Image by MacQ via FlickrA popular misconception about being prepared is that you are preparing for a total, catastrophic meltdown that throws us all back to the stoneages. One minute we're living, the next we're running around in chest rigs and getting into firefights with zombies.
A SHTF event can be anything from an aggravating annoyance to what was described above.
You can move/leave if it's a localized event so it's not SHTF
There are any number of scenarios where this simply isn't true. Medical issues, family responsibilities, jobs, resources, quickness of weather events, etc can all conspire to prevent you from dashing off to safety. And even if you could, I can't think of a worse case of the poop hitting the ventilation than having my home destroyed or a family member killed.
Minor things like flat tires are so easy to deal with that they aren't SHTF events
Really? Your car gets a flat in a construction zone on the highway, it's hanging out into a lane of traffic and the flat tire is on the traffic side. As those cars whiz by your head please explain to the class how you aren't in a bad situation.
Take it a step further. Now it's your wife/daughter. When they call you on the phone in hysterics just tell them to suck it up and how "minor" the situation is. Let me know how it turns out.
You break your leg. Not a SHTF event right? What if you just started a small cleaning business? You have three contracts at different apartment complexes and are a one-man operation. Now you can't work, can't bill and can't make money. Oh yea, your apartments will likely replace you with someone else. Call me crazy, but something like that seems pretty bad no?
Because a situation is minor for you doesn't mean it will be minor for all in your care. Furthermore, any number of circumstances can ambush you to turn a minor event into a full blown catastrophe.
If there aren't zombies it's not SHTF
Are you 6? Forget the zombies for a minute.
You go out to dinner with the family. You round the corner on the way home to find your house has burnt to the ground.
A chemical truck spills and releases toxic gas into the air. You have to leave and leave right now. You have just enough time to grab your family but have to leave your dog standing on the front porch.
A major blizzard snows in your elderly father. His power goes out and he needs his insulin to survive. There is no way for him to leave, and very little chance of someone getting to him.
You move into a dream home for which you have saved your entire life. Six months later an earthquake damages it beyond repair. You then find out your cut-rate insurance doesn't cover the damages and you don't have the money to fix your house.
You are on the way to take your oldest son to college. As you pull out of the driveway the phone rings. It's your boss and you've just been fired.
Now sure, those are fabricated situations. But you can't deny that in each one of them some level of crap has solidly hit the fan.
If I prepare for Mad-Max I'm prepared for all of the smaller things that could happen
Maybe, maybe not.
People who focus on Mad-Max also tend to focus a lot on MRE's and guns. They also tend to overlook little things like tire repair kits, quality footware, cooking equipment, how they will take care of bodily waste, etc etc.
While you are planning for your trip to live in the woods, did you remember to buy ice melter so when your driveway is a sheet of ice you can get out?
You know what else they tend to overlook? Training. Yea. Kinda important to know how to do stuff, not just have kickass Condor and Uncle Mikes gear.
Its just too easy to get wrapped up in the fantasy land of becoming a wandering one-man army in your brand new Multicam BDU's and your 1000 yard rifle when all you think about is EOTWAWKI. Trust me, it will cause you to overlook a simple preparation along the way.
A SHTF event can be anything from an aggravating annoyance to what was described above.
You can move/leave if it's a localized event so it's not SHTF
There are any number of scenarios where this simply isn't true. Medical issues, family responsibilities, jobs, resources, quickness of weather events, etc can all conspire to prevent you from dashing off to safety. And even if you could, I can't think of a worse case of the poop hitting the ventilation than having my home destroyed or a family member killed.
Minor things like flat tires are so easy to deal with that they aren't SHTF events
Really? Your car gets a flat in a construction zone on the highway, it's hanging out into a lane of traffic and the flat tire is on the traffic side. As those cars whiz by your head please explain to the class how you aren't in a bad situation.
Take it a step further. Now it's your wife/daughter. When they call you on the phone in hysterics just tell them to suck it up and how "minor" the situation is. Let me know how it turns out.
You break your leg. Not a SHTF event right? What if you just started a small cleaning business? You have three contracts at different apartment complexes and are a one-man operation. Now you can't work, can't bill and can't make money. Oh yea, your apartments will likely replace you with someone else. Call me crazy, but something like that seems pretty bad no?
Because a situation is minor for you doesn't mean it will be minor for all in your care. Furthermore, any number of circumstances can ambush you to turn a minor event into a full blown catastrophe.
If there aren't zombies it's not SHTF
Are you 6? Forget the zombies for a minute.
You go out to dinner with the family. You round the corner on the way home to find your house has burnt to the ground.
A chemical truck spills and releases toxic gas into the air. You have to leave and leave right now. You have just enough time to grab your family but have to leave your dog standing on the front porch.
A major blizzard snows in your elderly father. His power goes out and he needs his insulin to survive. There is no way for him to leave, and very little chance of someone getting to him.
You move into a dream home for which you have saved your entire life. Six months later an earthquake damages it beyond repair. You then find out your cut-rate insurance doesn't cover the damages and you don't have the money to fix your house.
You are on the way to take your oldest son to college. As you pull out of the driveway the phone rings. It's your boss and you've just been fired.
Now sure, those are fabricated situations. But you can't deny that in each one of them some level of crap has solidly hit the fan.
If I prepare for Mad-Max I'm prepared for all of the smaller things that could happen
Maybe, maybe not.
People who focus on Mad-Max also tend to focus a lot on MRE's and guns. They also tend to overlook little things like tire repair kits, quality footware, cooking equipment, how they will take care of bodily waste, etc etc.
While you are planning for your trip to live in the woods, did you remember to buy ice melter so when your driveway is a sheet of ice you can get out?
You know what else they tend to overlook? Training. Yea. Kinda important to know how to do stuff, not just have kickass Condor and Uncle Mikes gear.
Its just too easy to get wrapped up in the fantasy land of becoming a wandering one-man army in your brand new Multicam BDU's and your 1000 yard rifle when all you think about is EOTWAWKI. Trust me, it will cause you to overlook a simple preparation along the way.
No comments:
Post a Comment