks of Minor Emergency (such as ice storm)

Have sufficient water and food for two weeks of emergency
Able to heat house for two weeks without relying on the power grid by use of the power grid
Able to cook their meals for two weeks without relying on the power grid
Has a first aid kit
Likely has no defensive weapons
Must leave their home after two weeks due to lack of preparation

Level 2: Can Survive One Month of an Emergency (such as major hurricane)

Likely has a portable power generator and sufficient fuel for one month of operation
Has handguns or shotgun to defend their home
Has a month’s work of canned goods to eat from
Has sufficient prescription medicines for 30 days
Has enough batteries for power a portable radio for 30 days

Level 3: Can Survive Three Months of an Emergency (such as martial law or impacting earthquake)

Has a deep-short term pantry
Likely has a water purification system
Likely has defensive weapon for each family member
Likely has some type of neighborhood safety watch or 24 hour security watch rotation at the home
Has stocked wood to burn in fireplace and/or iron stove
Has communication gear to keep track of local and world events
Has means to recharge batteries without relying on power grid
Has three months of prescription medications

Level 4: Can Survive One Year of an Emergency (such as currency devaluation, economic depression)

Has a deep short- and long-term food pantry
Likely has their own garden to produce food
Likely has small-sized farm animals to produce protein (chickens, goats, rabbits)
Has a deep supply of ammo (2000+ rounds per weapon)
Has a spare weapon in event of damage
Has mean to produce herbal medicines to replace prescriptions
Has a long-term store of antibiotics
Likely has dog for security watch
Has full 24 hour rotation of security watch on the home (requires 6 adults)
Show have secondary off-site storage of food, weapons, and ammo
Is ready to bug-out with full hiking and camping gear, if security situation degrades
Is able to educate their children at home

Level 5: Can Survive Indefinitely from Home during an multi-year SHTF or TEOTWAWKI situation

Has a fully functioning large garden or small farm for food production
Is able to can and store the results of food harvest for the coming year
Is able to harvest seeds for next year’s planting
Is able to raise multiple generations of farm animals (cattle, sheep, horses)
Has horses for local and distance travel
Has enough ammo to last a generation (10,000+ rounds per weapon)
Has spares of each weapon and lots of extra magazines
Able to generate their own fuel (bio-diesel, alcohol)
Likely has fully functional solar power bank with deep storage batteries
Has natural on-site water sources for farm and home
Has home-based business to generate income
Is able to build new building and make any necessary repairs to existing buildings
Is able to provide excess food for charity
Has a secondary residency (such as mountain cabin) for full bug-out
Is prepared for minor surgery and child birth at home
Has stores of gold and silver for barter

Is able to produce their clothing (from raw wool or raw cotton with spinning wheel and small loom)

 

[Sourdough]

But what's the point of knowing how other people rate themselves? I didn't see a self-assessment by Sourdough in this thread. I found it curious.

Do you seriously want me to rate my prepping.....???

 

[Swing]

.

And I'll 'spout' scriptures all I want.

IN the Faith Forum, only. Not all here have the same beliefs. That is why Faith area is separate.