Monday is A Labor Day at The Prepper Journal

Written by Wild Bill on The Prepper Journal.

What is Labor Day and why is it not celebrated by The Prepper Journal?

The first “Labor Day” in America was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882 in New York City. It was a day organized by the Central Labor Union of New York, Brooklyn and New Jersey and consisted of demonstrations and a picnic, with the accent on workers demonstrations. It became a federal holiday in 1894.

The same Central Labor Union later became the American Federation of Labor–Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL–CIO). The American Federation of autonomous Labor unions (AFL), founded in 1886, represented organized workers in the craft unions such as carpenters and bricklayers. The Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO), founded in 1935, organized workers by industries such as the automobile industry and transportation industry.

In the industrialized world of the late 19th century unions had a place. They introduced the idea of collectivism as a negotiating tactic. And to be clear conditions in factories were generally abysmal. They also provided many beneficial services for their members. Credited with the establishment of a 40-hour work week, honoring Sunday as a day of rest and negotiating a fair wage were among their accomplishments of note and there were others to be sure. On the other hand it is sad to note that in spite of repeated efforts throughout the start of the 20th century, the United Stated did not pass meaningful Child Labor Laws until 1938, one of the things unions were formed to fight against.

For all their benefits and positive changes they were, in reality, the doorway to socialism as we know it today.

The British Disease

The origin of Labor Unions, often refereed to in Europe as “the British Disease”, and with good reason, came out of the escalating class struggles across Europe in the mid-19th century (circa 1847-1850). The workers vs the owners/management. Like everything positive, it was used as a tool for social change. The unintended consequences of many things not clearly thought through. The politics of socialism thrived in European unions as socialists viewed collective bargaining more of a tool for political gain than a method to benefit their members, and joined in droves.

It was a cornerstone adopted by the Communist Party of Russia, started by Gennady Zyuganov, adopted by the Bolshevik wing of the Russian Social Democratic Workers Party, the linchpin of the 1917 Russian Revolution. It was also adopted by Anton Drexler and Dietrich Eckart in Germany in 1920 to start the Nationalist Socialist German Worker’s Party, commonly referred to in English as the Nazi Party, and also adopted by Benito Mussolini in Italy to start Italy’s Fascist Revolutionary Party in 1921. Labor Unions were used as the starting points for socialist governments and bear a responsibility in the birth of these oppressive atheist socialist regimes.

Labor Unions and Organized Crime: Millions of working Americans faithfully pay their union dues in the hope that collective bargaining brings them a larger piece of the pie. (Actually, they do this without choice, the dues are taken directly from their earnings as a part of the collective bargaining agreement of their employer.) While they do this the Unions use their dues to enrich themselves and buy political influence – a consequence of the corruption at all levels of government.

Labor Unions are the number one contributors to political candidates and Political Action Committees (PAC’s). From the end of WWI the lines between organized crime and the larger labor unions has been blurred at best. Real control of unions by organized crime has made multi-millionaires out of union leaders and union enforcers. Unions take in an estimated $10 billion dollars annually in mandatory dues and they control another $400 billion in financial assets in strike funds, pension plans and health care benefits. In the past five (5) years more than 1,000 labor leaders have been convicted of embezzlement, corruption, racketeering, or engaging in organized crime.

And all in a period when the administration that was in power was very pro-union. The Service Employees International Unions (SEIU) President Andy Stern was the most prolific “non-government” visitor to Obama’s White House, even more than the AFL-CIO’s President Richard Trumka. Even the NYT’s admitted this.

My choosing to not embrace this holiday is not a rejection of working tradesmen, I am a fan of their skills and their labors and in their being `treated fairly in all things, and I often employee their services. No, my decision is based on those who have subverted collectivism for their own enrichment and ascension to powers undeserved and the rampant corruption within government so easily exploited to the determent of the American Taxpayers.

I sincerely wish all those who celebrate this holiday the best of times with their friends and family.

BTW, hunting season starts TODAY!

 

 

 

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Prepare for our Education System in Transition

Written by Guest Contributor on The Prepper Journal.

Editors Note: An article from Alex R to The Prepper Journal. The 21st century is bringing significant change to how we both educate and how we comprehend and absorb data. A brave new world where not everything is a positive, we as preppers must be prepared for the changes and what they mean to ourselves, our families and even our survival. 

What will education be like in the future? This question is quite common and while it is not known how education will be in the future, there are a few logical projections one can make based on the changing trends to date. These point towards a future that will bring new and better learning schemes to students while distancing the process from humanity. The expectation is that students will have better learning environments and learn at their comfort. Learning will happen regardless of distance to school or the presence of the physical structures.

Back to Basics

While tried and true methods will always be a cornerstone of education, a resurgence of things like homeschooling as an alternative to the traditional education system is also gaining in popularity. Its main advantage is one of the advantages of cloud-based education, discussed below. Learning is at the students level, not the classes level. It can easily be slowed or accelerated as required to keep the student engaged. The parents own the responsibility of what is taught and others politics and political agendas are left outside of the classroom, what a concept. In reading below you will see that the trend towards individual paced learning flows through most of the future trends of education.

Cloud-based Education

Cloud-based education, is an idea that inspires long-distance learning as well as on-line studying. While, at its most basic level, the cloud is, after all, just another computer somewhere in a server-farm, its implementation of services is its advantage.

Cloud computing, which appears to have taken the world by storm has been influencing developments in many fields,, education included. It influences how companies and other institutions work based on its financial footprint. Renting virtual space on a server farm is less costly than purchasing, installing, managing and support another server PLUS it take advantage of Software as a Service (SaaS).

When it comes to schools, cloud-based education makes it possible for schools to access a wide variety of educational resources, as well as software, which makes it possible for the school to save on space, installation charges, and new hardware. When schools have libraries on-line and e-books accessible over the internet, it becomes easier for them to conduct on-line learning. Cloud-based education will indeed revolutionize the world of education and, in time, help to significantly reduce the need to attend a physical school. However, when it comes to the sciences and the laboratory work associated with them, well, the jury is still out. And then what about the arts? Painting, sculpture, music, drama? On-line school is a great step forward but not a complete step away from traditional education.

Personalized Learning Agorithms

Personalized learning algorithms are a good representation of future education technology. Every student behaves in a different manner and these differences in behavior affect their learning experiences. Learning systems are essential in the education setup because they will help to detect the learning experiences and behaviors of students. Having this information is beneficial to teachers and schools and will help them ensure that the application of the best teaching methods is possible. Learning will be tailored towards the special needs of the students and this means that teachers will be able to get the best out of them. With such education trends, it remains to be seen as to how much impact these new approaches will help.

Changes in the Culture of Innovation

When learning improves, other aspects of the world will improve as well. Today, people are working hard to ensure that they are ahead in the world and innovation is taking a different turn. Teachers are emphasizing the importance of independence and creativity. Innovation is the answer today and it is crucial that students understand how they can improve themselves and adapt to the world. In the years to come, technology will change education in different ways. Instead of working towards employment, students will be working towards becoming self-employed or creating more jobs. The world will become a better place when students start focusing on innovation.

Virtual Reality and the Immersive Learning Experience

Virtual reality took the world by storm in 2016 as institutions like Google and Samsung took charge of the narrative. Virtual reality is a clear representation of how technology will change education in the coming years. Today, the refining of the gaming world has sent a clear picture to other aspects like education of the potential impact VR can have. In schools, maybe sciences can be fun with VR. Students could see the effect of certain chemicals without coming into direct contact with them. In other instances, schools can also invest in 3D and 4D rooms to help make subjects like the art more appealing to students.

Editors Note: While a big fan of VR as a teaching tool, especially in getting children to enjoy learning, the jury on this one is definitely still out. In chemistry the physical smells, textures and feel of the items involved is every bit as important as the digitized results. Art, viewed as a video game is not art viewed. Viewing the real last supper is inspired as much by its present physical condition, the heat and dampness of the room, the smells and the structure of the building, as by any image. Anyone who has seen a Rembrandt painting and looked into the eyes, seen the brushstrokes, the texture of the canvas, knows this. 

Students Database and Results Tracking

Well, data is essential to help build a student’s profile and to track the results of a student. With new and improved future technology trends, one can only assume that even the education sector will improve. Data is crucial when it comes to tracking a student’s results. The creation of a student database will mean that the collection of data specific to a student will be possible. Once this data is in the hands of the database manager, it will be easier to build a profile for the student who will track their results. Parents will also have an easier time when they are tracking the performance of their children.

Changes in the Role of Student Assessment

As technology continues to grow, it becomes easier to collect data sets applicable to students and their learning methods. Collection and compilation of data sets will continue to improve and make it easier for teachers to record the progress of students. Today, and future education trends will make it easier for schools to collect more concise data on all students and to simplify the assessment of students. The data collected will be made available to students as well and this will act as a challenge to them. It will be easier for students to gain control of their lives and to be independent in the way they approach things.

Class will be Available on-line via YouTube or Google Hangouts

This one scares me. Think YouTube or Google Hangouts whenever you ask yourself or encounter the question how will education change in the future. Think the politics of the “Masters of the Universe” technology guru’s who run these companies, who suppress free speech because it fits their agenda. And note that the lines between Republicans and Democrats on this are blurred, sometimes non-existent. Will there be a hands-off fairness approach to these tools. Lessons learned to date from these companies does not bode well for the future.

Today, parents and teachers alike are putting a lot of emphasis on classes being the physical structure and not the learning that happens inside. However, in the future, the physical structures will not be as important as they are today. Learning will happen everywhere. Students will learn from the comfort of their homes, as they are vacationing with their families, and while on road trips. The use of YouTube and Google Hangouts will grow in the education sector as teachers and students are trying to bridge the gap between them.

LCD Touch Boards

Companies like Hitachi, Mimio, and Panasonic are working hard to make sure new physical tools such as LCD touch boards are accessible to schools. These boards are like computer screens and one can do a lot with one. For example, students can collaborate on projects and work together on ideas. By working together, students can learn the aspects and importance of teamwork, of debate over ideas and collaboration.

Improved Data and Analytics

As technology advances, things like data analysis and analytics become easier, faster. Today, students’ weekly reports are accessible on-line in a lot of schools and coming in the future to all parents, making progress easy to access and address more quickly. Currently, there are many devices which can monitor a person’s activity and having these factored into the learning environment is advantageous. Even advances in facial recognition technology will be factored into the future learning process.

Conclusion

In conclusion, education will indeed take a different turn and will employ different tactics in the spirit of ensuring that learning happens efficiently. It remains to be seen what set of technologies schools will introduce in the future but this article provides you with a glimpse of what to expect. As the trends change, so will everything else including the assessment process as well as the kind of data schools will collect.

Be aware of how the world is changing around you.

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Prepper Up-cycling – Container Gardens & Micro Planters

Written by R. Ann Parris on The Prepper Journal.

There are lots of positives to growing food in small containers, especially when we can source them for free or very little money and upcycle into production space.

They’re versatile and mobile. We can cart them to new locations inside a season, maximizing light or giving them some shade. We can cart them to new homes. We can cart them indoors.

Being small, we can also pretty quickly and efficiently cover them using our salvaged and saved shower curtains, window screens, and clear trash bags. Size lends the ability to go vertical with many, increasing our growing space inside a footprint.

Many planters can be done using waste materials we salvage from our own homes and curbside pickups, making them pretty economical. They definitely decrease the work of hacking into soil, and amending really poor, compacted soils.

There are some pretty universal drawbacks. We have to produce or source soil or compost for them. That’s a biggie.

Another biggie: There’s commonly limited soil and limited soil depth. That’s going to affect what we can grow due to root space.

Micro- and mini containers won’t develop the positive soil biology of a larger filing cabinet or raised bed. That contributes to requiring more amendments and specific types of amendments.

All containers are a little more prone to weather sensitivity (both drying out and cold) and the micro-mini’s more so than others.

Still, in many cases, they offer us increased versatility and options, and the ease and efficiency can make them very attractive to preppers at all stages and locations, even on acreage with tractor-tilled gardens and field crops.

Laundry Baskets

Lined with plastic, cloth, cardboard, straw flakes, or a bird’s nest of yard waste, laundry baskets can be very handy, versatile, effective containers. The liners won’t last indefinitely (lifespan varies by climate) but large or small, laundry baskets can be a very inexpensive way to grow even larger plants like tomatoes and melons.

*Tidbit Time: The “cheap” soft-flexible plastic baskets will actually hold up to weather wear better than stiff plastic, especially the inexpensive brittle storage totes and most buckets.

Basically, anything you’ve seen done in a 5-gallon bucket or storage tote can be grown in a laundry basket. They’re also applicable to most of the tower-barrel growing systems – to include adding an in-situ composting tube or watering hose/tube in the middle.

The increased footprint over a 5-gallon bucket makes them even better for sweet potatoes. Taller options are pretty much tailor-made for add-soil vertical potato planters. They can be used for vertical grow towers for strawberries, herbs, or salad greens – as-is sometimes, or by snipping only small pieces to expand the planting holes.

*Extra Tidbit: For any outdoor container garden, lay out some plastic or cardboard. (Mulch over it for appearance’s sake) and-or a pretty plastic tablecloth. It’ll decrease the number of weeds that want to pop up around and between containers, and limit the number of weeds that manage to find homes in those containers.

Tabletops & Drawers

We can easily produce chair-accessible “trug” style planters by breathing new life into desks, side tables, and even dining tables. We can also create a trug-style bed by sticking drawers (or anything else sturdy and heavy) on top of folding plastic or metal tables, or picnic tables with the benches removed.

The increased height means less bending and the ability to sit and work for everyone, but it’s a great way to keep seniors and those with injuries in the gardening game.

They’re also a great way to limit child, pet, and some pest damage to our plants.

A laid-flat bookshelf can give us the same benefits as a desk drawer, and create a somewhat larger and more conventional-appearing container garden for balconies, porches or right out in the yard. Buckets or block can be used to give it height if we reinforce the backing, or we can slide it onto a tabletop and fill it as-is.

While bookshelves and desk drawers are most usually restricted in depth, and most tabletop builds are also shallow, they’re plenty deep enough for the salads and strawberries that so many turtles, rabbits, and slugs like to munch.

For added depth with a container, we have the bodies/frames of filing cabinets (and some desks). Even using junk-log and straw-bale “fills” for those, they have plenty of root space for even shrubs and miniature trees.

Filing cabinets, desks, and deeper bookcases or drawers can also be lined or sprayed with FlexSeal to build a self-irrigated garden bed.

As with pretty much any freebie container, some types of drawers will have to be lined to hold soil and water, and increase lifespan, while others will need to have drainage holes drilled out.

Shelves as Shelves

Shelves can increase our growing space as-is, too. The wire-frame types allow a bit more light through, although we’ll still want to be pretty strategic as we lay out our under-the-bed totes, coffee cans, and 2L soda bottle planters.

We can also pretty cheaply and easily construct our own outdoor grow shelves with some cinder blocks and boards from darn-near anything we want to salvage. A couple coats of pant, and both our shelves and planters can even be cute.

Don’t forget: Soil holds water, and water is heavy. Build sturdy.

Canning Jars & Soup Cans

On the downer side of containers, let’s talk about the minis and micros. I know we’ve seen the cutesy DIY and retail racks of them, and I’ve suggested them myself. However, they’re even more limited and there are a few things to consider.

Some of the most frequent problems are even more exacerbated with glass jars, even the sizeable quarts and pasta sauce or pickle jars. See, those jars don’t breathe, and they’re rarely set up with even the drainage holes that cans are.

Plant roots must have oxygen to survive. That means we have to be careful with the soil types we use and how much we water them.

Flip side: Super-small containers dry out very easily, especially outdoors or in a sunny window. We may end up watering them a couple times a day to meet their needs without drowning roots.

We also have to look at the size. That goes to both the specific plant in each micro container and how many containers we’ll have.

Aquaponics, hydroponics, and aeroponics get away with super-small root space and soil/media plugs due to their oxygenated conditions and plants’ ability to expand their roots well past their small plug into the air, water, or media around them. Micro and mini planters are much more restricted.

A larger plant like rosemary, basil, and sage just isn’t going to be happy and healthy limited to a soup can or pint jar. Even a quart jar is pushing it, and will seriously stunt our plant.

Sometimes stunting is fine, but how much of our herbs are we looking at taking off at a time if the plant never gets much bigger than six or eight inches? How many tiny containers would it take to harvest reasonable amounts from those larger herbs?

There are herbs that are self-limiting enough to do well in tiny containers, and herbs that yield fast enough and get used in amounts that make it reasonable even if we only have one or two – chives, parsley, and especially the lemon-flavored balm and thyme among them.

There are also microgreens and small cut-and-come again greens that work well in even small soup cans because we can select harvest a leaf or two from a dozen and have ourselves a small salad, taco/wrap filler, or sandwich toppers.

We can also look to our wild edibles in many cases, or the less-common edibles.

If I’m growing peas for their spinach-like sprouts and tips, a small container and low number is fine. Wild violet, henbit, wood sorrel, bittercress, wild mustard, onion grass, and chickweed all handle cut-and-come-again grazing and small containers well – and handle them better than some of our domestic lettuces, mini mustards, and baby spinach.

Those restrictions commonly apply to pockets in hanging shoe organizer gardens, gutter-type gardens, and other cutsey stuff like hanging coffee mugs for planters.

They’re not total bunk. I’ve included them in small-space and winter growing suggestions. But when we’re growing for production — not decoration — the size, per-container and in-total harvest amounts, and some of the plant health issues require consideration.

The extra soil space in vertical pallet gardens, 2L bottles, larger pickle jars, and coffee tubs increases our options for planting, but as with any “small” garden we still want to pay attention to yield factors.

Upcycled Container Gardens

There’s plenty to be said for conventional raised and in-ground beds, but containers have their benefits, too. While there are some downsides, especially the micro-mini containers, they can all give our production big boosts and increase our growing season and versatility.

There are plenty of options out there available for curbside pickup, from filing cabinets and desk drawers to shelves where we can stack cut-down soda bottles. There are also options like laundry baskets that are pennies on the dollar what the same volume bucket/keg or weather-hardy tote would be if we can’t salvage what we want.

With so many options, there’s no reason not to get started right now, taking advantage of end-of-season seed and soil/compost sales to get some autumn salads and roots on our plates. Go get dirty!

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11 Powerful Plants That Kill Pain Fast

The art of healing comes from nature and not from the physician. Therefore, the physician must start from nature with an open mind.

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Prepping-Is America Ready?

Written by Guest Contributor on The Prepper Journal.

Editors Note: An article from Blade Johnson to The Prepper Journal. If you have information for Preppers that you would like to share then enter into the Prepper Writing Contest with a chance to win one of three Amazon Gift Cards with the top prize being a $300 card to purchase your own prepping supplies!

The act of prepping has been around for centuries, the only change has been the technology preppers have come across throughout the years. From the ancients to the present day indigenous peoples have been storing food and supplies to survive. Since Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the act of prepping has skyrocketed. There were many mistakes made during this natural disaster to include mistakes made by the government. Given the amount of lost lives following the storm as well as the shortage of food and water immediately after, Americans have begun storing their own preparations to ensure their survival. A prepper has at a minimum ten basic items when they begin to prepare but many go much further than those ten items. Prior to Hurricane Katrina as well as today there are many Americans that feel prepping is unnecessary or a waste of money, but a prepper would say differently. As you will learn, prepping goes back generations, involves many different scenarios, and is done on many different scales. America has failed to prepare to survive in the past, and many Americans still do so we will look deeper into how to fix this problem and why those that do prepare do what they do. Keywords: Prepping, survival, disaster, preparedness,  emergency.

Prepping: Is America Ready?

According to Tom Perry of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, “The need for preparation is abundantly clear. The great blessing of being prepared gives us freedom from fear” (Perry, 1995). It seems more and more Americans are losing their lives when a disaster strikes due to being unprepared. American families should be more prepared to respond to natural disasters that are likely to occur in their area in order to ensure their survivability. It may be unclear to some by now what a prepper is, so to fully understand what will be discussed someone must first understand who they are.

A prepper can be a man, woman, child, or family that has seen history and the types of disasters that have occurred and has begun stockpiling items to allow themselves to be safe if these events occur. When starting out most preppers rely on the basics such as food, water, ammunition, and weapons in order to remain in their home when disaster strikes. While many view preppers as crazy people or someone that simply stores unneeded provisions, preppers are simply wanting to ensure their survival. While many believe an emergency and a disaster are the same thing there are slight differences. An emergency is a sudden or unforeseen combination of circumstances or the resulting state that calls for immediate action (Emergency, n.d.). A disaster is a sudden calamitous event bringing great damage, loss, or destruction (Disaster, n.d.). There are many situations preppers use as their reasoning for being prepared such as economic failure, acts of nature, political upheaval, solar flare, Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP) to name the most common ones. All of these situations are likely to occur at any time so remaining prepared at all times as Tom Perry stated allows us to be more in control of our outcome and lessons our fear.

Disaster preparedness should never distract a person from meeting life’s other needs and responsibilities (Bradley, n.d.). While prepping should be heavy on a prepper’s mind, family and friends as well as work should be most important on anyone’s mind. No matter the situation, emergency, or disaster occurring there are many more important things than worrying about supplies or plans at times when family needs to come first.

History of Prepping

The art or act of prepping dates back centuries. While many of us only have learned about preparedness in recent years, one of the earliest stories known referring to the topic is the story of Noah’s Ark. While many know not the story of Noah a brief background shows the Bible states:

“11 Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. 12 God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. 13 So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth. 14 So make yourself an ark of cypress[c] wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. 15 This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high.[d] 16 Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit[e] high all around.[f] Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks. 17 I am going to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will perish. 18 But I will establish my covenant with you, and you will enter the ark—you and your sons and your wife and your sons’ wives with you. 19 You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you. 20 Two of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive. 21 You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them. (Long, 2011)”

Given the story of Noah we can see that although commanded, Noah stored supplies for survival on-board the ark for survival of the coming flood. Given the preparation of food and providing for the animals, once the flood waters receded one year later life was able to flourish once again. While this was an extreme case of prepping, through-out the years, following the same methods and ideas were used throughout history.

Through the Middle Ages, if not for preparing the population would have perished. During the Middle Ages, the cost of feeding an animal in the winter months was so high the animals were usually slaughtered and the meat stored. Prior to the invention of heaters and electricity, wood was also a large product stored away for winter in order to remain warm during the cold months. These practices remained for many years until amenities such as electricity were invented. As technology progressed, while prepping has become easier, it seems fewer maintain the mindset. Through-out the 1900’s preparing was encouraged in support of the war efforts that were ongoing. It wasn’t until the 1970’s when the term “survivalist” was coined and “Famine and Survival in America” was written that preppers gained their negative view (Duff, 2017). Following the term and book being written, the media took it upon themselves to label those that took part in preparing as crazy, racist, and even anti-government which pushed many away from preparing for themselves and the ones they love. Starting in the early 2000’s when the tragic event know today as September 11th occurred, many began to look back into preparing and surviving. While this event started the large rise in preppers it was ultimately Hurricane Katrina and the lack of response by the government that pushed many back into the prepper lifestyle. While the views are not as negative today there are many that still believe those deemed “preppers” are still anti-government and crazy.

Today’s Generations and Preparing

The art of preparing has been around for centuries, it is the technology and generations that have changed. While more widely accepted today, we will look into the modern generations and their preparedness or lack of.

There are several generations we will examine, those around today,  Millennials, Gen-X, and the Baby Boomer. These generations were chosen based on the fact that most generations past these have come and gone. According to a study conducted by Pureprofile, 2000 Americans were surveyed and it was found that an estimated 68 million people, or 1 in 4, recently purchased survival gear due to an election or natural occurrence outside of our control (Doomsday prepper statistics, n.d.). More than 160 million American adults (65.45%) are estimated to have either recently purchased survival gear or, interestingly, are already in possession of survival gear because they always keep them on hand. The remaining 85 million (34.55%) are not preparing for the end of the world as we know it. Of those who report prepping, 36.35% spent up to $400 on survival kits in the past 12 months (Doomsday prepper statistics, n.d.).

Baby Boomers

The Baby Boomer generation are known as those born between the years of 1946 and 1964. This generation range in ages from mid 50s to early 70s and according to the study conducted by Prueprofile, have bought the least amount of survival gear recently. Having witnessed, been a part of, or heard about the Great Appalachian Storm of November 1950, the preparation should be even more relevant now due to age. Being that this generation lived through rougher struggles than most of us, one would think that they would be the most willing to be prepared. It seems as age grows the dependency on others or the government becomes a part of life as well. Or, the gear they bought long ago still meets their needs.

Generation X

The Gen-X generation range in birth years between the early 1960s and the early 1980s. According to the study conducted 31% of the Gen-X population recently purchased survival items. While just slightly behind the Millennials in prepping, Gen-X has been through their share of disasters. Between the early 1960s and 1980s this generation saw disasters such as Hurricane Camille killing 256 people and the 1974 Super Outbreak of tornadoes totaling 148 tornadoes and killing 315 people.

The Millennial’s

One of the top and youngest generations preparing would be the Millennials generation with 38% of them recently purchasing survival items. It is believed most of this comes from the more recent and stronger disasters that have occurred. Being that this generation was born between 1982 and 1993, they have seen horrible events such as the Oklahoma City bombing, September 11th, and Hurricane Katrina.

Having a Plan

Having a plan is among the most important preparations a survivalist or prepper can have. While states, counties/parishes, and cities have Emergency Action Plans (EAP), having one for the home is just as important. These EAPs allow the community and surrounding communities to know how response will occur given a particular disaster as well as allowing the citizens to gain the knowledge of what they should do given a certain type of disaster.
A part of having a family EAP is to allow the family to know and understand what they need to accomplish in an emergency situation. These plans need to include all members of the family especially if the plan includes children, special needs, and the elderly. When these participants are included into a plan it is likely there will be more precautions needed to be taken such as extra medications, oxygen, or equipment. Coming from a special needs parent personally, there are many added stresses and items needed to prepare for yourself and someone with special needs. From a personal view, a created binder with a family EAP, copies of all important documents, and information about my child with special needs was added to ensure it is a grab and go type situation if evacuation is forced upon us.

Recently in the news it was shown that a Category 5 hurricane will strike the islands of Hawaii, but what is worse than just the storm hitting is the lack of preparedness. The news stations were showing local consumers piled into a store buying any and all necessary items to survive the storm that is coming. While this is one way to prepare, having the items already available prior to a storm and not going after items last minute allows for a less stressful personal environment and more time for last minute preparations such as boarding windows. Having friends living in Hawaii and knowing people from the islands, questions were asked about how prepared they were. After asking more than 20 friends, the conclusion was gathered that most wait until the last minute or they know there is no escaping disaster to gather supplies. There were also many that stated the government would help them after the storm, so instead of relying on themselves they are relying on someone else.

Supplies

Supplies and supply lists are never the same nor do they ever have specific items a person should store. While all lists are suggestions it is ultimately up to the person taking preparing into consideration. Regardless of the list a prepper finds or a YouTube video they watch there are normally ten basics everyone should follow or begin with. The following are a preppers ten basic items: food, water, security, shelter, hygiene/first aid, cooking, lighting/power, tools/misc./entertainment, sanitation, and communication (Henry, 2014).
Many people coming into prepping can be overwhelmed with the prices of items as well as quantity of different items that complete the same task. Prepping is based on a budget and the prepper’s budget decides where the prepper may want to shop. What is meant by this is that if a prepper is on a limited budget most if not all items can be purchased at a store such as Dollar Tree, but if the prepper has an unlimited budget or is not looking to worry about price as much they may look at larger retail stores such as Bass Pro Shop or Cabala’s, Amazon, Costco and so on. While the qualities will be significantly different, at least the items are within the prepper’s inventory.

Speaking of inventory, maintaining an inventory of items is a vital part of prepping. Knowing when items were purchased, how long they last, how many a prepper has, and what is still needed will help keep a prepper on track. While many items can maintain their usage following an expiration or use by date, there are items that can be harmful following these dates.

Scenarios

Now that most aspects of prepping have been touched upon, scenarios of why people prep must be explored. While most prepare for natural disasters there are those preparing for events such as an economic collapse, political upheaval or even an invasion from another country. Websites such as Ready.gov or FEMA.gov provide many scenarios as well as a guide of how to prep. Using the timeline provided within Ready.gov a new prepper can begin a routine and learn what they must do prior to, during, and after the disaster occurs. Regardless of the reasoning for preparing, in order to ensure survival it must occur.

In a country where the unpredictable occurs almost daily, many would believe prepping should occur with each and every citizen in the United States. While many have given important views on this same topic there are those that tend to stick out such as Gen. Patton or even Stephen King. Another wise man, Benjamin Franklin, once said the best words, “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail”. In other words if people do not prepare for what is to come people will not survive what is coming. With that said I leave you with this question to take how you’d like. If the government is stockpiling food, water, weapons, ammo and medical supplies do you think it is a good time for you to do the same?

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References
Bradley, A. (n.d.). The Disaster Preparedness Handbook. New York: Skyhorse Publishing.
Disaster. (n.d.). Retrieved from Merriam Webster: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disaster
Doomsday prepper statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved from Finder: https://www.finder.com/doomsday-prepper-statistics
Duff, B. (2017, May 9). The History of Prepping. Retrieved from Mind 4 Survival: https://mind4survival.com/the-history-of-prepping/
Emergency. (n.d.). Retrieved from Merriam Webster: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/emergency
Emerson, C. (2016). 100 Deadly Skills: Survival Edition. New York: Touchstone.
Henry, P. (2014, February 26). Prepping 101. Retrieved from The Prepper Journal: http://www.theprepperjournal.com/2014/02/26/preppers-list-of-supplies/
Long, H. (2011). Holy Bible. Colorado Springs: Biblica Inc. Retrieved from https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+6&version=NIV
Perry, T. L. (1995, October). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Retrieved from If Ye Are Prepared Ye Shall Not Fear: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1995/10/if-ye-are-prepared-ye-shall-not-fear?lang=eng
Plan Ahead for Disasters. (n.d. ). Retrieved from ready.gov: https://www.ready.gov/
Pred, J. (2015). Emergency Survival Manual 294 Life-Saving Skills. San Francisco : Weldon Owen.
Preparing for Disaster for People with Disabilities and other Special Needs. (2004, August 1). Retrieved from FEMA.gov: https://www.fema.gov/media-library-data/20130726-1445-20490-6732/fema_476.pdf
Stahlberg, R. (2010). The Armageddon Survival Handbook. New York: Skyhorse Publishing.
Walton, J. (2018, May 23). American Preppers Network. Retrieved from Inspire Those Around you to Start Prepping: http://americanpreppersnetwork.com/2018/05/inspire-those-around-you-to-start-prepping.html

 

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