What I saw at the doomsday prepper convention

CNN Money ^ | 11/11/13 | David Z. Morris

[Kartographer]

More and more Americans are spending money to get ready for an uncertain future -- gathering food, water, tools, and skills to help them weather anything from a hurricane to a pandemic. Contrary to images of deluded or gun-obsessed "lone wolves," many preppers are average consumers reacting to concrete worries, and their way of thinking is spreading, fueling an emerging lifestyle trend. That lifestyle is generating demand for a broad spectrum of products offering survival -- or even comfort -- when large-scale systems go down.

[Kartographer]

This bears repeating:

"Contrary to images of deluded or gun-obsessed "lone wolves," many preppers are average consumers reacting to concrete worries, and their way of thinking is spreading, fueling an emerging lifestyle trend."

[Kartographer]

Prepper’s PING!!

[JoeProBono]

[griswold3]

Great practice for the collapse in lifestyle in America.

[MrB]

I don’t know how many of you have had the topic come up with a liberal, but they have a seething hatred for preppers.

There are a couple of reasons that I gathered. First, every prep that you have or make is a vote of no-confidence in their god, the government.

Second, they seem to have a sort of “eschatology” about crashing the economy, though they won’t admit that is what is happening. It seems that everyone “being in the same boat” is a higher virtue for them, and prepping keeps you from being in that boat with them, and it infuriates them.

[GeronL]

They must have stored their food and water in the other half of the bunker?

[GeronL]

Kartographer posted a column a while back of a civil emergency coordinator or whatever who really detested preppers. This person really believed that we should rely on the government to save us in a disaster. She literally said if YOU saved yourself, it was not fair to all those who did not prepare.

seriously.

[gundog]

Above beds. And under the mattresses, I’ll bet.

[PeterPrinciple]

She literally said if YOU saved yourself, it was not fair to all those who did not prepare.

---

she probably doesn’t get the point of the ant and grasshopper story either.........................

[LibLieSlayer]

She will not make if it comes.

[combat_boots]

Remind anyone who asks that having a root cellar to store things you put up for the winter was a way to save on foodstuffs for generations. Only with the people after the Depression kids did the HABIT of not keeping things ‘back’ take flight.

It isn’t ‘cool’ to have a bachelor’s cupboard. It’s stupid.

[Las Vegas Ron]

Interesting observations, most likely right on the money too.

I gave up trying to figure them out though, I'm preparing to fight them.

[Kartographer]

"I don’t know how many of you have had the topic come up with a liberal, but they have a seething hatred for preppers."

True libs want everyone in the same boat and certainly don't want anyone to be able to stand on their own. Now if you could only explain why there are more than a few 'Conservatives' (even here on FR) that have a detest preppers with the same hatred and vitriol as the the most Government loving red diaper doper baby you would have answered the $64,000.00 question.

[The Working Man]

She literally said if YOU saved yourself, it was not fair to all those who did not prepare.

---

It’s much like a religion, all must suffer equally before redemption and the Utopia can be brought forth.

[MHGinTN]

Lots of storage under the floors. Plus a third room/entry is designed for storage around and under.

[fwdude]

I don’t know how many of you have had the topic come up with a liberal, but they have a seething hatred for preppers.

It's like this with everything that has no effect on them whatsoever - Right to bear arms, right to make and keep whatever compensation you can successfully command, etc.

They are the biggest busybodies in the history of mankind, bar none.

[Spirochete]

It seems that everyone “being in the same boat” is a higher virtue for them, and prepping keeps you from being in that boat with them, and it infuriates them.

And since liberals are extreme hippocrites, it follows that many of them are prepping themselves, though they hate the prepper mindset.

Liberal doublethink is amazing.

[Kartographer]

Over the years I have heard pretty much the same thing from a few FReepers.

[Pharmboy]

For the last 5 years, prepping seemed less and less crazy, until I hit the tipping point about two years ago.

Now, those who do not do even minimal prepping are the crazy ones.

[Stentor]

About what you would expect from CNN.