My point was, even if the government does come in and save you from the flood or the fire or the tornadoes, it helps everybody out if you’re also helping yourself. Every jug of water you can supply yourself in a crisis is one less jug of water that won’t be needed for everybody else. It doesn’t matter where you live, a couple extra cans of food will make you and others a lot more comfortable if something unforeseen does happen. I wasn’t trying to make a statement about that hurricane or those evacuees specifically, just that anybody who doesn’t have five days of food and water handy is going to be a lot more miserable if anything ever happens.
I live on a fault line. I’d wager you even money that none of my neighbors know that. (Granted, we do live in hurricane country, although far from the coast - we’ve gotten them before. So we’re generally prepared.) Luckily, the supplies for the very unlikely earthquake are pretty much the same as supplies for the more likely hurricane.
Most people don’t think society will collapse, and most people don’t have the kind of supplies to survive if it did. Generally speaking, when people talk about “emergency supplies” they’re talking about things that will make them more comfortable in the event of an emergency (with the exception of keeping supplies of vital medications, or people who have a medical need for electricity keeping generators or such.) I’d survive an ice storm without my candles and tuna and weather radio, but I’ll be a lot happier with them. That’s all.
Mine is the Grundig FR200 from this site, but I wouldn’t reccomend it (got it as a gift before I read reviews). The charging handle is flimsy.
Fair enough. My distaste for them is probably based on the fact that I ate hundreds of them in 89-91, and IIRC they had expired in 83. I did get to try a newer version, and they were better, but still no better and much more expensive and less versitile than canned/dry food. The weight issue doesn’t concern me, as I’m set to stay put. If setting up a bug-out bag, they’re a great choice. I’d highly reccomend stopping at your local Army-Navy and trying a few MRE’s before you buy any significant quantity.
I agree. Definitely try before you buy. They get very tiresome after awhile, but in a pinch they’ll keep you going. Mix them in with some canned goods and spices and you can make all sorts of dishes. Some of the recipes in The MRE Cookbook are quite tasty. They are perfect for keeping in the car, or as part of your 2ns stage kit.
I also noticed that I screwed up the second link. Here is the corrected link.
I’m not sure if anyone who is worried would find this link helpful or not, but I offer it as information and possibly as a place where you can buy things if you are so inclined.
It makes absolutely no sense to feel obligated to defend yourself against accusations that being prepared “doesn’t make sense,” or “isn’t fiscally responsible,” because those accusations are shortsighted and a little silly to begin with. How many cliches do we need about being prepared before people stop trying to make it an issue of sanity? Like anything else, there are those who believe, and those that believe a little* too* much. Be it disaster preparedness, politics, food, fantasy sports, anime, etc, there are always snobs and crazies. It makes perfect sense to disparage all people who believe in or enjoy those things because of the eccentricities of the crazy minority. Right.
As for me, it isn’t that I’m convinced the world is ending, or that we’re all going to die (WAGTD), but that I geek out about this stuff. From someone who has never lived anywhere other than the southwestern desert in the US, disasters are interesting stories that happen elsewhere. It’s awful to admit, but I secretly want society to collapse. It’d be interesting to see, and I’m morbidly curious in that way. And being prepared for it is just a fun hobby to me.
My well had a faulty bottom valve for a couple of years, which required massive amounts of water to reprime when it stopped working. As a result, I think I have roughly 50 gallons of water stored in the wellhouse and the floor of my pantry. For no particularly good reason, I always stock up on canned foods when I go grocery shopping, despite the fact that with the exception of soup, I almost never eat the stuff. I don’t fish, but because my father is an avid angler, I own a rod and tacklebox. I’m not much of a hunter, but I do enjoy target practice, so I, like so many Dopers, have enough guns and ammo to supply a small militia. Working at a hospital for several years has meant that I’ve ended up coming home with enough bandages, painkillers and packets of triple anti-biotic ointment to supply a small field hospital. I live in a house surrounded by thick stands of woods, ready to be converted into fuel. I’m really not that much of a drinker, but am known to most of my friends and family as such, so I have a fully stocked bar with at least a dozen bottles of scotch that get drained far more slowly than they get replenished.
I think I’m the ultimate inadvertant survival nut.
