Re: Doomsday preppers.
I have to LOL at the people in these shows, you have to wonder where they found some of these folks. Of course, some of the people found them, via youtube and such (like the fat radio guy). There are a few pearls of wisdom (like the lady who stored eggs in mineral oil, that's a neat idea), but they are hard to unearth from the mass of garbage around them.
I work in the field of Homeland Security, I can tell you that no matter how much they tout their "improved" strategy, the gov. isn't coming to save you... at least not right away. You had better be able to hold your own until help arrives, but the most important thing you can do is not put yourself in that situation in the first place. Some things are unforseen and unavoidable, some are not. I have very little sympathy for people who choose to stay behind when they have the means to leave (you do have two feet, right?). IE, situations like Katrina.
I got my first degree as a geologist, I studied Energy/resources but also geologic hazards (everything from asteroids to peak oil). There are tons of things that "could" happen but probably won't, and there is NOTHING you can do about it if they do. Anyone who has ever taken a science class in high school should be able to understand that on some level. If you live on the coast, you know that a tsunami might wash you away. If you live near a volcano, you know it may erupt. IF you have warning, you run away... if not, then you'd best be right with the man. Your only alternative is to go live somewhere else, but no place is completely safe from all hazards, and some (E.T. impact, supervolcano, etc.) might get you even from a great distance. They have happened on this rock before, they will again. The best thing you can do is understand them, to think you can alter that course is human vanity.
IMHO, you'd better have enough stuff to get you/yours through the first couple weeks of a situation without outside help. I don't think that you need enough canned corn for 60 people for 400 years. Food is not as important as water, you can restrict your intake to stretch the timeline, but you're going to need more than you think. Get some.
Like everything else in life, it's a balancing act. Past generations were raised to be self sufficient, how that changed so quickly I just can't fathom. These kids today will shrivel up and die without twitter, it is pathetic.
What happened to personal responsibility? That is the real question we should be asking. You don't have to be a bunker-dwelling weirdo to take measures to protect your lives. They are YOUR lives to save, not Uncle Sugar's.
