Buy your emergency supplies now before hyperinflation occurs!!!

reply to post by fishman1985


The more difficult question is would you turn away a starving neighbor or family who will literally starve to death? Maybe they live 10 feet from you or 10 miles, heck even a perfect stranger. I'm not talking about a looter/raider who you'd shoot in the face because they want to steal your stuff - rather someone in desperate need who asks?

Think about it, you have enough food for the next few months or more and someone asks you nicely for some food to save their 7 year old daughter's life. They are standing right there in front of you, dying before your eyes. Would you give them any food?

Originally posted by RedParrotHead
reply to post by fishman1985

 

The more difficult question is would you turn away a starving neighbor or family who will literally starve to death? Maybe they live 10 feet from you or 10 miles, heck even a perfect stranger. I'm not talking about a looter/raider who you'd shoot in the face because they want to steal your stuff - rather someone in desperate need who asks?

Think about it, you have enough food for the next few months or more and someone asks you nicely for some food to save their 7 year old daughter's life. They are standing right there in front of you, dying before your eyes. Would you give them any food?

Well depending how many people and how they approached me. Are you implying that I should give up my food to help someone who is undeserving of it cause that I would not do. If it was at the point where I was already farming and growing food yes I would help them, if it was right after the shtf then I prob wouldnt be able to because of not having enough food. Thats and answer that is going to depend on the situation.

reply to post by FissionSurplus


In my Tom Brown book on urban survival, he addresses the issue of being without heat, but also without a fireplace or other potential heat source. It's an easy solution: remember building "forts" when you were little, with sofa cushions, pillows, and the family dog to stand guard? It's the same exact idea, except instead of using a sofa cushion, you use mattresses and blankets. Your "fort" should have a roof, it can use the wall of a room as one of its own walls. The basic idea is to create a space large enough for you and a buddy to sit in - even better with space for reading - where your natural body heat will be trapped by something much more substantial than a comforter. Its "entrance" is covered by blankets, and it can maintain your heat even when you and your buddy leave (but not for the entire day - a few hours). Hope this helps!

for those of you on a budget, with little storage room ( as I am) attempt to purchase a little each week, focus on flour, strong and normal, rice sugar, vinager, salt if you don't live near the coast and oil.

Tinned sweetcorn, tomatoes, tomatoe puree herbs and spices.

Buy potatoes by the sack, (you can plant them if anything happens)

Also castic soda, asprin, (for toothache more than anything else) plasters, scrubbing brushes, old rags, seeds for veg that doesn't grow wild, matches, matches and more matches.

Strong boots and plenty of thick socks, spare blankets gloves and a decent warm waterproof coat.

Good set of knives, thread and sewing needles and a strong saw.

Look up recipes NOW for making your own yeast and soap.

You could always add dried milk, and tinned meat, but most people should be able to cope if they have the above.

A few concrete slabs will work for a fire if needed, use some of the catering sized tins to create a chimney and string/rope etc to tie it to the ceiling so it can be directed to a window. 4 fishing rod stands, fixed together in 2s along with a thin strong piece of metal to thread through potatoes, or even a chicken if you have one, should work well enough to cook food over the fire!

Think outside the box, learn how people used to manage 300 years back, I did and am confident that I could just about cope without shops and other servies if i had no choice

Originally posted by gamesmaster63

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher
reply to post by camaro68ss

 

I honestly think there has been a sub-group of people saying the same thing you are saying all throughout history.

Some just see the negative in the world...and are convinced something is going to happen any day now...and they obsess over it and IMO waste their life waiting for something to happen instead of living their lives.

Don't believe me...ask the people that built fall out shelters in the 60's how much use they got out of those.


Now I'm not saying nothing bad will ever happen...but trying to prepare for "something" that is going to happen "sometime" is a waste in my opinion. I'll take things as they come, and I'll enjoy life up until that point without worry.

Many of those people thought that those shelters were more than worth it, even if never used. Also, being prepared doesn't mean not having a life. I am very prepared and have enjoyed my life very much, thank you.

I do not obsess, I do not just see the negative, I just feel that it is more realistic to be prepared than not.

Funny(camaro68ss), Just the opposite: I would not be able to "relax" and enjoy my life living "day to day" without my "preps" if an ice storm or tornado hits; I don't have to jump in the car and beat the crowds. if my backdoor gets kicked in at 0200 I havea12ga and light close at hand." No worries mate.."

None of us lives forever or can procure a lifetime supply of food or water or even Air.But alot of the immediate pressure is off with simple foresight. Anything else is just weak excuses and "justification" for not "preparing" ahead of time.

reply to post by fishman1985


I'm not implying that you should give up any of your food to help someone who is undeserving, or deserving for that matter.

Just wondering if you, or anyone else is prepared to face that situation and basically let people die. I think many people are going to have to make that choice if indeed something really bad does happen. Many of us are more than willing to kill a thief and not loose a wink of sleep - but turning away starving children is something survivalists never talk about.

I'd like to think that I'd keep every last thing I had for my family even if we were very well stocked, but I'm not sure that I could do it, lets hope I never have to find out.

Originally posted by RedParrotHead
reply to post by fishman1985

 

I'm not implying that you should give up any of your food to help someone who is undeserving, or deserving for that matter.

Just wondering if you, or anyone else is prepared to face that situation and basically let people die. I think many people are going to have to make that choice if indeed something really bad does happen. Many of us are more than willing to kill a thief and not loose a wink of sleep - but turning away starving children is something survivalists never talk about.

I'd like to think that I'd keep every last thing I had for my family even if we were very well stocked, but I'm not sure that I could do it, lets hope I never have to find out.

Well as I said it would be situation dependant. Also good luck on finding where I would even be im off the beaten path here...

Let's face it, preppers are the minority and it angers me that friends and family do not believe in having more food or emergency items than they could use in a couple weeks. Their "God will take care of me" attitude is frankly irritating and they are not acting responsibly in their own well being. Nonetheless, I keep socking away the food because I would not be able to turn them away as long as I had anything to give. Fortunately, I do live far away. If they did make it to my door, I would help them. I'd also have the damn cleanest house, barn and granary on the planet due to their hard labor

Originally posted by RedParrotHead
reply to post by fishman1985

 

The more difficult question is would you turn away a starving neighbor or family who will literally starve to death? Maybe they live 10 feet from you or 10 miles, heck even a perfect stranger. I'm not talking about a looter/raider who you'd shoot in the face because they want to steal your stuff - rather someone in desperate need who asks?

Think about it, you have enough food for the next few months or more and someone asks you nicely for some food to save their 7 year old daughter's life. They are standing right there in front of you, dying before your eyes. Would you give them any food?

That's the most extreme and difficult question for a "prepper" : Honestly few are heartless enough to let a child starve on the front porch (I couldn't) but by not preparing I am not helping them either:

It's why I become so incensed(irritated) at the: " I'm not stocking anything; it's pointless crowd:They and the ones following their advice; are the ones putting themselves on our porch forcing that situation. It's unnecessary. I have my own family to be concerned with. You have yours.

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher
Hyperinflation has supposedly been happening for the past 3-4 years...I'm getting tired of waiting.

Please stop with the fear mongering.

When was the last time you went grocery shopping?
Every time I go something has gone up another 20-30cents.
Odd thing is since fuel costs are down yet food prices are still rising no doubt due to commodity speculators.

One oil refinery explosion could cripple the economy and truly start runaway inflation.
We are way too dependent upon a few critical delivery systems.
Fear mongering or not, it does make sense to buy it now if you can since it will only get more expensive in the future.

reply to post by fishman1985


If you are just now hitting the button it is kind of too late.
By this point, you should have first off a support group of "like minded" individuals.
Think of all of the disaster/apocalyptic movies the bigger groups usually seem to survive better, I would think so too.
Plus alone just sucks.
Getting the intro firearms and food is not hard at all.
You can buy a gun for anywhere from 100 up to any number and food, you could spend a few hundred bucks and set yourself for awhile.
I think what I am hinting at is trust and comradery cannot be bought for any price but time, that is the real resource that is running out.
Good looking though.

reply to post by fishman1985


We bought a kerosene heater. this was more than 18 years ago. Used it to supplement our usual heat cause the bill was so high. We were relaxing one evening with our cats and the thing blew up right in our faces. I could see the kerosene flow out across the floor and ignite everything in its path. 36,000 dollars worth of damage in less then 4 minutes. We barely got out.
All I can say is I will never get near another one.
Now we use a pellet stove. and we have electric back-up which will supply the stove, and enough pellets for an entire year. There are several built in safety mechanisms in those stoves and they are very efficient.
but there is a danger anywhere there is fire in the home. the key is to be ready for it.
we were not. keep fire extinguishers around at all times and very close by.
DH

reply to post by FissionSurplus


For heat get a wood stove and put it on standard bricks they will be more than enough insulation for the floor.
As for a vent make a window jig or just go through the wall if needed.
Just make sure to vent tape the exhaust as carbon monoxide can be a bad thing mmmmkay?!
Heat is easy as well as survival, all you gotta do is truly think medieval.
If it is soo easy that a caveman can do it, I guess I can too with some education!

(Edit)
After having read alot of folks talking of kerosene or pellets, You might think of natural resources as well.
I can not always find a fuel station or a pellet store for my fuel.
If this is an emergency type heater, I would look for one that uses natural resources.
I can always find a tree, and if there are no trees, there is probably no use anyway.
Just sayin.
Hope it helps

reply to post by OutKast Searcher


Of course someone would and should be prepared for something.
If you never run into a disaster in your life but you have stored supplies, they will still work just fine for their intended purpose.
What would you have me do, put my fiat into a bank so some suit could use it against me?
Land, Food, and Protection is not only what I need but what I want.
Please forgive me and do put a mark on my "Mancard" file for doing this but, I will quote one of my favorite lines in a song.
It was written by Cheryl Crow, and it goes...
"It's not having what you want, It's wanting what you've got".
That pretty much sums it up for me.
I have peace of mind, and that is worth more than a million bars of gold!

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher

Originally posted by camaro68ss

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher
Hyperinflation has supposedly been happening for the past 3-4 years...I'm getting tired of waiting.

Please stop with the fear mongering.

it takes years to build up speed, its starting, go to your local food market and tell me costs are not up.... Real inflation is at 12% right now!

Is all that food you are buying going to be good "years" from now???

I know some things can last a long time....but "years"??? Seems like you are just wasting money if you are trying to plan for "years" in advance.

Quite a few food items can last a long time (yes even years) if stored properly. You just have to do some research on how best to store and how long it will keep its nutritional value. I don't consider careful planning to be wasting money. People buy car insurance, house insurance, dental insurance, medical insurance, travel insurance, life insurance, and MANY MANY others. Think of this as just another persons insurance plan, if it isn't right for you, there is no need to tell people that it is a waste of money.

Originally posted by Asktheanimals

Originally posted by OutKast Searcher
Hyperinflation has supposedly been happening for the past 3-4 years...I'm getting tired of waiting.

Please stop with the fear mongering.

When was the last time you went grocery shopping?
Every time I go something has gone up another 20-30cents.
Odd thing is since fuel costs are down yet food prices are still rising no doubt due to commodity speculators.

One oil refinery explosion could cripple the economy and truly start runaway inflation.
We are way too dependent upon a few critical delivery systems.
Fear mongering or not, it does make sense to buy it now if you can since it will only get more expensive in the future.

yesterday i walked out of the food market with 3 bags and spent $50!!! oil has droped and been in the $85 range yet gas is still 3.75 a gal where I live. Every 3 month i get notices of power rates, water ratse, cable rates, garbage rates are all going up.

It takes 2 years for inflation to hit. So we are just now seeing the effects of 08-09 QE1.

What do you suggest someone with NO extra money and buys groceries each week when they get paid for the next week do to prepare for something happening?

Having a large supply of food stored isn't a bad idea, but I think people need to analyze their needs and threat risks. I agree that people should try to keep at least a few weeks worth of non perishable food on hand. A few months would be better if you can swing it. Several years worth may be overkill. Be realistic about what your cooking options will be should you actually need to use that food. I don't believe that a bag of rice will ever be worth $200. If the world ever gets that bad, you wouldn't be able to find a bag of rice. Store shelves would be completely emptied in one or two days. Even warehouses and distribution centers would be looted clean within days. Don't expect police and other workers to be showing up to work to protect stuff. You may not be able to use your stove in your kitchen, or your oven for that matter. Having the ingredients to bake 100's of loaves of bread may not help you too much. A camp stove is a great idea( I have a couple) but they do need fuel. A coleman liquid fuel stove will run quite a while on a gallon of fuel, but if you're talking several months worth of food, how much stove fuel do you plan on keeping on hand? I usually pay close to $10 per gallon for it. My stove will run on gasoline too, so I can scavenge from my vehicles gas tanks if I had too. I would think that even a small family would need a couple gallons per month. I agree, water is extremely important. I usually try to keep several cases of bottled water around. I also keep 5 gallon buckets from restaurants filled with water in my garage. The buckets are free even if they do smell like pickles I have woke up to no water service due to a water main break before. I feel I'm probably more likely to live through that again than waking to a world where running water no longer exists. Not being able to flush the toilet is no fun. I also keep a gallon or 2 of bleach in case I have to collect rainwater in my empty buckets and I also have a water filter in my bob kit. So regardless of why, I do store water. Heat in the winter time is also a really big concern where I live. If the power goes out, I have no heat even with a gas furnace. An ice storm could easily knock out power for a couple days or even a week. Propane heaters are good, propane is fairly cheap, but I'm not sure how I feel about storing multiple 20# tanks in my garage - I really have nowhere else to store them. Kerosene is good too, but what I have been reading, most small to medium size kerosene heaters burn between 3 and 4 gallons per day. Of course you could stretch that out longer, the kerosene I see in stores runs $8-10 per gallon and over $5 per gallon at the pump, if you can find it. Where I live, I'd guess out of probably 50 or more gas stations, maybe 5 - 10 of them actually have kerosene. Maybe its easier to find in other places. My problem with kerosene is the same as propane, I don't feel real comfortable about keeping a lot of it around. I think I'm more worried about a house fire occurring than a total collapse of modern society. Wood is probably the best source of heat, if you have a cheap or free source of wood. However, heating your house with firewood for an entire winter might be a tall order for someone who has never even held a chain saw. Wood may be the safest fuel to store, but I'm sure it's statistically the most dangerous to heat with. Fireplaces tend to be extremely inefficient in heat output, so they would require lots more wood than a wood stove. Everyone should keep basic first aid supplies and tools around regardless of whether or not you fear a looming disaster. I would also recommend a firearm and you need to practice using it regularly. Even a formal training class is worth jack if the last time you practiced with your gun was several years ago. Something as simple as a 9mm with a few hundred rounds of ammo would give you a fighting chance in most situations. Finally before I shut up, to all the people who say NOTHING could ever happen, there are 2 huge things that threaten all of us: widespread power grid failure and diesel fuel shortage. What if the power was out for hundreds of miles in every direction for a week or more? Refrigeration is gone. Gas pumps don't work. ATM machines are dead. Even wireless communications systems could be greatly impacted. Life would be really tough if you weren't at all prepared. Imagine that multiple hurricanes, an earthquake or floods destroy a large portion of fuel refineries and diesel becomes extremely scarce. All the food in grocery stores, all the gasoline delivered to gas stations and pretty much every single item in your home, office and work place got there because of a diesel powered truck. Our society is completely reliant on diesel fuel more than anything else. So even if you think these survival folks are crazy, you do actually face real possibles threats.

reply to post by dc4lifeskater


Do it really slowly. Get an extra jar of peanut butter when it on sale or a couple cans of tuna. Just a few dollars extra per week will add up to an emergency food supply that would last several weeks over the course of a couple months. I assume you can't afford fancy alternative cooking sources, so buy canned stuff that doesn't need to be cooked. I actually don't mind cold canned pasta, it's even better if I'm really hungry. I know it doesn't sound glamorous, but think about what we're all talking about here. Survival prep starts with basic life needs: water food and shelter. Everything else just makes it easier. A 23K btu kerosene heater and a 400 gallon tank of fuel for it doesn't do much good when you haven't eaten in a week. I don't have much extra cash nor am I a paranoid survivalist ready to live out the rest of my life in the woods, but I feel its worth it sometimes to invest in simple things that could help me survive the types of events I'm most likely to experience.

I'm in a very bad place financially and I'm still prepping incrementally. I always buy at least 1 extra non-perishable item for storage every week. Trust me on this, your stockpile will build this way slowly but surely.