76% of Americans polled believe WWIII is coming. Yeah, if 5% are actually reasonably prepared, I would be shocked. Prepping is not an inexpensive thing. Some may have extra food stores, some ammo and a gun and call themselves preppers. They have really sacrificed nothing in their lifestyles to really prepare for more than a short-term inconvenience.
You can categorize the level of preparedness:
- Supplies (Do you have all you need and replacements for all should something break/be destroyed)
- Knowledge (do you know how to do something or have physical books that could help?)
- Experience level (have you actually done it?)
- Personnel/specialization (do you have numbers in your group/people who have experience in a complex area such as medicine, tactics, homeopathy, agriculture etc)
- Location/lifestyle changes (do you live the lifestyle or is it a side hobby)
- Time (how long could you remain self-sufficient?)
- Alternate plans (Plan A might be making it to a BOL or bugging in. What if you couldn't then what? What if plan B doesn't work?)
- Diversification of preps (Storms, floods, dam burst, fire, nuclear war, civil unrest, nuclear winter, EMP, pole shift, climate change, CME, plague of locusts, captain Tripps, zombies, golden hordes etc)
Those things determine your tier:
Tier 4 preppers. Ready for a bad storm, job loss or hurricane. Short term, nonrenewable preps. <6 mo. Haven't really thought much about the reality of what would happen to society once the electric grid is wiped out. Still have some trust that the government would not completely fail and that any event would be short lived.
Tier 3 preppers, have a means to grow food, in enough space to actually feed their group as well as having extra food stores >12 mo. They have at least a thousand rounds of ammunition, and enough guns for everyone. They have multiple sources of water, an alternate source of electricity and transportation. They know some things and have done some things but, don’t have a depth of experience/knowledge that a group can provide. WSHTF they plan to ride it out with just immediate family/close friends. They fudge on things like keeping their fuel tanks topped off or spending money on entertainment/paying too much for useless things. They really want to get to that tier 1 level but, lose focus, sometimes wondering if they are just wasting time and money on something that is never going to happen. They might be nervous about what other people (neighbors, friends, family members) might think of them.
Tier 2 preppers have all of the above + the ability and knowledge to make their own and/or replace items. They have formed a group of some sort, but, are not yet training together/coordinating. They have some ability for their group to specialize but, may have gaps. They have given up cruises and resort vacationing for more useful learning vacations. They may have moved or even given up their jobs near the population centers. Every dollar of disposable income goes to acquiring something that will further their preparations. They may be saving or have acquired a BOL. Preps are semi-diverse but, some gaps such as nuclear shelters, complete energy independence or the ability to renew resources under all circumstances, may still fall short.
Tier 1 preppers are those who work and train together, have no gaps in their specializations, have acquired a BOL or two or even turned a BOL into a BIL. They have made the lifestyle change and prepping is an absolute daily priority for them. They are completely energy independent (wood gasification vehicles etc). They have no need for community water systems, outside security, fire or medical, sewage or garbage disposal. They have completed diversification whether it is a grid failure or nuclear winter, they are ready.
I would say that <1% of preppers have attained tier 1. That would be about .000001 of the American population. Most of us will fall short either because of time or financial constraints.
